Hello my name is Emma!
I am a writer and artist living in the beautiful city of York. I have twenty five years experience in mental health care and recovery. I hold an MA in Creative Writing and am currently working towards a PhD in the same field. I am proud to teach creative writing with a focus of connection to the natural world and I also have a keen interest in the human spirit, what gives us joy and balance in life, and am a practising spiritual medium.
My journey into health care started age 21 on completing a degree in occupational therapy, I specialised in mental health and recovery and work for the NHS delivering recovery based support via Converge at York St John University.
My journey in teaching creative writing started by running eco-therapy writing classes at the fabulous St Nicks nature reserve eco-therapy programme in York (2014 – 2021). I now work freelance to deliver workshops and writing classes, alongside creating my own work. I teach two online courses for the Field Studies Council in Exploring Nature Writing and Developing Nature Writing. I am currently studying for a practice led PhD in Creative Writing and Humanities and have enjoyed combining my arts and health career to write about the need for humanity at the heart of mental health care.
My journey into mediumship began after extensive research into mental health care in the West and becoming interested in the human spirit. We have a lot of language for physical health, but little that describes our inner world and wellbeing. I began exploring mediumship out of curiosity and intrigue and opened up a whole new world that I believe can have a very positive impact on our mental health. I completed mediumship training with John Richardson in 2026.
On a freelance basis I offer workshops and individual sessions in the following areas:
Health Care and Community Practice:
- Personal Development
- Team Building
- Community Connection
- Individual supervision for setting up community practice / health related opportunities.
- Mental Health Awareness Training.
Creative Writing Opportunities:
- Themed writing classes (i.e. nature / arts / animals – any subject of your choice!)
- Memoir and Life Writing workshops
- Craft of Writing Workshops (i.e. workshops in fiction writing, poetry, prose, building stories etc).
- Individual writing tuition and support.
Spiritual Mediumship:
- 1:1 Mediumship and tarot reading.
- Life review mediumship.
- Mediumship for a specific goal review.
This site is called Life At Base Camp because I strongly believe that life is one big adventure! Base Camp is my home, the place I have my adventures from and to which I return to write. I approach life with an open heart and mind.
Publications:
McKenzie, E. The Shared Imagination of Mental Illness: Exploring How We Are Haunted by Representations of Mental Illness in the Media. Humanities 2026, 15, 107. https://doi.org/10.3390/h15080107
McKenzie, E. (2026). Using Creative Writing for Social Good: The Act of Creative Writing and Story Telling as a Tool for Positive Social Change. Writing In Education: NAWE Conference Special Edition(97), 42-48.
Narrative Medicine – Trauma and Ethics (multi-author volume)Vernon Press (2024). Chapter: Narrative and the Mental Health System: Removing Horror from Mental Health Experiences and Environments.
McKenzie, E. (2023). We Will Be Gone Soon, I Promise. In K. Saitta, Written Tales Chapbook: Nature’s Embrace, A Symphony of Voices (pp. 152 – 157). Great Britain: Amazon.
McKenzie E, Crooks J (Editors) (2022). Seeds of Promise: An Anthology of Nature Writing. Great Britain: Amazon
All work on this site is copyrighted to the author Emma McKenzie. No posts may be published or used for commercial use without first contacting the author for full permission to be granted.
