Courses and Retreats

Each course in Helen’s online Writing Catalyst Series includes 6 weeks of themed workshops, activities, and discussion, plus optional live Writing Masterclasses and Clinics for writers in any time zone.

Each 6-week Writing Catalyst course is offered once per year:

• Creativity Catalyst: Aug 22 - Oct 1 , 2026

• Productivity Catalyst: Oct 31 - Dec 17, 2026

• Pleasure Catalyst: Jan-Feb 2027

• Wordcraft Catalyst: Mar - Apr, 2027

• Structure Catalyst: May - June, 2027

Participants get lifetime access to the course materials and are invited to join each subsequent year’s live cohort free of charge.

Any 6-week Catalyst course:

- $550 (regular price)
- $495 (WriteSPACE members)
- $440 (WriteSPACE Studio members and Catalyst alumni)

We also offer a limited number of scholarships.

All prices are in USD

Catalyst Course participants have told us:

It was a joy from start to finish – a six-week laboratory of experimentation and guided risk-taking that resulted in a breakthrough with an academic paper, and a remoulding of my assumptions about ‘good’ academic writing. I now have a bag of catalytic writing tools to make better academic writing. (James Corazzo, Graphic Design, UK).

I felt that there was something transformative that occurred.... it has been a brilliant experience. As a result of the Pleasure Catalyst, my thinking about pleasure has changed. The word pleasure seeps constantly into my thinking and my descriptors, for example when I prepare a university class. Pleasure is a gift. Thank you! (Sandra Acosta, Educational Psychology, USA).

I want to emphasise how grateful I am being able to work through the Wordcraft Catalyst. I have been able to ‘assess and diagnose’ a significant issue with the writing style I have chosen for my PhD and now feel confident that I can address this – which will improve the readability and also coherence of that work…. After ignoring grammar for my whole lifetime, it is a complete delight to have been surprised by how fascinating it can be. (Kate Waterworth, Clinical Sciences, New Zealand).

Anyone seeking an inspiring boost to their writing will find immense value in the beautifully designed and thoughtfully structured Productivity Catalyst. The blend of self-reflection and supportive community feedback brought joy and renewed energy to my writing process, and for that, I am deeply grateful. (Anita Campbell, Mathematics Education, South Africa).

We’ve created the Catalyst series for writers like them — and you!

The Stylish Writing Intensive features 6 hours of personal coaching sessions with Helen Sword supplemented by small-group workshops, focused writing sprints, curated breaks, and targeted feedback (24 hours total).

Sep 21 - Oct 9, 2026

• 3 weeks (self-paced)

• 4 hours per week

March, 2027 TBA

• 3 consecutive days (Th-Fr-Sa or Fr-Sa-Su)

• 8 hours per day

June, 2027 TBA

• 3 non-consecutive weekdays (Mo-We-Fr)

• 8 hours per SWI day

- $2400

Discounts are available to Retreat and SWI Alumni, and to WriteSPACE Studio members.

(All prices are in USD)

All Stylish Writing Intensive participants are offered a complimentary Catalyst Course with their enrollment (value $550).

Participating in the SWI reminded me that, as academics, we should aspire to write not only intellectually rigorous but also welcoming and engaging prose for our readers. I appreciated Helen's ability to provide sentence-level feedback that honors the strengths and potential for growth in our writing. (Michael Moses, UC Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Riverside, USA)

I found the workshops illuminating, the coaching enormously valuable, and the sense of community wonderful. Helen brought so much joy, energy, and pleasure to the whole weekend, it was truly catching.
(Sunil Amrith, Professor of History, Yale University, USA)

Mountain Rise / Island Time

Treat yourself to at treat at one of Helen’s two annual Writing Retreats! Over 7 glorious days of writing, walking, talking, workshops, and reflection, you’ll explore new paths to creativity, refresh your style, and rediscover the joys of wordcraft.

Island Time
Waiheke Island, New Zealand.
Jan 17-23, 2027
7 days, 6 nights

Mountain Rise
Wengen, Switzerland
July, 2027
7 days, 6 nights

Island Time & Mountain Rise:

Includes all meals and full accommodation in a private room with ensuite, plus all workshops, coaching, and excursions.

- $6100 (regular price)
- $5500 (retreat alumni)

All prices are in USD; discounts for our Island Time retreat are available to NZ/Aus residents. Please enquire.

The venue was perfection, and the free time to socialise with like-minded others was very welcome. Helen is an inspiration to me! (Professor Inger Mewburn, Director of Researcher Development, Australian National University).

Living in a paradisical place like the Swiss Alps, surrounded by peaceful and magnificent snowy mountains, for a week is conducive to produce enriching metaphors for your daily life and writing practice. Being guided in this process by Helen almost always guarantees success, namely, being nurtured and able to enjoy the challenging process of achieving good writing. (Dr Ramon Menedez Domingo, University of Design, Innovation and Technology, Madrid)