Alana Woods   AUTHOR        

My books on Amazon.com   |   Amazon.co.uk

My guest this week is Gillian Jackson, author of THE COUNSELLOR, a novel that delves into the inner workings of therapeutic counsellors. I was intrigued to say the least about Gillian’s background and reason for writing this story.

Alana: Gillian, welcome, it’s lovely to have another author from the UK here. I’d like to combine my first question with a bit about you and a bit about the book. Do you live in the book’s location?

Gillian:Yes, although the book is set in North Yorkshire and I live just over the border in County Durham, England. The fictitious market town is a combination of several which are near my home, an area I love, combining the best of urban and country living right on the doorstep, with the coast just forty minutes drive away.

Alana: Looks like heaven! I have to say that as I read THE COUNSELLOR I was intrigued by what seems to me to be quite in-depth knowledge of how to ‘treat’ people who seek counselling. You have childcare qualifications and are now a voluntary worker for Victim Support, is it that knowledge and experience you called upon or was further research required.

Gillian: My childcare career was a wonderful period which I loved enormously but one which came to a rather abrupt end with the worsening of a long-term back problem. Seeking out a less strenuous occupation led me into training for therapeutic counselling which is currently put to use in my work for Victim Support, a brilliant charity which does amazing work in supporting people at vulnerable times in their lives.

Alana: Ah, that’s something I didn’t pick up on when researching for the interview—that you had trained for that. I imagine it was similar to the training Maggie underwent in the book?

Gillian:Yes, the training and ongoing work has provided invaluable knowledge and insight in the areas I write about, although I would never actually use a ‘case’ for a scenario in the books. It’s very much an instance of truth being stranger than fiction, my real life clients’ stories would not be believed!

Alana: Now THAT piques my interest. Not that I’m going to ask about the real cases, but I have to say the fictional ones were emotional enough to read. But before writing and publishing THE COUNSELLOR you had already published a self-help book From victim to survivor. Could you give an insight into what it contains and why you wrote it.

Gillian: From Victim to survivor is a short, self help book specifically for adults who were sexually abused as children but did not disclose until later life. It’s a sad fact of life that this atrocity happens and is something which can destroy lives. The book is in many ways a very personal one, inspired by my own abuse as a child which I kept secret until I was fifty years old. It is not, however, a book about me and is surprisingly positive!

My own story is briefly outlined but in the book as a whole I have attempted to offer positive and practical ideas for self help and to signpost to organizations which can support and encourage survivors. I was in a very bad place for two or three years and was given books on the subject which I hadn’t the energy or inclination to even open, so huge and complicated they looked! Eventually seeking therapeutic counselling for myself, it proved to be a most empowering experience and From victim to survivor is the book I would have wished to read at the time, short, succinct and even with pictures! Therapy was the spark which ignited my interest in counselling and afterwards I returned to college to study psychology and counselling.

Alana: Just like Maggie.

Gillian: Absolutely. I was the ‘granny’ of the group and, like Maggie, enjoyed the complete change of focus this brought.

Alana: Did the information you use in From victim to survivor inform Maggie’s methods in THE COUNSELLOR?

Gillian: Certainly in the specific area of historical childhood abuse, yes. There is a cross over in From victim to survivor with the character Janet in THE COUNSELLOR, who is loosely based on my own experience. The depth of training and practical work for counselling however is the main inspiration for Maggie. I wanted to give her the ability to get alongside each client to offer the best possible help she can, her own grief and loss bringing the empathy needed to be totally committed to the work. Although a novel, I hope to portray therapeutic counselling as a powerful tool in taking control of life in general rather than a fashionable whim for those who can afford it.

Alana:You were certainly successful there; it definitely came across as a powerful tool! I was pleased to discover that Maggie continues in a second book—Maggie’s world—already published and I believe you’re working on a third. Would you tell us a little of where Maggie’s story takes her in them?

Gillian: Maggie’s world moves her personal story along in time and brings her into contact with three new clients. I love being able to choose an issue to explore and in the second of the series is a young mother with amnesia, a newlywed who is the victim of psychological abuse and the heartbreaking topic of childlessness.

The third in the series is my work in progress, again with three new clients bringing diverse issues and the return of a popular character from book one! The working title is ‘Pretence’ and is on track to be finished later this year. I have been thrilled and encouraged by the feedback from the first two books. The subject matter seems to have captured people’s attention and the way I write, alternating stories throughout the book, for many makes easy reading. I’m also a believer in happy endings and aim for the best possible outcome, although to reflect life and be realistic there has to be a measure of sadness.

Alana: Well, I think you’ve got the mix just right in THE COUNSELLOR.

Gillian: That was my debut novel and first serious attempt at fiction. It was like a new baby and as a new writer I feel I’m growing and honing my work continuously. Writing is compulsive, I could not imagine life without my lap top and writing projects; our cat, who used to be my only ‘laptop’ has resigned herself to second place and my wonderful supportive husband has been persuaded to subscribe to SKY television to immerse himself in football but there are simply not enough football matches in the day to keep me happy!

Alana: I’ll take that as a hint that I’ve kept you from writing long enough and let you get back to it. Gillian, thanks so much for talking to me today.

The counsellor on Amazon.com  |  Amazon.co.uk  |  Smashwords  |  Kobo books  |

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