What is “writing coaching”? Writing coaching is a way to explore your unique writing process by working one-on-one with an instructor and a customized curriculum. Clients generally meet with me once a week via Skype. Before a session, the writer sends along that week’s writing assignment to me so that I can review it and prepare comments and suggestions.

As a writing coach, my goals are to nurture your voice as a writer, impart to you the technical skills that are crucial to the craft of writing, and help you explore the psychology of your writing process. Your sessions will feel like a good English class that also leads you to reflect on how your writing connects to your life story.

Is this therapy? No. I am not a therapist. I do have graduate training in counseling psychology, and I’ve noticed that writing and the therapeutic process have a lot in common. Both involve recognizing underlying patterns of being, relating, and expression. But if we bump up against issues that require deeper psychological attention, I may ask you to consider seeing a therapist so that you get the support you need while you work with me on your writing.

What kinds of questions will we work on during a session?

• What is the emotional heart of the piece? Are you avoiding it, or writing into it?
• Where is your real opening sentence hiding? (Opening sentences often hide on page three!)
• How specific are your verbs? Do they function as engines in your sentences?
• How do you feel when you first sit down to write, and how do you feel when you are absorbed in writing?
• Will you let yourself be rough in your first draft? What is holding you back from writing a messier draft? What kind of relationship do you have with the editor in your head?
• How does your writing connect to other parts of your life?

What kinds of writing do you coach? I coach writers who are working on creative pieces, professional work (including websites and newsletters), and academic writing (including graduate school applications, essays, and dissertations). I don’t coach writers who are working on poetry, but I do work in partnership with poets and can refer you to them.

Do you edit my writing? In our sessions together, I serve as your developmental editor and writing coach. That means I focus on the big picture: shaping the content, voice, and form of the writing, while helping you understand the psychology of your writing process. Then, once your manuscript or article has been thoroughly developed and before you submit to an agent or publisher, your manuscript will need to be copyedited. A copyeditor helps put a polish on your prose, making sure it’s clear, accurate, grammatical, consistent, and concise. This step is crucial to making a manuscript look professional and ready for consideration by publishers. I offer copyediting services for your projects via a partnership with award-winning writer and editor Jenny Blair. If you plan to self-publish your manuscript and want original artwork, I can refer you to an award-winning brand consultant and designer who has extensive experience designing books—both their internal layouts and their cover designs.

How much will it cost, and how long will it take? A single writing coaching session costs $80; that includes both our hour of working together in real time and my time reviewing your work beforehand. In order for people to fully realize their goals, I recommend that clients commit to weekly classes for 2–12 months. Some people have worked with me for years. Others just need a month to make specific changes in their writing or to complete a particular project. Before beginning coaching, I ask that clients sign a contract which outlines the scope and goals of the work, how often we’ll meet, and whether you plan to elect copyediting services as well.

What is your training, and what’s your teaching approach? I hold a B.A. in English from Westmont College and an M.A. in religion and history from Yale, and I have ten years’ experience teaching writing. During my training, I’ve been privileged to study writing and literature with amazing teachers, including award-winning playwright Russell Davis, bestselling author Lauren Winner, and President Obama’s inaugural poet Elizabeth Alexander. My approach, while it is rooted in my literary training, is deeply informed by my training in psychology and contemplative studies. I studied counseling psychology at the graduate level for several years, taking classes from psychoanalysts and psychodynamic therapists. While earning my master’s degree, I researched (and practiced) contemplative modes of thought and being.

Writing always begins as an act of perception, so the writing process starts long before you put pen to paper or fingers to your keyboard. Good writers experience the world deeply: they are attuned to it, they notice more details, and they use language to get at what they see. Through my experience and training in psychology, contemplation, and literary studies, I help my students find the ways of being in the world that will best support them in their writing.