“Professor Rachel Webster is one of the most generous, intuitive, and visionary writing teachers I’ve ever known. Her workshops create space not just for craft, but for transformation—for writing that is both brave and deeply human. She teaches with rigor and tenderness, grit and grace, guiding each writer toward the truth only they can tell. If you have the chance to learn from Rachel, take it. Your writing—and your person—will be better for it.”
I’m Rachel Jamison Webster
I have published five books, including Mary is a River, a finalist for the National Poetry Series written in the voice of Mary Magdalene, and Benjamin Banneker and Us: Eleven Generations of an American Family. This book of ancestral nonfiction was chosen as a Best Book of 2023 by The New Yorker, and an Editor’s Pick by The New York Times. I am currently finishing a book about my female ancestors and the creative processes specific to women. I have taught creative writing at Northwestern University for 20 years and have developed writing workshops through Ancestral Medicine and other organizations. I have also meditated for more than 20 years, with a special focus on psychic meditation, clairvoyance, clairaudience, and ancestral healing. These practices of writing and meditation combine in my teaching. I love to share my methods for fulfilling our creative potential. My students have gone on to publish successful books, and to fulfill themselves with creative careers.
“If you are a woman writer on the fence as to whether to enroll in Rachel Jamison Webster’s “Writing Women” Course, let me be the nudge that lands you gently in one of the most inspiring and supportive writing workshops you will ever take.
My work with Rachel was both productive and profound, opening channels to new insights into the women in my family, including myself, and allowing me to complete a multi-year project which centers 14 generations of my foremothers.
Whatever your creative project, Rachel’s combination of meditation, writing prompts, example texts and encouragement will help you find what you need.”
An Hour oF Meditating & Freewriting
Drop in here to get to know my process as an instructor.
My Approach
Cultivating a meditative writing practice allows us to access new material, to stay in flow as creative people, and to encounter ourselves on the page with openness. Accessing this space of non-judgement helps us to expand and clarify our writing, release our limitations, and heal our lives. I combine creative writing prompts with suggestions for reading. Every one of my courses and consultations honors the intellectual side of writing while making space for the intuitive, often mystical process that leads to inspiration.