Find your story
Explore the intersection of self, place, nature, and history to source stories that matter
Why Write with a Sense of Place?
Everything happens somewhere. By starting with uncovering place experiences inside you, you’ll uncover a well of creativity you may have forgotten you had inside you.
Whether you're a seasoned writer or someone seeking clarity and inspiration, there’s a program here for you. These offerings will help you find your voice, deepen your craft, and nourish your creative spirit.
Through memory, presence, and meaning-making, you’ll uncover ideas, imagery, and themes that bring your ideas to life.
✓ Non-fiction writers, essayists, poets, storytellers, and memoirists
✓ Naturalists, historians, educators, park rangers, and other professionals
✓ Creatives, soul seekers, and published authors
✓ Anyone longing for a meaningful writing practice
Sense of Place Writing Is for All Kinds of Writers:
Sense of Place Classes, Retreats, and Mentoring.
Onsite and Online.
Writing Classes
Hone Your Craft. For writers of all levels who want to grow their skills and thrive in a community of support.
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For all levels of experience. Gain a foundational appreciation for different kinds of place-based writing. Uncover meaningful stories to develop. Learn techniques to add more depth and detail to any genre of writing you’d like to do. Based on Erica’s proven framework for uncovering and developing meaningful stories.
Week One: The Storied Landscape: Identify your core stories, their impact and meaning. Write a touchstone story.
Week Two: Place as Metaphor: Harness your descriptive writing powers. See places for their symbolic, metaphorical qualities.
Week Three: Place as Narrative Try out story arcs and structure. Explore how to grow your ideas.
Week Four: The Power of Place Blend what you've discovered about context, symbols, description, and story arcs. Harvest and share the stories you have inside you. Hone your writings to effectively express your ideas. -
Hone in on the stories you want to tell with weekly guided prompts and in-class writing provide the container you need for diving deep into your creative process and unearthing the stories you want to tell. This dedicated time for writing will help you develop your ideas and generate writing and flourish in an incredible community of support. 90-minute weekly sessions.
Bring your stories to life
Generate fresh writings and ideas
Thrive in a nourishing community of support
Nourish your inner writer and stay connected to your writing self
Gain proven writing framework centered your soulful journey
Develop writings based on the intersection of place, nature, history and self
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Details Coming
1:1 Mentoring
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Mentoring is for you if …
You have a closet full of writings or piles of notes that you want to become a book or other writing.
You have been working on something for a while and feel stuck or need a fresh take
You want to polish and complete a collection of writings
You prefer a personalized 1:1 experience over a group program
You thrive with someone to be accountable to and who will fine-tune a program for you.
What You Can Expect From Mentoring:
✓A 1:1 deep-dive assessment of your project and process
✓Help organizing ideas and writings into a clear progression of what you need and a doable plan to get there
✓Personalized support, accountability, and creative momentum
✓Increased focus, structure, and productivity
Work on your schedule. Enrollment is ongoing. Start anytime. Book a free assessment call→
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This monthly program starts with an in-depth pre-workbook for reflection and intention setting. Next, we’ll meet to kick things off with a focused 30-minute call to clarify your goals.
We’ll work together, explore what you have and create a roadmap to work on your project segment by segment, until your writing feels whole and complete.
You’ll receive:
✓Bi-weekly mentoring calls
✓Weekly email support
✓A personalized accountability plan
Enrollment is ongoing. Minimum 2-month commitment required. Start anytime. Book a free assessment call→.
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This powerful, spacious day is designed for breakthroughs—both structured and intuitive.
What it includes:
✓ High-level review of your writings
✓Identification of current central themes and ideas
✓Creation of a clear narrative arc and structure for your project
✓Sequencing all the content, at whatever stage it is in
✓ Defining next steps and your personalized 60–90 day action plan
You'll leave with renewed clarity, a tangible path forward, and momentum to carry your writing through.
Enrollment is ongoing. Start anytime. We can meet at your house or mine! Book a free assessment call→
Retreats, Workshops, and Creative Classes
Perfect for anyone feeling called to explore their inner life and find more clarity. Find your stories. Follow your path. Nourish yourself and your muse.
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Nourish Your Muse. Quarterly retreats to reconnect with your creativity. Inspiring and soul-nourishing. These retreats are for everyone and crafted to keep your inner creative self recharged and aligned.
Use to deepen your writing practice, or just to recharge.
Get on the mailing list to learn about upcoming programs
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Reflective Writing Workshops
Options include
1. Writing Workshop: The Touchstone Story
2. Creative Wellness Workshop: Vision Board in a BoxTouchstone Writing Workshop
Every place holds stories—and so do you. Through gently guided prompts, you’ll uncover a personal story rooted in place and meaning. These touchstone stories serve as anchors—reminders of who you are and what matters most.
No writing experience needed—just curiosity
Leave with a meaningful piece you can return to again and again
Includes prompts to continue the journey
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This is a 3 month bundle of classes. Perfect for anyone feeling called to explore their inner life and find more clarity.
Through a series of creative explorations, this program will lead you to the foundational stories you’ll use to explore your life and use in your writing or any creative work you want to do.
Class One: Creative Essentials
View your life from a fresh perspective. Find the themes and ideas that can provide the foundation of any creative work you want to do. Discover the stories you’re meant to tell.
Every week we’ll meet via Zoom to engage in a project or reflection. Includes project time, comprehensive weekly workbooks, and conversation.
One:Create a Vision Board in a Box. Map inner and outer aspirations. Reflect on where you are now and where you want to go.
Two:Craft a Narrative Map. Explore the twists and turns of your life journey and the lessons learned along the way.
Three:Create a Handmade Strengths Story Book to remind yourself of what you bring to the world. Create a legacy story for yourself or to share it with others.
Four:Take a Discovery Quest. Embark on a self-guided listening quest. Gather for a final session to share insights and stories.
Whether you're looking to uplevel your professional writing or dive into a nourishing creative experience, my classes and retreats will help you discover a deeper sense of place, find the stories you’re called to tell, and become the writer you are inside.
Hello, I’m Erica Wheeler,
your story guide.
I'm an award-winning songwriter, interpretive trainer, and seasoned guide in the art of personal and creative discovery.
I’ve helped writers, creatives, seekers, and professionals of all kinds uncover their stories, complete their projects, and rediscover their sense of voice and place.
I offer a proven framework and approach that contains the tools, practices, and inspiration you need to uncover and develop your stories.
My writing classes are intentionally small in size, so that as your writing guide, I can be deeply attuned to what you need to navigate the twists and turns of your writing journey. I will share with you tools and techniques grounded in experience, knowledge, and intuition to help you get where you want to go.
I’ve worked with published authors, curious creatives, naturalists, historians, scientists and seekers, and those who never considered themselves ‘writers’—all of whom left my classes not only writing more but seeing themselves and their stories in a new light.
Participants have unlocked stories and completed projects.They have written essays, books, articles, personal reflections, and more.
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“A great place to expand your skills.” "I heartily recommend this class as a great place to find your voice and improve and expand your skills. It is appropriate for those with vague goals as well as those with works in progress. The practice of blending history, personal experience, theme, and descriptions really led to some good solid pieces. Through Erica's focused individual guidance, we were each treated like writers instead of students."
Beth Arrowsmith, Colorado
Educator, Photographer -
“Never fails to make my imagination leap.” “Erica weaves an experiential class of stories, writers, and inspiration together around Sense of Place that never fails to make my imagination leap. Her classes always deepen my connection with my current and past places which drives me to further explore my attachment to places that I would never have considered writing about before."
James McMenamin, Switzerland Heritage Photographer
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“Helped me find my writing voice.” "Working with Erica has moved my writing in directions that I never thought possible. It has helped me find my writing voice and helped my ideas coalesce into a set of connected essays. Erica has a sort of magic to her teaching, where she is more of a guide than a teacher who can pick up on what individuals need in the way of direction. It is a writing journey with others, and they are the best travel companions!"
Julia Clebsch, New Hampshire, Naturalist, Retired Park Ranger
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“I have not written this much or as easily in my 30+ years in academia” "I highly recommend Erica Wheeler and her writing classes! I have had a great deal of experience writing academic articles and chapters, which in turn meant I had little to no opportunities for descriptive or creative writing. I have not written this much or as easily in my 30+ years in academia. The classes are supportive and keep us actively writing, but also allow us to go at our own pace and take on as much or as little that meets our schedules."
Jeanne Stanley, Ph.D., Pennsylvania, Psychologist, Graduate School Consultant
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“I learned to write much more expressively” "I took Erica's class to get back to a regular writing schedule and pick up on a writing project I had sidelined a long time ago. Erica creates a warm and inviting space for participants to develop their writing without fear of judgment. It gave me permission to use my voice and lean into creating a scene through vivid details. I learned to write much more expressively because of it!
Shae McWilliams, Rhode Island
Sales and Development -
"You've given me a whole new way of thinking about place. "Living in a place where I really don’t feel connected, this process has really helped me come to terms with it, and how that’s okay. I can write about that."
Christina Campell, Iowa
University Professor and Knitting Blogger -
“Opened my eyes.” “l had never taken another writing class, so this was a new experience. I had never thought of myself as a poet, but Erica stating that the rhythm of one of my pieces sounded like poetry opened my eyes. I valued the opportunity to do writing in class and was always surprised when short pieces I wrote turned out to be good!”
Andy Smith, New Jersey
Minister, Photographer
Let’s Write Together
Curious which class is for you? You can schedule a call so we can learn more about each other and explore what path might be the best fit for your writing needs. Reach out and we can find a good time to set up a call or Zoom, or book a slot on my calendar.