Residential Writing Week: Starting to Write

Do you feel unsure about how to get your writing off the ground? Do you want to get your flying machine of ideas into the air and landing on the dreaded blank page? What about support for writing you’ve already started? If you’re a new or fledgling writer, keen to explore fiction and poetry in a warm and supportive environment, this course will help your writing take flight.

With the encouraging guidance of acclaimed novelist and short story writer Jacob Ross, and prize-winning poet Vicky Morris, you’ll experience a week packed with inspiring ways into writing. Through stimulating exercises, lively discussion and individual feedback, you’ll develop your ideas, skills and writing confidence. With Jacob, you’ll learn to build strong dramatic stories from simple ideas, and present characters more powerfully on the page. You’ll learn the effective use of dialogue in your writing along with techniques that will make your stories memorable. With Vicky, you’ll explore the most important building blocks of great poems, and through guided practice, you will develop your poetry muscle and strengthen your poetic voice.

You will leave the course with invaluable tips and tricks to keep honing your craft, exciting first drafts, and the momentum and conviction to let your words fly.

As part of our exciting new Arvon North programme, we are offering Arvon retreats and live events in Hebden Bridge as we prepare for the redevelopment of  Lumb Bank. Working with our partners at IOU Hostel in Hebden Bridge we will be offering the Arvon experience in a brand new setting. Our Arvon takeover will include exclusive use of the 14-bedroom hostel with workshop, tutorial and quiet writing space (inside and out) in a magical woodland setting at the heart of one of Yorkshire’s most creative and inspiring towns.

The course will be hosted by the team from Arvon’s Lumb Bank and is fully catered (no group cooking), all food is vegetarian. All rooms are single occupancy with an en-suite, and the hostel is located within Hebden Bridge.

Single en-suite room, fully catered: £895

Limited concessions: £626.50

If concessions are available, they will show at checkout.

The Hostel is fully accessible with a disabled car park and step free access to the Hostel door. On the ground floor is an accessible toilet as well as a double accessible bedroom with full ensuite facilities. If you have any questions or concerns before booking, please contact lumbbank@arvon.org.

General Access Information for Residential Writing Weeks:

Available on all courses for those who are Deaf, Partially Deaf or who have significant hearing loss

We provide BSL interpreters on some courses. If you require this please check whether the course you are interested in offers this facility. Or get in touch on our dedicated access email: access@arvon.org

• We have a portable hearing loop system.
• We have a vibrating pillow pad linked to our fire alarm system.

Available on all courses for those who are blind, partially sighted or who have significant sight loss

• We welcome guide dogs
• We can provide information in large print and other formats, such as word documents or PDFs.
• We can provide large print handouts for workshops
• We can provide additional desk lamps
• There is external lighting for navigating around the property, fixed to the external elevations of the main house, front and back, as well as external buildings. Lighting is switched on and off manually by staff each day.

Available on all courses for those who have Dyslexia

There’s no need to worry about spelling, grammar or handwriting on our courses, the focus is on creativity.

• We can provide information on coloured paper
• We may be able to make arrangements such as sourcing audio of suggested reading.
• You are welcome to use any supportive technology during the sessions, such as a dictaphone or laptop.

Available on all courses to those who identify as Neuro Divergent

Arvon is committed to providing a supportive and welcoming environment to all.

• We can provide information on coloured paper
• We may be able to make arrangements such as sourcing audio of suggested reading.
• You are welcome to use any supportive technology during the sessions, such as a dictaphone or laptop.

If you need to take some time out to rest, or be alone, you’re welcome to do so. Participation in any activity is entirely at your discretion.