The Garsdale Retreat is a creative writing centre in the remote and beautiful setting of The Yorkshire Dales. It provides inspirational courses tutored by professional writers, enabling participants to develop their individual creativity in a place of peace and tranquillity, away from the distractions and stresses of everyday life. We welcome all levels of ability, offering a high level of individual tuition in small classes (maximum size: eight residents/two non-residents).

2021 Courses:

1st - 6th March: Poems and People with Jonathan Edwards, tutor Jacob Polley, guest

15th - 20th March: Telling Your Story: Memoir/Life Writing with Catherine Simpson, tutor John Hegley, guest

12th - 17th April : A Body of Word with Helen Mort, tutor Alan Buckley, guest

26th April - 1st May: Poems ‘after’ Poems with Paul Henry, tutor Mona Arshi, guest

10th - 15th May: Making Up Truths, Fiction Writing with Linda Cracknell, tutor Tania Hershman, guest

24th - 29th May: May Untutored Retreat

7th - 12th June: Animal, Anima, Animate with Susan Taylor, co-tutor Simon Williams, co-tutor

21st - 26th June: Tutored Retreat: Closing in on the Book with Steve Ely, tutor Helen Tookey, guest

5th - 10th July: July Untutored Retreat

19th - 24th July: Tutored Retreat: Novel Writing with Zoë Strachan, tutor Louise Welsh, guest

23rd - 28th August : August Untutored Retreat

13th - 18th September: The Figure a Poem Makes with Mimi Khalvati, tutor Fleur Adcock, guest

27th September - 2nd October : Fiction Writing with Hannah Vincent, tutor A.L. Kennedy, guest

18th - 23rd October: Have You Got a Story to Tell? Memoir/Life Writing with Cathy Rentzenbrink, tutor Alan Johnson, guest

1st - 6th November: November Untutored Retreat

15th - 20th November: Permissions in Poetry with Kim Moor, tutor Vicki Feaver, guest

29th November - 4th December: The Poetry of Now with Clare Pollard, tutor Carole Bromley, guest

13th - 18th December: December Untutored Retreat

View the full course programme here