Join Whale Rock faculty for a week of writing and community

What To Expect

Our week includes:

• Two one-on-one meetings, each with a different instructor
• One-on-one meeting with Miranda Paul
• Daily writing time
• Communal meals
• Optional prompts
• Relaxed community time with fellow writers
  
  

This Retreat Is For You If

• You are drafting or revising a novel OR working on a series of picture books
• You need or want dedicated time to work on a project
• You feel like you’ve been writing in a vacuum and you seek community
• You are on a deadline and need to make progress on your project quickly
• You’ve lost momentum on a manuscript
• You would benefit from expert insight into your project or process
• You’ve only met Whale Rock friends and faculty online, and you’d love the opportunity to connect in person
• You have been looking for an opportunity to get some industry feedback

*NOTE: There is no submission required for this event.

Faculty

Gary Schmidt, Shelley Tanaka and Kathryn Erskine will be your hosts.

Agent Miranda Paul will be our special guest.

About Miranda:

Miranda Paul joined Erin Murphy Literary Agency in 2019, and maintains a small but mighty client list of authors and author-illustrators. Miranda represents both fiction and nonfiction, from board books through young adult, and the very occasional adult project. In addition to agenting, Miranda is the award-winning author of more than twenty books for children including One Plastic Bag (illus. Elizabeth Zunon), Speak Up (ill. Ebony Glenn), and Water is Water (illus. Jason Chin). 

Important Details

Lodging

• Private rooms and shared bathrooms in the hall. (Within this category we have numerous queen and king bedrooms, a few basement rooms, and two "lux" rooms with a shared bathroom and a shared private den space. This last option is ideal for two friends traveling together.) 
• Private rooms and private bathrooms.
• One twin room, which can be shared by two friends to bring costs down.

**Contact us for an adjusted price if you would like to share a queen or king room with a friend or if you would like to take a full house with friends. (Additional sofa beds are an option for groups renting an entire home.)

Work Space: Each house has a kitchen table and we aim to get a second table into each house as well. Additionally, the property has a bright, three-story event space with windows looking out at the property. Each floor has tables where you can work. There will be at least one "quiet" work floor and one chatting floor in the event space.

Food

Refund & Payment Policies:

• There is a $500 non-refundable deposit. Tuition must be paid in full by August 30, 2025. Students who register after August 30 must pay in full when they sign up.
• LAST MINUTE ILLNESS POLICY: As of 2023, there will be no exceptions to our refund policy for students who become ill at the last minute. Students will also be able to schedule one-on-one meetings with faculty at an agreed upon date. Students will be given access to previously recorded workshops from our library.
  

PLEASE NOTE: We continue to give tremendous thought to your health and safety as well as the health and safety of our staff and instructors. We have chosen a location with a great deal of outdoor space, but we recognize that it is November. For the safety of our instructors and attendees, we ask everyone to exercise caution for the two weeks prior to our workshop.

Workshop Size