The 15th Annual Summer Scholarly Writing Retreat and Workshop provided faculty with three days of structure, community and one shared goal — to move projects from stuck to submitted.
Fifteen Years In, a Faculty Writing Retreat Delivers Results and a Community
Thirty-two Duke faculty walked into the Rubenstein Arts Center (the “Ruby”) in mid-May, carrying unfinished manuscripts, stalled grant proposals, and the accumulated fatigue of a difficult academic year. Three days later, they walked out with 6,000-word chapters, near-complete journal revisions, conference abstracts, a plenary speech, grant proposals and something harder to quantify: a renewed sense of their “why” as scholars and a deeper engagement with their work.
The occasion was the 15th annual Scholarly Writing Retreat and Workshop, a consistently in-demand faculty development offering led by Faculty Write Program Director Jennifer Ahern-Dodson. This year's retreat drew participants from across disciplines, bringing together scholars at every career stage around a shared commitment to their work and to each other.
The three-day format gave participants something increasingly difficult to protect in academic life: uninterrupted time. "Having three full days carved out on my calendar allowed me to deeply invest focused time into a summer-long project in a way that is frequently difficult alongside other work-related time commitments," one attendee said.
Others pointed to the retreat's structure, which included skill-building workshops, facilitated goal-setting, individual consultations and meals provided on site, as removing the friction that typically interrupts deep work.
"The structure and support always make decision-making a thousand times easier," one participant noted. Many participants also noted that movement breaks, facilitated by Associate Professor of the Practice of Dance Sarah Wilbur, were a joyful and energizing part of the retreat, and helped sustain focus over three full days.
The results were concrete. Participants reported drafting book chapters, completing long-deferred article revisions, developing grant proposals, and breaking through projects they described as psychologically blocked.
"I was able to find a way back into a project that was important to me, but around which I’d built some psychological barriers," one faculty member wrote. "By the end of day three, I had 4,000 words ready for submission to my critique partners." Another reported writing nearly a full chapter: "This retreat helped me level up in the mad dash to finish this book manuscript. I wrote 6,000 words.
“The retreat helps me celebrate the wins in a way that is very motivating, gives me tips for avoiding rabbit holes, and helps me articulate meaningful goals that feel good when met."
Eileen Chow associate professor of the Practice of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies connects with colleagues across disciplines in thoughtful conversation.
From first drafts to near-finished manuscripts, the retreat helped Duke University scholars move their work forward — together.
Associate Professor of the Practice of Statistical Science Maria Tackett enjoys a moment of laughter and camaraderie between writing sessions.
What surprised many participants, including those returning for multiple years, was the retreat's role in bridging divisions that have sharpened on campus in recent years.
"It’s really easy to feel like there is a major divide between STEM scholars and humanities scholars right now with budget cuts, AI attitudes and infrastructure," one faculty member wrote. "This is one of the only places on campus where I feel that divide disappear and, instead, we're all scholars struggling with XYZ thing in fellowship together."
Several described following colleagues' projects across years and disciplines with genuine investment in work far outside their own fields. "I have been following a colleague writing her statistics book for two years now across retreats," one humanist noted. "It is wonderful to hear her progress."
For many, the retreat's deepest impact is what it returns to them over time. "Each year, this retreat gives me the space to pause, reassess my academic writing goals, and leave with renewed momentum and energy," one longtime participant wrote. "The impact has been tangible: Through the retreat, I have pushed multiple manuscripts out the door and successfully submitted both a grant letter of intent and a full proposal."
Another said it simply: "If you ever loved writing, then hated it, and wouldn't mind loving it again, start going to these retreats. Writing in community is a game changer." A third long-time participant reached for something larger: "Faculty Write retreats are a way to jumpstart a flat creative battery, to put wind into the sails, to breathe life into a love for writing that many of us already have, but which can get lost in the grind of the day-to-day."
Fifteen years in, that is still the retreat's signature achievement: not just the pages produced, but the scholars renewed.
The Summer Scholarly Writing Retreat and Workshop is sponsored by the Office of the Dean of Trinity College and the Writing and Rhetoric Program.
