Jacqueline Crooks of Llano de la Luz describes how stepping outside your world benefits your writing
Llano de la Luz writing retreat
In the third of our interviews with the people behind writing retreats and holidays, we speak to Jacqueline Crooks who runs the Llano de la Luz writing retreat in Andalucia, Spain. Jacqueline is a graduate of the MA in Creative Writing at Goldsmiths College. She has been published in Granta’s New Writing and Mslexia. The retreat is available for short and long term room rentals.
What made you decide to set up a writers’ retreat abroad?
I decided to set up a writing retreat abroad because I had just finished an MA in Creative & Life Writing at Goldsmiths College and I was working on a novel and wanted somewhere peaceful to focus on the writing for a month, without the intrusions of work or other commitments. I already had a home in Spain and thought it would be the perfect base as I always found it conducive to my writing.
Have you ever run a similar kind of thing in the UK?
A friend of mine, Khalid Haq, is a well-known osteopath who practices in Croydon and Marbella. I used to run holistic retreat days for women at his various practices, so I had some experience of organising events in London and in Spain.
Why did you choose Spain for the location of your cultural centre?
I am originally from Jamaica and I chose Andalucia because the landscape reminds me very much of the rural areas of Jamaica: beautiful mountains, coastal areas with palm trees, valleys filled with fruit trees, bougainvilla everywhere. The old Mango Magnates here are much the same as in Jamaica. Spain is also just a couple of hours away from the UK and there is a fairly large expat community here so you don’t feel too isolated. The nearest airport is Malaga, about an hour’s drive away.
Do you think your location appeals to a particular kind of holidaymaker?
My retreat is in the campo, the countryside, 700m above sea level. It is fairly rugged terrain, perfect for exploration, so you need a steady hand driving up the winding roads. The people are friendly and they are natural storytellers who love talking about their lives. The retreat’s peaceful setting is ideal for writers. Up here in the mountains you can feel as if you are stepping back in time, and that can be useful for a writer, that feeling of stepping outside your world.
I think the area has a broad appeal to most holidaymakers: it is peaceful, but there is always a fiesta somewhere: a gypsy festival in the dry riverbed, or across the valley somewhere. And there is a good bus service to Malaga where you can travel to Granada, Seville, anywhere you want really.
I am from an immigrant family and this has stood me in good stead in setting up a retreat in Spain. You have to be very resourceful and creative in coping with the challenges of living and working between two cultures.
What do you find most fulfilling about running the retreat?
It is satisfying seeing the guests forge friendships with each other. In an environment like this, people have time to listen to each other. Some of my guests have ended up buying in the area or coming back with family and friends to have holidays in the area.
What do you think your guests find most fulfilling about it?
The retreat is for women writers. They don’t have to cook if they don’t want to, the restaurants here are so cheap - a three course ‘menu del dia’ meal costs around Euros 7, and will set you up for the day. It’s a chance for these women to discover themselves again.”
For further information, please visit www.writersretreat.gbr.cc
Other writing courses and retreats interviewed in this series include 7daywonder and The Watermill at Posara, Kairos Holidays and In The Write Light
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