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Nurturing Brave Writers

ByKortney

This past month I had the terrific opportunity to review the 2014 Brave Writer Retreat Videos.  Depth, humor, inspiration–I feel a little like Julie Bogart is homeschooling me!  I am becoming a better–more healthy and whole–woman through her mentoring.  And I can feel the effects in my relationships and our homeschool.  Exciting!  You can read my full review at The Curriculum Choice.

teatime

If you are new to Brave Writer it might be hard to know where to start.  There’s such richness, that it can be hard to know what might be the best fit for your family. And there are two interwoven strands to Julie’s work–the writing piece and the relationship piece.  Having a Poetry Teatime (like we are up there to celebrate Anne Shirley’s birthday!) is a great place to start.  But then what?  Here are my suggestions:

For the relationship strand–

  • Start with Julie’s blog.  It’s a rich archive of her advice and gives you a good sense for her writing voice.  You can binge read on topics that interest you.  Make sure you listen to the podcasts.  They are hosted by Julie’s son Noah, and it’s such a treat to hear the two of them in conversation.
  • Watch some Periscopes.  This Fall, Julie took Periscope by storm.  Start with An Enchanted Education.
  • Get the retreat videos.  They really are worth every penny–even though there’s so much free content on Julie’s site.  Don’t necessarily start here, but if you have an affinity with Julie’s work and philosophy, these videos will help you level up your game!

For the writing strand–

  • Read, apply, adapt, savor–the Brave Writer Lifestyle.  Such riches there!
  • Try an Arrow or Jot It Down.  Small investment, big returns.
  • Get The Writer’s Jungle.  There is talk of a revision happening in the next few years. I’d love to see a video series walking us through the manual!  This isn’t curriculum; it’s training for the parent to become a writing coach.  Paradigm shift!

And if you want a vision for how the two strands go together, the Retreat Videos are unparalleled!  If you have any questions, I’d be happy to give y suggestions or point you to my favorites!