Natalie Goldberg’s work—starting with her first book, Writing Down the Bones, published over three decades ago—revolutionized the practice of writing and has changed thousands of lives across the globe.

Natalie now invites you to adventure with her in this live, two-month online intensive, where, she says, “we will be anchored in practice so that we can be open to great possibilities in our writing and to delicious discoveries that may come as we turn corners and zigzag together.”

Dear writers,

I am mourning the loss of a friend as I write this, sobbing from the roots. And as always I return to writing practice, for clarity, for solace, to digest. . . .  I don’t need to tell you how difficult 2020 has been. As this new year unfolds, the challenges will remain—in society, politically, personally. I want us to have a practice to hold all of it. Not to escape, but to face all of it in a way that doesn’t destroy our insides, so that the energy we put out in the world does not contribute to harm and chaos.

I want to make sure that my old students stay grounded in the work and that new students get a foundation.  I want us to deepen our practice in community.  From this strong footing, our time together will organically evolve.  Ours will not be a rigid curriculum.  We will meet each moment with a spirit of spontaneity or openness, just as we meet the blank page when we do our timed writings.  Don’t get me wrong—I have clear ideas of what I want to share with you and what I want us to learn.

We will develop an understanding of structure and how to take writing practice to the next level, directing it to fiction, essays, memoir, a journal article—wherever your heart takes you.  There will also be a reading assignment of a book that we will go over near the end of the course so we can see how to study the author’s mind.

Writer, activist, and Zen practitioner, DOROTEA MENDOZA first studied with Natalie Goldberg in 2001 and has served as Natalie’s teaching assistant since 2010. You can find her at www.doroteamendoza.com.

In this live online writing practice intensive, Natalie Goldberg will help you:

As she entered the ninth decade of her life, Pema Chödrön spent a year in solitary retreat working deeply with traditional Tibetan Buddhist teachings on death, including teachings on the bardos from The Tibetan Book of the Dead. This interactive online retreat, recorded at her home monastery, Gampo Abbey, in front of a small audience of her close students and friends, brings the fruits of Pema’s study and practice to you.

Whether you’re a longtime practitioner, an enthusiastic beginner, or somewhere in between, this retreat will offer you teachings and tools for embracing the entirety of your human experience—including your death—as a sacred journey. These are teachings that you can listen to again and again over the coming years, returning to them for guidance and grounding as you navigate the ongoing journey of your life.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

A RETREAT MADE FOR YOU

This online retreat includes a bounty of exclusive resources, many available only for this one-time special offering, to support you in your retreat practice.

THIS RETREAT INCLUDES:

This online writing workshop includes a bounty of exclusive resources to support you.

In this live and dynamic program, each week will contain talks, instruction, and supportive spaces that will deepen your relationship with your writing.  The weeks will unfold through grounded lessons and practices.

When is the intensive?
Every week for two months, Natalie will lead a live, three-hour online class. The dates and times are below:

1 p.m.–4 p.m. EST on Saturday, March 6
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EST on Saturday, March 13
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, March 20
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, March 27
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 3
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 10
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 17
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 24

Recordings of the sessions will be made available in the course for those who are unable to attend or who would like to listen to them again.

Once a week (Wednesdays at 2–3 p.m. EST/EDT from March 10–April 21 ) in a facilitated Zoom session, you'll also have the opportunity to practice (write, read, listen) with your fellow participants.

What if I can't attend one of the sessions with Natalie?
Don't worry if you miss one or two sessions. They will be recorded for viewing anytime at a later date. You will have unlimited access to these recordings.

How long will the community boards be available?
The community boards will open at the start of the course on March 6th and remain available through July 24, 2021. However, the facilitators will only be available to respond to questions through the end of the course on April 24.

Can I still take this course without a desktop/laptop computer (for example, if I only have an iPad)?
Yes, you can access this course using the browser on your device. However, please note that if you’d like to save any of the course materials, you will need to download to a computer first and then transfer the files to your device. The live sessions will be held through Zoom.

What if I have technical difficulties with the course? 
We have a dedicated course support person who can help you with any issues you may encounter in navigating or accessing the course. 

Will I get to (or have to) share my writing with others in the intensive? 
While you are not required at any point to share your writing, you will have opportunities for doing so in the small-group sessions, as well as in a dedicated community board in the course. This intensive is for you and you get to decide what amount of sharing is right for you. 

Will I be able to get specific feedback on my writing in this intensive? 
This intensive is designed to get you writing and developing a writing practice that will last you a lifetime. There will be a community board in the course for sharing your writing with fellow intensive participants. However, you’re encouraged to refrain from seeking feedback. One of the major tenets of the writing practice taught in this intensive is to write and read aloud without judgment or expectations of feedback, praise, or criticism.

Do I need to already be a writer to participate in this intensive? 
Absolutely not! Natalie’s teachings are perfect if you’re just getting started as a writer—and even if you’ve been writing for years, what Natalie has to share can be enormously helpful in keeping you on the path and opening up new vistas for exploration.

W H A T   Y O U
W I L L   L E A R N

In this interactive online writing workshop, Natalie Goldberg will be 
your expert guide in helping you . . .

AN  INTERACTIVE  WORKSHOP
MADE FOR YOU

P R A I S E   F O R 

N A T A L I E

Thousands of people have studied writing with Natalie over the last 40 years.

Here’s some of what they’ve had to say . . .

“To say Natalie Goldberg’s workshops changed my life is an understatement. It’s possible they saved my life. The structure she created helped loosen an inner critic so strong it was threatening to kill me. I felt I had to write or die, but I was so stuck I couldn’t write. Natalie’s deep methods, using principles based in thousands of years of practice, tapped into words I didn’t know I had and set my wild mind free. Yes, I learned writing, but there was so much more. I hope you won't miss the opportunity to study with a true teacher.”—N.S.

“When Natalie Goldberg teaches, she brings the whole world in front of her students. A teacher who is fully awake makes you fall in love with life again and again (even as your whole world falls away). She does not only teach writing, she teaches a practice that wakes you up. Yes, you do become a good writer, but what I get from her teaching is about showing up. A faithfulness to a committed relationship regardless of how shitty your mood is.”—A.M.

“Every time I dip back into a book or a class with Natalie, it’s all new all over again because of how life and words keep changing over time. Takeaways?? How about my voice? How about my power as a creative being? What I got and get every time I put my fast-writing pen to notebook paper is freedom through words. The ability to find one’s own inner guide and creative expression is the truest gift a teacher can steep into a student.”—M.D.

“I began studying with her in 1998 and the course of my life was profoundly changed as a result.  I have learned the truth in her teachings, including that writing lets you live twice, and it really does not matter if you have written the worst junk in the world. Writing truly is a practice and can sustain you whether you want to be a professional writer or not. Natalie’s teachings about writing have proliferated into other parts of my life, giving me a freedom from the inner critic and appreciation for the details and contours of life I never knew was possible. Anyone who gives themselves the gift of studying with Natalie will be deeply moved and inspired to dive into writing and life itself.”—C.S.

* PLUS *

S P E C I A L  P R O G R A M  B O N U S E S

C O U R S E 

C U R R I C U L U M

Each lesson contains multiple videos in which Natalie teaches on the theme for that lesson, along with readings and practices to inspire and deepen your writing practice.

© Shambhala Publications. All Rights Reserved.

© Shambhala Publications. All Rights Reserved.

NATALIE GOLDBERG is the author of fifteen books. Writing Down the Bones, her first, has sold over one million copies and been translated into twelve languages. For the last forty years she has practiced Zen and taught workshops on writing as a spiritual practice. She lives in New Mexico. You can find her at nataliegoldberg.com.

I want to do this online program (even though I’m not in love with the internet) because I want this work to get out in the world, especially now, when we have so much to handle.  I offer this as training, an opportunity to steady our minds, our hearts, and root them in what’s important to us.

Unlike my previous Writing Down the Bones course with Shambhala, I will be teaching live this time, weekly for eight weeks.  My mind will meet your mind.  We can stand up together in this crazy life with our true beings intact through the wild simple practice of writing.

We never drink a glass of water once and think we are finished with the need to drink water.  It is the same for writing practice.  I’ve been teaching for fifty years and don’t grow tired of it.  Instead, I am renewed by meeting pen and paper, word and thought over and over. Please come and join me.  This is vital work.

Love,

“This course is simply phenomenal! I am a clinical psychologist and a writer in Spain, and Natalie’s philosophy as delivered in this course has helped me move from procrastination and loneliness to desire in the company of a multitude of others. I would like to thank Natalie for moving beyond her resistance to deliver her teachings via the internet. She’s succeeded in sharing her message with the world and with those people who could not afford meeting her in person.”

“Cannot rate highly enough—one of the best and most surprising learning experiences I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a few). Among many notable things, Natalie’s capacity to be authentic and present online (and funny and challenging and so much more) has to be remarked upon. Exceptional. Thank you Natalie, and also thank you to Shambhala and everyone who put so much thought into a well-designed and well-constructed course.”

“This has been one of the most satisfying experiences of the many online courses I have participated in. The teaching feels immediate, vital and alive. The online writing sessions have been nourishing beyond words. I felt hesitant at first to join them, and after the first one, have not been able to get enough. They are deeply nourishing and inspiring.”

“I have taken many, many writing courses. I have spent a lot of money on teachers. This is the best course I have taken.”

“Learning from Natalie Goldberg is an extraordinary experience, one that is now available online. Amazing opportunity.”

“This was just the greatest. To have access to Natalie, to write with people from around the world, to be reminded daily of how to write, and encouraged and inspired to continue, is priceless.”

We will study various forms—containers into which we can pour our writing practice.

• Discover structure through writing practice
• Explore ways to build books, poems, and stories using writing practices
• Learn structures and forms by reading closely and studying the author’s mind.

Through timed writings in class and on our own, we will learn and absorb what it means to have writing as a practice.

• The basic rules of writing practice
• The importance of beginner’s mind
• Connecting with first thoughts and following the mind

Together and on our own, we will do sitting and walking meditation.

• Meditation is inseparable from writing practice
• Settle into our breathing or our feet to anchor our mind
• Sitting, walking, and writing inform and feed one another

We will intentionally encourage ourselves to slow down.

• Quiet the chatter in our mind
• In the silence, begin to truly connect with the stories running through us
• Slowly capture details and avoid cutting corners in our storytelling

In and outside of class, we will remind ourselves that writing is a physical activity.

• Writing involves the entire body, all the senses
• Sensory details allow the readers to experience our story
• Wild mind is in the cells of our body

We will have opportunities to read our timed writings and to deeply listen to ourselves and others.

• Ninety percent of writing is embodied listening
  
• Cultivate deep listening through the practice of recall
  
• Receiving the world is where writing begins

For our book discussion on the seventh week, we will read The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu (purchased separately).

• Mark passages that resonate with you
• Examine the book closely—the cover, every page, the empty spaces
• Avoid skimming through and read word by word, so that we can feel how a book is written.

Bring the basics: notebooks, pens, and an open mind

The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu

Carve out time, immerse, and engage as much as you can, honoring your commitment and practice, while practicing patience and kindness toward yourself

Thousands of people have studied writing with Natalie over the last 40 years.

Natalie Goldberg’s work—starting with her first book, Writing Down the Bones, published over three decades ago—revolutionized the practice of writing and has changed thousands of lives across the globe.

Natalie now invites you to adventure with her in this live, two-month online intensive, where, she says, “we will be anchored in practice so that we can be open to great possibilities in our writing and to delicious discoveries that may come as we turn corners and zigzag together.”

Dear writers,

I am mourning the loss of a friend as I write this, sobbing from the roots. And as always I return to writing practice, for clarity, for solace, to digest. . . .  I don’t need to tell you how difficult 2020 has been. As this new year unfolds, the challenges will remain—in society, politically, personally. I want us to have a practice to hold all of it. Not to escape, but to face all of it in a way that doesn’t destroy our insides, so that the energy we put out in the world does not contribute to harm and chaos.

I want to make sure that my old students stay grounded in the work and that new students get a foundation.  I want us to deepen our practice in community.  From this strong footing, our time together will organically evolve.  Ours will not be a rigid curriculum.  We will meet each moment with a spirit of spontaneity or openness, just as we meet the blank page when we do our timed writings.  Don’t get me wrong—I have clear ideas of what I want to share with you and what I want us to learn.

We will develop an understanding of structure and how to take writing practice to the next level, directing it to fiction, essays, memoir, a journal article—wherever your heart takes you.  There will also be a reading assignment of a book that we will go over near the end of the course so we can see how to study the author’s mind.

I want to do this online program (even though I’m not in love with the internet) because I want this work to get out in the world, especially now, when we have so much to handle.  I offer this as training, an opportunity to steady our minds, our hearts, and root them in what’s important to us.

Unlike my previous Writing Down the Bones course with Shambhala, I will be teaching live this time, weekly for eight weeks.  My mind will meet your mind.  We can stand up together in this crazy life with our true beings intact through the wild simple practice of writing.

“This course is simply phenomenal! I am a clinical psychologist and a writer in Spain, and Natalie’s philosophy as delivered in this course has helped me move from procrastination and loneliness to desire in the company of a multitude of others. I would like to thank Natalie for moving beyond her resistance to deliver her teachings via the internet. She’s succeeded in sharing her message with the world and with those people who could not afford meeting her in person.”

Thousands of people have studied writing with Natalie over the last 40 years.

“This has been one of the most satisfying experiences of the many online courses I have participated in. The teaching feels immediate, vital and alive. The online writing sessions have been nourishing beyond words. I felt hesitant at first to join them, and after the first one, have not been able to get enough. They are deeply nourishing and inspiring.”

In this live online writing practice intensive, Natalie Goldberg will help you:

Strengthen your writing spine to start, stay in, and finish notebooks and projects

Caress the sensuous details that anchor your writing and make your story come alive

Break free to tell the story that you need to tell

Free yourself from fears of judgment, rejection, and failure

Recognize and build ways to handle the resistance that keeps you away from your writing

Cultivate your ability to continue writing through fears and judgment, rejection, and failure

Learn to notice and overcome your internal censor

In this live and dynamic program, each week will contain talks, instruction, and supportive spaces that will deepen your relationship with your writing.  The weeks will unfold through grounded lessons and practices.

We will intentionally encourage ourselves to slow down.

• Quiet the chatter in our mind
• In the silence, begin to truly connect with the stories running through us
• Slowly capture details and avoid cutting corners in our storytelling

We will study various forms—containers into which we can pour our writing practice.

• Discover structure through writing practice
• Explore ways to build books, poems, and stories using writing practices
• Learn structures and forms by reading closely and studying the author’s mind.

Through timed writings in class and on our own, we will learn and absorb what it means to have writing as a practice.

• The basic rules of writing practice
• The importance of beginner’s mind
• Connecting with first thoughts and following the mind

Together and on our own, we will do sitting and walking meditation.

• Meditation is inseparable from writing practice
• Settle into our breathing or our feet to anchor our mind
• Sitting, walking, and writing inform and feed one another

We will intentionally encourage ourselves to slow down.

• Quiet the chatter in our mind
• In the silence, begin to truly connect with the stories running through us
• Slowly capture details and avoid cutting corners in our storytelling

• Writing involves the entire body, all the senses
• Sensory details allow the readers to experience our story
• Wild mind is in the cells of our body

In and outside of class, we will remind ourselves that writing is a physical activity.

• Ninety percent of writing is embodied listening
  
• Cultivate deep listening through the practice of recall
  
• Receiving the world is where writing begins

We will have opportunities to read our timed writings and to deeply listen to ourselves and others.

• Mark passages that resonate with you
• Examine the book closely—the cover, every page, the empty spaces
• Avoid skimming through and read word by word, so that we can feel how a book is written.

For our book discussion on the seventh week, we will read The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu (purchased separately).

Bring the basics: notebooks, pens, a device compatible with Zoom Calls, and an open mind

The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu

Carve out time, immerse, and engage as much as you can, honoring your commitment and practice, while practicing patience and kindness toward yourself

NATALIE GOLDBERG is the author of fifteen books. Writing Down the Bones, her first, has sold over one million copies and been translated into twelve languages. For the last forty years she has practiced Zen and taught workshops in writing as a spiritual practice. She lives in New Mexico.

DOROTEA MENDOZA is a writer, activist, and Zen practitioner who first studied with Natalie Goldberg in 2001 and has served as Natalie’s teaching assistant since 2010. You can find her at www.doroteamendoza.com.

When is the intensive?

Every week for two months, Natalie will lead a live, three-hour online class. The dates and times are below:

1 p.m.–4 p.m. EST on Saturday, March 6
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EST on Saturday, March 13
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, March 20
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, March 27
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 3
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 10
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 17
1 p.m.–4 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 24

Recordings of the sessions will be made available in the course for those who are unable to attend or who would like to listen to them again.

Once a week (Wednesdays at 2–3 p.m. EST/EDT from March 10–April 21) in a facilitated Zoom session, you'll also have the opportunity to practice (write, read, listen) with your fellow participants.

What if I can't attend one of the sessions with Natalie?

Don't worry if you miss one or two sessions. They will be recorded for viewing anytime at a later date. You will have unlimited access to these recordings.

How long will the community boards be available?

The community boards will open at the start of the course on March 6th and remain available through July 24, 2021. However, the facilitators will only be available to respond to questions through the end of the course on April 24.

Can I still take this course without a desktop/laptop computer (for example, if I only have an iPad)?

Yes, you can access this course using the browser on your device. However, please note that if you’d like to save any of the course materials, you will need to download to a computer first and then transfer the files to your device. The live sessions will be held through Zoom.

What if I have technical difficulties with the course?

We have a dedicated course support person who can help you with any issues you may encounter in navigating or accessing the course. 

Will I get to (or have to) share my writing with others in the intensive?

While you are not required at any point to share your writing, you will have opportunities for doing so in the small-group sessions, as well as in a dedicated community board in the course. This intensive is for you and you get to decide what amount of sharing is right for you. 

Will I be able to get specific feedback on my writing in this intensive? 
This intensive is designed to get you writing and developing a writing practice that will last you a lifetime. There will be a community board in the course for sharing your writing with fellow intensive participants. However, you’re encouraged to refrain from seeking feedback. One of the major tenets of the writing practice taught in this intensive is to write and read aloud without judgment or expectations of feedback, praise, or criticism.

Do I need to already be a writer to participate in this intensive? 
Absolutely not! Natalie’s teachings are perfect if you’re just getting started as a writer—and even if you’ve been writing for years, what Natalie has to share can be enormously helpful in keeping you on the path and opening up new vistas for exploration.

Photo by Kevin S. Moul

Photo by Mitsue Nagase

Photo by Kevin S. Moul

We never drink a glass of water once and think we are finished with the need to drink water.  It is the same for writing practice.  I’ve been teaching for fifty years and don’t grow tired of it.  Instead, I am renewed by meeting pen and paper, word and thought over and over. Please come and join me.  This is vital work.

Love,

“Cannot rate highly enough—one of the best and most surprising learning experiences I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a few). Among many notable things, Natalie’s capacity to be authentic and present online (and funny and challenging and so much more) has to be remarked upon. Exceptional. Thank you Natalie, and also thank you to Shambhala and everyone who put so much thought into a well-designed and well-constructed course.”

“This was just the greatest. To have access to Natalie, to write with people from around the world, to be reminded daily of how to write, and encouraged and inspired to continue, is priceless.”

“Learning from Natalie Goldberg is an extraordinary experience, one that is now available online. Amazing opportunity.”

“I have taken many, many writing courses. I have spent a lot of money on teachers. This is the best course I have taken.”

Natalie has always been dedicated to working with people of color. Shambhala Publications joins Natalie in this commitment. Fellowships for people of color are available for this course. Apply here.

Natalie has always been dedicated to working with people of color. Shambhala Publications joins Natalie in this commitment. Fellowships for people of color are available for this course. Apply here.

Natalie has always been dedicated to working with people of color. Shambhala Publications joins Natalie in this commitment. Fellowships for people of color are available for this course. Apply here.