Writing Highway 395: A week-long creative workshop in the Sierra led by Clive Matson.
August 10-17, 2019
Pinecliff Resort
June Lake, Lee Vining CA
- Professional-level workshop instruction
- Comfortable camping facilities
- Home-cooked meals
- Field trips to Mono Lake, Bodie, & more
- Small, inspiring writers’ community
At June Lake, with the snow-clad Sierra as a backdrop amongst the pines and boulders strewn along the ridges, intrepid writers will create a positive, supportive, dynamic community in the wilderness. The instructor, Clive Matson, will draw on many years’ experience helping writers merge words with the power of their creative unconscious.
We have a week together as a creative group to develop our writing. We’ve pared down to essentials and none of the fuss of daily life matters. For a week, we live simply and eat well, in good company. We camp outside, hike, sleep deeply, write freely, talk long and late, laugh loudly, and sing our hearts out. The distance from our usual concerns and the exotic setting put us quickly into our stories, and even writers who have barely begun to find themselves are amazed at the quantity and quality of their work.
Participants report:
Based on the observation that there’s always something valuable in a piece of writing, Clive encourages his students to trust their own creative impulses.
I've wanted to be part of Writing Highway 395 for years. It was a chance to combine my passion for writing, for being with other writers, with my college-days love for this highway. Having that kind of longing and build-up before finally participating last year might have set me up for disappointment. But the workshop was even more than I'd dreamed. I wrote steadily through the mornings (once I got going!), made big progress on my book, loved reading my work out loud, listening to the other writers read, sharing feedback. Clive has a well-honed approach to feedback that's gentle, encouraging, precise and illuminating. Add camping in the pines or soaking in natural hot springs at the nearby caldera and it just doesn't get any better. I never wanted to leave. I can't wait to return. - Riba Taylor
Writing Highway 395 joined my favorite activities, writing and sharing feedback, with the blessings of hikes and awe-inspiring vistas.
After a long absence from writing I was starting to feel like the Tin Man. Clive Matson’s workshop was the oil can I needed.
CLIVE MATSON: “BEST WRITING TEACHER” - East Bay Express, 2006
Based on the observation that there’s always something valuable in a piece of writing, Clive encourages his students to trust their own creative impulses.
