ABOUTJULIA McGUINNESS
Soon after I started school my mother was told that I was going to be a teacher. Apparently when I’d finished my work, I’d go round helping all my classmates with theirs. I was also an enthusiastic reader .These early indications of my passions for words and nurturing others eventually led to twelve years as an English teacher, and over twenty as a BACP Accredited Counsellor.
Alongside these I have run workshops and training events for adults since the late 1990’s. These have covered areas such as creative writing, journalling, as well as Myers-Briggs personality types and mid-life. I have also led Quiet Days and Retreats.
I facilitated creative writing sessions at Maggie’s Cancer Care Centre, Wirral for several years. I have run workshops for women’s groups, counsellors and other health professionals, and have a long-standing Journalling Group, Way with Words. Covid provided the impetus to develop events online. These included workshops for Essential Therapy Training and Frodsham Festival of Walks (viewable on Youtube).
I run poetry workshops - both for reading and writing at Chester Cathedral ,where I have been Poet-in-Residence since 2019.
I have written four non-fiction books for SPCK, and my poetry collection Chester City Walls was published by Poetry Space in 2015.
My poetry can be found on various sites online, and has been anthologised in several publications including the INFJ Anthology, for which I also wrote the Foreword.
In 2021, Ellesmere Port Music Society performed one of my poems set to music - Celebrate the Light - marking the Society’s 70th Anniversary.
Since 2022, I have also been involved with the Marches’ Song Book Project, which seeks to link up local composers and poets in creative collaboration. To date, four of my poems have been set to music for voice and piano as part of this project.
I have an MA in Creative Writing, a Post-Grad Diploma in Psychodynamic Counselling snd am also a Registered MBTI practitioner. I am a member of the Lapidus International network of writing for wellbeing practitioners, and NAWE (National Association of Writers in Education).
Testimonials
From a Journalling Course:
Since the workshops, I often go back to Julia’s journalling prompts, finding that I come up with completely different writing each time. I have been able to use journalling as a way to keep myself grounded and provide self-reflection. It has enabled me to bring regular mindfulness into my life in a way that feels practical and enjoyable.
Hannah, at Radiate Arts. You can read her full account of these workshops here
From a Write for Growth workshop:
The session was excellent, as ever. The pace is good and your thorough preparation is obvious. My heart did sink a little at the mention of "group work", but the way we did it was actually really good: non-threatening and confidence building, and something I'd be happy to do again.
JB
Thank-you for a fantastic morning. It was a first for both of us and I cannot tell you how inspired we both felt leaving. We picked up loads of tips for our future writing. We were really impressed too by the dynamic of the group. We both commented on the way home that you have the natural gift of insight which makes you a great facilitator.
JD
From a CPD Counsellor training:
The overall structure was very good as it maintained attention and gave us all an opportunity to “have a go” with each technique ourselves. I have used a couple of techniques already in sessions I teach on positive thinking and stress management.
EW