Sunday Virtual Retreat

A Twist on the Sunday Coffee Share

Welcome to Inspiration and Magic that is an Invitation to Curiosity. This newsletter is for you if you want to create life-giving writing, art, and conversation.

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Today, I invite you to a cottage in the woods by a lake, for a virtual retreat. Take a deep breath and look out onto the water.

Settle in!

Photo by Michael Pfister on Unsplash

If we were retreating, I would tell you I am driving north today. There is no breakfast day. We will get coffee and maybe a sandwich on the road. I find it fun that I just finished and had a book club discussion about Travels with Charley by Steinbeck - a road trip book. I loved the atmospheric descriptions and the conversations with strangers in this text. The strangers conversations nods to my own work. He also describes the moment you KNOW a trip is over and that there is a clear dividing line. Masterful!

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️

📚While taking a walk, I would tell you what I read this week. Since I am on retreat this week, I am planning for reading days.

I am reading Five Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand. This is not my normal genre, but I am intrigued by this concept. The MC invites a friend from each decade of her life plus a wildcard to a girls weekend in Nantucket. Of course, everyone has secrets.

I finished YesterYear. Lots to talk about in this book. Thanks to Kelli, who sent it to me!

I am revisiting The Vertical Interrogation of Strangers. I love her list of 12 questions.

Plus, I am reading a stack of books I am taking with me to Canada.

What are you reading?

I am thinking about this idea: 100 WALKS - Walk Like A Poet

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While we have a glass of wine or a mocktail, I would tell you the 5-word circle wrapped up on Friday with a delightful call. I heard about a conversation frame from a woman in another group I am in, and we tried it out.

The Trinity: Brag/Gratitude/Desire

This can be a simple share or a more complex one. Depends on the group and the mood. I am using it in my notebook in the mornings too. It is a great way to connect with myself.

There is something about the simplicity of this 5 word practice. Everyone’s voices come through clearly. One student remarked the Trio pushes a writer out of their comfort zone. There more experimentation based on the readings and all the input. With the 5 word, you get to use the freedom to let your voice be prominent. It is always such fun too!

If we were having a reflection writing session , I would tell you… the Revision Lab begins on Wednesday! There are a few spots left if you want to jump in. The calls are Thursday evenings. Materials drop Wednesdays. This course is going to give you time to revise your work with specific tasks. Tasks you can use later again and again, too. It’s time to get some real work done.

In August, the Trio is happening. The rooms we are reading in are TENSION and TREES. Send me a message if you already know you want in!

After a reading session, I would tell you…I sent two stories to the Welkin Genre Prize. I have been having fun with micros lately. It is a great revision technique for me. Stories that don’t work seem to do better when I revise them down to less than 300 words!

☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕☕

As we sit by a fire outside, I would tell you…I have had some amazing writer conversations this week. I am so blessed to have such brilliant people in my life.

FETCH

The last time I went to Disney, I redeemed my points for a gift card. It is super easy and is legit. All you have to do is scan receipts, which takes seconds. There are other ways to earn points like playing games and buying specific items. I tend to not pay attention to that part, but you could earn points much faster. If you use my code, we both get points!

I love this app! Turn basically anything you do into gift cards with Fetch. Earn at stores, restaurants, and shopping online. Even playing free games. Download Fetch with my link or use code P8BMWM to get a bonus when you submit your first receipt.

https://referral.fetch.com/vvv3/referralqr?code=P8BMWM

I hope you have an amazing Sunday and the rest of the week! Thank you for joining me!

A little more about me: Tammy L. Evans is a writer, teacher, and professional curator living in a tiny house on a peninsula with her husband, adventure cat, and Parkour-loving black kitten who has sharp teeth. Her location device is her loud laugh. She is the creator and host of THE TRIO COURSE and The Museum Portfolio course. Her poetry has been published in The Storyteller, FoxGlove Journal, Story Hall, Blue Insights, The Partnered Pen, and others. Her fiction has been published in Gone Lawn, South Florida Poetry Journal, Cabinets of Heed, Spelk, Five on the Fifth, Fiction Berlin Kitchen, and longlisted for the Welkin Prize 2026.