Every Stranger, A Universe
Everyone we pass is carrying a world we cannot see.
Rhythm of Events
Monday, 15 March — The Lives We Pass
| Time | Programme |
| 3:00–4:00 | Arrival, check-in, tea and something sweet |
| 4:00–4:30 | Welcome to Every Stranger, A Universe: introductions, practicalities and settling in |
| 4:30–6:30 | Opening Workshop |
| 6:30–8:30 | Collective dinner |
| 8:45 onward | Informal conversation, independent writing — or sleep for ye of long travel! |
Tuesday, 16 March — The Art of Asking
| Time | Programme |
| 7:00–9:00 | Quiet morning / optional early swim |
| 9:00–9:30 | Breakfast / optional Morning Pages in the conservatory |
| 9:30–11:30 | Workshop |
| 11:30–12:00 | Tea break |
| 12:00–1:00 | Guided Writing: The Person You Almost Didn’t Notice — begin with someone glimpsed only briefly and imagine the world beyond what you could see |
| 1:00–2:00 | Lunch |
| 2:00–6:30 | Open Afternoon — protected writing time, reading, wandering, people-watching, or optional one-to-one manuscript conferences |
| 6:30–7:30 | Collective dinner with our writing tutor |
| 7:45–9:00 | After Dark — sharing great words from great authors |
| 9:00 onward | Informal gathering / independent writing / free time |
Wednesday, 17 March — Other People’s Worlds
| Time | Programme |
| 7:00–9:00 | Quiet morning / optional early swim |
| 9:00–9:30 | Breakfast / optional Morning Pages in the conservatory |
| 9:30–11:30 | Workshop |
| 11:30–12:00 | Tea break |
| 12:00–1:00 | Guided Writing: What I Got Wrong About You — begin with an assumption, then let what you learn dismantle it |
| 1:00–2:00 | Lunch |
| 2:00–4:00 | Open Afternoon — independent writing, optional ramble or wander, reading, or one-to-one manuscript conferences |
| 4:00–4:30 | Tea and cake |
| 4:30–5:30 | Gathering Stories — conversations with invited story-sharers from the local community |
| 5:30–6:30 | Break |
| 6:30–7:30 | Collective dinner |
| 7:45–9:15 | Every Stranger, A Universe Open Mic Night — participant readings, stories and works in progress |
| 9:15 onward | Fireside gathering / independent writing / free time |
Thursday, 18 March — Look Again
| Time | Programme |
| 7:00–8:00 | Quiet morning / optional early swim |
| 8:00–9:00 | Breakfast / optional Morning Pages in the conservatory |
| 9:00–9:45 | Working Breakfast: Where Does the Work Go? — sharing our experiences with editors, submissions, agents and publication possibilities |
| 9:45–10:30 | Closing Guided Writing: The Life Beyond the Frame — take someone who has existed only at the edge of a piece of writing and give them the centre |
| 10:30–11:00 | Closing Circle — and don’t forget to autograph the Story Burn canvas! |
| 11:00 | Retreat concludes |
Core Anchor Texts
Used in Workshops and at Readings
We’ll read selected excerpts together. There is no expectation that you arrive having read any of these works. You’re welcome to bring other texts that speak to the week’s theme, or just to enjoy the collection presented.
- Elizabeth Strout — Olive Kitteridge
- The extraordinary private worlds concealed inside seemingly ordinary people — and how someone glimpsed at the edge of one story may contain another story entirely.
- Lucia Berlin — A Manual for Cleaning Women
- Cleaners, receptionists, hospital workers, mothers and others whose lives are easily passed over become impossible to overlook when a writer gives them her full attention.
- Edward P. Jones — Lost in the City
- Children, workers, parents, neighbours and strangers are given the density of entire lives — a reminder that no character, however briefly encountered, need ever be merely background.
- Lesley Nneka Arimah — What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky
- Realism, speculation, myth and the uncanny demonstrate how invention can sometimes reveal another human life more truthfully than literal representation.
- Studs Terkel — Working
- Waitresses, truck drivers, factory workers, salespeople, janitors, executives and farm workers describe what they actually do all day — and open unexpected doors into who they are.
People You’ll Meet
During the retreat, you’ll step outside the workshop and into the community, interviewing people whose work puts them in contact with the rhythms of other people’s lives: a bus driver, butcher, gardener, care worker, cleaner, barber, grocery clerk, and others whose days unfold at the heart of a place but whose stories are rarely given the space of a protagonist.
Insert Image https://unsplash.com/photos/raw-meat-on-display-counter-qgfjZUXup1M
The purpose is not to search for someone exceptional. It is to listen well enough to discover what is exceptional in the person in front of you.