About Writers’ Sanctuaries

Online Writers’ Sanctuaries with Sue are offered as 3 hour online writing workshops from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. using Zoom.
 
Registration fee is $50.00 CDN plus HST.
 
All times are in Eastern (EDT or EST depending on the time of year).

 
When I was the mother of a young child, I often dreamed of a place where I could slip away now and then to write. Not for long—life at home was far too full—but just a few hours here and there to tend to my poor, neglected book that always seemed to be pushed aside by other demands.

Eventually, as life shifted, I moved to a cozy retreat in the woods: bookshelves lining the walls, a fireplace at the heart of the room, a kitchen with a coffee pot always ready, and windows that framed a parade of wildlife—blue jays, chickadees, deer, turkeys, even the occasional black bear in spring. Just an hour from downtown Toronto, yet it felt like another world entirely.

It was magical. And it struck me—this was exactly the kind of space I had once longed for. Why not share it with others? Why not create a haven where writers could gather, step out of daily life, and give themselves a few precious hours of uninterrupted writing time?

That’s how Writers’ Sanctuaries were born. From 2006 to 2020, these in-person gatherings flourished. Writers came not only for the quiet focus, but also for the laughter over lunch, the still-warm rhubarb-lemon muffins, and the sense of belonging to a creative tribe.

Then, of course, came 2020. Sanctuaries moved online. While we all missed the in-person energy and the muffins, something surprising happened: suddenly writers from the Baltic Sea to Hawaii could join us. And we discovered that a virtual space could be just as nourishing to new creative work as the in-person workshops had ever been.

Since then, I’ve developed many other workshops—from the targeted productivity of The Headway Project, to multi-session series, to the year-long A Novel Approach to Memoir. But through it all, Writers’ Sanctuaries remain at the heart of what I do: monthly, online, creative laboratories where new work is seeded, nourished, and celebrated.

If you’ve been longing for a place to slip away—to connect with your writing, surprise yourself with what emerges, and be held by the energy of fellow writers—I’d love to welcome you to the next Sanctuary.

 
 
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR AN UPCOMING SANCTUARY WITH SUE
 
 

Each Sanctuary is limited to 8 participants to maintain a high quality of mentorship and group feedback.

 

CANCELLATION POLICY:
If Sue receives your cancellation notice up to five days in advance of the retreat, (for instance, if the retreat is on a Saturday, she must hear from you by midnight on the previous Sunday) you may choose to apply your deposit to a future retreat if that retreat has space in it. If there are no open spaces that work with your schedule, you will receive a refund minus a $20 administration fee.

If you cancel with less than five days notice, (in the example above, for instance, it would be anytime Monday or later) and your spot cannot be filled from a waiting list, no refund will be made. However, you are permitted to sell or gift your spot for that date to another person. If you do this, please email or call Sue right away to provide the contact information of your replacement. Since Sue provides lunch, it is important that she know of any dietary restrictions etc.

NOTE: *If a Sanctuary is cancelled for any reason, such as severe winter weather creates dangerous driving conditions, Sue will email and call all registered participants. In this situation, participants may request a full refund or transfer their payment to a future retreat date.