Writers! Space Is Still Available for Writing and Yoga in Jamaica

Resolved to banish writer's block once and for all but not sure how? You're in luck: Space is still available for Celia Jeffries and Jacqueline Sheehan's annual Caribbean writers retreat, Writing and Yoga: A Jamaican Adventure. Working writers themselves, Jeffries and Sheehan are faculty members at the literary workshop Writers in Progress in Northampton, Massachusetts.

The retreat brings a select group of 10 participants, from novice writers to working professionals, to Bromley, a grand hilltop estate close to Ocho Rios on Jamaica's north coast that's built atop the stone foundations of a 16th-century Spanish fort. A typical day starts with a yoga session intended to energize creativity — to get participants "in the flow," says Jeffries. There are lively communal meals as well, and morning and evening writing sessions with exercises carefully chosen to quiet the inner critic and release new writing or expand ongoing projects.

Afternoons are free, but Jeffries and Sheehan, along with retreat coordinator Patricia Perkins, plan to celebrate the setting by offering Jamaican excursions, including time on the sand at secluded Reggae Beach, a tour of lush Coyoba Gardens and Mahoe Falls, or a storytelling session with students at a nearby preschool.

The eight-day retreat is set to commence on March 20, with shared accommodations starting at $1,395 per person. Airfare isn't included, but room and board, excursions and airport transfers are. For more information and registration instructions, visit the retreat's page at Tropical Escapes, or call 212-731-2478.

Writers! Space Is Still Available for Writing and Yoga in Jamaica