Product Description

A guide for teens and young adults on the power of creative journaling and its role in enhancing self-discovery and self-awareness

• Provides encouragement for creative writing, self-expression, and self-dialogue

• Includes journaling exercises to inspire creativity and cultivate self-esteem

• By the author of Teen Psychic and The Thundering Years, winner of the 2002 Independent Publisher Book Award for multicultural juvenile nonfiction

Most teens and young adults search for ways to express their individuality and to discover who they are, without being judged. In Spiritual Journaling Julie Tallard Johnson shows that journaling is an informative and supportive outlet for the joys, frustrations, and questions that arise for those making the transition toward their own independent ideas and lives--and a powerful tool for awakening creative potential.

Johnson encourages young people to discover their own unique voices by offering guidance on writing and other forms of self-expression and self-dialogue and on learning how to listen to inner wisdom. As readers move through the book and write in their own personal journals, they gain insight about themselves--knowledge reflected in their own words and the writing of other young people included in the book. The journaling tools provided include meditations, consulting oracles, writing poetry, visualizations, writing rituals, and problem solving around spiritual questions.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #548638 in Books
• Published on: 2006-02-23
• Released on: 2006-03-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–Having been a journal-writer most of her life, Johnson offers teens this guide to self-discovery. Her advice is to stop seeking the illusion of what is real and instead find the reality within. The book covers 15 topics, including nature, spirit, school, death, and love. Each chapter has inspirational quotes, poems, stories, and discussions and asks questions to encourage personal focus through journaling. The order of the chapters is irrelevant; readers are encouraged to select those that best suit their personal needs. Though this title initially appears religious in nature, it is more specifically about the spirit. It might also interest teachers, parents, counselors, and youth ministers who wish to help young adults find their internal flames.–Jodi Kearns, University of Akron, OH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"Throughout the book are stories, discussions, and exercises, all aimed at showing us how, through the tool of journaling, we can gain a clear view of our past so that we see where we came from, how we got where we are today, and how we can stay on our individual paths for the future. This book is meant to tear away the illusion of what we are hungry for, and allow us to discover what the real thing is, and how we can get it for ourselves."
(Angelfire.com, April 2006 )

“. . . written with the young adult in mind . . . . Its inventive, different journaling techniques use meditations, oracle consultation, visualization rituals and more to aid the writing process, providing a satisfying mix of new age technique and writing advice.”
(Diane Donovan, California Bookwatch, May 2006 )

“What a wonderful book to help a teen or young adult gain insight into their identity and life's purpose! Lots of writing exercises, but this book is constructed to make these a joy instead of a homework-type chore. . . . Spiritual Journaling: Writing Your Way to Independence is a great book for a young person interested in self-exploration or going through a transition.”
(Galina Pembroke, New View, May 2006 )

"This is a powerful tool for awakening the imaginative voice in any young adult and helping them realize their very own creative potential, truly a priceless gift."
(Vision Magazine, May 2006 )

From the Back Cover
WRITING / TEEN NON-FICTION

Like most teens and young adults, you want to find ways to express your individuality and to discover who you are, without being judged. In Spiritual Journaling Julie Tallard Johnson encourages and inspires you to listen to your inner wisdom and discover your own unique voice through writing and other forms of self-expression and self-dialogue. She shows that journaling is one of the most supportive and liberating outlets for the joys, frustrations, and questions that arise in the transition toward independence--and a powerful tool for awakening and expressing your creativity.

The book’s inventive journaling techniques use meditations, oracle consultation, poetry writing, visualizations, rituals, and problem solving to inspire and evoke new ways of seeing the world. As you move through the exercises in the book and write in your own journals, you will gain insight about yourself--knowledge reflected in your own words and the writing of other young people included in the book.

INCLUDES:
"On the page" writing ideas, techniques, and inspirations for:
• visioning the life that you want
• unleashing creativity
• coping with loss and other life changes
• learning about yourself
"Off the page" activities such as:
• exploring rock art sites & sacred places
• reconnecting with the natural world
• setting poems to music
• practicing dream yoga

JULIE TALLARD JOHNSON is a licensed psychotherapist and creative writing teacher. She is the author of eight books, including Teen Psychic, The Thundering Years, and I Ching for Teens. She lives in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

Customer Reviews

Not Just for Teens/Young Adults
Though Ms. Johnson's most recent books have been aimed at teens (an those adults who are in relationship in some way with teens), this book (though it has a teen on the cover and several writing entries by teens and young adults) is for spiritual seekers of all ages. Neither is it necessary to be extremely comfortable with the process of writing in general, nor journaling in particular, in order to make use of this book's wisdom. It is so accessible, so rich with visual stimulants, quotes, suggestions, and examples that I would defy anyone to open it to any page and not be inspired to move deeper into themselves, be that through writing, "dreaming," ritual, movement, or seeking connection with others, nature, or All That Is. I have personally used and professionally recommended many spiritual journaling books over the years, and this one brings fresh energy and new life to a rather staid genre. Bravo! Kudos to Ms. Johnson and all of her contributors.

A satisfying mix of new age technique and writing advice
If you wish to find ways to express individuality without being judged, SPIRITUAL JOURNALING is for you: SPIRITUAL JOURNALING: WRITING YOUR WAY TO INDEPENDENCE is written with the young adult in mind - but it's reviewed here because many an adult won't want to miss its message. Its inventive, different journaling techniques use meditations, oracle consultation, visualization rituals and more to aid the writing process, providing a satisfying mix of new age technique and writing advice.

Diane C. Donovan, Editor
California Bookwatch

Journaling for teens at its best
I loved this book and have used it to assist with stimulating teens who are stymied in self-expression. The material presented in this book is comprehensive and includes more themes and open-ended questions for journaling than I can chronicle. In addition, quotes of famous people are inserted to support the themes of each chapter. The book is an excellent tool to be used for assisting teen to till the soil of their lives and unearth blocked feelings that they have been unable to express or were unaware even existed. In addition, the material is presented with a multi-cultural format that honors our global connectedness. Gift someone with this book or use it as a teaching tool with groups. Adults looking for a way to embark upon a desire to journal their feelings would also benefit from its use.