A small residential writing retreat less than two hours from New York City.
Quiet days on your own project, chef-cooked food from the organic gardens, and evenings by the fire with a handful of other writers.
Have a big idea but can't find the focus to get it moving? Focusing alongside other people helps everyone focus more. Picture several days in nature, surrounded by people all working on big things, with long quiet stretches for your own writing and energizing evenings by the fire.
It's an intensive retreat for any kind of writing project: a book, a screenplay, digital work, or something else. Led by Dr. David Rock and Dr. Douglas Rushkoff, two seasoned authors, it's a rare chance to see how prolific writers actually work and to make real headway on the project that matters most to you.
You'll also join a diverse cohort of big thinkers: scientists, founders, journalists, screenwriters, and researchers, each deep in a project of their own. No more than twenty-five people come to each retreat, so you get to know all of them, and some of the most useful thinking happens sideways — over dinner, on a walk, in a conversation with someone whose field is nothing like yours. Expect to leave inspired, with a sharper idea than the one you arrived with and a few people you'll keep writing to.
The retreat is held at the Round House and its Annex, a striking architect-designed dome home on thirty private acres of woods and mountains, with two hot tubs, a sauna, a four-person hyperbaric chamber, and miles of private walking trails. Meals come straight from the organic gardens, cooked by an accomplished chef.
Long, uninterrupted focus on your own project. This is the heart of each day, with everything arranged so the only thing to do is write.
More writing, broken however you like. A walk in the woods, the sauna or hot tubs, or quiet time on the property. Afternoons also include office hours with David and Douglas, so everyone gets time to talk through their project one to one during the retreat.
Each evening at 6pm, the hosts lead a fireside conversation on craft, the creative process, and the neuroscience of writing, followed by a chef-cooked dinner.
This is the shape of each day, not a rigid timetable. The point is a lot of focused writing time, on your own terms.
Rooms on the property are shared. If you would rather have a room of your own, there are Airbnbs a short drive from the Round House, and you are welcome to book one and join us for the days. Ask us once you're accepted and we'll point you to the places writers have used before.
Author of five books and hundreds of papers on the connections between neuroscience and the world of work. He leads NeuroLeadership and the Round House Literary Agency. His new book, Good with Humans, arrives in November 2026.
Author of twenty-eight books on the role of technology in our lives, and host of the Team Human podcast. His books, from Present Shock to Survival of the Richest, have made him one of the most influential voices on how technology shapes society.
Six days of focused writing in the depth of winter, with the sauna and hot tubs to warm up between sessions.
A shorter retreat as the Hudson Valley comes back to life, with the organic gardens and walking trails at their freshest.
Six days at the height of summer, with long daylight, the pond and gardens at their peak, and warm evenings out on the deck.
A shorter retreat timed for peak autumn foliage across the thirty acres and the surrounding mountains.
Attendance is by application. Here's how it works.
Tell us a little about you and your project. Places are limited to 25 and awarded by application, not first-come.
We'll be in touch. A few scholarships are available in return for helping with the kitchen and space. Mention it in your application.
A non-refundable $200 deposit holds your spot once you're accepted. We'll share the remaining details then.
I left with a completely new frame for my thesis and title, and concrete tactics for finishing my second book manuscript. That is no small thing. Pragmatic and powerful, a true retreat in an amazing setting.
I came with questions and doubts, and I left with something much more valuable: trust. Trust in my voice, trust in my vision, and the courage to simply write. This was not only a place to write, it was a place to remember why we write.
Douglas said “book” is a verb: writing may be spelling, but as writers, we’re casting spells. In our one-on-one session he asked exactly the right questions, and now I have a new title, a new framing, and a manuscript that finally feels 100% aligned.
I discovered something I’d been seeking my whole creative career: a sustainable balance between focus and ideation, between play and page-filling. From the woods of New Paltz, a new author, a new book, a new voice emerges.
I learned the processes followed by Dr. David Rock and Douglas Rushkoff, who brought together a group of writers to share the practices that made them successful and give feedback on each project. It was reflection, writing, and collective learning in a natural oasis of peace, where insights emerged and manuscripts took shape.
What I appreciated most was the balance between quiet time to write and the sense of community. Learning from David and Douglas, and sharing ideas with such a supportive group, was invaluable. I left feeling more inspired, more confident, and excited to keep writing.
I lost myself in writing, in focus and flow, all day and into the evening. I plowed through a book proposal in the first few days, and after much feedback I came away with a much sharper concept, title, and thesis.
Places are limited and by application. Apply for the January retreat on Luma, or email us with a question about the right fit.
Apply for the next retreat on Luma, or send us a note and we'll help you decide.
Apply to participate info@rhliterary.com