We’re excited to be working with Lizzie Slowe, wellbeing expert, fully qualified Equine Therapist and Chi Kung Master, on the campaign for her new book, The Living Art of Chi Kung. We asked Lizzie our 5 questions to find out more about her, her book, and her vision:

1. Pitch in 10 - sell us your book in less than 10 words

Clear, accessible Chi-Kung with life-changing impact, relevant to anyone.

2. Audience of One - If you could choose ONE person to read your book who would it be and why?

This is a tough one! I think if only one person was going to read it, I would choose Amanda Pritchard, who is the CEO of the NHS UK (yes I had to google her name!) I would love for some of the common sense approach to empowered well-being to become a part of what we offer for free in this country. Wouldn’t it be great if we pro-actively worked with our hearts, heads and bodies to find good feeling instead of waiting for our bodies to go wrong?

3. Behind the Book - Who or what inspired you to write this book?

I was inspired to write this book by my Chi Kung students and Equine Facilitated Therapy clients. Horses listen to how we are in our whole body – not just our heads, so Chi Kung and Mind-Heart-Body exercises are relevant here too.

I wanted to be able to give people something written that was going to be useful – not clever or complicated, but just really useful. Many of the books on Chi Kung are hard to read, wordy and verging on academic. I initially started writing the book as a set of cards that I could share with students and clients but it turned out that I had more to say than I thought, and the book grew organically.

I included discussion on topics such as: having a practise (elusive for most of us); how to try but not to force. I also wanted to include a section on how to live the practise, how Chi Kung and it’s philosophy can be applied to all aspects of life, as well as some descriptions of forms to practise. This ended up turning into a book in three sections, how to practise (the Art), what to practise (Chi Kung), and how to live it (Living)!

4. Guess what? Tell us one thing that readers might be surprised to hear about you.

Although I have had what might sound like an interesting life, it’s the inner exploration that has been the most fascinating journey for me.

I lived the rave scene in Manchester, spent a year in India, lived in a Tipi in Wales, spent two years on a sailing boat with my young daughters, crossing the Atlantic Ocean, rekindled my childhood love of horses – this is an exploration of what is visible and seen.

The inner exploration though, who I am beneath the layers of conditioning, what my experience of consciousness is, my experience of life, connection and relationship – this is like exploring the deep dark depths of the oceans, uncharted territory where you can only see what’s in front of you at any given moment.

This is why I am planning to continue my studies with a more thorough exploration of the therapeutic journey. The basis of experiential Chi Kung is to be present with the experience, and any nuances of that I can explore really grab my interest – it makes me a bit nerdy, but I find it endlessly fascinating.

5. The next chapter - what’s next for you?

I’m looking forward to doing some teaching clips to put on my website and YouTube – it’s always easier to practise if someone is talking you through a posture or form, and as Chi Kung isn’t quite as widespread as yoga, not everyone will have access to a teacher or class. I’m starting to think about writing something about the experience of being with horses and ways that we can explore ourselves in that frame and how it relates to Taoism– although very few people have access to a horse!

Find out more about Lizzie’s work at lizzieslowe.com. To get a review copy or to book in an interview, contact Teresa Richardson at teresa.richardson@thebookpublicist.co.uk