Sally Jones befriends uncertainty at the Skyros Centre

A whole week has flown by already. It feels barely believable but as we unwind, we lose track of the days and of time and instead allow ourselves to slip into a natural rhythmic flow. Tensions are melting away and I am noticing a relaxed healthy energetic glow on the faces of participants.

The invigorating winds have settled to a gentle cooling breeze. I realise I haven’t seen one single cloud since my arrival here. Reliable blue skies make a refreshing change from the unpredictability of the weather back home and the pleasure of swimming in the beautiful blue Aegean sea never ceases.

One of my greatest joys this week has been picking the fresh figs off the trees on route to and fro to the beach and splitting them open to enjoy the fresh sweet flesh. In my course we have been working on developing mindfulness and this provides a perfect opportunity to practise this – savouring the full flavour of the figs after enjoying the sensory delights they provide visually.

We have one more week ahead and I hope we can stay present moment to moment and fully enjoy the magic Skyros never fails to provide.

Psychologist, Dr Sally Jones, is currently running her course 'Befriending Uncertainty' at the Skyros Centre in Greece. To find out more about Skyros holidays in Greece, Thailand, Cuba and the Isle of Wight, see www.skyros.com.

Richard Skinner's 'Words on Paper'

The first half of my two weeks’ teaching at the Skyros Centre in Greece is now over and has been a huge success!

Meeting every morning at a cafe in the hustle and bustle of the town, the group have gelled effortlessly and are enjoying every minute of stretching themselves and raiding their imaginations.

In the first week’s course, entitled ‘Nuts & Bolts’, we looked at some of the basics of fiction – plot, character, point of view, dialogue – which my students took on board as though fully-fledged writers themselves.

For the final session today, they presented a blurb for a novel they would like to write but that they knew would NOT be published. They found the concept unusual at first, but soon came up with an array of fabulous storylines, each one clearly close to their hearts, which was exactly the point of the exercise.

There were Ballardian tales of cannibalism in lost valleys, the thwarted idealism of a group of friends at their 30-year reunion, the difficult relationship between a Lebanese painter and his daughter, a satire on health care for the elderly, a crime noir set in Marseille. All of them were gripping, colourful, intriguing novels yet-to-be-written.

Next week’s course, entitled, ‘Lost & Found’, will consist of even more personal writing, ending with an opportunity to present a short piece of their own and receive feedback on it. The week should prove just as fruitful for the students as they continue to expand and explore their new roles as writers and get to know each other even better. Roll on Monday!

Richard Skinner teaches Creative Writing at Goldsmiths College, London, and his own novels have been translated into several languages. Richard is currently teaching at Writers' Lab at the Skyros Centre in Greece. For more information about Skyros holidays, visit www.skyros.com.

'Why do you come to Atsitsa?'

'I love coming here, because when you return to Atsitsa it feels like you have never been away' - Virginia Evangelou




'After all these years, I still find Atsitsa has the amazing potential for transformation.' [He also said - because of the beautiful women who come here!!!] - Michael Stewart




'It's amazing how 60 random people can become 60 close friends, this is a place where you can learn both from a 6 year old and a 60 year old' - Andrew Risner


'This is where my journey started and where it continues, I have connected to my authentic self' - Anna Jung

'It's a place to be yourself and feel liberated, away from the constraints of life' - Sally Kay

To find out more about Skyros holidays in Greece, Thailand, Cambodia, Cuba and also in the Isle of Wight, visit www.skyros.com.

Jeremy's Writers' Lab fortnight comes to a close....

It’s hard to believe that it was only two weeks ago that the members of the group sat down to write their first stream-of-consciousness exercise and begin our time working together.

Since then we’ve encountered a horde of compelling characters generated out of the various writing games and assignments, and I’m hopeful that the members of the group are impressed enough by these invented personalities they’ve conjured out of thin air to pursue their various literary destinies on the page.

Certainly, on the basis of the passages they’ve been writing these last few mornings, the writers in the group have every reason to throw themselves into the process of finding their voices and introducing their characters to a wider readership.

Jeremy Sheldon is just wrapping up his two weeks of teaching at the Writers' Lab at the Skyros Centre in Greece. See www.skyros.com/writers_lab.htm.

Jeremy is the author of two works of fiction, The Comfort Zone and The Smiling Affair, as well as a number of anthologised short stories. He is a tutor on the MA in Creative Writing Programme at Birkbeck, University of London, and also at Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine. Jeremy is also script editor for several film production companies.

There's a Yoga Mat in Skyros Calling Your Name...

As far as I can see, the sky stretches blue. The warm gentle wind touches my skin. The sun moves in its own time, a slow graceful dance over the morning sky.

Yoga in Skyros is like none other.

The views across the yoga platform stretch out over the Aegean Sea, and beyond. The sun catches the calm blue sea beneath us, sparkling like glistening white diamonds.

On the yoga floor the purple, pink and orange yoga mats are colourfully arranged. One by one, each mat is claimed. The class is filled with people, some new to yoga, and some have been practicing yoga for years.

Today we are doing our morning yoga, "Katrina Yoga" as it has fondly become known. A gentle, stretchy and energising yoga. Opening the body, opening the mind, opening the heart. The focus is on creating connection of the mind, body, and soul to our dreams.

Moving into a space of appreciation, love and gratitude for all that we have, all that we are, all that we dream of....

The yoga runs each day before breakfast and classes. Over 2 weeks, students build strength, inner trust and self confidence in their bodies.

For me, one of the real gifts is to watch as people make powerful break throughs and boldly step forward into their life purpose, creativity and guidance of their heart.

On this magnificent Skyros yoga platform, under the blue sky, and warm summer sun, is a beautiful coloured yoga mat, just waiting for you....

Katrina Brunsden is the Yoga Teacher, Massage Therapist and Wellness Coach at the Skyros Centre. From the 6th of September Katrina will move to the Atsitsa Bay centre on Skyros island, Greece, where she will be teaching Holistic Health workshops. To find out more about these workshops and about Katrina, see www.skyros.com and www.FatGirlTrim.com

The Writers' Lab by Dorothy Crossan

Having spent the first week discovering what "Five Rhythms" is all about - and really enjoying it - I opted to take the less physically strenuous writing course in week two.

It's great fun, not just doing the exercises that Jeremy sets us myself, but listening to what everyone else has made of them too. Do you agree that 'apathy' feels like a handful of jam?

There's so much to do here that I'm writing this Blog entry between coming back from the beach and heading off to the restaurant by the lighthouse for a Greek night with dancing lesson. I've a feeling my performance may be more Stavros Flatley than I'd like but it doesn't matter because we're all friends here.

Later I'm hoping for a cocktail at the Calypso before heading off to sleep in the Melagonia - or as Jeremy our writing tutor calls it - the Meglomania. I don't get up for the early morning yoga so my day starts breakfast and then a spot of watering around the Skyros terrace before the writing group begins.

Dorothy is currently taking a Skyros Writers' Lab holiday on the Greek island of Skyros. See www.skyros.com.

The Writers' Lab by Jeremy Sheldon

After seven days of leading a two-week writing workshop at the Skyros Writers’ Lab, it occurs to me that “Lab” feels like something of a misleading word. It conjures up an image of egg-heads in white coats discussing and dissecting minute details of literary technique with clinical, intellectual precision.

Nothing could be further from the truth, of course, and there’s no greater proof of this than where we’ve been working together throughout the recent mornings. We’ve chosen as a group to hold our workshops on an outdoor terrace of the local museum dedicated to Skyrian life, art and traditions.

With the blue Aegean beating gently away directly below us and the light breeze moving through the leaves of the vines and trees around us, we’ve addressed various writing techniques over the last few days including plotting, point-of-view, characterisation and sense-of-place.

Even better, each member of the group has used the writing exercises and games as an opportunity to present situations and characters have been variously touching, terrifying and extremely funny. Who knows what next week’s sessions will generate? What seems certain is that Manos (the curator of the Museum) will keep bringing us fabulous coffee and that the members of the group will continue to push themselves to write material that is as moving as it is fascinating.

Jeremy Sheldon is currently running his course 'Fiction Writer's Toolkit' at the Skyros Centre on Skyros island, Greece. Jeremy is Creative Writing tutor at Birbeck College, University of London, author of two novels and script reader for film production companies. See www.skyros.com.