Laura Davis

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Anticipation: 10 Days ‘Till Bali

May 27, 2013 By Laura Davis No Comments - Read & Respond

In ten days, I will be boarding a plane to Brisbane. I am flying to a city, a region, a country, a continent I have never been to before. I am 56 years old and there are many places in this wide, beautiful world where I have never been. I am seriously under-traveled and unfortunately, monolingual. But I’m trying to make up for lost time. Eleven days from now, I will be landing in the Gold Coast Region of Australia to visit my friend Allison. I met Allison a year ago when she piled out of a dusty van in front of the Lotus Bungalows resort in Candidasa, along with 15 other travelers who attended my first Write, Travel, Transform retreat in Bali last year. Most of us were ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Anticipation: 5 Days ‘Til Bali

June 1, 2013 By Laura Davis 15 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

My favorite part of getting ready for this trip (aside from picking up a very thick wad of brightly colored Balinese rupiah at the bank) has been saying “no.” For the past few weeks, I’ve been divesting myself of obligations and saying no to new work, new projects, new requests, and new ideas:

“No, I’m sorry, I can’t read your manuscript.” “No, I’m sorry, I can’t meet with you.” “Oh that’s a really good idea, but I’m going to have to pass right now.” “I agree. It’s unfortunate that you just joined my class and now I’m taking the summer off. But I’ll be back in the fall.” “Call me in September about that.” “I’m not interested in doing that any more. I’m moving in new directions. I’m sorry.” “Look, if you want to do that, go right ahead. But I don’t think ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: All My Bags Are Packed And I’m Ready to Go…

June 5, 2013 By Laura Davis 7 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

There is something very satisfying and freeing about all the last minute things that need to be done before a trip:

  • Calling the bank to tell them I’ll be out of the country
  • Putting a vacation message on my email account freeing me from the need to answer email for a month
  • Putting a vacation hold on my mail and the newspaper
  • Getting my toenails done (I rarely do this, but always before a big trip)
  • Packing up my c-pap machine, my thyroid medicine and my vitamins
  • Packing the cords, adapters and plugs for my electronics
  • Turning “data” off on my phone
  • Shutting off notifications from Facebook, Pinterest and other social media—amazing how my email reduced by half instantly
  • Double-checking my ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: Now I Won’t Sound Like a Tourist

June 6, 2013 By Laura Davis No Comments - Read & Respond

Many of you are already familiar with my 85-year-old mother, Temme, who I moved out to California four years ago. She lives in Sunshine Villa, an assisted living facility about ten minutes from our house. Yesterday the last thing I did after all my errands and the final check of my bags was to go over to say goodbye. When I got to her door, I knocked. I usually carry a key to let myself in, but I’d already stashed it, along with my safe deposit key, in a baggie in my underwear drawer. “Mom,” I yelled from outside Room 103, “Open the door.” She yelled back, “Come in!” “I DON'T HAVE A KEY,” I yelled louder. “You’re going to have to let me in.” She, louder: “COME IN!” “I can’t! I don’t HAVE A KEY!” I knocked and called two more times. Then I waited a long time, five ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: Naïve Traveler’s Lessons 1 & 2

June 7, 2013 By Laura Davis No Comments - Read & Respond

When I got to the airport in San Francisco at 9:30 PM, ready to check in (and wait) for a 1:15 AM departure, I made my way up to the ticket counter and was immediately relieved that my bags were not overweight. The agent took my passport and my ticket but then she kept typing on the computer with a quizzical look on her face. Finally, as the passengers all around me were being processed and leaving the counter with their boarding passes, she called over her supervisor, and he, too, began typing into the keyboard and staring intently at the screen I could not see. I stopped listening to Gregory David Robert’s Shantaram on my ipod, and pulled the headphones out of my ears. “Is anything wrong?” I asked. The ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: Writer’s Eyes

June 7, 2013 By Laura Davis No Comments - Read & Respond

When I woke up on Singapore Air Flight #001 out of a drugged sleep, it was 10 AM by my watch, but pitch black outside the window. After a very cramped night’s “sleep” (if you can call it that) in economy class (any semblance of sleep made possible with the help of two Valium, two Advil and listening to Jim Greiner’s wonderful bells on repeat on my headset all night), I got up to stretch my very achy knees and stiff body. As I made my way back to the bathroom, I realized that I was walking through the plane with writer’s eyes, writer’s ears, writer’s senses--because I knew I was taking you with me on this journey—because I was recording it, not just for me, but for you, my dear reader. I had switched into a whole different ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: A Day In Limbo at the Queen of Airports

June 8, 2013 By Laura Davis 18 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

After an all night flight, I stumbled out of the cramped coach compartment at 11 AM local time into the shiny megacity that is Singapore’s Changi Airport. The size and scale of the place is staggering. Think of the biggest mall you’ve ever been in and inflate it ten times in size. This sprawling shopping paradise sports indoor billboards, multi-levels, hundreds of restaurants and shops, and a train that takes you from one end to the other. Everything is clean, well-lit, and well-marked—all in English. The first thing I did was duck into a bathroom to change out of my long pants, ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: Beginner’s Mind: Australia, Day 1

June 8, 2013 By Laura Davis 11 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

Today is my first full day in Australia. I arrived at 6:30 AM after a six-hour flight from Singapore, and my main agenda for today is staying awake until it gets dark. To that end, I’ve found it’s good to keep busy. Every time I stop my momentum, a wave of exhaustion sweeps over me. Yet I know staying awake until dark and getting on this time zone as soon as possible is the best thing I can do. I had a wonderful reunion with Allison at the airport and we’ve been talking non-stop ever since. We went to the grocery store for provisions, where we bought the most delicious coconut-vanilla yogurt I’ve ever had. The total bill for our groceries was about ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

Virtual Vacation: Byron Bay: Australia, Day 2

June 9, 2013 By Laura Davis 7 Comments · · · · · · Read & Respond

Allison and I started the day at the local fish market and bought some of the largest most gorgeous prawns I’ve ever seen, some local glistening tuna, and something called a Moreton Bay Bug, which is kind of like a lobster, but it’s all tail and all meat. It’s a specialty of this area. We’re going to have quite the seafood feast for dinner. On the way home, Allison explained a bit to me about the political system here—namely that every citizen must vote in every single election—or they have to pay an actual fine. Can you imagine a country with 100% participation in the political process? What do we average in the U.S.? 40% is a good show for national election, with local elections dropping far below that. What if ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

The Virtual Vacation: Sunrise in Causarina: Australia, Day 3

June 10, 2013 By Laura Davis No Comments - Read & Respond

Once again, I woke at 4:30 AM. Yesterday, I took an Ativan so I could go back to sleep and slept another five hours, until 9:30. This morning I decided I was done with drugs and that it was time to start following my body’s natural rhythms again. It was pitch black out; I was wide awake and I had a decision to make. I could start reading Khaled Hosseni’s And the Mountains Echoed, which I’d downloaded on my Kindle. I could stay in bed and get my adrenaline pumping with another episode of Dexter, Season 7, a fix I’d purchased on DVD for the long plane ride across the Pacific. I could surf the ... [Continue Reading]

Filed Under: Bali, The Virtual Vacation Tagged With: Bali, travel, travel adventure, write travel transform, writing retreat, writing workshop

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More Featured Students?

For years, I’ve been showcasing the work of one of my students in my monthly newsletter and here on my site. If you’d like to see a complete list of the students I’ve published, with links to their work, you can find it in the Featured Student Archives. Just click the link below.

Featured Students

What is the The Writer’s Journey Roadmap?

I send out inspiring quotes and provocative writing prompts via email Tuesday. You can collect them for their own use—or you can post your writing online and enter into dialogue and conversation with a very supportive group of writers who have made this part of their weekly writing practice.

I invite you to become part of my brilliant, supportive, intimate, honest, inspiring free online community.

I hope to see you up on the Roadmap soon!

First time visitor? Click here to learn about our community.

Like this Virtual Vacation?

You can also read about Laura’s travels to:

Peru 2017

In which Laura and Karyn and 18 writers explore Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of Peru.

Serbia 2017

In which Laura leads a workshop at the Incest Trauma Center.

Greece 2016

In which Laura explores the wonders of Crete and Santorini with a wide-eyed group of Write, Travel, Transform adventurers.

Vietnam 2015/16

In which Laura, who grew up during the Vietnam War, goes to Southeast Asia and finds out what Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia are really like today.

Commonweal 2015

A journey toward healing loss and grief in a magnificent Northern California setting.

Scotland 2015

In which Laura returns to Scotland with a new group for another jaunt through the wonders of the Scottish Highlands.

Scotland 2013

In which Laura attends the Edinburgh theatre festival and leads 14 writers to a magical retreat in the highlands of Northern Scotland.

Bali 2013

In which Laura visits Australia, and spends three weeks diving, exploring, and teaching in three regions of Bali.

Florida 2014

A journey into old age in America in which Laura brings her 86-year-old mother to Florida so she can see her last surviving sister one final time.

Mexico 2014

In which Laura attends the San Miguel Writer’s Conference and explores the artistic towns around Patzcuaro.

About Laura Davis

In the course of my career as a communicator, I have also worked as a columnist, talk show host, radio reporter, radio producer, blogger, editor, and speaker. Words have always been at the core of my work and my self-expression. Read More . . .

Photo taken by Jason Ritchey

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What People Are Saying About Laura Davis:

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Retreating with Laura: Julie Sheehan

Julie Sheehan

For many years I put off my dream of writing and traveling. I told myself the kids were too little, my husband could never survive without me, that I couldn't possibly be so selfish. I couldn't imagine realistically stepping out of all of my responsibilities and roles. Then I started attending Laura’s summer retreat at Commonweal in northern California and that became an annual gift to myself for the next three years.

When the opportunity to travel with Laura internationally came up, my Land of Later mentality said I could never pull it off. But when my friend got cancer at age 39, I decided to stop taking life and it's endless opportunities to grow, live, nurture and explore myself for granted.

My children were 6 and 9 when I began allowing myself the luxurious pleasure of taking 10 days to two weeks each year to travel abroad with Laura, to spend time with like minded, soul searching people who share a passion for living and writing, to have all my meals prepared for me, to have the space and freedom to stretch out of my cage and check in with who I am, what I want, and how best to get there.

Laura is a skilled and nurturing teacher who encourages her students to take risks, to grow as human beings, and to be vulnerable. She has provided me with a forum where I can gain all my CEUs and learn techniques on how to become a more engaging writer, all while completing yearly emotional rehab.

I return home from each of Laura’s trip a little wiser, a little more open, and a lot more compassionate. I greet my family, friends and daily life with sparkly, clean energy and a renewed patience, brought about by way of re-writing old stories that I needed to let go of. I come home ready to move forward in my life.

A retreat with Laura Davis is one of the best gifts I ever received and gave myself. It took many years to realize that I was worth the time and financial investment, but now there is no looking back.

Julie Sheehan, Livermore California

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Writing Through the Pandemic: January 26, Number 3

Who I am becoming. You can share your response to this prompt below. ... [Continue Reading]

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Writing Retreats

Whether you are a beginner, an established writer, a published author, or are looking for a creative vacation with your spouse…I have a retreat for you.

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