3rd – 9th June 2026 | Cornerstones Professional Writers’ Retreat
What to ExpectProfessional Writers’ Retreat in the Scottish Highlands at Scotland’s ‘Home of the Year’. Led by The Sunday Times and The New York Times bestselling consultant editors Monica Chakraverty and Helen Corner-Bryant and NYC former Big-5 publisher and Defiore agent Lisa Gallagher.
A tailor-made writers' retreat in the Highlands of Scotland, to prepare authors for both publishing pathways: how to be traditionally published and indie-published at a professional level.
Cornerstones No 1 transatlantic consultancy: 30 years of successes; No 1 bestsellers in The Sunday Times and The New York Times; in-person senior consultant editors and a US leading literary agent; plus leading publishing expert guest speakers via Zoom.
Wednesday 3rd June 2026 arrival p.m. and departure Tuesday 9th June a.m. 2026
THE COURSE
Throughout the week, there will be one-to-one support and guidance from tutors. Whether you're ready for submission to the trade, or to indie-publish, or not quite there yet, these are lifelong skills on how to become a professional writer.
Structure of the Week
Morning workshopping, lecture, guest speaker and writing time with tutors with one-to-one mentoring.
Afternoons: write by the private loch or in the house by a fire if it’s chilly; trek into the highlands, forests and lochs; sleep, rejuvenate and dream writerly magic; bike or e-bike into the inner Highlands with lochs, trails and forests – bike hire available and guides; swim in the private loch; fish on the private banks of the river Spey, gillies, tuition and equipment available for hire; potter into Aviemore and take advantage of the local amenities.
7 pm aperitifs
8 pm chef’s dinner with drinks
OUTCOME:
You will have a submission-ready proposal with direct access to our list of agents who are open to our alumni
Establish lifelong writer connections
Introduction to key industry connections
A tutor-edited submission package review up to 6 months after completing the course.
Full reset and rejuvenation in the Highlands of Scotland
'Working with Cornerstones changed my life – it took me from a hobby writer to a professional writer – and ultimately got me an agent at Kate Nash Literary Agency and a two-book publishing deal. With the skills I learned, I then retrained as an editor!’ – Helen Hawkins, A Concert for Christmas, Allison & Busby
Please request a programme for full retreat details and pricing. Costs include: accommodation, food, drink and tutoring.
At Pityoulish House: £7000 per author
Partners extra £1500 including food for the week (no tuition).
Outside Pityoulish House, in a nearby lodge: Own room occupancy £6000, Shared twin £5500
Price includes accommodation and tuition, lunch and dinner at Pityoulish House
Partners £1200 inc. accommodation (no tuition) lunch and dinner at Pityoulish House.
All prices are + VAT
Costs do not include travel. Trains, cars or flights to be arranged separately by the attendee. Extracurricular activities to be covered by the attendees.
NB: programme may be subject to change
Meet the Team
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Helen Corner-Bryant
FOUNDER
Helen Corner-Bryant spent several years in editorial at Penguin before setting up Cornerstones Literary Consultancy in 1998. In 2016, she opened Cornerstones US, creating the world’s first transatlantic literary consultancy. Cornerstones is known for teaching self-editing techniques, providing editorial feedback on all genres, scouting for agents, and launching many writers in all genres published by global industry giants including: HarperCollins, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Bloomsbury, Bonnier Books, Chicken House Books, Picador (Pan Macmillan), Faber & Faber, Macmillan USA, Amazon Publishing, and more. She is the co-author of On Editing: How to Edit Your Novel the Professional Way (John Murray, 2018). Helen teaches developmental editing at UCL and was appointed Honorary Associate Professor in the Department of Information Studies, UCL. Helen is the course director of the Cornerstones/PWA online course, Edit Your Novel the Professional Way, which is MA-level CPD-certified. She runs Cornerstones Executive Training, bespoke publishing and International government-level training programmes.
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Monica Chakraverty
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR at Cornerstones, head of the Cornerstones Scouting Programme and a Senior Consultant Editor.
Editorial Director at Cornerstones, head of the Cornerstones Scouting Programme and a Senior Consultant Editor. Former HarperCollins Editorial Director, and with over three decades at senior commissioning and publishing level, Monica has had many books reach No 1 in The Sunday Times bestseller list. She works to transform original ideas into coherent, desirable books for a competitive market and has worked for Picador, Pan Macmillan, Dorling Kindersley and Profile Books. She works across a variety of genres, from historical and celebrity memoirs to literary and commercial fiction, for adults and children. She has mentored at Columbia Journalism School in Oxford and has been a speaker at the Faber Academy.
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Lisa Gallagher
NYC & UK LITERARY AGENT
Former SVP & Publisher, William Morrow, Associate Publisher Bloomsbury and HarperCollins USA, former Sanford J. Greenburger and Defiore US literary agent and now with her own literary agency, Lisa Gallagher Management LLC. Lisa has more than thirty years of publishing experience and insight from both sides of the Atlantic and now, as an agent, championing authors and their work continues to be her passion. Her clients include New York Times bestselling novelists Christopher Moore and Charles Todd; Pulitzer Prize winner Julia Keller; national bestseller Hank Phillippi Ryan; film director, producer, author and painter Leopoldo Gout; memoirist Molly Bloom; and #1 New York Times bestseller Dr. Ian K. Smith, to name a few. She represents adult fiction, literary and commercial, non-fiction and YA.
How It Works-
Click on our link either above or below to take you to our contact page, where you can register your interest for the retreat and be sent a programme.
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Sign up and pay all required fees to reserve your spot. Do let us know if you have any dietary restrictions or other requirements.
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After booking, we'll send you a welcome email with everything you need to know—detailed schedules, packing list recommendations, any recommended reading, add-ons to consider, and more.
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We'd recommend booking your transportation to and from the event as soon as possible, to ensure you can arrive without any complications or delays.
Travel costs are not included in the price for the retreat, and arrangements will need to be made separately.
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Now all that's left to do is pack your bags and get excited for your new adventure. We look forward to welcoming you!