What to Expect

During the retreat, you’ll:

• Clarify your story idea and understand how your idea, theme, premise, and story work together to give direction to your manuscript.
• Create new writing routines through guided exercises and freewriting.
• Learn key picture book structures and how to choose the right one.
• Plan your book using the 14-spread framework and understand how spreads shape pacing and emotion.
• Receive supportive, developmental coaching on your idea or early outline.
• Build emotional confidence in the early, “embryonic” stages of writing.
• Strengthen your story’s emotional arc, stakes, and sensory detail.
• Learn practical tools you can use long after the retreat.
• Leave with a clearer next step and a more solid direction for your project.
• Learn “Magic Beans” strategies - small but powerful practices that help you unlock ideas, gain clarity, and build momentum.

Optional Add-On: One-on-One Manuscript Critique

Want personalized feedback from Simone on the story you draft during the retreat? You’ll have the option to book a private critique at a reduced rate ($250 instead of $300).

Space for critiques is limited.

What Makes This Retreat Special

There are a lot of people out there offering picture book advice—many with shiny promises and massive audiences.

But this isn’t that.

This isn’t a lecture or a formula. It’s not a sales pitch disguised as support.

You’ll write…

You’ll learn…

You’ll get direct feedback…

And each session will begin with a short creative warm-up to get the creative energy flowing.

No visualising rays of light or imagining butterflies. Just science-backed strategies that help you shift gears, get into the writing zone, and actually want to write. These grounding techniques are designed to ease anxiety, sharpen focus, and open up creative flow without wasting your time.

By the end of the weekend, you’ll have something tangible to show for your time and effort

And you won’t be doing it alone, either. You’ll be joined by fellow writers focusing on their craft and led by someone who’s spent more than 30 years immersed in the craft of picture book writing.

Simone Kaplan has spent her career truly understanding picture books, reading them, editing them, studying them, and helping writers build them from scratch.

She believes picture book writing is both an art and a craft, and she breaks it down in a way that feels both doable and deeply creative. If you've been looking for someone to show you what it actually takes to write a good picture book, not just one that sounds cute, but one that works, this is the place for you.

While she won’t guarantee a publishing deal (no one can), she can promise that you’ll leave this retreat with a strong foundation, a working draft, and a much deeper understanding of what it takes to write a good picture book, because that’s what actually gets noticed.

Whether you’ve been circling a picture book idea or you’re starting fresh in January, this retreat is your chance to move from inspiration to execution with expert guidance and space to write.

Come for the quiet focus, stay for the breakthroughs.

 What Writers Say About Working with Simone

“Simone has been a true creative "midwife" in the sense that she has pulled the best out of me. She understands the messiness of the creative process, is very patient with my fits and starts, and the need to pull back sometimes when another character needs rethinking.”

- Anne Bromley, Award-winning author/illustrator, The Lunch Thief: A Story of Hunger, Homelessness, and Friendship

“Simone’s guidance helped me move from concept to publication, and now my picture book journey is richer, more exciting, and grounded in real growth. Whether you’re just starting out or already published, [she] offers fresh eyes, practical next steps, and a sense of creative belonging I haven’t found anywhere else.”

- Shell LeDrew

“...Simone offers exercises and prompts that excavate memories and tidbits from our subconscious that are pure gold. She guides us through these exercises with expertise and enthusiasm, and if we decide to share our work with the group, Simone’s feedback is always razor sharp.”

- Lisa Desimini, Award-winning author/illustrator of My House, Dot the Fire Dog, and many others

A Fresh Start for Your Writing Year

January is a powerful time for writers, not because of resolutions (we both know how those go), but because it invites you to begin again.

This retreat is more than a gift to your creative self; it’s a declaration and a commitment to focusing on your passion. It’s your chance to show up for your writing in a real, focused way, without the distractions, excuses, and hoping you’ll “find the time later.”

Two days. One draft. A creative system you can return to whenever you need momentum.

You’re not just saying you’ll make time to write in 2026. You’re doing it. Now.

The More You Know…