A white woman sits on a balcony wearing a turquoise dress and gold sandals with her head resting on her hand.
Author Augustine Blaisdell at The Writers Retreat in the Côte d’Azur, South of France. Photo by Anne-Juliette

Author, Mentor and Cultural Critic

As a working writer, passionate literary citizen and feminist activist for over twenty years, I walk the walk and talk the talk of philogyny. What is philogyny? The antonym of misogyny; PHILOGYNY simply means the love and admiration for women and girls. The Philogyny Project is the title of my next book–a playful, voice driven essay collection that constructs the history of philogyny written in the style of a Wikipedia entry gone haywire. I write a complimentary weekly Substack of the same name as well as host Philogyny Parties where we collectively change the entry for philogyny. I’m also the author of Women À La Mode: A Memoir of Writing a Book about Feminists in Paris and the Founder of The Writers Retreat in the Côte d’Azur, a luxurious five star writers retreat in the South of France. Come join me!

You’re invited to a Literary Paradise…

Join us Saturday May 31—Saturday June 7, 2025 for a phenomenal experience. Everything’s been taken care of so you can take good care of yourself.

RETREAT INCLUDES

✨ 8 days 7 nights accommodation in a five star villa by the sea ✨

✨ All fresh, organic meals of Provençal specialties plus three evenings out at delicious restaurants in Juan les Pins, St. Paul de Vence and Antibes✨

✨ Generative Writing Sessions every day (totaling 6 sessions)✨

✨ One on one consultation with me to discuss your work ✨

✨ Unlimited Coffee and Tea, (we’re writers after all 😉) ✨

✨ Celebratory Wine & Champagne (non-alcoholic options available as well)✨

✨ Professional Photo Shoot✨

✨ Complimentary 60 Minute Massage✨

✨ Special Lectures, Shamanic Meditation and other writing related Activities! ✨ 🎉

Seven white women writers sit on a balcony with one standing all smiling at the camera.
Saturday May 31—Saturday June 7, 2025

Imagine yourself here

Indulge your senses in the deliciousness that is the French Riviera. Come write with us in the gorgeous Italian Art Deco Villa Cosima!

The villa is less than a ten minute walk from the beach and the Old Town of Antibes in the South of France.

Swim in the turquoise Mediterranean Sea or the heated infinity pool with a stellar view.

All fresh, organic meals included as well as three nights out at fabulous restaurants along the coast.

Seriously, don’t worry about a thing and see what happens when you give yourself the spaciousness of time to create.

Writers all sitting on a balcony engaged in various forms of writing in their journals and on computers.
a white sheeted bed in a bedroom with a window on the right side and illuminated lamp on the left in font of a wall painted sea green
a turquoise pool in the foreground surrounded by trees, provides a view of old town antibes, which is an old castle now the Picasso museum
A white woman wearing sunglasses and a bohemian dress with her hands up presenting the entrance of a villa with bougainvilleas flowers
A desk with one chair looks out the open window on a view of the south of France

Who wants to come chill with me, write courageously and unapologetically while living your best life?

I’ve taken care of everything!
All you have to do is show up in the bravest version of yourself!
Each cohort is a carefully curated group of inspiring and luminous writers who are here to support each other and thrive!

The Writers Retreat in the Côte d’Azur

One week at the Villa Kennedy
Eight women
Eight desires to fully live this experience
Eight totally different backgrounds
Eight strong personalities
Eight huge egos
Eight books to be born
Same desire to live a successful group experience
Same mutual respect
Same determination to work and write and work and write
Same seed of craziness
Same desire to share past, present and future experiences
One warm, talented and enthusiastic mentor
One woman able to lead a group without dividing people
One Augustine able to create such a magical time

—Author Danielle Michel-Chich

Seven women in various colors of clothes stand and sit on a staircase smiling at the camera

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A violet book with the words Augustine Blaisdell Women À La Mode A Memoir of writing a book about feminists in Paris with silhouettes of three women's faces intertwined as the soft serve of an ice cream cone on a sky blue background

Women À La Mode: A Memoir of Writing a Book about Feminists in Paris

“Blaisdell upends our expectations of the American in Paris narrative, taking the reader on a whirlwind journey through feminist history while sharing moments of vulnerability and personal discovery. ”

— DORETTA LAU, AUTHOR OF HOW DOES A SINGLE BLADE OF GRASS THANK THE SUN AND CAUSE AND EFFECT

“The book is hard to put down, and it keeps drawing me back to revisit it. The narrator comes to Paris to explore some of her life’s biggest questions: what does a feminist look like? Is it possible to pursue creative and personal independence and embrace sisterhood and still hold out for a “fairytale” happy ending? Can feminism be beautiful, fashionable, glamorous?”

— DAN WHITE, AUTHOR OF UNDER THE STARS AND THE CACTUS EATERS

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The Philogyny Project

Get VIP access to my newest work in progress! The Philogyny Project is a weekly love letter about Philogyny, (the antonym of misogyny) simply meaning the love and admiration for women and girls. It’s a word we’ve never heard of, but one that we can’t live without.

The Wikipedia entry for misogyny is twenty four pages long, with several subcategories, the entry for its antonym, PHILOGYNY – meaning the love and admiration for women and girls – is just sixteen lines, it was only six, but I’ve since added to it.  THE PHILOGYNY PROJECT aims to change this.