March 21 – 23, 2025
Camp Allen Retreat Center, Navasota TX
(midway between Austin and Houston)
Cost: $ 645 ($595 prior to February 1st)

Please email charles@yogateacher.com if you have any questions.

Charles has been leading Creative Writing and Yoga Retreats in Texas, and around the world for 25 years. Charles’ pioneering approach, using Yoga & Meditation to help writers deepen their craft was featured in a Yoga Journal article in December 2003. Since then he has continued to introduce writers to the benefits of yoga, and yogis, to the wonderfully rich world of creative writing.

Yogis and writers at all levels of skill and experience are welcome. Charles is a master at creating safe space for creativity to flourish whether it is in the yoga studio, while writing, and especially when sharing our writing with others. Participation in all activities is always optional.

To pay by credit card, please email Charles with the following information

• Name
• Work & Home Phone Numbers
• E-Mail Address
• Mailing Address and Zip Code
• Emergency Contact (name, email and phone #)

Then use the following “Pay Now” button to pay online with a credit card.

To register by check: please make check payable to Charles MacInerney, and send to Charles MacInerney Expanding Paradigms 5803 Westmont Austin, TX 7873

1. If registering for more than one person, please include their contact information as well.

Charles MacInerney, E-RYT-500, has been  offering Yoga & Creative Writing retreats since 1995, and was featured in the Yoga Journal for his pioneering work in combining the two into a retreat format.

Charles has studied yoga and meditation since 1971 and taught since 1989. He has worked with over 20,000 students from around the world. As a professional public speaker he regularly presents at national and international conferences, including the Symposium on Yoga Therapy and Research.

In addition to teaching yoga, Charles is certified through Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA) to lead writing groups. He has had his essays published in a variety of magazines, journals (including Yoga Journal), books and online. See his biography for a more complete list of his accomplishments.

Yoga & Writing

At the heart of this retreat is the combination of Hatha Yoga, Meditation, and Creative Writing. Charles and his numerous students have found this combination to be very powerful. The Yoga serves to energize participants and creates a sense of physical well-being, while bringing them back to their body and their senses. Each Yoga class ends with a deep guided relaxation which calms the mind and relaxes students into a creative Alpha brainwave pattern. After we write, often flow of consciousness, with out editing or filtering, we gather in small, intimate groups and anyone who wishes to, reads what they have written.

The Writing

Charles will lead the writing sessions. Our writing retreats are designed after the process developed by Pat Schneider, founder of Amherst Writers & Artists, to help us find our truest voice; to write from the images, memories and feelings we all carry inside ourselves; and to write with greater confidence and skill. The retreats are a wonderful way to take time out and allow the deeper levels of your own creative self to emerge onto the page. Besides all of this, they are fun. We will write several times each day in response to exercises Charles suggests (which you are completely free to ignore!). We are invited to read aloud what we have just written and to respond to each other’s work with what is working (what we like, what we remember, what moves us) and not, at this stage of vulnerability, with what will make it stronger. We will work together to create and maintain a safe, confidential space in which to write whatever comes by following certain practices in responding to new writing: We honor the writer by listening carefully; We treat everything as fiction; We refer to the narrator/speaker, not to the author, as the voice of the piece; We remember that while healing often occurs through our writing, this is not a therapy group, and we maintain our focus on the writing; We concentrate on the writing at hand, not on anecdotes of our similar experiences; We are free to write what we want; exercises are offered; We are invited to read; We respond only with what we like, what stays with us, what moves us-and not, at this stage of vulnerability, with what will make it stronger. Writers of all levels of experience and of all genres are invited. There are no criteria for acceptance other than a sincere desire and willingness to write. You need bring no manuscripts with you; all writing is done during the retreat.

The Yoga

We will learn a variety of techniques to engage and deepen awareness of the most subtle sensations and movements of mind and body – first in stillness, then through subtle movement, and finally in more challenging and active asanas. You will be encouraged to pay more attention to the sensations and signals of your own body than to any external authority figures, including the teachers. One of the effects of this style of class is that you will become more self-aware, self-confident, and independent. Charles encourages his students to learn from their own experience, from their own sensations, from their own deep awareness of mind and body, and to trust that awareness over any external authority figures. The overall atmosphere will be relaxed, with the emphasis on enjoyment rather than effort. This does not mean that we will not work hard at times. You will find that you can engage in difficult and even strenuous poses joyfully, without experiencing the physical and psychological stresses associated with joyless striving.is is a text block. Click the edit button to change this text..

Established in 1921 by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas, Camp Allen is a year-round facility located mid-way between Austin and Houston near Navasota, Texas.

The retreat center is located on 1,100 beautiful acres of heavily wooded land, and features a conference center, lodge style accommodations,  two lakes with fishing, canoeing and paddle-boarding, plus several miles of trails for walking, biking and horseback riding.

We invite you to explore, retreat, and awaken your spirit in the piney woods!

The lodge where we will be staying has a covered front porch, and large private deck in the back, perfect for outdoor yoga. The interior of the lodge has a comfortable lounge area, room for indoor yoga classes and workshops, a spacious dinning room, and fully equipped kitchen. The facility has satellite wifi and cable.

There are 3 bedrooms with 2 beds per room and one larger room with 6 single beds, so registration is l limited  to 12 people.

Bed Linens are provided and there is a laundry room onsite.

Meals are a highlight of these retreats. All meals are mostly vegetarian (fish option Saturday Dinner) and delicious! Charles usually likes to cook the Friday evening meal and Saturday breakfast. The subsequent meals are usually catered by our own personal retreat chef.

If you have any food items you would like to bring – supplements, snacks, etc, you are welcome to keep them in the kitchen, and use the kitchen as needed. If you have any food allergies, be sure and let Charles know at least 5 days prior to the first day of  the retreat.

Fresh fruit, snacks, and a large selection of teas will be available 24/7. If you need coffee or any other beverages, feel free to bring what you need.

During meals, students quickly make friends, and find themselves engaged is wonderful conversations.

For those preferring solitude, meals can also be enjoyed on the front porch or back deck.

What to Expect

Allow about 2 1/2 hours for driving time from Austin, Texas, or 2 hours from downtown Houston, Texas. Please try to arrive between 4:30-7 p.m. Friday evening so that you will have time to fill out necessary paperwork, unpack and settle in. If you know you will be arriving later that 7 p.m. please let us know.

We will share a light Dinner at 8 p.m. We will start our first workshop at 8:30 p.m.

The retreat will officially last until 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon, and facilities must be vacated by 6:00 p.m. Sunday evening. In case of an emergency you can be reached at (936) 825-7175, but try to avoid unnecessary calls to this number as it disturbs any classes in progress.

Food: 6 meals will be provided starting with a light meal Friday night, through lunch on Sunday. The meals will be vegetarian, but should more than satisfy most appetites. In the spirit of healthy pleasures I do not wish to deprive any one, so if there is anything you would like to bring, like coffee or snacks, please do. If you have special dietary needs please let me know in advance so we can make arrangements.

Format of Retreat: Charles has set up a 3 day schedule that includes plenty of time for Yoga, Writing and Sharing/Responding to each other’s writing,  which will be included in your hand out packet when you arrive. Please feel free to participate or pass on any or all of the events as your interest, energy and mood dictates. Some times a massage, a nap, or a walk might seem more appropriate than a yoga class or a workshop. We will also encourage group discussion. Often the best insights come from the participants themselves.

What to Bring

You will need to bring the following:
Out door clothing for walking;
Comfortable clothing for Yoga Classes;

Yoga ‘sticky mat’ if you have one;
Any Yoga props you like to use;

Towels and toiletries (including soap);
Flashlight.

Optional items are:
pen and paper for taking notes;
camera;
musical instruments;
insect repellant;
umbrella (just in case);
recreational equipment (frisbee, binoculars etc.);
hammock;
coffee, or snacks;
floor pillows for main meeting room;
your own meditation stool or blanket;
books that you would like to share with others.

Books: We will set up a table with a wide range of books and magazines relating to yoga, spirituality, meditation, philosophy, fiction etc. Participants will be free to borrow any of these books, but must return them to the table when not in use. If you have a favorite book or books you would like to share for the duration of the retreat, please write your name on the inside cover and bring them with you to add to the collection.

Keep in mind that Texas weather is unpredictable, so pack accordingly.

If you have any questions, suggestions, or requests please call me at (512) 459-2267, or email at charles@yogateacher.com I look forward to seeing you at the retreat soon. Namaste’

Directions to Camp Allen
18800 FM 362,  Navasota, Texas 77868

Tel: 936-825-7175
Toll Free: 866-334-CAMP

FROM AUSTIN

• Take U.S. Highway 290 East toward Houston.
• Continue on 290 to Hempstead.
• Turn North or left onto Hwy. 6 towards Bryan.
• Turn right onto Hwy. 2979
• Turn left onto 362, continue for approx. 1.5 miles to the Camp Allen main entrance (on the left).
• Approximately 2.5 hours.

FROM HOUSTON

• Take U.S. Highway 290 (Northwest Freeway) West toward Austin.
• Exit at FM 362.
• Turn right onto FM 362 and go 6 miles to the “T” intersection at FM 1488.
• Turn right onto FM 1488 and go 3 miles to Field Store Community.
• Turn left back onto FM 362 and go 6.2 miles to the Camp Allen main entrance (on the left).
• From Downtown: approximately 1.5 hours. From the Galleria area: approximately 1 hour.

FROM GEORGE BUSH INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT

• Follow airport exit signs to Beltway 8 (Sam Houston Tollway) via Intercontinental.
• Turn onto Beltway 8 from JFK and enter the tollway ($1.00 toll).
• Exit the Sam Houston Tollway at U.S. Highway 290 West (toward Austin).
• Exit at FM 362
• Turn right onto FM 362 and go 6 miles to the “T” intersection at FM 1488.
• Turn right onto FM 1488 and go 3 miles to Field Store Community
• Turn left back onto FM 362 and go 6.2 miles to the Camp Allen main entrance (on the left).
• Approximately 1.25 hours.

FROM BRYAN / COLLEGE STATION (OR WACO)

• Take State Highway 6 south 9 miles past Navasota.
• Turn left onto FM 2.
• Turn right at the “T” intersection with FM 362 and take FM 362 two miles to the Camp Allen
• main entrance (on the right).
• From B/CS: approximately 35 minutes. From Waco: approximately 2.5 hours.

FROM DALLAS / FORT WORTH
• Take Interstate 45 South to Conroe and exit at Texas Highway 105.
• Turn right, traveling west on TX 105 through Montgomery and Plantersville to FM 362.
• Turn left onto FM 362 and go approx. 8 miles to the Camp Allen main entrance (on the right).
• Approximately 3.5 hours.

FROM TYLER / EAST TEXAS

• Take Texas Highway 155 to Interstate 45 South to Conroe.
• Follow above directions from Dallas