Katrina Goudey moved to Whidbey Island this January, following a magic path that seems to be the pattern of how people come to live on this island. Her parents retired to Olympia from California two years ago. Before their move, Katrina lived in Texas and had a reoccurring dream about moving to an island. Everyone she spoke to in Texas told her about Whidbey Island, so she thought that one day she might live on Whidbey — and that’s just what happened earlier this year.
She received an MFA in Creative Writing from Texas State University in 2015. While in Texas, she also taught college-level writing classes, and while living in Washington, she worked as a remote editor for one year with a company based in California. She has a minor in Studio Art from UC Irvine, and since moving to Washington, she has taken a number of classes from Gage Academy in Seattle. Through this journey, she began to realize that she wanted to use her creative skills to help other people. She originally wanted to open her home as a retreat for artists, but the pandemic has led to her offering online creative coaching. She enjoys the prospect of no longer helping people through a school or university system, and comments: “There are no grades or deadlines like a classroom — the creative work is back to its natural flow, and you can meet your own goals with me as a facilitator and resource.”
Her creative coaching focuses on providing workshops and lessons for artists and writers who are stuck, just starting, or who need to redefine their relationship to their work.
There are many elements that are unique about how she does her coaching. Instead of focusing on the rules of art and writing, she will help you hone your sense of inspiration. Instead of focusing on a perfect final product, she will help you focus on your personal relationship with your process. She notes: “Creative work is very personal, which is why I aim to provide custom classes that fit interests and goals, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.”
While there are many advantages to holding workshops in person, the Covid pandemic has affected how she does her business. Katrina has worked out a number of online options for students, including meeting on Zoom, assigning work and providing feedback in Google Classroom, or a “package-drop” option where she emails a week’s worth of customized writing or art prompts. Since Katrina has varied interests, she can work with you on painting, drawing, performance art, creative non-fiction, fiction, fairy tales…just about anything that comes under the heading of art and/or creative writing.
Her main skill is the ability to help people focus on finding their own creative senses and letting them flow. She also works with students to help them identify their personal goals relating to artistic projects.
She is happy to discuss the ways she can help artists and writers find their creative path. The pricing of lessons and workshops will vary depending on the level of involvement, so send an email with an inquiry and she will be happy to work out a lesson plan that works for you. Connect with Katrina Goudey at katrinagoudey@gmail.com or Instagram @katrinagoudey.
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