Not sure what it takes to publish in a top journal?
This workshop-retreat gives you protected time, scholarly feedback, and the writing skills to join the top league in your field.
A Workshop-Retreat for Business Scholars
Bali, January 10 to 16, 2027
Seven days in Ubud, Bali to write, to workshop your ideas, and to sharpen the craft of building theory — all in community.
THE IDEA
Not just time to write - time to level up your writing and thinking.
For January 2027 we are reimagining our Bali retreat. Alongside the quiet, protected writing time our retreats are known for, this edition will bring you a series of working sessions on the things that so many scholars struggle with: positioning, storytelling, and theory building.
The MORNINGS are for collective workshops and co-writing. The workshops are where we open up the craft of the contribution: how to frame a paper so reviewers see its stakes, how to carry a reader through an argument, and how qualitative work earns its theoretical claims.
The AFTERNOONS are reserved for individual mentor sessions with Julien, Tanvi or Eileen Fischer, our guest this year.
The EVENINGS are yours — to think, to wander Ubud, to rest, to yoga, to padel... (We have great recommendations for all!)
A mid-week break for a group excursion (optional, of course!) will help drive our community element, something that Julien and Tanvi cherish deeply.
Most importantly, this is a feedback retreat. Participants are invited to submit work in progress and receive considered, individual responses from all three facilitators — an editor's eye, a fellow scholar's instinct, and the perspective of one of the field's most experienced theory-builders.
YOUR FACILITATORS
Three readers for your work
A veteran academic business editor with 20+ years of experience, an associate editor of the Journal of Consumer and International Journal of Research and Marketing, and a VERY senior figure in Marketing globally — together for one week in Ubud.
Tanvi Mehta
Academic Editor & Writing Instructor
Tanvi is a publications coach, academic editor, and writing instructor with over 20 years of experience working with business faculty. She has helped her clients publish in the top business journals in their field, and has been invited to teach the art and craft of academic writing to faculty and doctoral students at business schools in Europe and India. Tanvi also teaches PhD writing courses at Cambridge, ISB, and Aalto, and is deeply familiar with the writing ecosystem of academia.
Julien Cayla
Associate Professor of Marketing, Nanyang Business School
Julien is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Nanyang Business School in Singapore and the founder of the Consumer Culture Lab. Trained in anthropology and sociology, his research sits at the intersection of social sciences and business, with a deep focus on consumer culture in Asia. He serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of Consumer Research, and his work has appeared in top journals including the Journal of Marketing and Journal of Business Ethics.
Eileen Fischer
Professor of Marketing, York University, Schulich School of Business
Eileen is a Professor of Marketing at York University’s Schulich School of Business. A leading figure in her field, and awarded numerous distinctions, Eileen’s research explores how brands, firms, and markets emerge and evolve, and how consumers and entrepreneurs shape and respond to them. She is particularly interested in branding, consumption culture, entrepreneurship, and market systems, and is known for her expertise in qualitative research methodologies.
THE WORKSHOPS
What we’ll work on together
POSITIONING
How do you frame a paper so its contribution is unmistakable? We work on situating your study in a conversation, naming the tension it resolves, and making reviewers feel the stakes from the first page.
STORYTELLING
A strong paper carries the reader. We look at narrative arc, the movement from puzzle to insight, and the craft of writing that is both rigorous and a pleasure to read.
THEORY BUILDING
Drawing on deep experience with interpretive and qualitative research, we explore how data becomes a genuine theoretical contribution — and how to articulate that contribution with confidence.
COST & WHAT’S INCLUDED
What the retreat costs
This retreat is open to all, and we're offering a special rate for teams of co-authors who sign up together. Being together in the same place at the same time, working on the same manuscript? That’s our gift to you!
THIS PRICE INCLUDES:
✓ Your accommodation for 6 nights
✓ All workshops: positioning, storytelling, theory building
✓ Individual feedback sessions with Tanvi, Julien, or Eileen
✓ Daily structured co-writing sessions
✓ Full access to the co-working space, day and night
✓ Airport pickup
✓ Midweek group excursion
✓ Welcome dinner (Day 1) and farewell dinner (Day 6)
BRING YOUR CO-AUTHOR — SAVE $100 EACH
Papers get written faster when co-authors are in the same room. Register with a co-author and you each save $100. Pick the right option when you pay, and email us the name of your co-author.
A note on funding
If you are seeking reimbursement from your institution, ask us for a short justification memo you can send to your research office.
If your institution will pay directly, you can secure your spot with a $400 deposit while they get their act together. Once you have done that, you will need to:
Cancellation: full refund (minus $100 admin fee) until September 15 · 50% until October 30 · no refund after, as accommodation will be committed.
THE WEEK
Seven days in Ubud
A day to arrive, five days of programming, and a day to depart — with an an optional excursion mid-week to explore Bali.
DAY 1
Arrival
DAY 2 & 3
Write & Workshop
DAY 4
Day off /Grp Excursion
DAY 5 & 6
Write & Feedback
DAY 7
Departure
Settle in
Arrive in Ubud and get settled into your accommodation.
We gather in the evening for a welcome dinner to open the retreat and meet your fellow writers.
The daily rhythm begins
Mornings: a couple of hours of structured co-writing.
Workshop sessions on positioning, storytelling, and theory building woven through the days.
Afternoons: free for your own writing, thinking, rest, or exploring Ubud.
A break in the middle of the week
We step away from the desk for an optional shared day out — an organised activity such as a cycle through the rice fields or a trek through the Ubud countryside.
A chance to recharge, connect, and let ideas settle before the second half.
Deepening the work
Morning co-writing sessions continue.
Feedback sessions on submitted work with all three facilitators.
Afternoons free, closing with a farewell gathering.
Farewell
A final breakfast together before departures.
FEEDBACK SESSIONS
Submit your manuscript. Work one-on-one with us.
Each participant may bring a piece of work in progress and receive feedback from Tanvi, Julien, or Eileen.
Choose to work with an editor who will read for structure, argument and storytelling, focused on the words on the page, or with scholars reading for the theoretical contribution to the field. Details on how and when to submit your work will be shared with confirmed participants ahead of the retreat.
Accommodation
This retreat will take place in a quiet neighbourhood close to the centre of Ubud in Bali. Ubud is the cultural heart of the island, surrounded by rice terraces, temples, and a thriving community of cafes and restaurants.
Co-writing sessions, workshops and feedback meetings will be held at a co-working space, and you will have unfettered access to this space during our non-scheduled hours.
Accommodation will be arranged nearby.
We will be located just outside Ubud centre, and the immediate neighbourhood is walkable, peppered with fantastic restaurants and cafes with that unmistakable Ubud vibe. The centre of Ubud is a short drive away, and transport is easy to organise.
You can expect that distinct Ubud lush, green, jungle vibe with easy pool access at your accommodation.
Let’s Answer those Burning Questions!
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Your payment will cover your stay, access to the co-working space, the half-day excursion on Day 4, dinner on Day 1 and Day 6, and airport transfer (pickup only).
All mid-day meals, and evening meals on Day 2, 3, 4, and 5, are open to you. There are MANY restaurants nearby, so you will be spoilt for choice. You can choose to stay local, or wander into the heart of Ubud, which is a quick bike ride away!
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Full refund (minus $100 admin fee) until September 15
50% until October 30
No refund after, as accommodation will be committed
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We are very happy to accommodate direct institutional payments. It is, however, a bit more complicated, so there are several steps we would need to follow.
Being deeply familiar with the overly long timeframes for institutional payments, we require that you secure a spot first by paying a $400 deposit (you will see an option for that during your checkout process).
Once you have paid, please send us an email telling us which of the four variations above you will be signing up for.
This should be followed by institutional payment within 6 weeks. We expect that you will keep us informed about the payment process, and we will require you to give us the exact details that need to be put on the invoice, including the EXACT name, address, date, purchase order number, and description.
On receiving institutional payment, we will return your $400 deposit minus 5% administration costs.
Please email us if you are uncertain about any aspect and wish to discuss it directly.
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Fifteen at full capacity, excluding Eileen, Julien, and Tanvi.
We want to create an intimate community atmosphere, so we are keeping the numbers low.
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Apart from the incredibly enchanting location??
This retreat doubles as a paper development workshop. You have access to three incredibly experienced people in business academia to guide you in your writing and to help move your draft forward.
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There will be short workshops throughout the week on aspects such as storytelling, structure, creating contributions, writing with clarity etc.
So, you should have everything you need to dig deep into your draft and give it the energy needed to move it forward.
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Yes! Your guest will be able to share your room.
Unfortunately, we will not be able to accommodate them in any retreat activities.
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We are happy to try and accomodate your dietary requests. Please get in touch with us by email before the retreat to organise this.
Most restaurants and cafes offer vegan and vegetarian options.
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Bali will be in the wet season in January. It will be warm, humid, and possibly wet. Pack an umbrella?
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According to travelladies.app: “Bali is relatively safe for solo female travellers. The locals are generally friendly and respectful. However, minor issues like pickpocketing or taxi scams can happen occasionally. It's advised to be cautious particularly in crowded areas and at night. The island is overall safe assuming you take the necessary precautions.”
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We have designed this retreat to mimic a paper development workshop, but the primary focus is on providing you with the uninterrupted time you need to work on your manuscript, away from your regular work and family commitments.
Being in community is special, especially since academia tends to be a lonely and isolating enterprise. We value community above all.
We will ask you to send a work-in-progress about six weeks before the retreat starts, and we hope you will continue working on it during our time together. You will have the opportunity to apply some of the frameworks we discuss in the workshop, and you will also get personal feedback on your manuscript from one of our three facilitators.
JANUARY 2027
Come and write with us in Ubud
Places are limited to keep the group small and the feedback personal. Sign up and we'll be in touch about how to submit your work soon.