A balanced, realistic itinerary is crucial to a writing retreat's success. You will construct your itinerary using these building blocks:
Below, we'll provide some sample retreat itineraries. The amount of structure they provide may surprise you. Why assign such specific timings to writing blocks and breaks? Why not just meet up at 10am, say, and then agree to write for the next 8 hours?
Fair questions! However, structure is one of the 'secret ingredients' that make retreats such productive environments. The clear timeline enables writers to set—and actually stick to—realistic goals, and taking planned breaks nurtures both the physical and mental energy needed to make the most of the day.
Your itinerary needs to include time for goal setting and reflection, breaks, and (of course) writing—but beyond that, details like start/end times, the number and length of writing sessions, etc. can be customised to meet the needs of your group. For example...
Click through the tabs below to view sample itineraries. When you find a baseline itinerary that you like, download the Word version at the top of the box to adapt and share with your retreat group. All three itineraries are also included in the DIY Writing Retreat Toolkit - Downloadable Companion document (link will open file).
This itinerary follows a structure similar to many one-day retreats hosted in university contexts (hence 'classic'). Its start/end times align with typical business hours. You'll notice it offers writing sessions of a few different lengths.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 9:15-9:30 |
Welcome Arrange work areas, chat, and settle in with coffee/tea. |
| 9:30-9:45 |
Goal Setting Set goals for the day, assign specific goals to writing sessions, and discuss. |
| 9:45-10:45 |
Writing Session 1 5 minutes to review/discuss session goals; 50 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 10:45-11:00 | Break |
| 11:00-12:30 |
Writing Session 2 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 80 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 12:30-13:30 | Lunch |
| 13:30-14:30 |
Writing Session 3 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 50 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 14:30-14:45 | Break |
| 14:45-15:45 |
Writing Session 4 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 50 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 15:45-16:30 |
Wellbeing/Activity Break 45 minutes to recharge (e.g. walking, stretching/yoga, crafts, frisbee, board games, etc.—TBD by you). |
| 16:30-17:45 |
Writing Session 5 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 65 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 17:45-18:00 |
Wrap-Up and Final Reflections Individually, record post-retreat next steps/goals; as a group, reflect on how the retreat went. |
A half-day retreat is a great way to accommodate busy schedules and individual circumstances that could make a full day tougher to manage. This example illustrates a half-day retreat with an early bird start, but the timeline can be bumped forward to midday or evening to suit your group.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 6:30-7:00 |
Breakfast * Everyone could arrive already fed, of course, but a communal meal is a nice way to start the day! |
| 7:00-7:15 |
Welcome Arrange work areas, chat, and settle in with coffee/tea. |
| 7:15-7:30 |
Goal Setting Set goals for the day, assign specific goals to writing sessions, and discuss. |
| 7:30-8:30 |
Writing Session 1 5 minutes to review/discuss session goals; 50 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 8:30-8:45 | Break |
| 8:45-9:45 |
Writing Session 2 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 50 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 9:45-10:15 |
Break Take a walk, stretch, etc. to recharge for final session. |
| 10:15-11:45 |
Writing Session 3 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 80 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 11:45-12:00 |
Wrap-Up and Final Reflections Individually, record post-retreat next steps/goals; as a group, reflect on how the retreat went. |
The previous two itineraries feature writing sessions of 45-90 minutes each. This itinerary is instead built around 25-minute Pomodoro cycles. Experiment with this itinerary if you suspect shorter 'sprints' of writing may work better for your group than longer blocks. This example is set in the afternoon/evening, but the timeline can be bumped back if a morning or midday start is preferable.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 15:00-15:15 |
Welcome Arrange work areas, chat, and settle in with coffee/tea. |
| 15:15-15:30 |
Goal Setting Set goals for the day, assign specific goals to writing sessions, and discuss. |
| 15:30-15:55 |
Writing Session 1 5 minutes to review/discuss session goals; 20 minutes work. |
| 15:55-16:00 | Mini-Break |
| 16:00-16:25 |
Writing Session 2 25 minutes work. |
| 16:25-16:30 |
Mini-Break |
| 16:30-16:55 |
Writing Session 3 20 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 16:55-17:15 |
Break 20 minutes to stretch, have a quick walk, eat a snack, etc. |
| 17:15-17:40 |
Writing Session 4 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 20 minutes work. |
| 17:40-17:45 |
Mini-Break |
| 17:45-18:10 |
Writing Session 5 20 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 18:10-19:00 |
Dinner/Wellbeing Break Eat dinner and get a break from screens (e.g. walking, stretching/yoga, crafts, frisbee, board games). |
| 19:00-19:25 |
Writing Session 6 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 20 minutes work. |
| 19:25-19:30 |
Mini-Break |
| 19:30-19:55 |
Writing Session 7 20 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 19:55-20:00 | Mini-Break |
| 20:00-20:25 |
Writing Session 8 5 minutes to update/discuss session goals; 20 minutes work. |
| 20:25-20:30 | Mini-Break |
| 20:30-20:55 |
Writing Session 9 20 minutes work; 5 minutes to reflect/share progress. |
| 20:55-21:15 |
Wrap-Up and Final Reflections Individually, record post-retreat next steps/goals; as a group, reflect on how the retreat went. |
You likely noticed that each itinerary above made many mentions of setting goals. This explicit, repeated attention to clarifying your writing objectives is another quality that makes retreats such productive environments. Learn more on the next page!
