Spooky Prompts for Writers

If you enjoy writing, and you also love Halloween, here are THIRTEEN writing prompts to get you in the mood for trick or treating! ONE: You take an elevator at the mall. The elevator goes down… and keeps on going. Where are you when the doors open? TWO: It’s a dark and rainy night. Someone hears a knock on their door. They open it – and find themself standing on the other side. THREE: Your character receives messages from a stranger who seems to know everything about them. The messages direct him or her to a disused factory at dusk. There, a dozen other people wait. All received the same message… FOUR: You take a cruise to a deserted island where strange things happen. On […]

2019-05-04T17:24:44-04:00October 23, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, Young Writers!|
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Beat the Blank Page: Inspiration for Writers!

This post is most definitely for the writers among you! Have you ever sat down at your desk and tried to write – only to find you have no ideas at all? Here are 6 ways to get you started on a new piece of fiction: Choose a novel off your shelf – preferably one you haven’t read. Open randomly and let your eyes land on a portion of a sentence that sounds vague. Write from there. Examples:           Hearing a noise behind him, he turned and… It was a house they had never noticed before… Alternately, choose the first line of a story and write from it, or choose the last line of a story, and write towards it. (When you are done, change […]

2019-04-30T20:59:36-04:00April 6, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, The Finding Place, Writing Retreats, Young Writers!|
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Writing Matters – a Newsletter for Writers

Several weeks ago, I started a newsletter for writers. The newsletter is a free service. It goes out every Friday by email and is packed full of prompts and writing tips. This blog is an excerpt from the very first newsletter. If you like what you see here, and you want to receive the newsletter every week in your mailbox, simply drop me a note: julieAT SIGNcentauriartscamp.com Today, I’d like to introduce you to the writer’s best friend: the Free Write. What’s this? It’s a way to beat the blank page, the blank screen – to help your words flow freely. Imagine that your passion was dance, not writing. Would you ever slip out of your winter gear and leap immediately onto the stage to […]

2019-05-04T17:26:48-04:00March 24, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, Writing Retreats, Young Writers!|
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Costa Rica Retreat – Days 6-8

Day 6… After breakfast by the pool to a cacophony of screeching parrots, we set ourselves a bizarre challenge this morning: use what we have learned this week to collaborate, in just an hour, on the plot outline for a novel! We explored different ways to generate ideas, warmed up with a 15 minute free write, then in less than an hour, we outlined a complete novel. Our inspiration was a simple question: what is essential for life? What would happen if one of those essentials was taken away? This morning, we also shared, critiqued and celebrated the character pieces we worked on yesterday – several participants were so inspired by these that they have already worked them into short stories! This afternoon, several group […]

2017-02-13T15:35:15-04:00February 13, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, Writing Retreats|
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Costa Rica Retreat – Days 4-5

Our lives have fallen into a wonderful pattern, here. We wake to a cacophony of rainforest noises in the morning, drink coffee and eat a breakfast that consists of produce either grown or made right here at Fina Luna Nueva: delicious breads, jams, kafir, kombucha, farm fresh eggs, chaya and yucca pancakes and platters of fresh fruits. We eat overlooking the forest on one side and the lovely pool on the other. We take our coffee with us up to the terrace, where we hold a 2 hour writing workshop each morning, trying not to be too distracted by the hummingbirds zipping between the flowers and the parrots screeching overhead. On Day 4, our writing workshop explored story and plot; we explored several ways to […]

2019-05-04T17:27:46-04:00February 9, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, Writing Retreats|
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Costa Rica Writing Retreat – Day 1

One of my favourite activities each year is taking a group of writers from all over North America to an incredible eco lodge in the Costa Rica rain forest, where I lead writing workshops and discussions for seven magical days. There are few things more inspiring than the opportunity to help others find their voice as writers. I landed in San Jose yesterday, took a few hours to read the short stories and novel excerpts some of my writers had sent, relaxed at a hotel for the evening and returned to the airport at noon today to meet everyone’s flights. Half our group is American this year, half Canadian. All come looking for an adventure, and hoping to discover something new about themselves as writers, […]

2019-05-04T17:30:33-04:00February 5, 2017|Home Page, On Writing, Writing Retreats, Young Writers!|
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A Typical Day on our Writing Retreat

Early Morning… We wake to the smell of tropical vegetation and the screech of parrots. The world is glistening as we make our way through the trees and down to the poolside restaurant to greet the group. There are fresh fruit smoothies, slices of papaya, ice cream fruit, tortillas, rice, beans, pancakes, eggs and toast. The eggs are brought in by a local family and the crusty bread is made on site. The ‘ice cream fruit’ was picked just moments ago. After a group breakfast, we agree to meet on the outdoor veranda in half an hour for our morning writing workshop. Two of us spend that time climbing to the lookout tower where we gaze down on the tops of the rainforest as a […]

2016-11-25T21:20:20-04:00November 25, 2016|Home Page, Life at Centauri, On Writing, The Finding Place|
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Why Retreat?

The world is a noisy, busy place. With daily distractions competing for our attention, it becomes almost impossible to truly listen to the voices inside of us. When we clear space in our lives and in our heads – when we remove the ambient noise – we can often be surprised by what we hear. A retreat is about giving time and attention to a part of ourselves that may otherwise get pushed aside. If you dream of being a writer, that can mean many things. It means finding the time to complete a project on your ‘bucket list’, but it can also mean learning to listen to the creative voice inside your head. Ideas need time to gestate. We have to nurture them, be […]

2016-10-19T14:51:24-04:00October 19, 2016|Home Page|
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Join us on Retreat in Costa Rica

In February 2017 we will be holding our second annual writing trip to Costa Rica! As with last year, we welcome solo writers as well as writers with accompanying family members. We’re staying in a spectacular lodge in the rainforest, 10 minutes from La Fortuna. Mornings will consist of workshops for participants whose focus is on writing, while other group members relax around the pool, climb the viewing tower, or enjoy nature from one of the many hiking trails. In the afternoons, writers can take advantage of the serenity to work on independent writing projects, or join other group members on local sightseeing trips: hot springs, zip lining and more. This is a fully escorted tour: we meet your flight, and return you to the […]

2016-10-17T18:44:44-04:00October 17, 2016|Home Page, On Writing, The Finding Place|
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It’s ‘Authors for Indies’ this weekend!

These days, emerging Canadian authors rely on thriving independent bookstores more than ever. Why? You may have noticed that it’s often difficult to find works by emerging Canadian writers in the big box stores. And though you’ll find them in online stores, they are often buried among the works of more established authors. So the support of independent bookstores, and the enthusiastic readers (and writers) who work there, can be essential to new Canadian authors as they establish a firm readership. This coming Saturday, 30 April, is Authors for Indies Day across Canada – a time for Canadian writers to give back, and a terrific opportunity for readers to meet their favourite authors, whoever they may be. If you want to learn more about Authors […]

2016-04-29T13:09:27-04:00April 29, 2016|Home Page, On Writing, The Finding Place, Young Writers!|
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