Writers in the Round is a retreat for poets and/or song writers to generate new work, create connections, and share evolving poems and lyrics in a supportive community. A guest poet and a guest songwriter will lead workshops on craft and provide prompts to foster new work over the weekend. In addition to creating new work, we have opportunities to share it with evening readings and round robins. Our goal is to meet all writers where they are and help them deepen and widen their creative spheres.

Facilitators

Songwriting

Jocelyn Mackenzie is a Brooklyn-based musician, maker, and medium. A “hyper-creative” according to Broadway World, she is a singer, songwriter, songwriting coach, theater maker, fiber artist, art director, performance artist, stylist, music video producer, intuitive, empath, and psychic medium. Her diverse yet integrated skills inherently inform one another and are inextricably intermingled in her creative process. In all facets of her creativity, Jocelyn Mackenzie integrates media and meaning to offer work that is sensual and personal, creating new worlds that beg to be explored. Read Jocelyn’s full bio and experience her work here: http://www.jocelynmackenzie.com/aboutjocelyn.

Poetry

Sarah Anderson is the author of We Hold On To What We Can (Loom Press, 2021). She holds an MFA in poetry from the Warren Wilson Program for Writers. When she is not at her full-time job of teaching high school English at Berwick Academy, she helps her husband operate The Word Barn in Exeter, NH, a gathering space for literary and musical events, where she runs a reading series (The Silo Series) as well as various creative writing workshops. She has also led writing workshops at the Twin Farms Writing Workshop and the NH Institute of Art. Her poems have appeared in various journals, including December Magazine, Raleigh Review, and North American Review.

Here are a few links to poems:

https://medium.com/the-coil/macmahan-island-poem-sarah-anderson-96ce5df39d36

https://www.thehungerjournal.com/hunger-sarah-anderson

https://bodyliterature.com/2019/06/20/sarah-anderson/

Conference Minister

Ellen Taylor

Program Fee

$130/person

Room & Board

The rates below are per person for the full length of the conference.

Standard Shared: $528 | Standard Single: $698

Motel Shared: $642 | Motel Single: $923 

Boat Schedule

September 8: Depart Portsmouth at 2:20 PM, arrive to Star Island at 3:30 PM

September 11: Depart Star Island at 11:45 AM, arrive in Portsmouth at 1:15 PM

Questions?

Contact the organizer, Ellen Taylor, at ellen.taylor@maine.edu.