top of page
"Just to say thanks so much for the session on Saturday, I must say it was one of the best, possibly the best, 2.5 hours I have spent in an online workshop. I found it really helpful in terms of the personal insights I gained and I really enjoyed doing it." Cathy - NY Workshop - Jan 2022
What people say
"Quick note to say how much I enjoyed the session last night. Before joining I didn't feel very creative but I'm so glad I didn't drop out. It was just the dose of no-pressure escapism that I needed - I only wish it wasn't a month until the next one."
Nikki - Creative journaling - just for fun - March 2024
"That was great thank you and very entertaining! Always love writing from artwork as arty myself too. Lovely to meet you and l will be booking again. I love journaling too."
Claire - Creative journaling - just for fun - March 2024
It was such a well conducted workshop. I truly enjoyed it. The collective of people added positively to the energy and inspiration for the writing … and the year ahead.
I am giddy with inspiration and optimism and feel really good about what I achieved today in the space of your workshop. VR January 2024
"I have really embraced my theme - being bold and thinking like Boudicca - this year. I needed a little warrior energy to get me out of a period of stagnation after the pandemic and referring back to the theme has been a great way to spur me on. I ask myself the question, ‘what’s the worst that can happen?, a tool which also emerged as part of the session, at difficult points. I also really enjoy the supportive spirit of the group in developing themes and reflecting on them." VF 'Happy Mid Year theme workshop' July 2023
"I was cynical about how useful writing could be, but when I read back what I'd written and selected the words that jumped out at me I understood how helpful it was. It made me look at things in a different way. It was beneficial in the way talking to a counsellor is; that you're getting input from another person & I'm looking at things in different ways which I would/could never do on my own. It felt good to be understood without judgment. I get a sense of well-being when I discover new things about myself. KP
"I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for encouraging me to start writing in my daily journal. Thanks to your support, I discovered the incredible benefits of journaling in my daily life. Not only did it help me organise my thoughts and clarify my goals, but it also gave me a better understanding of my emotions and behaviours. By writing down my thoughts, I was able to reflect on my experiences and learn valuable lessons.
I am grateful to have friends who encouraged and supported me to try something new and beneficial for me. I will continue to write in the workshops: Keep Journaling, Don't Worry Be Happy and Whose life is it anyway? and encourage those who haven't tried it yet to do so. The benefits are truly amazing!"
Celine - May 2023
Ideas UK - November 2022
"Reflection plays such a key role in idea creation and yet we are often so busy ‘doing’ that we don’t give ourselves permission to just stop and take a moment. Claire’s session gives you the opportunity to do just that. Through the guided journaling process, you take the time to reflect from a different perspective, which used routinely should definitely aid the creative process. Personally, I found the session really enjoyable and loved hearing the stories of others in the room too!" Zena, Operations Director, Ideas UK
"My pen says the secret of creativity is being open at all times to the possibility of creativity. Stop boxing yourself in. You don't need a specific time, a specific book, a specific pen, in order to create. You can create any time wherever you are. You don't - shouldn't - think, 'I have the wrong book with me,' or 'I should be doing this, or this...now isn't the right time.' Why isn't it? Why does it come bottom of the list after everything else? Jobs to do will always be there, and you will never run out. If you wait until they're done, you will never get the chance. So if there is an itch to be scratched, drop the other stuff and scratch it. Creativity is a dog. If you don't feed it, it will tear your house apart.' Think on this. And act on it. Who cares (apart from you) if stuff doesn't get done? If it means you birth something instead?" Siggy, Creative Me 2022
Coach yourself with Pen - September 2022
"Coach Yourself With A Pen unlocked some quite profound revelations for me about what was going on inside my head and helped me identify some practical actions I could take to address a particular issue. Sessions with Claire are always a joy, always provide unexpected insight, and are always a great opportunity to explore interesting exercises in a supportive and encouraging environment." Annie P, September 2022
"I really enjoyed the course and left feeling inspired and with plenty of practical tools that I can make use of in the future - many thanks Claire." Sarah, September 2022
"The Creative Journaling session delivered by Claire was brilliant. Everyone enjoyed the session, it felt really inclusive and fun whilst also creating an environment where people felt confident to share and express their words. The end result was exactly what we had hoped for!" Gemma, Fostering Network - May 2022
"Just to say thanks so much for the session on Saturday, I must say it was one of the best, possibly the best, 2.5 hours I have spent in an online workshop. I found it really helpful in terms of the personal insights I gained and I really enjoyed doing it." Cathy - NY Workshop - Jan 2022
“Thank you so much for your careful preparation and skilful facilitation of our team building workshop last week. The exercises built my team’s confidence in reflecting, writing and sharing as the workshop progressed and every team member took valuable reflections away. Not only did each individual benefit but we also did as a team and plan to continue our journaling at team meetings. A highly impactful session in a very short time – highly recommended to other teams looking for a deeper connection and a novel way to reflect and share.” LP, Regional Business Manager (UK), Global Pharmaceutical company. Nov 2021
“The session that we did was insightful not only for myself but understanding the colleagues that I work alongside.” DK, Sales Team.
"Really valuable time to set aside. I have left wanting to share this experience with friends and family for them to do it too! I really looking forward to the next workshop." SP, Sales Team.
"I absolutely love Claire’s writing meetings. There’s something magical about the space she creates, about the people who appear at her meetings. The way she facilitates discussion and sharing lets us be our authentic selves and I can see the real me in the eyes of others and in turn, see who they truly are. She has this warm curiosity and her prompts always lead me to amazing self-discoveries that I don't think would be possible otherwise. Some things are just hard to put into words, if you want to understand what I mean by ‘Claire magic,’ you should check yourself. I can't recommend enough!" Ania - October 2021
"Another quality offering from Claire! Thoroughly enjoyed the session! it was informative, great set of participants and loads of amazing writing tips and exercises and tools to use!!! Thanks Claire! Your courses have really propelled me into the part of me that I was looking to find again… and thanks to you, I have begun to excavate that part of me from the rubble of the past and pull out the good bits for full display" Viv, Blog my Voice September 2021
"Thank you for this wonderful and insightful workshop, and for introducing me to the transformative art of writing. I feel like I have reconnected to parts of myself that I have forgotten about."
Ana V, 'Who am I?' Course July 2021 Cohort
"I found the session surprisingly powerful – who could have predicted my bookshelf would tell me what I needed to hear that day!"
Product Owner at HSBC, June 2021
I’ve since used the technique with one of my mentees who was increasingly frustrated with being blocked. Really busy but unable to find the words to develop in the right direction. It’s good, I don’t know why it works and maybe that doesn’t matter a bit.
Russ Lewis, Mentor at Royal Academy of Engineering's Leaders in Innovation Fellowship programme
"I found these series of workshops really enjoyable and insightful. It was perfectly timed for me, holding my hand through a time of positive and mindful transition. Helping me connect to my core and set foundations for the future. Claire curated and facilitated the exercises and conversations expertly with a friendly light touch and a clear passion to help everyone get the most from their time."
Brandon 'Who am I?' Course July 2021 Cohort
Blog my Voice April 2021
"Claire has a real passion and skill for creating a space where people can be their authentic selves. This morning was a gift. It gave me the encouragement to pursue the journey in finding my authentic voice, also stretching my comfort zone. Thank you for your generosity with the way you workshop - relevant and well thought out with plenty of space to reflect and connect with others." Rachel
"I have been procrastinating about my blog for some time. It was really helpful to speak to others and share the ideas I had. The feedback I got, and the exercises Claire led us through, left me inspired to just get cracking. I am now creating content and getting ready to share my blog, and my voice, with the world." Viviennne
"The Blog My Voice session was inspiring and motivating, a workshop I can't recommend enough! Claire facilitated a safe, open and playful space for us to experiment with different writing voices for our blogs. I loved all the practical exercises and valued the group discussions, which together helped us discover what makes our writing style unique. I signed up for the workshop faltering, hesitant. By the end of the workshop I was feeling encouraged and energised. Thank you Claire!" Tina
“The session enabled students to share with others how they are feeling in a creative supportive life affirming environment, it provided an opportunity for meaningful artistic dialogue and opportunities for one-to-one connection with others that also builds confidence in self-expression and writing.”
Dr Adele Aubrey, Partnerships and Programmes Manager, Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute, Manchester University (March 2021)
One word check-outs: “Curious, excited, liberating, enlightened, energising (x2), opened up, inspired, relaxing, revealing, sociable.”
"I'm so grateful I discovered you on Eventbrite (and have now found your Meetup page)! I have been to several different therapeutic writing workshops, courses etc over the past 2 years, and yours is by far the best I've ever done. Not that it's a competition, but I've never gotten so much from a session!" Kate (2021)
"Energised, grateful, positive, inspired, connected, optimistic, understanding, uplifted, hopeful, surprised, motivated, tired, priceless, empowered, invigorated, refreshed." One word to express how people felt after New Year create your theme workshops (January 2021):
"Claire's Prompt Prescription has really helped me identify blockages and given me the tools to move ahead. Claire was able to see the story behind the story and came up with some amazing prompts. They were concise and easy to work with. I feel that I have really benefitted from her help. Thank you." Caroline - Prompt Prescription (email coaching using writing)
"I initially set out to try coaching as I felt like I needed to reconnect with that passion I once felt for my job. I was looking for support with direction onto a new path. What I found was that my sessions were spent uncovering and overcoming a more pertinent theme that if left unaddressed would prevent me from reaching any career or life goals. I really appreciated the time and space coaching gave me to reflect upon this in my life. Claire was very supportive, empathetic and non-judgemental. I felt very comfortable opening up to her and really appreciated how comfortable she made me feel during our short time together. Thank you for, literally, giving me back the gift of time." VW - Coaching
After post-coaching catch-up (Dec 2020): "I forgot to mention last week that a new tool I've been using in last 3 months, inspired by the coaching sessions has been, download writing. When I've had something on my mind, going round and round, and round again, usually in the early hours, I've been picking my phone notepad and typing until the thoughts are more processed or downloaded. (Low brightness settings of course). Its been great for better thinking, self coaching through something, peace of mind and going back to sleep. There's also some trace of thoughts, ideas, even actions to refer to the next morning. Can't tell you how powerful that has been for me. I'm a fan, thank you."
"I have just completed 6 coaching sessions with Claire and found the experience thoroughly useful and meaningful. The sessions helped me review, refocus and retune my life and work. Claire was very easy to talk with, creating a safe friendly space to chat. She is a great listener and asks very perceptive questions that helped get me get to the answers I had inside me. So glad I took the step to try out professional coaching. It has been worth every penny." Brandon - coaching
"Claire's Prompt Prescription service really helped me get unstuck when I was feeling down about my writing. The prompts helped me explore some of the issues I was facing in a fun way, that proved very enlightening. They followed a progression through my thoughts and feelings that unlocked attitudes and ideas I never would have reached on my own. Thank you, Claire!" AP - Prompt Prescription
"Coaching with Claire has had such a positive impact on so many aspects of my life. At first I wasn't sure what to expect from coaching but Claire made the process easy and accessible.
Claire ensured that my 6 sessions were about me and what I wanted to achieve. Over the sessions, she was flexible and adaptable to suit my needs. Our sessions varied from face to face to online, all of which were beneficial.
Claire is a thoughtful, caring professional, and above all else, a great listener. With this she was able to assist me to look within myself and guide me to become reflective about the aspects of my life that I wanted to make changes in.
The free writing prompts carefully chosen for me by Claire in our sessions were one of the most useful skills I have ever developed. Thanks to Claire's guidance I have now learned how to make this a part of my daily life, the benefits of which are amazing.
It's hard to believe that I had just 6 sessions with Claire as the work we did together has had such a fundamental impact on my life. I cannot thank Claire enough for her work in facilitating me to recognise my potential and put the steps in place to be the person I want to be." Grace - coaching
"I had met previously with Claire through her Meetup free writing groups, and was SO happy that I decided to go further and book 6 weeks worth of one-on-one life coaching sessions by phone. I had a vague idea of what I wanted to work on (my career paths), and together we established what I would ideally like to achieve in the 6 weeks. And I can safely say, thanks to Claire, I blew past my expectations and am so proud of the work I was able to do – both emotionally and mentally, but also in tangible measurable actions. Claire is a fantastic listener, and asks excellent questions. We usually would do one or two 5-min free writing prompts per call, and it would never cease to amaze me what Claire’s thoughtful prompts were able to tease out of me. I’m very pragmatic and structured, and Claire was able gently expand both my views and tool sets to better cope and make decisions, helping overcome the cycle of indecision and buffering that I had allowed myself to fall into. I can whole-heartedly recommend Claire if you are looking to invest time and money on yourself." Diana - coaching
"Refreshed and energised, tap into different thoughts, childhood, inspired, given permission not to over complicate, discovery, open and ready, relaxed, really moving, unexpected, great fun, therapeutic." One word feedback gathered at end of workshop: Association for Coaching co-coaching forum (2020)
"Claire has been a fantastic coach for me. I’m recently self-employed and was feeling overwhelmed with my workload but being very unproductive at the same time. I thought I needed motivation to get busier, but I really needed space to figure out what was making me overwhelmed and what was really important to me. I had never done free writing exercises before because I have a blocker about not being a good writer, but Claire led me out of my comfort zone and I was amazed how much clarity we got in such a short period of time. Claire was also very skilled at identifying the key points and triggers in what I was saying and listened so thoughtfully. Her insights helped me to realise my own insights. Really grateful for the work we’ve done together and will definitely use again. Thank you Claire!" Stacey - coaching
"I first met Claire when making my escape from the corporate world.
Having successfully changed careers I found myself taking on a level of responsibility and workload significantly greater than anything I had experienced before, and linked with this came stress, and plenty of it.
I needed help stepping back from the day to day to create space to move forward. I worked with Claire over a six week period. A complete novice to free writing (verging on sceptic),
I could never have imagined the value to be gained from putting pen to paper and just letting your hand move - the pen taking you in whatever direction it saw fit. Through creating a safe space to share what I had written Claire unlocked a whole new side of me that I wasn’t aware existed – intrinsically in tune with my needs and blockers. It’s amazing the reflections and realisations I could make by finding an outlet for my subconscious.
Over the course of the six weeks I gained invaluable headspace that allowed me to take stock of my reality and the challenges it entails. I reassessed the expectations I placed on myself, took a step back and started to learn the invaluable art of delegation.
I finally had some space to start pushing boundaries and taking risks, which was both exciting and effective.
I wasn’t given all the answers on a plate, but rather a tool that started to unlock the answers from within, allowing me to help myself.
Thanks Claire for being endlessly patient and willing to take on a challenge. You opened my eyes to something I never knew I was capable of and I’m eternally grateful." Will - coaching
"I get a lot out of my sessions with Claire. She's a really patient and empathetic person with a lot of wisdom. I found myself making of a lot of progress towards my goals when working with her, and I really looked forward to the chats with her each week." Jimmy - coaching
"I had one session with Claire after handing in my resignation at work and finding myself confused about what to do next. Claire was approachable and open from our first introductory phone call. I had a face to face session which I found extremely beneficial. I was able to make some clarity in what was really bothering me at that stage and learned about free flow writing which is something I have kept using ever since." Mara - coaching
"I found Claire to be an excellent coach. She is very perceptive and thoughtful and gave me great feedback and support in determining how and where I should focus. The coaching I experienced with Claire really made a difference at a time when I needed to make some career choices. I could not recommend her more highly." Cathy - coaching
"Thank you so much Claire for your helping me find which direction to follow. I found your life coach session extremely useful - completely different other counselling session that I have had in past three years. I definitely will return." Bnita - coaching
"I think I could speak for others when I say that this Meetup is so important to all of us.
It is something we look forward to and wish it was every week!
It gets us out of the house to come to a nurturing, safe fun environment where you gently inspire us to write. Thank you for being such an amazing soul.
You really make it happen!" Mithra
"I attended a series of writing workshops with Claire over the summer and thoroughly looked forward to them every week. Claire has a wonderful way of structuring her sessions to support you to get comfortable with writing. I found myself writing much more creatively than I have in years, and I definitely achieved what I had hoped to in the sessions – I initially signed up as I wanted to explore writing for fun again and shake off the restrictions of ‘writing for work’ for many years. Claire really helped me to achieve this with her encouragement and guidance, I wholeheartedly recommend her workshops!" Lisa - workshop
"The lovely Claire led the session, giving us a prompt and then setting us loose on the page for five minutes of freewriting. We mostly wrote about pens - why we chose the one we chose out of the selection presented to us, and then more specifically about the pen itself. Then we swapped pens and wrote about the new one we were passed.
Each of us read out our pieces at the end of each five minute writing slot, and it was amazing the range of thoughts and images that were produced. My contemplation of my various pens took me to some introspective places, both humorous and dark.
I’m not intending to use any of those pieces for another project. They existed in that moment and I’m glad to let them go. They reminded me of the joy of simply writing, going wherever my mind takes me, and not worrying about form, function, content or purpose.
I will definitely be going back when I can, and I very much look forward to more random exercises in brain splurging with Claire and the other members." Annie - workshop
"Thank you C for a great evening. Love how free writing can be such fun but also uncover some interesting/deep stuff. Look forward to more!" Hanane - workshop
"I loved meeting the other people at the workshop. Our paths wouldn't normally cross and it was interesting to hear their view of the world, their struggles and prioritises.
The exercises were different and fun and thought provoking."
"The different exercises allowed me to see things about myself I wouldn't normally see and sharing your thoughts out loud meant that they were 'more real' and you can view them differently."
"It was experterly facilitated with lots of fun and laughter. "
"It was a very friendly and relaxed atmosphere and was fun.
"I thought the atmosphere was one which encouraged sharing and openness and this was mostly engendered by the way the facilitator demonstrated her own openness and vulnerability."
"Through doing the exercises, what lay beneath was able to come to the surface."
New Year Workshop - Create your theme for the year, 12 January 2019
"I really enjoyed Claire's workshops. She provided a friendly and safe space to express ourselves through writing with creative and thought provoking prompts. Highly recommended for those who loves writing and journalling." Carlo - workshop
"Thanks to your workshop and the reflection time and the opportunity to connect with the other thoughtful participants, I’ve been able to see that the limitations of time and how quickly it passes make it all the more beautiful. The scarcity of it actually allow it to sparkle in my mind as a gemstone does in the light of then sun. It may be that the particular sparkle that we seek isn’t actually immediately visible. But the time that we have invested has always been beautifully spent. As, it’s the lessons learnt that are valuable in this particular gemstone that is called time.
This is certainly the case with the time spent this morning with you and the other participants and for which I am truly grateful." Dave
bottom of page