INKspiration 2026

For five decades, journal writing has proven itself as a powerful tool for healing, growth and change. Now, INKspiration turns toward the future.

INKspiration: Rising Stars is a curated Zoom-based learning experience featuring emerging and next-generation teachers, therapists, coaches and writers who are bringing fresh voice, depth and innovation to the field of journal writing. These are practitioners on the rise. They are skilled, thoughtful and ready to share their original work.

Across a quarterly series of live, interactive sessions in 2026, you’ll encounter new perspectives, practical tools and inspired approaches to using writing for personal growth, creative expression and life management. Nine Rising Stars will join two of my All-Star colleagues and me for four Saturdays of innovation.

Join us as we welcome some of the voices shaping the next generation of journal therapy and expressive writing.

--Kay Adams LPC, Center for Journal Therapy & Therapeutic Writing Institute, author of 14 books.

Do I need to be part of CJT to receive Continuing Education (CE) credits?
Not at all. You do not need to be a member of Center for Journal Therapy to acquire CE credits. INKspiration welcomes all who are pursuing growth, learning, and connection.
How many CE credits are available — and how does it work?
Participants can earn up to 9 CE credits for attending the full event.

Here’s how the math works:
● Each qualified presenter offers 1.5 CE credit hours
● With 5 applicable presenters, that equals:
1.5 credits × 5 presenters = 7.5 total CE credits

Your final CE certificate will reflect the exact number of credits earned based on the sessions you completed and submitted evaluations for.
I'm an enrolled TWI trainee. Does this series qualify for TWI course credit?
Yes! When you attend all 12 workshops for 18 hours of attendance (live and/or video) and write a response paper, you can earn a therapeutic writing elective. Please notify Krista (krista@journaltherapy.com) that you want to participate so that we can provide you with guidelines for the response paper. And be sure to purchase the entire bundle at the 37% discount over four individual days. (To upgrade from single day to bundle, reach out to Natalia (natalia@journaltherapy.com).
Do I need to attend live to receive CE credits?
No — live attendance is not required.

You may watch the recordings to complete your learning. To receive CE credit, you must:
● Watch the session(s) in full
● Submit an evaluation form describing what you learned

Please note:
● Recordings are typically made available within 15–20 business days after the live event.
● After submitting your completed evaluation form, please allow 10–12 business days for your CE attendance certificate to be issued.
Will the sessions be recorded?
Yes! Every session will be recorded so you can revisit the insights, writing prompts, and conversations at your own pace.
What if I can’t attend live?
You’ll still receive access to all session recordings for a limited time. Whether you join us live or via replay, you’ll be able to fully experience the richness of INKspiration.
When will I receive the video replay?
Since we edit the video it may take us up to two weeks to send the video replay. We appreciate your patience. We will make sure you receive it.

Moral injury often arises when the world around us violates what we hold most dear, leaving us feeling disoriented, heavy-hearted, or even hopeless. This workshop offers a creative and compassionate way forward. Using poetry as a doorway, followed by guided journal prompts, participants will explore their own lived experiences of hope and how it can serve as a grounding presence in uncertain times.

Through reflective writing and shared inquiry, we’ll approach hope not as a fixed idea, but as a personal, evolving practice that helps us stay connected to ourselves and to one another.

Kay Adams, LPC PTR, is one of the most respected voices in the field of therapeutic writing. A psychotherapist, bestselling author, and educator, Kay has dedicated her career to exploring and teaching the power of writing for healing, growth, and change. She is the founder of the Center for Journal Therapy and its professional training division, the Therapeutic Writing Institute, where she has trained hundreds of practitioners through a curriculum that blends psychological and emotional depth with practical tools for building a career. Kay has authored or edited 14 books, including the widely acclaimed Journal to the Self and the textbook, Expressive Writing: Foundations of Practice. Known for creating deep and connecting spaces, Kay brings a rare combination of visionary leadership and grounded expertise.

Spring invites us into renewal and possibility. In this 90-minute experiential workshop, participants will explore areas of growth, creativity, and intention through imaginative, empowering practices. Together we will identify emerging ideas, connect with inner strengths and wisdom, and reflect on next steps for bringing possibility into form.

The session blends Journal to the Self reflective writing with the playful, intuitive SoulCollage process. No writing or art background is required—just curiosity and openness.

Kimberly Lee JD is a versatile writer and workshop facilitator with a passion for nurturing the creative spirit. The author of the thriller, Have You Seen Him, Kimberly holds degrees from Stanford University and UC Davis School of Law, along with certifications from the Center for Journal Therapy, Amherst Writers & Artists, SoulCollage, Guided Autobiography, and The Path Meditation. Recent collaborations include Esalen Institute, Omega Institute, West LA Veterans Administration, and The Huntington.

Excess baggage can quickly accumulate in our homes and our schedules. Discerning what to keep, what to let go, and how to release what needs releasing can feel daunting. It can be a physical, mental, and emotional challenge and easily activate harsh, critical inner voices. People often think they need to flog themselves into action but that often backfires. It is far more helpful to invite your journal to be a kind, wise guide and companion.

We’ll explore and practice brief, accessible writing processes to summon inner wisdom and self-compassion as needed, to frame clutter-clearing in a personally meaningful way, and to get the process moving when you lose steam or get stuck.

When we personally experience or love someone with chronic pain or illness, practicing self-compassion is critical for nervous system regulation. In this workshop, you will discover why and how to use therapeutic writing to deepen and nurture your relationship with self-compassion and your body through a layered, accessible experiential process. We will write joyful lists and engage in perspective- and reflection-writing in response to a short poem we read together.

We will also explore how everyday personal objects (e.g., cups, bookends, gloves) symbolize deeper personal meaning and foster self-compassion. The challenges our bodies face do not preclude a life of playfulness and creativity; in fact, they demand it. Come dance along the continuum of levity and depth in our engaging, supportive community.

Elisa Friedlander is a psychotherapist and Certified Journal Therapist who facilitates therapeutic writing and poetry workshops globally. She brings extensive clinical and lived experience to her work with those navigating life with chronic pain, illness, and disability. Elisa is a faculty member at the Therapeutic Writing Institute and a regular conference presenter. She is working on a book based on her original six-week curriculum, “Pain Meets Pen

: Quieting Chronic Pain and Illness with Therapeutic Writing. Visit Elisa at www.InkToInsight.com

This course uses journaling as a doorway into the inner stories that shape who you are. While we can’t write a full memoir in 90 minutes, we can distill lifetimes—experiences, emotions, questions, and truths—into a single, carefully crafted poem or two. Through guided prompts and figurative language, participants will learn how to transform personal moments into a one-page poetic piece that holds entire worlds within it. No prior experience with poetry is required—only a willingness to reflect, write, and explore.

In this workshop, you will experience playful and effective writing tools from Birgit Schreiber’s Wohlschreiben Approach

(Writing for Well-Being). Its methods integrate the pioneering Journal to the Self work of Kathleen Adams, insights from the self-compassion research of Dr. Kristen Neff, and core principles of poetry therapy, creating an environment for writing that heals.

Drawing on our innate creativity, we’ll explore the heart as an inner compass for authentic well-being and connection in unsettling times. Beyond metaphor, the heart is understood through neuroscience as a center of perception, regulation, and inner orientation. Through guided prompts, we’ll access the heart’s intelligence—expressing it sensorially on the page, shaping it into poetry, and giving it voice through a short, imaginative story.

Dr. Birgit Schreiber is the first Journal to the Self Instructor in the German-speaking countries, founder of the Personal Writing Community, and publisher of SchreibRÄUME. She teaches Journaling Methods at Alice Salomon University Berlin and the University of Vechta and works as a supervisor and counselor trained in Poetry Therapy and systemic counseling. A former editor and contributor to “Psychologie Heute,” she is the author of Schreiben zur Selbsthilfe. Weil Worte wirken: Glück erleben - gesund sein. (Where Words Become Healing. Writing as a Path to Wholeness and Well-Being) and 2. Wohlschreiben. 52 Impulse für ein Leben, das sich echt anfühlt. ( Wohlschreiben - Writing Yourself Well. 52 Gentle Invitations to a Life That Feels True)

The most powerful version of you isn't missing. It's just hidden. "Buried Gold" is a journaling experience inspired by Carl Jung's work on the unconscious: the idea that we carry extraordinary qualities we've never learned to claim. This session uses transformative journaling processes to guide you past the defenses of the ego and into contact with your deeper self. No trauma work. No excavation of old wounds. Just a guided return to the parts of you that are ready to be lived. Come find your gold.

Oliver has been journaling for thirty years. He is the creator of the Shadow Journaling methodology, a Jungian approach to reflective writing built around the Reveal, Reclaim, Rewrite framework, and has facilitated journaling workshops for hundreds of participants across Europe and the US. He co-founded the Barcelona Journaling Festival and the New York Journaling Festival, and runs a global community of journaling practitioners through the International Journaling Community. He is also a certified Journal To The Self Instructor, and a council member of the International Association for Journaling Writing.

Meghan Barich is a Journal to the Self–certified instructor and a Therapeutic Writing Institute Certified Journaling Facilitator candidate. She brings nearly three decades of experience in client services, communications, and group facilitation, working with diverse audiences ranging from corporate leaders to community-based and therapeutic settings. Meghan’s journaling work blends expressive writing, reflective structure, and creative process to support clarity, self-trust, and values-aligned decision-making.

It's easy for the tug of life and obligations to steer us away from our authentic creativity. With mindful journaling as our anchor, we'll slow down and reconnect to what's most nourishing, refilling your creative well. Through writing and guided imagery, you'll discover and partner with your inner creative guide, cultivating space for insight and aligned intentions that support a meaningful and joyful creative path.

Experience the transformative power of journaling in community as you gain creative clarity and empowerment.

Jennifer Zarin, LCAT, RDT, CPC, is a Licensed Creative Arts Therapist, Certified Journal to the Self Instructor, Expressive Writing Facilitator, Writer, and Creative Coach based in New York City. She facilitates live, transformational virtual workshops, groups and courses integrating mindful journaling and creative arts. Founder and Writer at Journal Your Path, an online international journaling community and newsletter. You can learn more about upcoming courses, subscribe and join the community at journalyourpath.substack.com.

What does it mean to live in alignment with who you truly are? This reflective workshop invites participants to explore authenticity, values, and intentional becoming through guided expressive writing.

With curiosity and compassion, we’ll examine both our aspirations and the inner voices that seek to protect us when change feels risky. Rather than pushing past resistance, the focus is on understanding what matters most and clarifying the qualities we wish to embody moving forward. Participants will leave with greater self-understanding, renewed perspective, and a clearer sense of what it means to choose a life that reflects their deepest values.

Katarzyna Trzonek supports women in reconnecting with their inner voice and sense of aliveness through journaling and intuitive writing. She is a a certified Journal to the Self instructor and facilitate workshops and group sessions focused on reflective writing. Since November, Katarzyna has also been hosting short, open online journaling gatherings called mojo20 (Monday Journaling for 20 minutes), focused on reconnecting with inner energy, clarity, and personal vitality - what she calls “mojo.”

Linda Barnes, JTTS Certified Instructor, CJF, CAPF, is past president of The International Federation of Biblio-Poetry and a seasoned presenter, writer, and teacher with decades of experience in journaling and expressive writing. She has presented at numerous conferences and has co-facilitated workshops with Kay Adams and Peggy Heller. Linda’s lifelong relationship with writing began early. She Initially aspired to become a novelist before being joyfully “ambushed” by poetry. Her personal diaries span more than 60 years. She met and corresponded with Anaïs Nin, contributed to Tristine Rainer’s The New Diary, and has published three poetry chapbooks. Her poetry has been published in multiple anthologies.

Thank you for choosing INKspiration!

As part of your registration, you’ll receive access to the workshop replays for the sessions you’re enrolled in.

Single-day registrations will open sequentially as each event approaches, while the full four-day bundle—at 37% less than purchasing separately—gives you access to the entire 2026 series now.

Up to 7.5 CE units are available for therapists (NBCC ACEP #5782).

TWI students who attend all 4 sessions — live or video — will qualify for one flex credit. Documentation in the form of a response paper is required. Please reach out to Krista at krista@journaltherapy.com to learn more.

If you have questions or problems, please email Natalia@journaltherapy.com

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