Beth Kempton's Blog, page 4

What I learned taking one of the longest train journeys in the world… (Hint: writing can pay for your adventures)

Earlier this summer I spent some time at my parents’ house. They have a large shed in the garden which my dad has turned into a creative den. The walls are covered with old photos of us as children, and while I was perusing them this time I noticed this on the wall. It’s a framed copy of an article I wrote for The Daily Echo back in 1997, my second ever piece of professional writing. (Bless my parents for still having this, encased in a clip frame no less!)

My first was a commission from Wanderl...

Metamorphosis, in front of my eyes.

A month ago the postman knocked at the door. “You’d better open this one soon,” he winked, handing a brown box to our six-year old birthday girl. “Are they dead, mummy?” she asked wide-eyed, carefully lifting the clear pot out of the box and staring at the five motionless hairy caterpillars inside, sprawled across some pale brown gunk. “Erm, I think they are sleeping,” I hoped, quietly wondering whether it was legal to send living things in the post.

A week later those caterpillars had eaten all...

Excavate Your Life (brand new personal development + writing course!)

For months now I have been working on a brand new course which combines personal development and writing, as a way to navigate life. Excavate Your Life is a rich online course which offers a unique opportunity to explore what you really want from life, while honing your writing skills. Join me, bestselling self-help author Beth Kempton as I guide you on a wild and beautiful journey towards clarity and direction. Each weekday for five weeks you will get a juicy lesson (audio, video, journaling wo...

The Writing Oasis

✨Quench your creative thirst this summer with my brand new FREE two-week writing course.✨

After more than a year of turmoil and stress, I was inspired to create The Writing Oasis as a light and airy space where we can gather and write together this summer. Step away from it all for just a few minutes a day to seek refuge, refreshment and community in this seasonal writing sanctuary, designed to calm the mind and nourish the soul. Join me for two weeks in August for daily writing lessons, prompts, inspiration and tips for a flourishing writing life.

❤️(Sign up now for FREE) and get ready to bliss out with words from Aug 2–14! Please share with friends who might enjoy it so they can join in too.

☀️This LIVE online class will be like a long cool drink on a hot summer’s day, offering an outlet for all you have been carrying this past year, and a tonic for an overstretched, busy life. Whether you want to write for business or pleasure, whether you have a book dream or simply want to get journaling again, this course will be an inspiration. You can take it on holiday with you and do your writing at the beach, or allow it to bring some sunshine into your regular working life – whatever works for you!

Hope to see you in class, pens at the ready!🖊😍
Beth Xx

PS If you liked The Winter Writing Sanctuary you will LOVE The Writing Oasis! Just click on this link to sign up for FREE now , and book your spot for August.

Join me for The Writing Oasis – a brand new FREE 2-week summer writing class

Quench your creative thirst this summer with my brand new FREE two-week writing course. After more than a year of turmoil and stress, I was inspired to create The Writing Oasis as a light and airy space where we can gather and write together this summer. Step away from it all for just a few minutes a day to seek refuge, refreshment and community in this seasonal writing sanctuary, designed to calm the mind and nourish the soul. Join me for two weeks in August for daily writing lessons, prompts, ...

Writing...

Dreaming of returning to my writing retreat in St Ives, Cornwall

Against the grain

I have been asked to give book endorsements for five books in as many weeks, most of them about Japan. This makes me happy for many reasons. Firstly, some fantastic new books about Japan are about to be released, and I will be sure to share them with you as they are published. Secondly, it seems that interest in the country I consider my second home is still on the rise, despite the borders having been closed for more than a year. And thirdly, somehow I find myself in the position that getting sent books I love in the post has become my job. If I think back to when I was a teenager, spending many nights when I probably should have been getting drunk with my friends instead poring over kanji dictionaries in the college library, wavering between awe and despair at the thousands of characters I didn't yet know how to read or write, this is truly an astonishing thing. The publisher that approached me for an endorsement today, for the translated version of a well-known book written by a Japanese Zen monk, is one of the most respected publishers in the world. I am saying this because although I worked incredibly hard for my two degrees in Japanese , I still pinch myself at the doors opened by committed study and the writing of books. It's my long term dream to re-write career guidance in this country, so we don't have to wait until we are in our mid-forties, having stumbled upon a career, to understand the value in going against the grain and just studying what you are interested in.

Tell me, if you could go back to university now and study anything, what would it be? (And what's stopping you??)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Photo by byhollybobbins

A letter to myself (to remind me how to take care of myself on the busiest days)

Dear You,

It’s really quite ridiculous that I have to send you this letter, given all the tools you have at your fingertips, and what you know and teach. But then again, I guess you are just a human being like everyone else, and things do tend to slip when you are busy. So here are a few reminders of things you can do to take care of yourself at busy times:

Get less busy (Check your list and cut, delegate or move anything that really doesn’t have to be done today. Then lose another 20%. Really,...

Here’s what to do if uncertainty is hanging heavy

Here in England we are in Lockdown 2.0. It’s very different from the first one. Schools are still open. We can get a takeaway coffee and stroll on the beach. We can easily find toilet roll at the supermarket and go for a socially-distanced walk with one friend, and there are even real rumours of a vaccine. But it’s much darker, colder and wetter this time, and while we have figured out ways of doing many things, we also have more knowledge about the impact these restrictions are having. One thin...

Comfort + joy in winter

Nourishing your mind at this time of year can look as simple as turning away from overstimulation—to-do lists, screens, loud music, bright lights, toxic conversations—and making your way into nature, open spaces, fresh air, peace and quiet. Try counting the shades of evergreens, inhaling the aroma of wild herbs, listening for signs of life. On cold, sunny days, look for berries, or different leaf shapes, or visiting birds. Seek out hardy plants emerging from cracks in the pavement. Make bark rub...