My Woman Wonder Writer: How She Wrote 10,000 Words in 2 Days on a DIY Retreat

I’ve always been impressed by writers who can write 10,000 words like my Pittsburgh friend and colleague Judi Resick-Csokai. Perhaps, it goes against the digitally deranged world we live in.

In my eyes, she’s my version of a Wonder-Woman writer who wrote 10,000 words of a new novel in just 2 days. 2 days! How did she do it?

In our highly deranged world, learning how to advocate for your writing needs is a must. The push-pull between parenting and writing worlds is a constant.

So enter again, Judi Resick-Csokai, a local Pittsburgh writer, and novelist. My Wonder Woman Writer who found productivity through initiating her own DIY retreat.

That’s something you don’t hear very often. The concept itself is brilliant. Why wait for validation to get accepted for a writing residency (like I had been doing) when you can simply initiate your own retreat?

Judi and I first met at a writing group in Pittsburgh back in 2008 when I first came to Pittsburgh from Israel. We soon learned how much we have a lot in common as women, mothers, and writers writing about immigrant themes across fiction and non-fiction. Years later we would find ourselves connecting once again years later at a local coffee shop. It was at these writing groups that the birth of our ideas was validated and subsequently, found their way into the publishing world.

How she managed to detach from those push-pull worlds and write 10,000 words in just 2 days? She became my own version of a “wonder woman writer.” Of course, I needed to know exactly what she did and so I am sharing our interview that hopefully, will open for you a wide range of possibilities.

Me: How hard was it really to make the decision? I mean, how much courage did it take to put yourself and your writing first? As you know, mothers and caregivers always end up putting their kids first and we are selfless in how we approach life. Did you have to do any attitude shifting or adjust your attitude and/or expectations even if for 2 days?

Judi Resick-Csokai: My quest to best manage my time is the main reason I decided to try something new and go on retreat. I began writing seriously when joining a writer’s group back in 2005. Since then, I’ve had 2 children and five different day jobs. For me, as I imagine it is with all working moms, time management is key to productivity and sanity. I believe all work can be broken down into smaller, more digestible tasks.

I’ve spent some time thinking about what those tasks are and how I best accomplish them. I’ve learned through experience that when I write new material, I need large chunks of uninterrupted time – at least 4 hours at a time, which is challenging considering I work full-time and am mom to a busy 10-year-old and 7 year old.

It took me some time to make this decision. I had tried thinking of writing as work. Writing is work, but it’s more than that to me – it’s essential to who I am and my well-being. When I started thinking of taking time for writing as self-care, it clicked. To be the best mom I can be, I have to take care of myself and writing is a big part of taking care of myself. My family knows that “I am not right if I don’t write.”

Me: How did you come to the conclusion that you needed to go on this retreat? What was your breaking point?

JRC: I had a lot of stress and personal drama this past fall. For four months I didn’t write anything except for lengthy journal entries and emails to a close friend. I have a completed first novel that I agent-shopped with some promising results, but much of the feedback kept pointing me in the direction of completing my second novel before returning to my first for edits. I had been blocked in writing the second novel since summer.

My cousin, a sculptor and visual artist, and I had a great discussion over Christmas about being blocked and unblocking. We talked about how unblocking and healing from the personal drama could go hand-in-hand. She has two apartments and offered one to me anytime I wanted to get away. The next morning, I thought back to our talk and her apartment and decided to get away in the form of a writer’s retreat.

My notes: There are few GREAT takeaways one can learn just from reading Judi’s experience. Sometimes those grandiose type answers are found in the simple act of sharing with others. Note that Judi didn’t ask another writer but another creative from the visual arts. There is so much here to be said in terms of collaboration.

Me: Was your husband on board with this decision? What other factors logistically were a factor if at all and how were you able to resolve them?

JRC: My husband is very supportive and stepped right up to take care of everything in my absence – we regularly do this sort of thing for each other and he had been away for two weeks prior. I had never taken a retreat before mostly because of cost. But the DIY retreat cost nothing except my groceries and gas and a thank you goodie bag I made for my cousin.

My notes: I love how Judi places an emphasis on a support system. I love that Judi has a system in place that works in all areas and not just for the needs of this retreat. Who can you enlist to support your work? Support doesn’t have to be monetary; it’s also emotional.

Me: You mentioned this was a retreat where you maintained solitude. How did you manage to create the right conditions without distractions? Were you ever afraid or concerned of getting too isolated?

JRC: The apartment is an hour north of the city in a rural community. I drove up on a January Friday night ahead of an ice storm. When I woke up on Saturday morning, it had snowed 6 inches. The weather offered a natural solitude and comfy winterish serenity. The apartment did not have a TV. I had candles, lots of music, tea, and chocolate with me – these things help me focus when I write. I texted and called a few friends during my breaks, which helped me not feel so isolated.

My notes: I have to admit – I started freaking out with the ice storm, but the way Judi handled it was so peaceful and reminded me of the peaceful and Zen writer!

She also reminded me that when our emotions get the better hold of us, we have a lot of tools at our disposal. We can take a break, jump up and down and own our writing space by shouting “I am Wonder Woman!”

Me: How did you manage to keep the writing momentum? What were some of the ways you kept yourself accountable?

JRC: I started each day with yoga and took stretch breaks. I also wrote morning pages. I had been writing myself notes for two weeks about scenes I wanted to write. For the first half of my days, I wrote without judgment – letting everything come out. I spent afternoon/evening doing some light editing and note taking on what I had written earlier in the day. I wrote from 9am-9pm each day. I had a goal of 10,000 words – at the end of day 1 I had 6000 words written, which gave me lots of momentum for day 2. I reached my goal of 10,000 words.

My notes: I love that Judi created her own routine based on creative systems that worked for her.

Me: Did you do any pre-planning prior to leaving? What were some of the materials you took with you? What kind of book were you working on?

JRC: I packed a duffle bag full of references, including books, past journals, national geographic magazines, and a Mongolian-English dictionary. I had my laptop and a novel that helped inspire the style I aspire to in this second novel I’m writing. My novel weaves a modern woman’s narrative with that of a woman from 400 BC – the setting, characters, and some events are based on an actual archeological dig in the Altai Mountains of Outer Mongolia in the 1990s.

Me: Walk us through a day of the 2-day retreat. What was it like? 

JRC: I woke up with a morning meditation/prayer before I got out of bed. (I write meditations/prayers to help inspire me.) I washed up and dressed. I did 20 minutes of yoga. Then I had breakfast and started writing. I did Julia Cameron’s morning pages first. (By the way, have a listen to a podcast I did with Julia Cameron back in 2013 where we talked at length about creativity and the subject of Morning Pages came up.) On day 1, I refreshed with my reference materials for about an hour. In all I wrote from 9am-9pm, taking breaks for tea, lunch, snacks, dinner, and some texting with friends, one of whom is a life-long friend, fellow writer, and major source of inspiration for all of my work. I would have gone out for a walk, but the temperatures were sub-zero and I was snowed in. At 9pm I moved to the recliner and read a novel until about 11pm. Then I showered and went to bed.

On day 2, I started out the same with the same routine except after Morning Pages, I looked into literary events happening in Pittsburgh over the next several months. I signed up for a creative non-fiction course starting in February. Then I got to writing, again writing from 9am-9pm. I took two longish breaks on Day 2 to talk on the phone with two close friends. I read a novel and then went to bed.

The big takeaway here is learning to OWN the creative space and doing what feels right for you. The other BIG takeaway is giving yourself PERMISSION to step into that creative space. Just reading this response made me feel like alone.

Me: How much writing were you able to get done? What factors do you attribute to this achievement?

JRC: I met my goal of 10,000 words. I unblocked and wrote in a style and scenes that I had never been able to write before. I attribute my success to not being judgmental towards my work and having taken notes leading up to the retreat about what I wanted to write. Also in a satisfying and surprising way, the personal drama I have endured since the Fall has also brought me to a new understanding about many things, which continue to make their way into my writing. I had been so upset and almost panicked about being so blocked for four months. I’ve since realized that the introspection I had gained while being blocked was worth a thousand words, literally!

The big takeaway here is learning to view the creative process as playful and joyful. I know from my own personal experience that I tend to get wrapped up in outcomes. How cool is it to be in charge of unblocking your own creativity?

Me: If you were to do this again, what would you change? What wouldn’t you change? did you feel 2 days was enough?

JRC: I am doing this again – I set up a March retreat and plan to do this quarterly. Next time I’m going to take walks and spend part of my day in a nearby coffee shop. I wouldn’t change the solitude – I spend the majority of my life with others constantly and it’s a necessary change to be alone and recharge. Two days was plenty – in the practical sense of being away from my family, in the emotional challenges of solitude,  and also the fact that writing for almost 24 hours over two days was exhausting.

Big takeaway – knowing your limits and what you need to refresh your batteries is necessary even within the framework of “solitude.”