Check Back Soon for details about the 2013
Extraordinary Time Writer’s Retreat in Historic New Harmony

End of Morning Yoga at The Roofless Church – Writers In Savasana as Cathy Reads a Poem

The It’s Not Just Creative Writing, It’s Creative Living,
Come Play With Us Writer’s Retreat

In Historic New Harmony
August 13-17, 2012

Do you write because you must?

Do you find the time you spend at the page some of the most rewarding time you’ve ever experienced?
Do you find your writing time hard to come by?

New Harmony Labyrinth

Do you have something to say? Is there a story burning inside you that needs to be written?

Maybe you have a daily writing practice.

Maybe you fit your writing in when you can.

Maybe you want to get started writing.

Let’s face it. Writing requires more than passion and skill, more than imagination and pluck. It also requires Time & Space. And not just any time and any space. But uninterrupted time in a quiet separate place.

Think of all you could do with some uninterrupted time and space.

Imagine not having any chores to do, or any meals to prepare.

As a matter of fact, imagine someone preparing your meals for you.

Imagine starting your day by moving your body, nourishing your mind and your imagination.

How about spending time with other writers.

Sharing that creative passion. You know, the one your friends and family might not understand.

Throw in some tips, prompts, and recipes to spark your imagination and get your creative juices flowing.

Don’t forget craft workshops to enhance what you already know. And Yoga As Muse workshops that explore ways to tap into the mind-body connection so you can silence your inner critic, gain focus, and maintain momentum.

Did we mention gentle morning yoga? Or breathing techniques to help you create new neurons?
That’s right, you can start reshaping your brain. 
And learning new habits that make a writer’s life not just a dream but a reality.

Public Garden in New Harmony

You need time to write? You get time.

You need space? We hold the space for you so you can get in touch with yourself at a whole other level.

Take strolls through town.
Take a notebook to the park, listen to the birds, enjoy the art.
How about a relaxing bike ride.
Visit the roofless church or the garden and be inspired.
Walk the labyrinth or go for a hike at Harmonie State Park and get in touch with nature.

Need more? We’ve got more!

August 13-17, 2012
New Harmony Inn
in Historic New Harmony, Indiana

Want to bring more joy, health, direction, soul, playfulness, and consistency to your writing life?

If you love to write; if you want to learn how your health and lifestyle impact your creativity; if you’re curious about the mind-body connection; if you need a nurturing get-away that offers a healthy balance of dynamic workshops, peaceful natural settings for reflection, and solitude for writing, The It’s Not Just Creative Writing, It’s Creative Living, Come Play With Us Writer’s Retreat is for you!

Yes, beginners are absolutely welcome. So are accomplished scribes.

What will be in the mix? Morning yoga and meditation to get you into the flow; Yoga as Muse and traditional craft writing workshops; holistic health presentations; a labyrinth workshop; 3 passionate, dedicated, and quirky guides ready to hold space for you so you can get your wild, wonderful, wise, weird, we’ve-been-waiting-long-enough-to-be-heard words on the page!

I can speak from experience. A writer’s retreat can change your life!

It’s not just about time to write. It’s about being able to unplug from all the distractions in your busy life and to immerse yourself completely at the page.

How often do you get that chance?

It can make all the difference in working through an obstacle. Add in the strategies we’ll give you and you’ll be able to create time for your writing and then to make the most of that time once you get back home.

This retreat is the ideal place to reconnect with your reason for writing. Or, maybe, to connect with that part of yourself for the very first time.

What are some of the most challenging issues writers face?

We’re not writing because:
Life is too hectic
We procrastinate
Self doubt gets in the way – we’re not sure we have anything to say or that we can say it well enough
We want to write, but it takes so much emotional energy to go there
We feel guilt when we’re not writing
We feel guilty for not spending writing time with our families
None of my friends get it

So what are you going to do about it?

Here is some of what we’re going to do about it – we offer you:

• Space and time to write (in a setting that’s all about serenity and peace of mind)
• A safe environment conducive to creativity
• Techniques for overcoming self-doubt and fear which might be keeping you from the page
• Insight regarding the importance and the value of honoring your creativity
• Strategies on how to craft a life that includes work, family, friends and creativity
• We’re not just going to tell you about the impact of the mind-body connection on your writing, your health, your happiness, we’re going to let you experience for yourself how you can use that connection to your advantage
• Tips on how to look deep within and get a sense of your stories
• Craft workshops to help you understand the “how” of telling your stories
• Opportunities for sharing: your struggles, your intentions, your concerns, your writing.
• Deep listening – we’ll listen to you and we’ll offer support and encouragement. By the end of the week you’ll be listening to yourself and to your body even more
• Three (that’s right, three) compassionate, intuitive, award-winning, supportive, fun coaches

The It’s Not Just Creative Writing, It’s Creative Living, Come Play With Us Writer’s Retreat will help you:

• Learn practical tools you can use to write with intention, perseverance, focus and clarity;
• Listen deeply to your body to discover your authentic self (the reason you’re probably in this whole writing thing in the first place);
• Listen deeply to your body to tap into the stories stored there;
• Sculpt time to be At the Page;
• Specific tools and techniques to develop and to maintain a consistent writing practice;
• Experience writing as a way to connect with your authentic self;
• Be part of a supportive community of peers that is committed to writing and listening together
• Time for you. Just you! (each day you’ll get time to disappear if you want, to explore New Harmony or your writing or yourself)
• Remember not just how it feels to play, but how play can benefit your  life
• Write into your stories;
• Recharge;

What TOOLS do we, your facilitators, have to offer?

Yoga Teacher certification
Yoga as Muse Creativity Coaching
Holistic Health Coaching
Meditation (includes basic yogic breathing, as well as walking meditation outside weather permitted)
Mind-body holistic health approach to life and creativity
Advanced degrees in Education & Writing (MFA’s from one of the top-ten writing programs in the US)
Experience as . . .
Teachers,
Writing Instructors,
Coaches,
Facilitators,
Students,
Award-Winning Writers,
Editors,
(oh yeah, and a former Writing Program Director)

AN AVERAGE DAY

Gentle Morning Yoga
Breakfast
Morning large group presentations/workshops
Lunch
Post-lunch small group break out sessions/mini-workshops
Free time (to create, reflect, recharge, explore, or to do whatever you want/need to do)
Outdoor activities (walking, hiking, bike rides, soaking up tranquility, exploring the various parks and gardens in town)
Afternoon also time for One-on-One coaching (if desired, arrangements may be made for one-on-one coaching to help get you started for an additional fee)
Evening/relaxation yoga (this is optional)
Informal evening readings (purely voluntary)

Final day – morning yoga, breakfast, recap, take-aways, mala share of some snippets written during the week.

Daily activities include, but are not limited to – morning yoga, craft workshops, mini-workshops, free-time.
There are serene gardens, quaint parks, and wonderful outdoor spaces to get away and write or to just catch
your breath and recharge.

Every participant gets her/his own private room with a writing table, so you can take what you learn in workshop
even further, as well as private bath. Nearby gardens, labyrinths, and hiking trails also offer a chance to get out
and enjoy nature.

*Please note: dinner is on your own and is not included in the cost of the retreat.

Meet Your Facilitators

Terry Price

Terry Price: An accomplished photographer, long distance cyclist, traveler, Appalachian Trail hiker, and sailor – Terry likes to keep things moving. He’s earned a living as an optician, a radio and television sports anchor and play-by-play announcer, and an attorney, though after twenty-four years of practicing law, Terry decided to follow his life calling and now writes, coaches, mentors and leads writing and creative retreats full-time. Terry earned an MFA in Writing from Spalding University in Louisville and serves as Director Emeritus of The Writer’s Loft. He’s published several short stories, has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He lives on a small farm in Springfield, Tennessee with his family and two dogs, two goats, a small herd of Longhorns and lots of squirrels. When he’s not to the page, working with others or spending time with the family, you’ll likely find him out on a sailboat, or a bike or taking a hike.

A quote Terry likes: “Inside you there’s an artist you don’t know about . . . Say yes quickly, if you know, if you’ve known it before the beginning of the universe.” ~ Jalai ud-Din Rumi

Cathy Shap

Cathy Shap: Cathy is passionate about motivating people to embark on a quest of self-discovery through creative expression, engagement with the natural world, and healthy living. She’s the mom of 4 healthy kids, a poet and writer, a college writing instructor, entrepreneur, yoga teacher, holistic health coach, and Yoga as Muse facilitator. Her poetry and writing has appeared in several national journals, and she was recently nominated to Best New Poets, 2012. For the past several years she has been following her heart toward a place where her interests, calling, skills, talents, and responsibilities can weave themselves into a close-knit circle of friends. She loves good food, long walks in the woods, reading to her daughter at night, and falling asleep in the summer to the haunting but soothing sound of loons. “Where are you, where are you?”

A quote Cathy likes: “Don’t be afraid of sweetness.” ~ Pablo Neruda

Dave DeGolyer

Dave DeGolyer: Together with Cathy, Dave DeGolyer co-founded The Best Me, a holistic creativity & wellness business located in Michigan. Dave is an award-winning poet and young adult fiction writer. Under the pseudonym of Lafayette Wattles, he has published over 90 poems in print and online and was twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize for Poetry and for Best New Poets. He brings to his writing and to his facilitating an affinity for infusing serious subject matter with humor. A former educator, Dave enjoys drawing on his background in sports (as an athlete and a coach), writing (as a poet, novelist, essayist and an assistant editor), and yoga (as a teacher and a student) to create engaging workshops that are a blend of movement, mindfulness, laughter, and craft.

A quote Dave likes: “I must write it all out, at any cost. Writing is thinking. It is more than living, for it is being conscious of living.” ~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Meet Your Destination

Ever since it was founded nearly 300 years ago, New Harmony has been a destination for thinkers and artists, scientists and scholars; for people searching for mental, emotional, and spiritual balance or harmony.



It offers the isolation needed for creating art, yet a chance to share in and to build your own community of like-minded peers. Its laid back atmosphere and natural spaces provide the perfect setting for contemplation, meditation, inspiration, and creative exploration.

Pond At New Harmony Inn



Known as much today, perhaps, for it’s idyllic gardens, peaceful paths, and tranquility as for it’s rich history as a former utopian community, New Harmony is one of those places that offers you the chance to reconnect with yourself and to rejuvenate your spirit. It’s a place you have to experience for yourself.

“Surrounded by towering trees, gently rolling hills, and tranquil ponds, the acclaimed New Harmony Inn offers a peaceful retreat from the bustle of daily life. Set in a charming town, filled with art, gardens and original architecture.” Complimentary bicycles are available for casual rides around town, though the Inn is ideally located and within walking distance of pretty much everything. The Inn also boasts exceptional food at the Red Geranium Restaurant and The Grapevine Pub.



Retreat Fees




Single Room with Private Bath: $1495



*EARLY BIRD SPECIAL $1395

That’s right, if you register and pay in full by JUNE 1, 2012, you save $100 AND get a one hour coaching session with Cathy, Dave, or Terry!

Deposit required to register $300.

Register and pay your deposit by JUNE 1, 2012, you save $100.

IF YOU HAVE TO CANCEL
If you cancel before June 14, 2012, we will refund all but $150 of your deposit or balance paid in full.
If you cancel after June 14, 2012 your deposit of $300 is non-refundable, due to our contract with the New Harmony Inn.
All monies are due June 30, 2012. 
If you need a payment plan, we can do that.

New Harmony Inn – Bedroom

What exactly do you get?
*Your own PRIVATE ROOM (with private bath and writing desk)
*Breakfast every day
*Lunch every day
*Conference room space for workshops
*Use of all New Harmony Inn amenities
*A variety of large group and small group workshops (with tips, techniques, and strategies) designed to foster creativity, nurture your muse, help you develop and maintain a writer’s life even after you return home
*Access to a cool town with its history and its sundry venues for slowing down and catching up with yourself and with your dreams
*THREE experienced and diversely trained teachers/coaches/mentors
*Free time to write, to revive your creative spirit, to rest, to rejuvenate, and to explore.
*A sense of community and belonging

If you have any questions, please contact us at thebestme(at)creativeandhealthy(dot)com.

Photo Credit:

New Harmony Labyrinth courtesy University of Southern Indiana
Public Garden in New Harmony
Pond at New Harmony Inn & Bedroom courtesy of New Harmony Inn