Join Westport Writers’ Workshop instructors and writers for an immersive retreat at the Highlights Foundation campus, tucked away in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. Designed specifically for writers seeking to refine their craft and elevate their storytelling, you will have daily designated solo writing time, group prompt writing sessions with program director Liz Matthews, craft lectures with author and instructor Julie Sarkissian and screenwriter and instructor Alana Sanko, as well as yoga, and evening activities including readings and film screenings.
This transformative experience will offer dedicated time to dive deep into your manuscript, discover new genres and strategies to establish a more regular writing routine, or simply provide the accountability and community that is missing in your regular life.
Liz Matthews is a writer and editor who received her M.F.A. in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts (2008) and M.A. in English Education from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Liz began her professional career in publishing, both at a literary agency and as an Editorial Assistant at Random House before teaching middle and high school English at Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn. Her work has appeared in Quality Women’s Fiction, Town & Country, Literary Mama, Brain Child, Mothers Always Write, The Rumpus, and Big Fiction Little Truths among other places.Liz teaches Introductory & Intermediate Fiction, Flash Fiction, and Creative Writing at Westport Writers’ Workshop.
Alana Sanko is an award-winning writer and producer who has written and developed for comedy, drama and animated series, as well as TV movie and network and cable pilots across multiple platforms.
Her Nickelodeon series, Just for Kicks, which she created, developed and produced with Executive Producer Whoopi Goldberg, won her a WGA Award and the animated MTV series Spy Groove, which she was Head Writer on, received an Annie Nomination by the International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood.
In addition to working on many writing staffs over the years, Alana has written and produced a number of original pilots, including the ABC comedy, See Jayne Run with Brillstein Entertainment. Additional writing credits include: the Disney Channel Original Movie Get a Clue starring Lindsay Lohan, HBO Family’s animated series, A Little Curious, ABC’s Life’s Work, and the acclaimed CBS television series Murphy Brown, which was named on the WGA’s list of 101 Best TV Series. She has also written for numerous children’s series and was a Consulting Producer for Half Life, the limited series winner of the NYC women’s initiative screenwriting competition #GreenlightHer! Alana recently made her directing debut on the short film, The Happiness Intervention, which is currently in post-production. Follow it on Instagram @TheHappinessIntervention.
Alana is the Creative Episodic Lab Director for the Athena Film Festival and a 2026 Artemis Rising Foundation Filmmaker Fellow at Barnard College. She also teaches at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Purchase College’s School of Film and Media Studies and the Sundance Collab. She is a proud member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Broadcast Music, Inc., Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques, New York Women in Film & Television and the Writers Guild of America.
Julie Sarkissian is the author of Dear Lucy, published by Simon and Schuster and nominated for the Dylan Thomas Prize.
Her essays, short fiction and book reviews have appeared in The New York Times, Tin House, The Huffington Post, The New York Observer, and Flavorwire, among others. Born and raised in Southern California, she has a BA in English from Princeton and an MFA from The New School.
She worked for Sackett Street Writers in Brooklyn, NY as a fiction instructor and manuscript consultant before moving to Westport, CT with husband and two young children.
Enjoy delicious, locally sourced meals, with snacks and beverages available throughout the day. Footnotes will be low-key and unstructured and a time to connect as a group. The Highlights Foundation campus has ample opportunities for walking, hiking, bird watching and gorgeous sunsets as the campus is surrounded by nature and farms. This setting is sure to ignite your creativity and inspire you well beyond the retreat experience.
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3:00-5:00 PM: Arrival / Welcome Drinks and Dinner |
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| Friday, March 27th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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8:00 AM: Breakfast (coffee / tea available at 7:30 AM) & Morning Prompts with Liz Matthews |
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Free Write / Activity Time |
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12:00 PM: Lunch |
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3:00 PM: Craft / Process Talk with Julie Sarkissian |
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4:00 PM: Yoga with Rebecca DeRosa |
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6:00 PM: Dinner |
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7:00 PM: Film Screening and Discussion with Alana Sanko |
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| Saturday, March 28th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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8:00 AM: Breakfast |
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Free Write / Activity Time |
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12:00 PM: Lunch |
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3:00 PM: Craft/Process talk with Julie Sarkissian |
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4:00 PM: Optional one-on-one meetings with Alana, Liz, or Julie |
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6:00 PM: Dinner |
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7:00 PM: Evening Reading of Student Work |
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| Sunday, March 29th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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8:00 AM: Goodbye Breakfast / Morning Prompt |
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The Barn will always be open. Snacks, beverages, and ice cream are available around–the–clock. Beer and wine are available during appetizers and dinner only.
When: Thursday March 26 - Sunday March 29, 2026
Where: Highlights Foundation Retreat Center, 392 Boyds Mills Road, Milanville, PA
This retreat is perfect for:
All inclusive pricing = $1400
Our immersive retreat will be led by instructors Liz Matthews, Alana Sanko, and Julie Sarkissian.
Please submit a brief paragraph about your goals for this retreat and 1,000 word writing sample via our application link (below). If accepted, a registration link will be provided.
You may check into your lodging any time after 3 pm on Thursday, March 26th. If you arrive prior to 3 pm, you may enjoy the grounds and various work and gathering places around the facility as your room is being prepared. The first meal on campus will be appetizers at 5:30 pm and dinner at 6:00 pm. If you arrive late, we can save dinner for you with advance notice. Lunch on the final day of your stay is included, but we ask that you check out of your lodging by 11 am.
Transportation not included. Directions to location will be provided upon registration.
Writers have up to 45 days before the retreat to cancel.
