Crotched Mountain Memoir Retreat

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A Three Day Memoir Workshop For Women

September 7-10, 2026

Apply Now
A woman in a red embroidered tunic and blue jeans standing on a porch with a white door behind her, outside a house with a red exterior wall and decorative porch drapery above.

“To share our stories is not only a worthwhile endeavor for the storyteller, but for those who hear our stories and feel less alone because of it.”

- Joyce Maynard

If you’ve been wanting to write, but you’re not sure how to begin – or maybe you’ve been working on your writing for a while, but feel the need for some guidance and support—here comes a great way to reach your writing goals.

Join New York Times best-selling writer Joyce Maynard—author of three memoirs, twelve novels and more essays than she chooses to count—in the beautiful town of Francestown, New Hampshire.

❋ A Three-Day Memoir Workshop for Women

A focused retreat offering guidance in craft, structure, voice, and story within a supportive community.

❋ No advance submission required

Participants engage in on-site writing exercises, story prompts, and opportunities to share work during the workshop.

❋ Shared meals and group gatherings

Most meals are enjoyed together at the Blue Bear Inn, with one evening out for dinner for variation and connection. 

❋ Joyce’s final gathering at her lake house

After the workshop concludes, everyone is invited to her summer lake house in Bennington for relaxed reflection and community before departure.

A screened porch area with green rocking chairs, a small side table with a lamp, and colorful rugs. There are windows and artwork on the walls and a view of trees outside.
A person swimming in a lake near a wooden dock, with a forested shoreline and houses in the background.
A woman wearing glasses playing an acoustic guitar indoors in a room with vintage floral wallpaper, a clock, and lamps on the fireplace mantel.
A woman with tattoos on her arms wearing a sports bra and shorts, leaning forward in a lake surrounded by trees, reaching into the water.
Red house with white trim, large front porch, surrounded by green trees and plants, with an upper balcony.
Two women standing outdoors, smiling, with a scenic landscape of trees and hills in the background.
A woman with tattoos and piercings floating on water with lily pads.
Two elderly women smiling and touching foreheads in an outdoor setting.
Woman standing by a round dining table with a floral tablecloth, holding a pizza. The table is set with plates, wine glasses, candles, and a bottle of wine. A chandelier hangs above, and a screened porch with a view of trees and a lake is in the background.
A hillside view of a large white residential house with multiple sections and balconies, surrounded by green grass and trees with colorful autumn foliage, under a blue sky with scattered clouds. 
A Look at Our Week Together

Arrival & Orientation

For the first time ever, we're hosting our writing group at the 200-year-old Blue Bear Inn in the picturesque town of Francestown, New Hampshire, overlooking Crotched Mountain. The Inn is surrounded by fields, farmland, lakes, and woods. We've chosen the first week of September to host the retreat because it is one of the most beautiful times of year to visit New Hampshire. The leaves will be just starting to turn, but the days are still warm enough for a swim in the Blue Bear pool or a sunset walk down a country road with no more mosquitos!

Arrival at Blue Bear Inn

We'll meet at 4 pm on Monday, September 7th, for drinks, appetizers, and a chance to get acquainted, followed by dinner at the Blue Bear tavern.

Evening Gathering

After dinner, you can gather around the fire, take in the starry sky, or retire to your charmingly decorated rooms (some private, some with shared bathrooms) to rest up for two and a half inspiring days of writing mentorship, and writing.

Beginning the Workshop

The workshop begins the following morning, after breakfast.

A cozy porch with green rocking chairs, a lamp, colorful rugs, and various decorations, overlooking trees through the screened windows and door.

The Writing Experience

Over the next two and a half days, Joyce will guide the group through the core elements of memoir and personal narrative—finding your story, shaping a strong arc, discovering tone and voice, working with dialogue, and understanding both the pain and joy of revision. Central to the work is an exploration of honest, authentic writing, and the permission it takes to tell the hardest parts of our stories.

Writing Process & Craft

Joyce will address several aspects of the writing process, including finding your story, locating the point of entry, creating a story arc and a landing place, tone, language, dialogue, and editing your work. She'll also cover the pain (and joy) of cutting your writing down. Most importantly, we’ll discuss the sheer power of honest, authentic writing and the importance for every writer of giving herself permission to tell her story, including the hard parts.

In-Session Writing

Writers in this group will not be asked to submit work in advance. Instead, Joyce will lead writing exercises and offer story prompts throughout the workshop. You’ll want to bring your laptop for short writing assignments and the opportunity to share what you've written with the group. 

Shared Trust

As always, participants are asked to honor the sacred trust of confidentiality, creating a safe and supportive space for the work.

Meals & Evenings

We'll share most of our meals at the Blue Bear Inn, but we will venture out to a nearby Mexican restaurant one evening for a change of pace – and some great margaritas. After dinner, the group will gather again so every writer can share her work with the group.

Sunset over a lake viewed through tall trees with a small dock and cabin in the foreground.

Closing & Beyond

The workshop will conclude on Thursday morning with questions and discussion along with a few final words from Joyce about the unique challenges of writing about people in our lives. Afterward, everyone is invited to Joyce’s summer lake house in Bennington, NH, a fifteen-minute drive from the inn, for a swim, a sauna, or a chance to relax on the porch and visit one more time before heading home, as part of a new community of friends who share an understanding of what it means to tell our stories.

Community & Continuity

Your workshop may only last a few days, but participants in past groups tell us repeatedly, the bonds formed among the writers in Joyce’s memoir groups often continue long after our time together ends. You’ll take home not only a whole new set of writing tools but also a community of sister writers to share your work with. Many of these communities continue to talk, exchange work, and host their own writing retreats together for years to come. We hope you'll find that kind of sisterhood this September. We're betting you will.

Optional Add-On Day

We're limiting participation in our September memoir retreat to 28 writers. For those who would like more in depth work on a manuscript, Joyce is offering an add-on day for nine writers who would like the opportunity to workshop a manuscript of up to 2500 words. Participation in the add-on day will include a simple dinner at Joyce’s house on Thursday evening, an additional night at the Blue Bear Inn, and a day of work at Joyce’s house in Bennington, NH, the next day. The add-on day will conclude by 5 pm on Friday, September 12th. If you are interested in attending the extra day, please send a thousand word excerpt for Joyce to review to lifebythelakewithjoyce@gmail.com

How to Apply

Send an email to Joyce’s Right Hand Woman, Megan Woolsey expressing your interest, or questions.

Interested in a retreat open to women and men?! Check out Life By the Lake.

This retreat promises an opportunity to share your story in a diverse community of women of all ages who share your passion. You’ll experience the tough, but loving guidance of a writer with more than thirty years experience teaching memoir and instilling the tools of honest, powerful writing.

Accommodations

September 7-10, 2026 (3 days)

Please visit https://bluebearinn.com/rooms/ to choose the room you would like to book. First come, first served.

Cost from $2,295 to $2,495, depending on the room

February 10th-11th extra night manuscript workshop: $1100

A row of white and red houses with a lush green lawn in the foreground, surrounded by colorful trees with autumn foliage, and a wooded hill in the background under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Travel

For those who drive the address to Blue Bear Inn is

Address: 534 Mountain Road Francestown, NH 03043.

Phone: 603-808-0174

For those who fly, the nearest airport is Manchester, NH, but Boston is also an option.

AIRPORTS:

BOSTON, MA

Approximately 1 hour 45 minute drive; you might want to rent a car.

MANCHESTER, NH

Approximately 50 minute drive, there are shuttle services available from the airport to the conference center. Ed Sweeney at (603) 554-0506 is one.

Let Megan know if you are flying, and she can connect guests who may want to share a car or shuttle service.