Writing Works

Gillie Bolton has worked in reflective and therapeutic writing for personal and professional development for twenty-five years, and has written and edited five books, one of which is now in its third edition. A grandmother of three, she lives in Bloomsbury, London, and Hope Valley, Derbyshire. Kate Thompson is a BACP senior accredited counsellor and supervisor and a journal therapist. After gaining a degree in English Literature from Cambridge University and therapeutic training, she developed a method of combining the two. She is a faculty member of the Center for Journal Therapy and Institute for Therapeutic Writing and lives in Colorado, USA.

• Foreword by Blake Morrison. Someone Says by David Hart. Acknowledgements. 1. Introduction. What this book offers and why. Gillie Bolton. Running groups. Victoria Field. Writing in therapy. Kate Thompson. Part One: Writing from without. 2. Warming Up and Working Together. Edited by Kate Thompson. 3. Writing About Place. Edited by Victoria Field. 4. Writing from Objects. Edited by Gillie Bolton. 5. Writing from Published Poems. Edited by Victoria Field. 6. Writing in Form. Edited by Victoria Field. Part Two: Writing from Within. 7. What People Need to Write. Edited by Kate Thompson. 8. Different Masks. Edited by Victoria Field. 9. Who Am I? Edited by Gillie Bolton. 10. Life's Journey. Edited by Gillie Bolton. 11. Loss and Change. Edited by Kate Thompson. 12. Conclusion. Index.

This is an important resource for anyone who runs writing workshops and a delightful, unputdownable adventure - yes, really! - for anyone who thinks it matters that writing works... I loved the chapters on place and objects, although, as before, I am not looking for overtly 'therapeutic' outcomes. I delight in the recognition of the importance of doing worthwhile, satisfying work. The authors clearly believe that a rigorous attitude to quality is in no way in conflict with catharsis and discovery. I loved the succinctness of the accounts “This is what I wanted to do. This is what happened”. I read this book as I read many creative writing handbooks: as a total immersion experience in a familiar but stimulating pool; a pool that refreshes, relaxes, buoys me up, gives me opportunities for vigorous exercise.