What I Offer As a Writing Coach
As a writing coach, I act as your mentor, team strategist, accountability partner, confidante, cheerleader, midwife, and guide in your creative endeavor. I am here to help you hone your craft, strengthen your voice, gain confidence in your writing, and gain clarity about your message and where you want your story to go. Because I am also an editor, I will review your writing along the way to look at elements such as style, plot, story arc, flow, order, character and scene development, dialogue, and voice.
I will coach you to create a writing life in which you’ll thrive—assisting you with finding the time and motivation to write and helping you to overcome any obstacles that may appear along the way, including the voice of the inner critic. In the process, you get the best of all worlds, discovering that writing is not a chore to be checked off but a profoundly enriching experience to be enjoyed.
As a writing coach, I guide you through the writing process to help you unfold and connect with your story so that you can bring it forth and share it with others. I offer a safe and supportive working partnership that allows you to discover the story you need and want to tell.
(My coaching fees are aligned with and similar to coaching rates in the Western United States.)
THE TOUCHSTONE EXPERIENCE—A THREE-PART SERIES
In this three-part series, you have the opportunity to create a written touchstone for the book you want to write. This will serve to support you and your dream, offer you clarity about your book, and serve as your compass to keep you moving in the direction of writing it.
What is a touchstone? A touchstone can be a personal symbol that represents your dream and helps you stay on track and stay true to your vision. It can provide internal guidance, clarity, and direction.
In relation to writing a book, a touchstone can represent your anchor for the book you want to write and why you are writing it. In that context, it becomes something that guides and supports you through the process of writing. Your touchstone will serve as the vantage point from which you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what you are writing has value and merit and is meant to serve you and others. Especially when inner or outer criticism attempts to derail or cause you to doubt yourself, this will serve to remind you why you are writing and to help you stay true to your message. Ultimately, it will support you to finish writing your book.
A Brief Description of “The Touchstone Experience”
Part
1
How to START Writing Your Story:
Your What, Why and Who?
In this two-hour individual session, Donna will guide you through questions, including:
- Why do you want to write a book and why are you the one to tell this story?
- What insights and inspiration will your story provide?
- Who is your story meant to serve?
By the end of the first session, you will have the beginning of your tangible “touchstone” to come back to anytime the inner critic tries to derail you from moving forward.
Part
2
The CRITICAL First Steps:
Planning and Organizing
Although writing is a creative process, in order to successfully complete your book, some structure is needed. In this second two-hour session, Donna will guide you to:
- Identify the themes, time periods, and subject matter “buckets” to be included in your book
- Create a story web, the “soft outline” for your book, to serve as a guide through your writing journey
- Identify the introductory piece you will write to set the tone and connect you with your writing voice
By the end of this session, you will have a clear direction, the starting point for your book, and your completed touchstone.
Part | In this final one-hour session, we will review your introductory piece and decide on a plan for you to move forward with writing your story. By the end of this session, you will have a clear direction, the starting point for your book and your completed touchstone. |
Part
3
Your NEXT Steps:
The Path Forward
In this final one-hour session, we will review your introductory piece and decide on a plan for you to move forward with writing your story. By the end of this session, you will have a clear direction, the starting point for your book, and your completed touchstone.
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