A special occasion
It is thirty years since Moniack Mhor opened its doors, welcoming our first poetry course in 1993 with Liz Lochhead, Roger McGough and guest, the late Aonghas MacNeacail. Once a working croft of cattle barn and cottage, the buildings fell into disrepair in the 60s, until it was discovered by Kit and Sophia Fraser in 1991.
After a 24-hour fundraising poethon, lots of letters to trusts and foundations, nearly two years of restoration and many invites to novelists, poets, playwrights and many more, the centre began its new life as a creative hub for writers. It’s with huge admiration for the literary community that they invested their time and energy in the early years to make the centre what it is today, that we venture forth into our 30th year.
From 17th May 2023 to 16th May 2024, we’ll be celebrating this milestone year in as many ways as we can, so look out for more stories, memories, special courses and events on our website, blog, and social media networks.
Residential Courses & Retreats
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2418 Fiction: Short Story Flow and Form with Tom Conaghan and Camilla Grudova, Guest Reader Jessie Greengrass
Mon 29th Apr - Sat 4th May
Limited Places Available
In this inspirational week, we will look at elements of flavour, sense and surrealism in short fiction, and encourage flow in your writing to reconnect with creativity beyond any internalised expectations of form.
Read more and book your place. -
2419 Tutored Retreat: Writing and Walking with Linda Cracknell and Kapka Kassabova, Guest Reader Horatio Clare
Mon 6th May - Sat 11th May
Place is an integral part of many writers’ prose practice, whether writing fiction or non-fiction. This retreat will give you time and space in the expansive, nurturing environment of Moniack Mhor alongside walking, writing, and reading.
Read more and book your place. -
2421 May Retreat
Mon 20th May - Sat 25th May
Fully Booked
Clear air and the scent of pine drifting from the forest await you on our May writing retreat. This time is yours to focus on your writing away from the bustle of everyday life.
Read more and book your place. -
2423 Early June Retreat
Mon 3rd Jun - Sat 8th Jun
Fully Booked
Summer starts to make itself known in the Scottish Highlands in June, as the days stretch towards the solstice. Make the most of extra daylight and stretch your metaphorical writer legs during our June retreat.
Read more and book your place. -
2425 Fiction: Starting to write Myth into Fiction with Joanne Harris and Louie Stowell, Guest Reader Kevin Crossley Holland
Mon 17th Jun - Sat 22nd Jun
Fully Booked
As humans, we are embedded in a web of shared stories, handed down through the generations. Join Joanne Harris and Louie Stowell to explore how themes and characters from myths and folklore can help you unlock your own story.
Read more and book your place. -
2426 Playwriting: Mechanics of Playwriting with Simon Stephens and Cordelia Lynn, Guest Reader TBC
Mon 24th Jun - Sat 29th Jun
An active interrogation of the mechanics of playwriting, this course will creatively examine the use of dramatic action, character, location, narrative and structure in the making of a play.
Read more and book your place. -
2427 Tutored Retreat: Crime Writing with Helen Fitzgerald and Doug Johnstone, Guest Reader Karen Sullivan
Mon 1st Jul - Sat 6th Jul
Are you working on a crime novel and want to make it sing? This intensive tutored retreat is an opportunity for writers of crime fiction to focus closely on their works-in-progress, finessing and polishing all aspects of their writing.
Read more and book your place. -
2429 July Retreat
Mon 15th Jul - Sat 20th Jul
Fully Booked
July is when Moniack’s garden is full and heavy with raspberries! Take this time to nourish the fruit of your own writing – with some home-made scones topped with Kit’s raspberry jam to keep you going.
Read more and book your place. -
2431 Writing Parenthood with Lucy Caldwell and Kerri ní Dochartaigh
Mon 29th Jul - Sat 3rd Aug
Fully Booked
In this course, which can include childcare, we will explore what it means to write contemporary motherhood in fiction and non-fiction, in all of its blood, guts, despair, sublimity, and soul. There are options for attendance on this course.
Read more and book your place. -
2432 Life-Writing: Memoir and Memory with Ali Millar and Kat Lister, Guest Reader Dr Akira O’Connor
Mon 5th Aug - Sat 10th Aug
Fully Booked
Navigate the Fallible Past: Kat Lister and Ali Millar will explore memoir and memory, and where the two intersect, tackling the big question – can a writer trust such a capricious source?
Read more and book your place. -
2434 Poetry: Nature and Poetry with Alycia Pirmohamed and Genevieve Carver, Guest Reader Tim Tim Cheng
Mon 19th Aug - Sat 24th Aug
How do we engage with the non-human world? How do our own personal histories intersect with our experiences in nature? In this course we will explore how environment, place and wildlife can inform our poetry.
Read more and book your place. -
2435 Late August Retreat
Mon 26th Aug - Sat 31st Aug
Fully Booked
The fields around Moniack Mhor are rich and golden with the fullness of summer now, ready for harvest. Join us this August to gather your own words and reap the writing magic.
Read more and book your place. -
2439 September Retreat
Mon 23rd Sep - Sat 28th Sep
Fully Booked
‘If I were a bird I would fly about the Earth seeking the successive autumns.’ Fly your writing to Moniack Mhor amid the glow of the changing season, as the hills and woodland above Loch Ness turn to bronze.
Read more and book your place. -
2440 Playwriting: Honing Your Voice with Ella Hickson and Al Smith, Guest Reader Douglas Maxwell
Mon 30th Sep - Sat 5th Oct
This course is aimed at new and developing writers; you’ll be discussing structure, form and voice and focusing on how to apply those concepts to your work.
Read more and book your place. -
2442 Fiction: Writing Different with Cynan Jones and Samantha Harvey, Guest Reader Alan Warner
Mon 14th Oct - Sat 19th Oct
Sometimes, writing requires an unconventional approach. Challenge common ideas about narrative, language, and other vital elements. This course will focus on the ‘why’, ‘how’ and ‘whether you should’ of writing differently.
Read more and book your place. -
2444 Creative Non-Fiction: Writing From Life with Adam Farrer and Miranda France, Guest Reader Alice Jolly
Mon 28th Oct - Sat 2nd Nov
Drawing on a range of examples, we’ll explore ways to write freely and imaginatively about your own and other other people’s experience.
Read more and book your place. -
2446 Tutored Retreat Poetry: Reading Spaces with Nii Parkes and Hannah Lowe, Guest Reader Jacob Sam-La Rose
Mon 11th Nov - Sat 16th Nov
During this week, we want to explore being more deliberate about the wordless element of poems – the spaces. What role do they play, what roles can they play, and how can we be intentional about our use of spaces in poetry – whether in terms of form, syntax or pace?
Read more and book your place. -
2447 Writing Climate – Open Form: Writing Towards the Great Turning with Monique Roffey and Owen Sheers, Guest Reader Charlie Hertzog-Young
Mon 18th Nov - Sat 23rd Nov
In this open-form course we explore what ecologically informed and engaged writing looks like. And what, if anything, can our writing contribute to the challenge of what Joanna Macy calls ‘the Great Turning’ – a turning towards nature, an era of peace, justice and environmental restoration.
Read more and book your place. -
2448 Writing for YA: Turning Ideas into Stories with Melvin Burgess and Emily Barr, Guest Reader Liz Flanagan
Mon 25th Nov - Sat 30th Nov
This week is designed to help you with the entire process of writing for young people, from turning original ideas into full length story ideas, through structuring, polishing and editing your work to completion.
Read more and book your place. -
2449 Tutored Retreat: Immerse Yourself in Your Writing with Zoë Strachan and Louise Welsh, Guest Reader Tendai Huchu
Mon 2nd Dec - Sat 7th Dec
This week-long tutored retreat offers an opportunity to focus intensively on a work-in-progress: any kind of prose writing welcome!
Read more and book your place. -
2450 December Retreat
Mon 9th Dec - Sat 14th Dec
Fully Booked
Winter can be a time of rest and reflection. This December, under a waxing moon, take a moment of stillness by the fireside. Just you and your words, cooried in by stone walls that have nurtured many a story.
Read more and book your place.
View our Online Courses here
Radical Care Retreats with Childcare
Following the success of our 2022 Radical Care Retreats with Childcare, Moniack Mhor are currently developing plans for future delivery of a similar retreat with childcare support. If this is something you would like to know more about, please email us to register your interest on radicalcare@moniackmhor.org.uk