CRAFT &
PUBLISHING
VOYAGE
TOP WRITING TEACHERS, INDUSTRY EXPERTS, & CUNARD'S WHITE STAR
SERVICE FROM LONDON TO NEW YORK
Save the date! Your voyage begins in...
CRAFT CLASSES | PUBLISHING PANELS | PERSONAL ADVICE
for Memoir, Fiction & Nonfiction Writers in all genres
(SPOUSES, PARTNERS & FRIENDS WARMLY WELCOMED!)
THE REBIRTH DIFFERENCE
An inspirational week of writing craft, publishing knowledge
& concrete steps for your writing career
Not a cruise, but a transatlantic crossing aboard the greatest ocean liner in the world, Cunard’s Queen Mary 2.
Take advantage of complimentary room service and relax in your stateroom, join writers and friends for a three-course dinner, or network with over lunchtime interest and genre tables.
Enjoy quiet nooks and relaxing lounges for writing; or cinema, theatre, lectures, swimming pools, cocktail bars, restaurants, and the largest library at sea to stimulate your creative mind. Above all, the luxury of doing as little or as much as you wish!
Our westbound crossing ends with an awe-inspiring early-morning arrival into New York City.
Our bespoke itinerary maximizes your learning, creating and communing, allowing you every opportunity to get the best out of your guides and the services & hospitality onboard.
Craft & Publishing Panels. Each morning, our teachers present deep dives on writing craft and publication, such as: Market Viability: What Publishers Want, Negotiation Smarts, Fabulous First Pages, or Writing Online.
Daily Classes with individual teachers happen after the morning panel and in the afternoon. Choose the topics you need to further your writing and your publishing career. Class topics by teacher are listed under Your Guides.
Special Events include Reading Nights for participants and teachers (voluntary and time-limited) and our NEW Write Fast Challenge: get a genre, a prompt and a time limit, to create a very short story and a huge sense of accomplishment!
RebirthYourBook retreats and RebirthYourWriting intensives have helped over 1000 writers on their publishing journeys. Our alumni publish with Big Five and literary presses, successfully self-publish, and publish essays and short fiction in national and international media and literary journals.
Our exceptional team of writing industry experts bring deep knowledge of literary and commercial publishing, writing craft, book development, author platform, marketing, and literary citizenship.
One-On-One sessions with our experts may be added at time of booking, at an additional cost.
Travel Mate Pros Dave Williams and Karen Ballard bring the best airfare deals, cruise expertise, and all-around travel insight to make your voyage smooth from door-to-door.
Once you register for the event, your confirmation email will include next steps to organizing and booking your travel. Need to know more before you register? Contact karenballard@travelmation.net to schedule a call.
Karen & Dave will help you choose your stateroom, book hotel nights before and after the crossing, arrange air travel and airport transfers.
Travel Mate Pros are part of one of the largest umbrella agencies in the country, Travelmation, giving access to discounts and perks you won’t find anywhere else!
Add on a tour before the voyage, an excursion after, or deepen your work with craft lessons and individual coaching on a return voyage.
LITERARY LONDON August 24-26 | Delight in the histories of illustrious writers and a rich library tradition. This 3-night tour includes accommodation, breakfast, two dinners, afternoon tea, a West End show, private tours and coach transfer to the ship.
$1950 | Limit 10 writers, travel partners in shared room $685
LITERARY NEW YORK September 3 | A one-day excursion to magical bookstores and a pitching-and-publishing lunch with literary agents. Includes coach transfer from the ship, luggage storage for the day, lunch, and free time.
$485 | Limit 10 writers; travel partners $155
RETURN VOYAGE September 3-10 | Can’t get enough? Join Allison K Williams and Amy Collins for the return voyage to the UK with craft lessons & personal coaching.
Event fee $975 + cabin fare | Limit 10 writers; no event fee for travel partners
Use the Contact Form to request full details of all add-on events.
YOUR GUIDES
Four experts in literary, commercial and self-publishing
lead insightful panels and small-group craft workshops
Our teachers are here to help you create, revise, and share your words with the world.
- Publishing expert Jane Friedman will focus on Getting Known Before & After the Book Deal.
- Literary agent Amy Collins shares her behind-the-scenes insights, Demystifying Publishing.
- Noted memoirist and teacher Dinty W. Moore leads powerful sessions on Deepening Meaning with Writing Craft.
- Powerhouse editor Allison K Williams focuses on structure, story and scene, getting Your Words In the World.
For teacher bios and more about their topics, click on the individual tabs.
Jane Friedman has 25 years of experience in the publishing industry, with expertise in business strategy for authors and publishers. She’s the co-founder and editor of The Hot Sheet, a paid newsletter for authors, and has previously worked for Writer’s Digest and the Virginia Quarterly Review. In 2023, Jane was awarded Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World; her newsletter was awarded Media Outlet of the Year in 2020.
Jane’s latest book The Business of Being a Writer, published by The University of Chicago Press, offers the business education writers need but so rarely receive, helping early-career writers to develop a realistic set of expectations about making money from their work, and give working writers a better understanding of the industry. Publishers Weekly said that it is “destined to become a staple reference book for writers and those interested in publishing careers.” Jane has been featured across countless media outlets, including The New York Times, CNN, BBC, The Guardian, CBC, The Washington Post, NPR, and Fox News.
Jane’s Focus: Getting Known Before & After the Book Deal
Writers are often counseled to “build a platform” by agents and publishers long before their book launches. While many people equate that to a large social media following, what it really means is: How will you make yourself visible to your community—other authors, influencers, and potential readers?
Jane will host a series of sessions to help you think through some of the most important questions related to building platform, so that you can return home with a firm direction that you feel confident about—and that has lasting power.
We’ll explore such questions as:
- What do you want to be known for?
- What engages you today and how can we harness that for greater visibility?
- What issues do you want to be most associated with?
- What can you contribute to the community that bolsters what’s important to you and work?
- How can you protect yourself from toxic dynamics and stay focused on what’s important?
Come with an open mind and an open heart to the possibilities of platform building that will enhance your creative life rather than detracting from it.
Amy Collins, Agent with Talcott Notch Literary Services, has over 30 years’ experience matching books with readers. As a former book buyer, publisher, and sales director for one of the largest non-fiction publishers in the US, Amy has been focused on market and sales potential for author and brings that skill to her role as an advocate for her clients. As an agent, she represents many authors who have signed deals with major publishers for Cookbooks, Romance, Pop Culture, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror, and Thrillers.
Amy is the author of several non-fiction books ranging from self-help (It’s The Little Things, (Simon & Schuster/Adams Media) to books on publishing and working toward becoming a successful author. She is currently traveling the country in a solar powered bus with her two dogs meeting with editors and authors and can be found on social media everywhere at @askamycollins and online at www.amysadvice.com.
Amy’s Focus: Publishing Demystified
- What do Agents Do and What Are They Looking For?
- Simple and Easy Steps to a Great Plot Synopsis.
- How Books Get On Shelves—and where your marketing time is best spent
- How finding and using comp titles improves your writing and your chances of a successful career
- Behind the scenes: How publishers decide which books to publish and which authors to support
From idea to novel, proposal to memoir, first draft to first royalties, Allison K Williams brings deep understanding of dramatic structure, sensitivity to voice and theme, technical expertise, and contagious enthusiasm for your work.
Allison has edited and coached writers to deals with Penguin Random House, Knopf, Mantle, Spencer Hill, St. Martin’s and independent presses. She’s guided essayists to publication in the New Yorker, Time, the Guardian, the New York Times, McSweeney’s and TED Talks. As Social Media Editor for Brevity, she inspires thousands of writers with blogs on craft and the writing life.
Allison is the author of Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro From Blank Page to Book. A former circus performer, she has written for NPR, CBC, the New York Times, the Christian Science Monitor, Creative Nonfiction, McSweeney’s, Kenyon Review Online and Travelers’ Tales.
Allison’s Focus: Your Words in the World
As “the Unkind Editor,” Allison’s sharp line edits and knowledge of dramatic structure in story and scene have guided authors to success in traditional and indie publishing. She’ll focus on writing craft as it leads to publication—clearly showing your ideas, your voice and your story, while getting the work done and into the world. Her classes may include:
- Write Better Right Now: Sentence Craft
- The Power of Dramatic Structure
- Live-Editing: First Pages | We’ll project pages on the screen, giving writers a chance to see their work edited in real time.
- Writing the Synopsis to Engineer Your Story
- Perhapsing: Writing What You (or Your Characters) Don’t Know
- Own the Room: Public Speaking with Confidence and Power
A direct, honest and supportive teacher known for his ability to draw out meaning in memoir, Dinty W. Moore is author of The Story Cure: A Book Doctor’s Pain-Free Guide to Finishing Your Novel or Memoir and the memoir Between Panic & Desire among many other books.
Dinty has published essays and stories in The Southern Review, The Georgia Review, Harpers, The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Arts & Letters, The Normal School and elsewhere. A former professor of nonfiction writing at Ohio University, he serves as Editor-in-Chief for Brevity, a noted online journal of flash nonfiction.
Dinty consults regularly with authors and publishers on book proposals and revisions, many going on to publish with Big Five houses and university presses. A well-known and popular workshop leader, he has led workshops in Spain, Scotland, Ireland, Mexico, and throughout the United States.
Dinty’s Focus: Deepening Meaning with Writing Craft
Dinty W. Moore is known for inspiring teaching and his ability to teach craft with clarity. Most sessions involve learning, discussion, and generative writing. His classes may include:
- The Invisible Magnetic River: The Secret to Writing Compelling Fiction and Memoir
- They Walk! They Talk! Secrets to Writing Engaging Characters & Vivid Dialogue
- Write What You Don’t Know: How Curiosity Fuels Craft
- The Art of Revision: Knowing When to Revise, What to Revise, and How to Make Your Revisions Matter
aboard the crown jewel of the Cunard fleet.
Queen Mary 2
Southampton - New YorkStaterooms $1515-$2085 per person
based on double occupancy
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Register & pay your event fee
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With our travel coordinator, choose your Stateroom: Inside, Seaview or Balcony
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Take advantage of Cunard's discount on the airline of your choice (optional)
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Choose to add additional hotel nights in NYC or London (optional)
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Add on Literary London, Literary New York or a one-on-one consult (optional)
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Join the pre-event Zoom to get to know your fellow writers
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See you onboard!
Dinty's Doodles
Don't Take It From Us...
"From personal experience, staggering round a transatlantic liner in a dinner jacket with a martini is the normal, rational, reasonable way to cross the Atlantic. Heading for an airport and strapping yourself to a flimsy aluminium tube is an unfortunate and eccentric aberration."
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
YOU PROBABLY HAVE A FEW
1. Register and pay your Event Fee here.
2. Within 24 hours, our travel advisors, Karen Ballard and Dave Williams at Travel Mate Pros will contact you. Or, reach out on Facebook, via email, or phone 813-486-1575. Note: This contact information will also come with your registration confirmation. Please register for the event first.
3. Karen & Dave will help you choose inside, oceanview or sheltered balcony staterooms and your location on the ship. ($1515-$2085 per person, based on double occupancy, includes port charges & taxes).
They can also arrange your hotel before or after the voyage, additional add-ons affiliated with Cunard or independently, and book flights on the airline of your choice with Cunard’s discount or guide you for the best options to book yourself.
4. Karen and Dave will take your cruise fare deposit and schedule your payment(s) to Cunard.
5. Final Event Fee payments are due to Rebirth Your Book by April 15th, 2025; Cunard may sell out of cabins sooner. We recommend reserving with a deposit by February 1, 2025.
We’ll discuss commercial and literary fiction, nonfiction, memoir and essays. We welcome writers at all stages of their careers from beginning to multiply published.
- You DON’T need a degree in writing (or anything else!).
- You DON’T need previous publication credits.
- You DON’T need a manuscript in progress (but bring it to work on if you have one!)
- We will do generative writing and work on existing pages if you have them.
- You’re not reading others’ work in advance, so the experience level of your fellow writers isn’t a big factor in your retreat.
A non-writing travel partner (friend, spouse, partner, parent, child 15+) pays an event fee of $495 plus their cabin fare. They take part in our opening and closing parties, join us at group meals, and receive our group discount on cabin fare.
To share a cabin with another writer, please register separately—there will be a place in the registration to give your roommate’s name.
Yes! Single cabin fares range from $2455-$3452.
Need a roommate? Let Allison know and she’ll help you share your bedtime/morning/interaction preferences and make a new writing friend.
No, definitely do not make this mistake!
In order to participate in our private writing events and special events you must book directly through Karen & Dave at Travel Mate Pros. You get the advantage of a special group booking rate for passage on the ship as well as our expert teachers for the week.
Yes! You can use the Contact Form below, or Email us to let us know your interest, and we’ll be in touch.
Unlike a typical “cruise,” the Queen Mary 2 makes a direct passage from Britain to America. There are no stops or ports, recalling bygone days before air travel took over.
While yes, you can find bingo, karaoke and a casino if you enjoy them, Cunard focuses on special guest lectures, dancing, live music, trivia quizzes, shipwide scavenger hunts, the Planetarium, and a relaxed, leisurely vibe.
Sorry, no wet t-shirt contest.
The ship carries up to 2,620 passengers so most people on the ship will be regular passengers, not part of our group. We’ll have nametags and introductions, so you’ll be able to find your fellow writers onboard.
We’ll have about 5 hours of classes, panels and events, mostly in the morning. You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the rest of the ship’s amenities, restaurants, activities, and entertainment with newfound writing friends—and of course, plenty of time to write.
A detailed schedule will be provided about six weeks before the trip.
One of our most popular activities, projecting pages on the screen as we discuss them gives writers a chance to see their work edited in real time. You’ll better understand the purpose and experience of editing, and become more able to identify issues in your own writing.
We will have drop-in 15-minute “The Doctor Is In” sessions, included in your event fee, with Amy Goldmacher.
You can add a 30-minute one-on-one meeting to discuss your writing or writing career with Dinty, Allison, Jane, or Amy Collins. Costs start from $125 and a limited number are available. You’ll see this option when you register for the event.
US and Canadian citizens do not need a visa for the UK or European Union countries.
We strongly, strongly recommend you plan to arrive in the UK the day before your cruise, to allow for any flight delays, lost luggage, etc. You may also wish to explore London—you can book your own hotel, or book through Karen and Dave at TravelMate Pros when you book your cabin.
You can fly out of New York on Disembarkation Day. Don’t book a flight before 1PM. Allow yourself at least 4 hours to disembark and travel to JFK/LGA/Newark. Disembarkation can be as early as 7AM if you carry your own luggage; otherwise you’ll disembark between 9-11AM.
Transfers to and from the ship can be booked at additional cost.
Participants who add on Literary London or Literary New York will have a ship transfer included.
If you prefer to take the train, book a bus ticket, or use Uber or a private car in the UK or New York, those are all pretty easy options! Ask Allison if you have questions about a particular type of transfer—she’s done them all.
Please check your passport expiration date. Your Passport must be valid for at least 6 months past your departure date for the last country you visit—so at least until mid-January 2025. If it’s sooner than that, start the renewal process now!
Yes! Travel Mate Pro’s can help you use the Cunard discount on most airlines. Whether you book through them or on your own, you can fly from home to London Heathrow or London Gatwick, then from New York JFK or LaGuardia to home.
Cunard prioritizes safety. Unlike hotels and regular public spaces, cruise ships have had anti-viral cleaning procedures in place for many years.
All guests and crew are required to follow enhanced health and well-being measures developed with guidance from global medical and public health experts and scientists and in close coordination with UK and US government agencies.
Safety protocols include:
- Every area of the ship is rigorously and regularly cleaned and disinfected
- Hand-sanitizing stations in all public spaces
- Enhanced on-board ventilation systems provide improved filtration and increased fresh air on board
- Everyone on board must follow the latest guidance regarding the use of face-coverings and social distancing (and if that guidance changes mid-trip, masks are provided)
- Cunard uses pre-booking and boarding health screening, and approved standards for the service of food and drink, entertainment and experiences on board and on shore.
If Cunard deems it unsafe to travel, all cruise dates will be rescheduled and we will be in touch with you to coordinate the new date. Cunard generally offers a choice of a full refund or a Future Cruise Credit. The Future Cruise Credit may range from 100% to 125% of the value paid. The choice will be up to you.
The Queen Mary 2 is specifically designed to handle the rigors of the North Atlantic, but there can be some rolling. If you’re prone to motion sickness, bring medication to ensure a comfortable voyage (Dramamine, etc). If you forget to bring it and are feeling unwell, medication is available at the Purser’s desk in the main lobby.
We are strongly committed to accessible retreats, which is why we’re on a ship! Elevators, smooth floors, accessible rooms, and space and entertainment for your partner or caregiver are all present. Staff are available to carry baggage and serve from the buffet if needed. If you have mobility concerns, let us know.
Our teachers have worked with writers who are d/Deaf, hearing-impaired, blind, visually-impaired, neuro-atypical and with physical disabilities and mobility aids. We want to work with you—let’s discuss how to make it an excellent experience!
Cunard will joyfully accommodate your dietary needs. Every menu includes vegan and vegetarian options; food ingredients like pork and shellfish are clearly labeled. The buffet has a separate gluten-free section. For strict dietary needs, staff will show you the next day’s menu at dinner, to ensure your selections are available. Please let Karen and Dave know when you book your cabin.
If you do have any disability or medical requirements, please advise Dave and Karen at the time of booking.
Cunard asks that you complete and submit their online questionnaire at MyCunard as soon as possible and ideally, no later than 14 days before departure; this is to ensure there is sufficient time to be able to contact you should they need to discuss any of the information that has been provided.
There is a small range of over the counter medications available from the shops on board such as Paracetamol and sea-sickness tablets. Should you require more specific medication there is a medical center located on board.
You are welcome to utilize the in-cabin refrigeration unit in order to store your medication if you should wish to do so.
Check out Cunard’s “what to pack” guide.
After three crossings, Allison has found she’s comfortable in casual clothing during the day (yoga pants, easy linen pants, nice t-shirts or sweaters) and “smart dress” for dinner (dressy pants and top, cocktail dress, collared shirt with dress pants.) There will be passengers in shorts during the day and passengers in fancier dresses and suits at dinner. Cunard advises no ripped jeans, and no jeans/khakis/t-shirts at dinner.
During our Transatlantic crossing, there two Gala nights for the entire ship. The first is a Black and White Ball and the second will be a Masquerade or a 1920s theme. We’ll let you know well in advance! Evening dress on those nights ranges from cocktail dresses and suit and tie all the way to ballgowns with gloves and black or white tie. Find the level of formality that’s fun for YOU, and enjoy checking out your fellow passengers’ finery!
Staterooms have outlets for UK and US plugs.
You can bring a curling iron/flatiron. Your stateroom will have a blowdryer. Other heat-generating appliances are not recommended as they may overload and break.
There are limited public outlets for laptops in lounges, classrooms and the library.
Complimentary launderettes (soap included!) are on several passenger decks; those have a professional iron and ironing board.
Your stateroom has a retractable clothesline in the shower, so you can steam your clothes with the hot shower water.
Onboard laundry and drycleaning services are available for an extra charge.
The internet can be inconsistent, but you’ll be able to send and receive email, check social media, even watch YouTube. The mild inconvenience of ship-speed internet is just enough to remind us we’d rather be writing! Cunard’s internet package prices are here. If you’re sharing a room, you can both use the same package, just not at the same time unless you pay to add another device.
We strongly recommend checking with your carrier; some US phone services offer cruise data. Otherwise, put your phone in Airplane mode when we sail away from Southampton–reception through marine satellites is expensive!
You”ll receive a detailed itinerary with all scheduled events before boarding.
Announcements are made each morning at the panel session.
We strongly recommend you download WhatsApp (a secure messaging app) and purchase the basic internet package to communicate throughout the day and find other writers.We’ll add you to a group chat for any updates, too.
If you are on the Literary London or Literary New York tour, WhatsApp is how we communicate any updates.
INCLUDED
- Craft & Publishing panels
- Small-group breakout sessions/classes with each teacher
- Opening cocktail/mocktail party
- Reading nights
- Additional writing events and networking tables
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner, afternoon tea, room service
- Gym and some fitness classes
- Laundry facilities
- Port charges & taxes
NOT INCLUDED
- Alcohol/drinks packages
- Specialty restaurants
- Spa services
- Dry-cleaning and laundry services other than self-serve
- Cunard standard gratuities ($116)
- Airport transfers
- Airfare from your home to the UK and New York to your home.
If you’re new to cruising, you will be delighted to learn that all of the meals in the main dining room (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) as well as the buffet and room service are completely included in your booking. Cunard’s afternoon tea, lectures, shows, and many other activities are also included.
On the ship, you will also have the opportunity to visit the specialty restaurants, spas, casino, and other activities and services, which will be clearly noted if they have an extra charge. You are under no obligation to spend any additional money beyond your booking.
Cunard charges a per-person, per-day gratuities fee that is divided among the crew. If you wish to reward exemplary service from your cabin steward or waiters feel free to tip them in cash.
Travel Mate Pros can also arrange your transfer to the ship, and additional hotel nights before or after the voyage.
Please note that your primary booking does not include tours or events before or after the crossing unless you add on Literary London or Literary New York.
Rebirth Your Book accepts Venmo, Zelle, Canadian e-transfers, US cheques, PayPal and credit cards via PayPal. Paying your event fee reserves your place.
Travel Mate Pros accept credit cards. The charge will show as Cunard on your statement. You’ll pay a deposit upon booking and they will familiarize you with Cunard’s payment schedule.
Rebirth Your Book/Rebirth Your Writing does not offer scholarships. We’re happy to accommodate a longer payment plan, or write supporting documentation for a grant application in your home region.
Dinty and Allison love teaching, and we do quite a bit of it throughout the year. As we collaborate, we engage with even more potential students. Very often, students ask to be added to the waitlist for the next retreat, sometimes regardless of location! When a new retreat is announced, we tell the waitlist first, and retreats often sell out before they’re publicly announced. We can’t guarantee you a place, but if you sign up for The A-List, you will get first notice of waitlists and open registrations for upcoming retreats.
Your best bet is to be on the mailing list for when we announce future retreats. We often start a waitlist before the dates are set, and you’ll be able to join that in advance (and then decide whether or not the retreat is for you). Join The A-List here
For your ship fare, a passenger cancellation, or a single name change, can be made outside of the penalty period. Once the penalty period comes into effect, there are penalties for cancelations and name changes. The cancellation schedule will be provided before you make your deposit. Travel Cancellation/Medical insurance can be purchased to cover such fees to protect the passenger from monetary loss—ask Travel Mate Pros when you book.
If we can fill your place from the waiting list, your event fee can be transferred to another Rebirth Your Book retreat or event, after a $350 administrative fee.
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
