2025 Summer Writing Retreat - Revision
Course: “The Joy and Discovery of Revision: A Step-by-Step Approach”
Instructor: Charlotte Gullick
Class Assistant: Jean Synodinos
Week One
Sunday, July 6
7:00-8:00 PM CDT / Orientation Session: Hear from your instructor and learn all about the month ahead!
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)
Monday, July 7
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Tuesday, July 8
12:00-1:00 PM CDT / Lunchtime Craft Talk: “Atmosphere and Tone” with Andrew Porter: Take a mid-day break to learn how to create atmospheric writing and strike a particular tone in your work.
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Session One – Honoring the Work: In this first session, we will examine our influences and aspirations, honing in on why we started the project in the first place. We will identify our best practices and we’ll consider what we have versus what we need in order to refine our work. We will also discuss common challenges within the revision process.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)
Wednesday, July 9
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Saturday, July 12
10:00-11:30 AM CDT / Saturday Craft Seminar “Spring, Summer, Asteroid, Bird: The Art of Eastern Storytelling” with Henry Lien: Author and writing instructor Henry Lien will explore how storytelling staples in the West, such as the three-act structure and themes of empowerment and change, are far from universal. He will introduce the East Asian four-act structure (kishōtenketsu), as well as circular and nested structures, and explain how Eastern value systems such as collectivism can dictate story structures, using examples ranging from the film Parasite to The 1,001 Nights to the Mario video game franchise.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025), Presentation Outline
Week Two
Monday, July 14
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Tuesday, July 15
12:00-1:00 PM CDT / Lunchtime Craft Talk: “Finding Meaning Everywhere” with A. Kendra Green: Take a mid-day break to learn how to find meaning and inspiration in the world around you.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Session Two – Action, Tension, Character Change: This second session will focus on strategies to improve action, tension, and character development. We’ll dive into why a compelling plot is essential in both fiction and nonfiction, and we’ll do exercises to deepen the impact of our existing drafts.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)
Wednesday, July 16
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Thursday, July 17
7:00-8:30 PM CDT / WLT Third Thursday “Remixes & Reimaginings: Seeing Stories Anew” with Kalynn Bayron, Gabe Cole Novoa, and Vaishnavi Patel: For our July Third Thursday, join us for a conversation about why and how we adapt and reimagine popular fairytales, classics, and mythologies as writers.
Week Three
Monday, July 21
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Tuesday, July 22
12:00-1:00 PM CDT / Lunchtime Craft Talk: “Writing Hybrid Forms” with Jasminne Mendez: Take a mid-day break to learn about the challenges and rewards of eschewing genre and writing hybrid forms.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025), Presentation Slides
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Session Three – Setting & Sound, Analogy & Rhythm: In the third week, we’ll examine the potent role of setting, dialogue, analogy, and rhythm. We will do an inventory of our drafts with regards to existing settings and in-scene dialogue and explore how we might more effectively use both to increase the impact of our work. We’ll also play around with imagery and pacing.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)Wednesday, July 23
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Thursday, July 24
7:00-8:00 PM CDT / Meet-up & Trivia Night: Test your literary knowledge and mix and mingle with fellow SWR writers.
Week Four
Monday, July 28
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Tuesday, July 29
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Session Four – Creating a Game Plan: After three weeks of exploration, we’ll spend time in this final session mapping out next steps in our revision plan. We’ll decide on our priorities, clarify time commitments, and identify an accountability partner or partners who can help us both keep the faith and affirm our resolve.
Event recording (available until August 31, 2025)Wednesday, July 30
6:30-9:30 PM CDT / Write-in session: Join fellow SWR students for this virtual writing session. You’ll set intentions at the beginning, turn mics and cameras off for writing time, and then come back together at the end to share how the session went.
Thursday, July 31
7:00-8:30 PM CDT / Student Reading Night: Select students will read from their works in progress to a warm and receptive audience of fellow Summer Writing Retreat writers and instructors, celebrating the culmination of a week full of craft and community.