Our Story

Welcome new and old to our beloved Lost Coast Writers Retreat on the Mattole River. For more than 12 years our writing community has felt like an extended family that gathers once a year to enjoy so many wonderful things: the freedom to write, respond, talk about writing, listen to our stories and poems on Author’s Chair evenings, join mini workshops spontaneously offered and placed on our relaxed schedule, and, of course, write, write, right. We do all of these things in the sanctified quiet of our lodge, on our pavilion, under trees, beside the river, or whatever place we find and make our own in the beauty of Camp Mattole. Those of us who are returning for the nth time, welcome home. To those who are new, we welcome you to join our family of writers.

We share so many delights. We swim in our favorite swimming hole upriver. We take walks along a peaceful road to other places on the river. We sing and play music and games in the evenings, and engage in new activities that any of us might discover. When we are not engaged in the primary activity we came here for – writing – we enjoy and improve each other. We delight ourselves and each other.

Here is something else that sets us apart from other writing retreats. We run our retreat collectively in a bonding experience that is much more than work, that deepens our knowledge and appreciation of each other. We buy our food (before, of course), prepare our meals together under the guiding hands of cooks (chefs, actually) who choose themselves for that role. We clean them up after ourselves in teams we organize on Day One. In other words, everyone is staff. Our necessary core group of organizers that, though it calls itself the Small Council, is no more than staff because  everyone is staff. When we share that load together, it leaves us plenty of time for the principal reason we gather: to engage in the primary reason we come: To write, share our writing and our skills, and to help each other.

Here is something in need of acknowledgement. The kitchen part of our experience is managed to our benefit by our Kitchen Queen. She is Susan Sontra. Susan is not just our Kitchen Queen. She is our writer who takes the time to make certain that we dine better than well. famously. As a consequence, we sometimes tease ourselves by calling this experience The Lost Coast Eating Retreat. The food is that good. More than Susan deserve the credit. We all do. We nourish ourselves to write.

If you are new to the retreat, consider that you have joined an exquisite family of writers. If you are one of our regulars, which takes only a single year, welcome back.

To find out more about our 2025 retreat, visit our Retreat 2025 page.