Close the yearwith a manuscript.
4 days in a UNESCO City of Literature with 5 other writers, and a 4x NYT bestselling ghostwriter who has wanted to see this city her entire working life and finally booked it.
They promise you a book.
I promise you pages.
“Come home with a finished book.”
You leave with the structure finished, your opening drafted, and the plan for the rest. Nobody finishes a book in 4 days. Anyone who says otherwise is selling.
“Escape the distractions.”
Room, meals, transfers, schedule, all handled. The only decision you make in 4 days is which scene to write next.
“Daily writing sprints.”
Writing is the schedule. Saturday and Sunday are yours to write, and I am in the room for all of it.
“Work with a published author.”
A 4x NYT bestselling ghostwriter reads your actual pages. Every day. By name.
“20 writers, gorgeous villa.”
6 writers. That is the cap and that is the point. Everybody in the room gets their pages read.
“You will leave inspired.”
You leave with pages. Inspiration has a half-life of about 9 days. A structure does not.
Time is not what you are short of either.
You are short of 4 days where the only thing anyone wants from you is pages, and somebody in the room who has read 200 manuscripts telling you what is actually wrong with yours.
A city that takes books seriouslyenough to name the laneways.
Melbourne is a UNESCO City of Literature, which is a polite way of saying the bookshops stay open late and nobody looks at you strangely for writing in a cafe for 6 hours. December is early summer, and the whole city is outside.
The house
A house picked for the light and the quiet, revealed to accepted applicants 4 weeks out. I choose it myself and I do not choose it from a website.
Your own room
Your own bedroom, with shared bathrooms unless you are coming with a friend. Nobody writes well after a bad night on a sofa bed.
Every meal
All of them handled, built around whatever you flag when you apply. You will not spend a single writing block deciding where to eat.
This one is for the bookthat has not started yet.
Melbourne 2026 runs Find Your Voice, the same format as Christchurch with different hemisphere weather and a city that has read more than you have.
Find Your Voice is for writers starting from scratch, or close to it. You do not need a draft, an outline or a plan. You need 4 days, 5 other writers, and somebody who has done this 200+ times sitting at the table.
4 days.Here is all of it.
No mystery about how the time gets spent. 1 day to arrive, 1 to learn it, 1 to write it, 1 to plan what happens next.
Thursday · Arrival
Land, settle, dinner together. No writing tonight. A creativity exercise to get the rust off, then the long conversation about what your book actually is.
Friday · Learn it
Publishing paths, book strategy and the Quantum Copy Method™, then straight into the storytelling framework you will write inside tomorrow.
Saturday · Write it
Your full chapter map, built and stress-tested, plus 1:1 time on your structure. Then real writing time with me still in the room.
Sunday · The reveal
What it takes to launch and market this book. You go home with a plan and a chapter map, not just notes.
What it has actuallylooked like.
Not a mood board. These are from Createcation gatherings I have run, and it is the same room energy you will find on the day.
What the method actually did.
There isn’t any.
6 writers. Not 7.
I read every application myself. If your book is not right for this room, I will tell you that before you book a flight, not after you land. That is the only promise worth making about 4 days.
$3,500 AUD,all-inclusive.
Split it 3 ways with no surcharge, ever.
What that covers
Accommodation, every meal, all training, all materials, and every 1:1 session on your manuscript. From the moment you land, it is handled.
What it does not
Your travel to and from Melbourne. You book that yourself, and I would rather be straight with you about it than bury it in a footnote.
When it closes
Applications close October 8th, which is when I confirm the venue and the table is set. 6 writers, and I read every application myself.
The one thingyou book yourself.
Travel is not included, so here is what to know before you book flights.
Flying in
Melbourne Tullamarine (MEL) is about 30 minutes from the centre and takes direct flights from across Australia, New Zealand and most of Asia.
Timing your flights
Arrive Thursday afternoon or evening for dinner that night. We finish after lunch on Sunday, so book a Sunday evening flight or stay over. A Sunday morning flight means missing the part that makes the rest of it worth it.
Entry and insurance
Australia’s entry requirements depend on your passport and most visitors need a visa or ETA before boarding. Check well before booking, and travel insurance is worth having for both your flights and your spot.
The questionsI get every time.
Is Melbourne Find Your Voice or Finish Your F*cking Book?
Find Your Voice. It is for the book that has not started yet, or has started 3 times and never got past chapter 2. If you already have most of a draft, Victoria in October is your room.
You have never been to Melbourne. Is that a problem?
No. The retreat is the retreat, and it does not change city to city. The venue is chosen, the meals are handled, the method is the same one I have taught for years. The city is the part you and I explore together.
Who is in the room?
5 other writers and me. 6 total, no exceptions.
What is included in the $3,500 AUD?
3 nights accommodation in your own bedroom, every meal, all the teaching and coaching, the 106 page manual, your pre-retreat 1:1 call and your publishing roadmap. Flights are yours.
When do I find out where it is?
4 weeks out. I pick the house myself and I do not pick it from a website.
Can I pay in instalments?
Yes. 3 payments of $1,167 AUD with no surcharge.
Why December?
Because finishing the year with pages beats finishing it with another resolution about pages. Early summer in Melbourne does not hurt either.
6 spots.Your book has been waiting long enough.
Applications for Melbourne close October 8th. Tell me what you want to write, and I will tell you honestly whether this is the right room.
