Meet Mytecia! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Mytecia!

I’d never met an agent in real life, so I didn’t know what to expect. Mytecia is warm, approachable, encouraging, and has a passion for helping writers get their words out into the world.

In other words, she’s amazing.

Join us as we discuss agent life and her workshop at the 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat.

About Mytecia R. Myles

A native of Detroit, MI, Mytecia Myles is a creative, bold, and authentic leader, an author strategist serving writers, creatives, and brands for over 30 years.

Myles is a publishing consultant, associate literary agent, and leads author development at Embolden Media Group. Myles is a faculty member at the College of Media and Entertainment, Scott Borchetta College of Media and Entertainment, School of Journalism and Strategic Media,
where she teaches media writing, public relations, and professional development to future media professionals.

As a co-creator, book editor, and workshop presenter, Myles has had the honor of working with diverse groups of aspiring writers. She has helped writers in becoming published authors. In addition, she provides her signature masterclass, Write, Self-Publish, and PR Your Book LIke A Pro, to help writers navigate from concept ideation through publishing while influencing literary legacy. She is the host of Mytecia’s Extraordinary Woman Book Club, facilitator of Literary Cafe, Writer’s Group.

Visit her website at www.myteciarenaemedia.com and connect with her on LinkedIn.

About Her Workshop & Coaching

Ask Me Anything…with an Agent 

Have you ever wanted to sit down with a literary agent and a list of questions? Here’s your chance! Mytecia Myles will lead an Ask Me Anything discussion.

Book Proposal Coaching with Mytecia – $50

Meet with Mytecia to discuss ways your book proposal. Get expert guidance on creating a compelling, submission ready book proposal that publishers actually respond to covering your manuscript overview, market analysis, marketing and PR, author platform, and more. In just 30 minutes, you’ll gain clarity, strategy, and a clear path toward pitching with confidence.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Registration closes February 6, 2026

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Meet Linsey! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Linsey!

Linsey is one of the co-founders of the Space to Create Writing Retreat. She keeps me moving forward when I get stress paralyzed about retreat and writing details. Linsey is also AMAZING at creating characters. I am so excited that she is going to share her process with us in her workshop at the writing retreat.

Join us as we talk about her workshop.

About Linsey Ewing

Linsey Ewing is a writer, editor, and creative coach based in central Mississippi. She writes courses as well as fiction and helps other writers go from “stuck” to “done” with their works in progress.

She is the author of Variations on the Theme of Goodbye, LUKE, The Daily Grind, the LIVING WRITE and EDIT SOBER courses, and a variety of smaller works. You can learn more at linseyewing.com.

About Her Workshop

Creating Characters Readers Want to Know – This workshop provides a practical blueprint for developing complex characters that leap off the page and into your readers’ hearts. Workshop attendees will learn to create robust, memorable characters using a framework of internal depth, relationships, and conflict.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Registration closes February 6, 2026

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Meet Charlie! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Charlie!

Charlie is a bit of an anomaly in this space. He’s the brave soul coming to talk to a group of writers about the financial side of the writing life.

Whether you consider writing as a hobby or a business, there are costs involved. In fact the most common thing I hear among writers is a desire for the writing to pay for itself. I’ve asked Charlie to come help us figure out how to do just that.

About Charlie

Charlie Plunkett is a Financial Representative with Modern Woodmen. He enjoys helping people deal with unique situations, overcome life changes, or plan for future goals.

About His Workshop

Foundational Financial Planning: Writer’s Edition –

In this engaging, conversation-based workshop, Charlie will cover common challenges, practical strategies, and ways to set meaningful, achievable savings goals for writers.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Registration closes February 6, 2026

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Meet K.P. Haven! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet K.P. Haven!

With my coffee and her holiday Coke Zero in hand, K.P. Haven and I enjoyed talking about her workshop at the upcoming Space to Create Writing Retreat.

Grab your favorite beverage and join us!

About K.P. Haven

K. P. HAVEN is a multi-book romance author known for delivering gritty, emotional worlds with slow-burn romance. She lives in a small southern town with her husband, three children, and adorable pups. When she’s not on a self-imposed deadline, she enjoys slow mornings, reading, and mint chocolate chip ice cream.

About Her Workshops

Writing Romance that Feels Real – There’s a fine line between swoon-worthy and cringe. Romance may be the heartbeat of storytelling, but it takes more than tropes and chemistry to make readers truly feel it.

Join internationally read, multi-book romance author K.P. Haven as she shares how to craft love stories that feel authentic, emotionally layered, and anything but cliché.

From emotional arcs to POV dynamics and the art of yearning and tension, this session dives into how to build romance that feels real on the page.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Meet Anthony!2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Anthony!

We are pleased to introduce Anthony Wood as the main speaker for the 2026 Space to Create Retreat.

Anthony and I were guests at the Choctaw County Library’s Holiday Open House earlier this month, so we decided to do our interview in person. I hope you enjoy our interview as much as I did!

About Anthony

Anthony Wood grew up in historic Natchez, Mississippi, fueling a life-long love of history. He lived in Alaska for several years but returned to the South and ministered nearly three decades among the poor, homeless, and incarcerated.

Leading an effort that planted five urban churches inspired him to co-author Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor about his work in the
Memphis inner city. He also authored a number of articles and stories about his ministry.

Anthony is a member of Turner’s Battery living history group, the Civil War Round Table of Arkansas, and serves as President of White County Creative Writers group.
His short stories have won multiple awards, and have been published in Saddlebag Dispatches, The Vault of Terror, The Avocet: A Journal of Nature Poetry, Writer’s Monthly, and several anthologies. One of those stories Not So Long in the Tooth, won a Will Rogers Medallion in the Best Western Short Fiction category for 2021.

Anthony has authored several books, including a historical fiction series in A Tale of Two Colors and The Name Tree about his journey through the thin veil to find his daughter who took her life.

Anthony was inducted into the Arkansas Writer’s Hall of Fame in June, 2024. A Tale of Two Colors sets the stage for Anthony’s upcoming western trilogy, The Atalanta Chronicles.

Anthony enjoys roaming and researching historical sites, photographing nature and wildlife, camping and kayaking on the Mississippi River, and being with family. Anthony and his wife, Lisa, live in Conway, Arkansas.

You can find Anthony on Facebook and Instagram or visit his website at anthonywoodauthor.com

About His Workshops

Writing Historical Fiction – Anthony Wood
Historical fiction writing is traveling back in time to bring accurate events, people, and places to the present through stories that entertain readers. Anthony will help us understand the dynamics associated with writing historical fiction and share practical tips on how to write it effectively.

Healing through Writing – Anthony Wood
Writers explore the depths of their own souls as they create. That often means traveling through a heart of pain. Anthony will share his journey and practical ways to help both author and reader heal through writing.

Traditional Publishing: Still a Viable Option – Anthony Wood
If your writing travel plans include being published, finding a traditional publisher might be a stop on your journey to success as an author. Anthony will share from his experience about being published by a traditional publishing house.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

The Writing Life

I have a writing friend who is a little bossy. Do you have someone in your life like that? A friend that will encourage you but also kick you in the pants when you need it.

My friend’s name is Howie, and when I complain about the writing life, he says. “Erin, that’s just how the writing life is.”

For example, we talk about procrastination a lot. Writers are GREAT procrastinators. Many things cause us to procrastinate – it could be fear, it could be just not knowing what to do next. The fact is, we are going to want to procrastinate.

As Howie would say, “That’s just how the writing life is.” And he would tell me that I have a choice. I can choose to give in and procrastinate and then feel stressed about procrastinating. Or I can view procrastination as a warning sign that I am feeling something that is keeping me stuck. As you can imagine, Howie tells me to get curious and explore that something.

See, he’s bossy.

Howie has helped me with the way I look at the writing life.

Is it hard to sit down and write? Yes, but we find ways to make it happen. This is how we do it.

Is it uncomfortable to do a Facebook Live? Yes, but we push ourselves through the uncomfortable. This is how we do it.

Does it make me literally sweat to submit an article or story to be considered for publication? Yep! But, as you can guess, this is how we do it.

This is how we approach the writing life.

There will be hard things. It’s okay! We can do hard things.

There will be times when we want to stop. But if we want to keep moving forward, then we keep going, even if the going is slow. Howie says microscopic steps forward are still steps forward.

He’s encouraging when he’s not being bossy.

There will be moments when we look like the beginner we are. And that’s ok! This is how we do it.

Here at Space to Create Writing Life, we have 8 principles that guide us through this wonderful adventure called the writing life. This is how we approach the writing life, our writing life worldview, if you will.

Our words have weight. There are people who need to hear what you have to say.

It may take time for our words to come. They are worth waiting for.

Creating space in our life to dream allows us to be the person we were created to be.

Courage and fear will be ever-present, but we choose courage over fear. (This is one where Howie has to push me. He sounds like a Nike commercial. Just do it.)

We create at a pace that moves us forward without sacrificing the depth of our words. 

We don’t have to have everything figured out to begin, we just need a direction. (Anyone else get stuck gathering information instead of just beginning? Howie has to push me on that too.)

Recognizing that the creative life is a collaborative journey, we reach out to those behind us on the path.

We guard against comparing our stage of the journey with those ahead of us.

Sometimes we all just need someone to say, “That’s just how the writing life is.” This is how we do it.

If you need to borrow my Howie, you are welcome to! Just remember, he can be bossy!

If you need encouragement in your writing journey, join this community! Sign up below and follow @spacetocreatewritinglife on Instagram and Facebook.

Meet Carrie!2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Carrie!

Carrie’s energy is like a cup of coffee – invigorating and inspiring. Grab a cup of coffee and join us as we talk about her workshops and her coaching sessions at the Space to Create Writing Retreat.

Spending time with Carrie inspires me to keep moving forward with writing. I hope it does the same for you!

About Carrie

Carrie Watts is an author, speaker, and podcaster dedicated to inspiring women to find strength and faith in their journeys. Her debut young adult Christian fiction novel, Crisis of Faith, explores themes of friendship, resilience, childhood trauma, human trafficking, and spiritual growth, resonating with young women navigating life’s challenges. She is cowriting the sequel, titled Hope Rising”.

Carrie’s passion for empowering others stems from her diverse background, including nursing, ministry, and community leadership.

She hosts the podcast Saved and Strong, where she engages with listeners on topics of faith, healing, and strength in Christ after struggle.

She speaks about the “Story behind the Story”, the author life, and coaches other authors to keep moving forward in their calling to help others. Focusing on the powerful message they have been chosen to share, she inspires them to keep their minds on the Heavenly Father and His reward. She is committed to helping women discover their purpose in every season of life.

Carrie resides in Brandon, Mississippi, where she enjoys quiet mornings with coffee, writing, and connecting with her community.

You can connect with Carrie on her website, carriewatts.com and on Instagram @carriewattswrites

About Her Workshops

Script it, Speak it, Share it!- Carrie Watts
Does marketing your work make you uneasy or send you running for the door? It’s time to face those fears and learn why your voice matters. In this simple three-step presentation you’ll gain practical tools and the confidence to market yourself, your writing, and your message with boldness.

Self- Publishing Options – Carrie Watts

Carrie Watts will share her experience with Hope Books in publishing her first book, Crisis of Faith.

Retreat attendees can also sign up for one-on-one coaching sessions with Carrie to talk about writing or marketing.

We hope you will join us!

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Book Review: Once Upon A Wardrobe

If sitting by a cozy fire enjoying a cup of tea with C.S. Lewis sounds appealing, Patti Callahan gives you this opportunity in her book, Once Upon A Wardrobe.

Through her story, Callahan beautifully captures the truth that no one writes in a vacuum. The things an author experiences in life will influence their writing. It might be the way they capture the feeling of loneliness into words, or the ruins of a castle they bring to life through story.

If you enjoy “the story behind the story” books, this book is for you. Callahan pulls us in with her own storytelling, reminding us that words have meaning and impact those who read them.

Sometimes the worlds we make up are the ones that help us make sense of what is happening in this world. And as the main character discovers, sometimes when we are chasing a story, life happens, giving us our very own story to tell.

As I am writing this, it is Saturday, November 29, 2025, also known as C.S. Lewis Reading Day. Patti Callahan, through interviews, research, and powerful storytelling, allows us to get to know Lewis and his brother, Warnie, and the events that shaped Lewis’ writing. It seemed appropriate to share this review on this day.

As an author, I appreciate the discovery that Lewis wrote part of The Lion, The Witch, the Wardrobe in 1939 then put it in a drawer until the story called to him again. It was published in 1950, which makes me think there were thoughts and themes that needed to marinate and form until Lewis was ready for the story, and the story ready for the world.

So take heart, dear writer, when you think of your late-night scribbles, the parts of stories scattered around in Word and Google Docs, the scenes you see so clearly in your mind. They are marinating. When they are ready for you, when you are ready for them, and when the world needs them most, they will call to you.

Happy C. S. Lewis Reading Day!

If you are looking for a way to find out more about C.S. Lewis, I highly recommend the podcast Pints with Jack: The C.S. Lewis Podcast with Andrew Lazo, David Bates, and Matt Bush. I appreciate the banter between these three, and also the way they help me get to know more about Lewis and his writings.

Meet Cambria! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Cambria!

Join us for a virtual coffee date as we talk about her writing journey and her workshop at the 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat.

We are also glad to accompany you as you run errands or clean the bathroom. As fellow moms we certainly understand the necessity of multi-tasking!

About Cambria

Cambria Engstrom, the author of the debut series My Gryphon and I, writes fantasy with a focus on Celtic lore and the Heros Journey. She has a Master of Creative Writing degree and is a member of the Nebraska Writer’s Guild where she has taught multiple lessons on the Hero’s Journey and character creation through role player game mechanics.

Cambria has a published short story in Winds of the Plain through the Nebraska Writers guild.

When not writing, Cambria is a stay-at-home mom of three children, who she affectionately refers to as goblins. She is homeschooling her eldest daughter, volunteers with her church, and works on the MomCo leadership team as the creative arts lead.

Cambria’s goal in writing is to bring adventure, humor and hope to younger generations by exploring the Hero’s Journey.

About Her Workshop

Do You Need a Y Chromosome to be a Hero?
In this workshop Cambria will compare and contrast the Virgin’s Journey and the Hero’s Journey, helping attendees develop strong plotlines and strong protagonists in their writing.

Want to find out more about the retreat?

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

Mark your calendar for February 26-March 1, 2026 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com

Join the Community at Space to Create Writing Life

Sign up to receive encouraging posts and notices about upcoming events and resources that will help you create space to write in everyday life!

Meet Beti! 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat Speaker Spotlight

Meet Beti!

Fill your favorite mug with your beverage of choice and join us for a virtual coffee date as we talk about her writing journey and her workshop at the 2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat.

We have our mugs & coffee all ready!

About Beti

Beti Spangel is a freelance writer and author originally from the Adirondack Mountains of upstate NY. While working in the fields of strategic planning and domestic violence advocacy, she freelanced for publications such as Tractor Supply’s Out Here, Mane Stream, New York Forest Owners, North County Living, Appaloosa Journal, and other magazines. She was also a weekend reporter for her local daily newspaper, The Post Star. Her blog, The 30 Acre Wood, chronicled her and her husband’s adventures in homesteading on their 30 forested acres in Schroon Lake, NY.

Since moving to Mississippi with her husband in 2015, Beti has freelanced for Mississippi Farm Bureau’s publication, Mississippi Farm Country as well as working on her fiction through short stories and flash fiction. She is currently working on her first book, a collection of short stories and flash fiction based on images of the Adirondack region throughout the 20th century. Some of her work can be seen on her website betispangel.com.

About Her Workshop

Behold the Byline: Freelancing for Magazines and Newspapers
Magazines and newspapers are a great outlet for freelancers just starting out, looking to expand their portfolio, or to make a career in.

Breaking in isn’t hard but takes tenacity, perseverance, and knowing how the system works. This presentation will highlight the pros and cons of both mediums, explore ways to study your market and approach the right people, and show you’re the right person for the job!

Want to find out more about the retreat?

All the details about the retreat are here:

2026 Space to Create Writing Retreat – Space to Create Writing Life

We hope you will mark your calendar for February 26-March 1 and join us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out at erinulerich@gmail.com