What is The Writers’ Colony?

Back in October, at the Joplin Writers’ Faire, I won a three night stay at The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Having never heard of it before, I Googled it and started planning my trip.

The Colony is in the side of a hill in Eureka Springs, but don’t let that fool you. There’s two main buildings with tons of cozy writer’s suites. And, possibly the best part of all, there’s a chef, Jana, who cooks European-style dinners every night for the writers. It’s included in the lodging price.

She made Teriyaki Salmon on the first night. Pork loins on the second, with crispy golden potatoes. And a steak on my last night. That’s not even mentioning the sides and desserts (6 brownies on the first night—ha!). It was incredible.

What Did I Write During My Stay?

Six years ago—maybe longer—I had an idea for a story about a man in a big glass box who is discovered in Chicago during construction. After a brainstorming session, that story took a different turn and became my most popular book, The Mystery at Pancake Shores.

But, I kept going back to the original concept. I knew I wanted to tell it in epistolary form, in the style of journal entries from a character throughout the course of her life. The first entry is when she was six in 1931, and the last one is present day.

I’d never written anything in this style before, and about four thousand words in I had a bit of a crisis. I was doubting the whole thing. It didn’t seem to be working at all, and I was afraid I was going to waste my entire trip writing something that was terrible.

So, I called my fellow writer friend, Nathan (if you’re a writer, you need a friend you can call to talk sense into you sometimes) and he reminded me that all first drafts are bad. Ha!

Might not sound like the most inspiring thing, but it helped. I sat down and kept going. Then, a few hours later, I had a breakthrough: the through line I needed to bring the whole story together.

I ended up getting ten thousand words and the story turned out to be a fun challenge (trying to make the main character sound different at ages 6 and 76) and I think I’ve got a fun little novella about what it means to value human life. And, I’ve set myself up to write a fictional medieval poem titled The Long Suffering Grim Prince if I want to include it in the book as bonus content.

The Big Question: Would I Come Back?

The atmosphere for writing is incredible, except for one thing: the wildlife. Red-bellied woodpeckers, Blue Jays, Cardinals, Squirrels, Deer, and more are buzzing around this place. I wanted to stop every five minutes to just marvel at them (and take photos).

Avian writing adversaries aside, like I mentioned at the beginning, I won a free three-night stay, so I’m a little biased. Their normal rate is $99/night, which includes the fresh cooked dinner meal. It’s really incredible. You’d easily pay $100-$150 a night for an AirBnB or hotel around here. And for meals like what Jana made each night, you’re looking at another $50 easy.

It makes staying at The Writer’s Colony a no-brainer. I’m hoping to be able to come with some writer friends next time, and spend a few days working on our stories in community.

If you’re a writer and are considering getting away for a few days to finish your manuscript, do it. Don’t hesitate. You won’t regret it.

Learn more about The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow here.

New Published Poem and Upcoming Poetry Reading

In addition to the writers’ colony, they run an online magazine called eMerge Literary Magazine. I’ve got a brand new poem called “Two Suns” that will be published in the spring edition.

We’re doing a virtual reading on April 28 at 7pm CT. I hope you’ll join. I’ll be reading some brand new poems that I’ve never shared before. You can find more information and register here.