Empowering Feedback, Storytelling
Empowering Feedback, Storytelling
As a certified book coach, I empower novice authors with storytelling and publishing guidance while offering a structured approach to develop and refine your work. Having a book coach can also be important for crafting the writing life you want, because getting a book to print can be draining without solid strategy behind content choices and the decisions about what publishing path you'll take to reach readers.
Whether you are a sustainability expert struggling to attract a broader audience to your ideas, a self-help aficionado who doesn’t know what book structure and theme to go with, or a first-time memoirist or historical fiction author wanting input on which story elements to include in your work, I can provide straightforward, high-touch or medium-touch input during the book outlining and idea stage, coach you through proposal development, and on how to strengthen a completed manuscript or proposal, while prepping to pitch or publish. The polishing services are informed by being a certified editor, and a ghostwriter of nonfiction, with a background of winning state and national feature awards.
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Which Book Coaching Package Fits Your Needs?
Road Map & Outline Coaching
Consider investing in the following offering from a book coach certified by Author Accelerator, whether you are choosing between book ideas, clarifying the outline and more for the book idea you've chosen, or seeking help to revisit the foundational elements of a completed manuscript:
The Road Map aka Book Planning — We work back and forth for 2-3 months to solidify your book’s outline and foundational elements, using an Author Accelerator-designed tool. More than a dozen factors are considered, such as clarifying the genre, theme/main point, and narrative arc. You get oral and written feedback on your exercises to define these key factors for readers to connect with your work.
For memoir: Write your opening and closing scene and get feedback on the audience, ideal reader, your arc of change and more. Feedback includes weekly in-text comments and an editorial letter, and four 45-minute coaching calls after key submissions. Investment: $2,200.
For self-help and other nonfiction: Work with me to refine your table of contents and define the reader’s arc of change and more, based on your submissions over 2-3 months. The feedback includes weekly in-text comments and an editorial letter, and four 30-minute coaching calls after key submissions. Investment: $1,800.
For historical fiction: Write your opening scene and get feedback on the theme, audience, genre specifics, etc. Involves 4 submissions by you and four rounds of feedback over 2-3 months. The feedback consists of includes weekly in-text comments and editorial letter, and four 30-minute coaching calls after key submissions. Investment: $1,800.
Or consider a two-session Mini Road Map for basic input on foundational elements of your work, and a sense of my coaching style and the content development process ahead.
To capture your book idea and get early feedback on it during the Mini Road Map, you’ll complete a one-page summary of book-related elements (using an Author Accelerator-designed tool), and return that before our first session. At that 60-minute session, we’ll discuss your work’s theme, your writing goals, and factors such as who your ideal reader is. A 45-minute follow-up session within two weeks will cover remaining questions on the Mini Road Map, and address general marketing or publishing questions. Investment: $199.
*A Road Map is required before Proposal Development coaching of memoir and some nonfiction, such as hybrid nonfiction that includes narrative elements.
Book Proposal Development
A Book Proposal is essential to pitch nonfiction to traditional publishers, and memoirists also benefit from this route that reveals the value and marketability of your work in advance. A proposal helps authors who self-publish, too, by clarifying your structure, theme and audience in ways that help refine content.
I spent more than a decade assisting faculty at a top-ranking medical school and an R1 research university showcase their work in print. That public relations training included developing hundreds of press releases using the kind of succinct, compelling language that is essential in a proposal.
Book Proposal Development — Drawing on my big picture strengths, we work back and forth over 3 months on this essential tool for traditional publisher consideration of nonfiction (and memoir*). The process easily builds on what was learned about your vision from the Road Map, and covers the eight elements of a standard proposal, as well as starting to draft two chapters. Specifically:
Over 12 weeks, we work back and forth to define key theme and audiences for your nonfiction book or memoir proposal*, select the most compelling comparable titles to showcase your work’s new offerings, and to develop the five other elements of a proposal that can increase the chance of representation by literary agents, or direct interest from a press. With the Proposal Development package, you’ll receive:
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Weekly assignments to develop proposal elements
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At least 3 weekly meetings per month via Zoom for 45 minutes
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Weekly written feedback on your developing proposal elements
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A month of input on defining your book focus and readers, considering the marketplace for your work, developing the book’s outline, and discussing big-picture publishing goals; a second month on developing the overview, author summary, starting into two chapters, and comparative book details; and a third month on refining the outline, sample chapter work, and developing the marketing plan.
Investment for nonfiction: $1,300 per month for three months, or $3,900 total. Proposal development package can be extended with additional coaching packages of a month or more, as needed. Pitch package (covered at the link below) is among the polishing services available as a follow-up to proposal clients seeking guidance on selecting literary agents and developing a query letter.
Investment for memoirists who previously developed a Road Map with me: $1,530 per month for three months, or $4590 total. Memoirists can also consider the Manuscript Review service in the right column, as interested agents want to evaluate their completed memoir too. A Pitch package (covered in the Polishing Details link below) is available to Proposal Development clients too, for help to develop a query letter and starter list of agents for your pitch.
Content Revision Coaching
A successful manuscript has many moving parts, making clarity and reader engagement challenging. My manuscript and book proposal reviews draw on experiences as a certified editor who has provided an eagle eye on all stages of content development for self-published authors and six publishers. I highlight the strengths and areas where you could focus more energy, providing actionable next steps to improve a completed or near-complete manuscript.
Ghostwriting of nonfiction manuscripts also available for select topics (see Genre Specialties list below this services recap section, and Polishing Details link for ghosting details).
Manuscript Review — I assess your nonfiction manuscript, historical novel, or memoir for strengths and areas to consider elevating. The emphasis is on factors such as pacing, whether tangible and emotional elements further the narrative drive, and whether the reader receives the needed reward at book’s end. With the Manuscript Review, you’ll receive:
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An onboarding Q&A to share your goals and insights about your work 45-min. call
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A strategic 5-or-more-page editorial letter about what’s working, where you could focus more energy, and actionable next steps on big picture elements for you to make the most progress on completing your next draft
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In-line comments on your first two chapters (or first 24 pages)
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A one-hour coaching call
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A recording of the coaching call to refer back to as you write forward
Investment: $2,400 for manuscripts up to 80,000 words (.04c/word added over that).
Proposal Review -- I assess your nonfiction book proposal or memoir proposal for strengths and big and small areas to consider elevating. The Proposal Review focuses on factors such as ensuring the overview highlights the book's theme and structure appropriately, and strengthening elements of your author's bio and marketing plan. With the Proposal Review, you'll receive:
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An onboarding Q&A to share your goals and insights about your work.
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A full read of your proposal, including up to 2 sample chapters (of a maximum of 40 pages).
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A strategic 5-or-more-page editorial letter about what’s working, challenges in the core elements and sample chapters, and actionable next steps on big picture elements for you to make the most progress on completing your draft.
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A one-hour coaching call to answer questions on feedback or next steps.
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A recording of the coaching call to refer back to as you revise the proposal.
Investment: $1,800 for nonfiction or memoir. Agent Pitch Package is available as a follow-up to Proposal Review clients seeking guidance on selecting literary agents and developing a query letter (click link below for details on that, and line editing for voice and style).
Genre Specialties
Nonfiction
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Self-help, including with memoir elements, and narrative memoir that does not center on depicting extensive trauma details
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Narrative nonfiction, including nature essays, and environmental justice journalism
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Broad spirituality, from mindfulness, to energy healing modalities, to progressive Christianity
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Big idea and how to books, such as on diversity topics, or sustainable gardening
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Life science-related topics, including wildlife conservation, native landscaping, sustainable agriculture, and climate change mitigation
Fiction
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Historical fiction— exploring human nature through characters, including within marginalized communities; not focused on works that are primarily romance, fantasy, sci fi, horror, mystery, or domestic or other thrillers