Writers for the Wild: Five Days in May

Next May the great Craig Childs and I will be in the shadow of the majestic 14,000-foot peaks of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains at the Zapata Ranch. You are invited to join us. We won’t be teaching, I hope, so much as leading an experience. I’ll post the official description below but the idea is to have a morning of generative writing (though we hope to include scientists and environmentalists and other folk as well as writers), hike some trails, watch some birds, dip in some cold water, and have vigorous salon-like discussions about the fate of the world (during cocktail hour).

This is the first of what I hope are a series of retreats we are calling Writers for the Wild.

Here’s the link: https://ranchlands.com/pages/writers-for-the-wild?fbclid=IwAR2aAPv62GCwVs5dgUdBmMeLAZJMV116VrgyNYa1-H0OmLEVgDtdj1Q2Hqo

 Here is the official description:

The Program

We will start each day with a generative writing exercise and discussion. Writers of all stripes are welcome, from beginners to published authors, but also scientists, environmentalists or anyone else concerned with the fate of our threatened world. The idea is to dig deep and begin to work on what is most important to you. This will be less a traditional workshop than a prod to thinking creatively about your own work and life. What do you want to do with yourself during your brief time on planet Earth?

“First be a good animal,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson. Exactly, though for us it will be second. Having exercised our minds, it is time for our bodies. Daily activities will include mountain hikes, natural history walks, horseback riding, birdwatching, and, for the brave, Wim Hoff-style cold dips and breathing/mediation sessions.

In the evening (cocktail hour) we will hold informal salon-style discussions about a wide-ranging series of issues from writing to climate change to the challenge of being a good animal in a virtual world to whatever the hell else we all feel like talking about. This can include readings from books that we love. A few brave folks may even be willing to read their own writing.

Then we will sleep well.