Do you dream of writing your memoirs for your children and grandchildren but don’t know how?
Join us for a special weekend where you’ll awaken long lost memories,
make new friendships and write the stories of your days.
How much fun would it be to rediscover some of the most heartwarming stories from your childhood?
Do you remember the last time you made s’mores?
The last time you told stories around a campfire?
What about all those amazing things you’ve accomplished in your life?
Won’t your great-grandchildren want to know?
This is your chance to toot your horn!
You arrive on Friday evening after a hectic week. But here you are in the mountains for the weekend.
It’s late spring and the first thing you notice is the scent of evergreen trees in the cool air.
You take a deep breath… and let go of the week.
You’re about to dive into one of your favorite things — telling stories about your family tree.
You begin to notice rustic buildings, a magnificent stone fireplace under a vaulting wood canopy, green foliage all around.
You recall the days long ago when you ran through woods like these, filled with the joy and exuberance of youth.
Life was carefree then.
Where are you? The Laurel Highland Mountains in western Pennsylvania.
This will be a weekend to remember!
What will I learn?
- To awaken your memories
- To identify key moments of your life
- To reveal who you are through your words
- To get your personal stories on the page
- To write your memoirs with the guidance of memoir writing coach Jay Speyerer
Is this retreat for me?
This retreat is a great fit for you if:
- You want to write your memoirs, but you’re nervous about it
- You started to write your memoirs, but you’re stuck
- You can’t figure out what stories to include
- You don’t know what form your stories should take
- You don’t even know where to begin
Memoir writing coach Jay Speyerer will help you find the right path and get your stories on the page.
What if I’ve never written anything before?
That’s okay. You can do it, and you won’t have to do it on your own. Jay Speyerer will be there to help you.
Consider how important it is to preserve your stories.
What would you give to know the thoughts and feelings of your great-grandparents?
- Who were they?
- What was a typical day in their life?
- What were their hopes, their feelings, their accomplishments?
Your children and grandchildren
will want to know these things about YOU.
Do you want your children to know who you were as a person – not just as “mom” or “dad”?
What stories can you tell to influence and benefit the generations who come after you?
Put your world into words for future generations. Remember: you might be very interesting today, but you’ll be fascinating in fifty years. – Jay Speyerer
I'm a little nervous, but I'm going to do this.
Author and memoir writing coach, Jay Speyerer, known as “Pittsburgh’s Mark Twain,” will lead the memoir writing sessions. Classes will be fun, with interactive exercises to get your imagination flowing.
Come prepared to write. Bring your laptop computer. Bring your tablet or iPad. Bring a couple of pens and your journal or notebook. Bring whatever tools you use to write.
Don’t want to come by yourself?
We have Special Group Rates for groups of 10 or more.
I'm going to bring my tribe.
Camping has never been so much fun!
For venue, room, and meal information, click on the bars below.
Ligonier Camp & Conference Center
You’ll enjoy a relaxing and inspiring weekend at the Ligonier Camp & Conference Center in the Laurel Highland Mountains near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Located at 188 Macartney Lane just outside of the charming town of Ligonier, the lush, forested grounds of this property with its rustic buildings, and the scent of evergreens in the fresh air, will bring you back to your childhood.
Our group will stay in the Lamont Lodge, the camp’s main conference facility which provides a comfortable, cozy atmosphere.
Your Cozy Room
Remember those childhood sleepovers with your friends? Weren’t they fun?
On Friday and Saturday nights, you’ll share a charming lodge room with other memoir writers. It’ll be like a sleepover, but with new friends.
Our accommodations for the retreat are communal by design, so you can socialize, share stories and recall memories.
To make your camping weekend comfortable, all rooms have private, modern en suite bathrooms.
We’ll match you with same gender roommates, unless you request to room with a specific person.
Most rooms have bunk beds, so let us know if you cannot climb into an upper bunk.
Your Hearty Meals
A relaxing mountain environment is sure to make you hungry!
We’ll provide breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast on Sunday. You’ll enjoy hearty, satisfying meals, such as pancakes, scrambled eggs, fajitas, lasagna and desserts like strawberry shortcake and pie a la mode.
There will be plenty of coffee and tea. And we’ll make s’mores Friday night!
Ligonier Camp is able to accommodate your food concerns and allergies including gluten free, dairy, wheat, nuts, melon, etc. Please let us know prior to the retreat.
Retreat Schedule
Friday, June 2
5:00 pm Room Check-in
7:00 – 10:00 pm Retreat Begins / Memoir Activities
Saturday, June 3
8:30 am – 10:00 pm Memoir Sessions
Sunday, June 4
8:30 – 11:00 am Memoir Wrap-up
In a memoir, your main contract with the reader is to tell the truth, no matter how bizarre. – Edmund White
What’s Included
- Memoir writing program with Jay Speyerer
- Jay’s book The Stories of Our Days
- Shared accommodations in the Lamont Lodge on Friday and Saturday nights
- DIY S’mores Friday night
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday
- Breakfast on Sunday
What’s Not Included
- Flights and other transportation to Ligonier Camp & Conference Center
- Tips, souvenirs, and other items not listed in the inclusions above
I feel like a kid again. I'm going to camp (to write my memoirs)!
Facilitators
Jay Speyerer
Known as “Pittsburgh’s Mark Twain,” Jay Speyerer has been a writer, a humorist, a speaker, a trainer and an educator for more than 30 years, successfully helping people achieve their goals in memoir writing. As owner of Legacy Road Communications, Jay ghost-writes people’s biographies because he believes we are all defined by our stories. He was on the faculty of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh for 25 years, teaching photography, communication, and script writing.
Jay is the author of four books, including The Stories of Our Days. You’ll get a copy of his book at the retreat! Jay will help you uncover the key moments of your life (so far) and teach you how to get them on the page for yourself, your loved ones and future generations.
Whether you call it memoir writing or storytelling,
it’s still your Narrative Legacy.” – Jay Speyerer
Diana Osberg
Diana Osberg is the owner and founder of Mia Terra Retreats. She produces extraordinary retreats to inspire writers, artists and creative souls. Diana is a screenwriter and has worked in the entertainment industry for over 30 years in production, creative development and administration. She is a world-traveler, or as she likes to put it, a “world citizen,” and loves to go on unusual adventures.
Diana has helmed a 165 meter barque off anchor and into the Strait of Gibraltar under the command of the ship’s captain. She has sailed as crew on tall ships in New Zealand, Spain and the Canary Islands, participated in an English immersion program with Spanish business people in Spain, and tracked Mustangs in the wilds of the Nevada mountains on horseback. She has kissed the Blarney Stone, but did not get the gift of the gab. She’ll have to kiss it again, I guess.
Jay has succeeded in shedding a refreshing light on how to extract your stories and transform them to the written form.
Through his own stories and natural humor, Jay makes the journey simple, fun, and above all, possible!
Patty Kreamer