X

Get FREE access to my gorgeous seasonal writing sanctuary Spring Light when you pre-order my new book KOKORO here

X

hello, friend

MORE

hello, friend

As seen in...

Kokoro: Japanese wisdom for a life well lived

Introducing my new book (out April 4)

One year. Two devastating losses. Three sacred Japanese mountains. A major life transition, a heart full of grief and a revelation that changes everything.

Join me, Japanologist Beth Kempton, on a pilgrimage through rural Japan in search of answers to some of life’s biggest questions: How do we find calm in the chaos and beauty in the darkness? How do we let go of the past and stop worrying about the future? What can an awareness of impermanence teach us about living well?

Together we will journey to the deep north of Japan, hike ancient forests, watch the moon rise over mountains of myth and encounter a host of wise teachers along the way – Noh actors, chefs, taxi drivers, coffee shop owners, poets, philosophers and the spirits that inhabit the land. We will contemplate the true nature of time at one of the world’s strictest Zen temples and nothing will be quite the same again.

This book is an invitation to cultivate stillness and contentment in an ever-changing, uncertain world. It all begins with the kokoro, a profound Japanese term which represents the intelligent heart, the feeling mind and the embodied spirit of every human being.

To explore the kokoro is to explore the very essence of what it means to be human in this tough yet devastatingly beautiful world. When you learn to live guided by the light in your kokoro, everything changes, and anything is possible.

KOKORO: Japanese wisdom for a life well lived will be published on April 4. Get FREE access to a beautiful seasonal writing sanctuary, Spring Light, when you pre-order today. Details here.

DISCOVER MORE

HOW TO GET A BOOK DEAL

THIS BOOK WILL CHANGE YOUR WRITING LIFE

ABOUT ME

Author. Mama. Japanologist.

Hello there. I am so glad you found me. I offer support and inspiration to writers and dreamers, teaching how words and ideas can heal, inspire, uplift, connect, and help us capture our experience of this beautiful world. I have two degrees in Japanese, and have had a 20+ year love affair with Japan.

One of my greatest passions is writing books which explore how to make the most of our time in this beautiful world.

My next (and sixth!) book Kokoro: Japanese wisdom for a life well lived will be published on April 4, 2024. Exploring themes of major life transitions, death, grief and making the most of this precious life, Kokoro is a follow up to Wabi Sabi: Japanese wisdom for a perfectly imperfect life, which has been translated into more than 25 languages. If you pre-order Kokoro you can get free access to a beautiful seasonal writing sanctuary with me. Details here.

I also wrote a radical book about creativity and the writing life. The Way of the Fearless Writer will draw out words you didn’t even know you had in you.

I am founder of Do What You Love, which produces and delivers inspiring online courses for living well. With over 100,000 alumni and a community of over 250,000 people across the world, it is our mission to inspire and support each other to make the most of this precious life. Click here for all our life-changing online courses including my renowned Book Proposal Masterclass. More than 35,000 people have taken my online writing classes, and I am a mentor for many published authors. I share behind-the-scenes of my writing life on Substack here, where all my essays are free.

I look forward to getting to know you, friend.

The Way of the Fearless Writer

This book offers a radical approach to writing which will teach you how to dissolve self-doubt, shift writer’s block and share your voice with the world.

I didn’t even realise I had walked this particular path until I turned around and looked to see how I had gone from self-doubting secretive writer to grateful author of five books in five years. It was all there, hidden in plain sight, as it has been for two thousand years… until now. I invite you to join me on a sacred journey across continents and centuries, and deep into your own experience. The Way of the Fearless Writer will free your inner writer + transform your writing life. It is out now from all good booksellers!

Reviews of The Way of the Fearless Writer

Are you a writer, and if so do you live in fear? If yes and yes are your answers to this double question, then you need The Way of the Fearless Writer. The Times Literary Supplement (TLS)

Beth’s approach is practical and honest, yet deeply spiritual and caring. The Way of the Fearless Writer is a tonic for the soul. All writers should take time to read it. We’re keeping this book by our bedside. It is more than just a book, it’s a way of life.London Writers’ Salon

The Way of the Fearless Writer is a radical departure from traditional advice, allowing readers to sink into the act and art of creation – the place where formlessness meets form. A must-read for those wanting to write from an embodied sense of self. – Steph Jagger, author of Unbound and Everything Left to Remember

Kempton speaks writer to writer in this mindful approach to the writing life, based on Buddhist thought; on this journey of discovery and wonder, her tone will make them feel as though she’s a friend and co-conspirator in the creative process.Library Journal Review (USA)

This book whispered to me gently like a loving friend who wants the best for me (and the medicine within me). Pick up the pen, she urged, give this a go. I’ll be keeping her near me as I continue and reignite my writing journey.Becky Barnes, freelance journalist

If you need encouragement to write, or reassurance that you can be – that you are – a writer, this is the book for you.Laura Pashby, author of Little Stories of My Life (@circleofpines)

The Way of the Fearless Writer is the book I’ve been waiting to read my whole life.Rachael Boughton, poet and author

The Way of the Fearless Writer will be a bible for writers. Jessica Hepburn, author and adventurer

This is the only book to actually get me writing rather than thinking about writing. I feel seen, heard, and part of something so much bigger than me. It is going to change my life in ways I don’t even know about yet.Louise Goodfield, @poetryvanlife

(In response to the first exercise in the book) As I began to write, the words felt like they were flying out of me. The thoughts rushed to be written. Even now I’m shaking from the incredible feeling of writing from deep within. I’ve wanted to write for so long. In my heart I’m a writer. Today it feels true.Rebecca Boland

Get your copy here and let the words begin to flow!

Wabi Sabi: Japanese wisdom for a perfectly imperfect life

A whole new way of looking at the world – and your life – inspired by centuries-old Japanese wisdom.

Wabi sabi (“wah-bi sah-bi”) is a captivating concept from Japanese aesthetics, which helps us to see beauty in imperfection, appreciate simplicity and accept the transient nature of all things. With roots in zen and the way of tea, the timeless wisdom of wabi sabi is more relevant than ever for modern life, as we search for new ways to approach life’s challenges and seek meaning beyond materialism.

Wabi sabi is a refreshing antidote to our fast-paced, consumption-driven world, which will encourage you to slow down, reconnect with nature, and be gentler on yourself. It will help you simplify everything, and concentrate on what really matters.

Reviews of Wabi Sabi

Beth Kempton is one of the great foreign writers who truly understands wabi sabi. I recommend this book for anyone who is looking for time and space in their lifeDaisuke Sanada, Japanese architect

Beth explains wabi sabi better than any native may have doneMakiko Hastings, Japanese potter

Beth Kempton tells it as it is, and how we need it to be. More than ever, we need books like this.Jessica Seaton, Co-Founder of Toast and author of Gather, Cook, Feast

Wonderful. So full of insights, and beautifully writtenLiza Dalby, Author of Geisha

A beautiful book about Japanese cultureBooks Kinokuniya Tokyo

A truly transformative read.Sunday Times Style

I am obsessed (with this book)The Tokyo Chapter

I’m completely won over by the mix of wisdom and guide to practical self-reflection offered in this elegant interpretation of wabi sabi.JapaneseLondon.com

MY OTHER BOOKS