Need a Little Help With Your Memoir?
Writing a memoir can be a lonely business.
Maybe you’ve made a good start, but now you’re not quite sure where you’re going. Maybe you’re wondering whether your opening works. Whether you’re including too much—or leaving too much out. Whether your dialogue sounds natural. Whether that chapter about your childhood is fascinating to anyone besides you. Or maybe you simply want someone who knows memoir to take a look at what you’ve written and tell you, honestly and constructively, what’s working and what could be better.
That’s what my Private Memoir Coaching Sessions are for.
Here’s How It Works
Send me up to 5,000 words of your memoir. I’ll read your work carefully and return your manuscript with in-line comments and suggestions, along with my overall written observations about what I’ve read. I might comment on your structure, storytelling, voice, pacing, dialogue, character development, narrative arc, clarity, grammar and style—or simply point out places where I wanted to know more (or less).
I’ll tell you what I think isn’t working. Just as importantly, I’ll tell you what is working. And I’ll send all of this to you before we meet. You won’t have to sit down for a Zoom call wondering what I thought of your writing. You’ll already know. You can read my comments privately, on your own time, think about them, reread them, disagree with them if you want, and make a list of anything you’d like to ask me.
Then we’ll talk.
Our Private Coaching Session
Once you’ve had time to consider my critique, we’ll meet by Zoom/phone (your choice) for a full 60 minutes. Ask me why I thought Chapter Two might work better as Chapter One. Ask what I meant when I wrote “slow this scene down” in the margin. Ask whether you really need that five-page detour about Uncle Charlie. Ask how you might handle a painful family story without turning the chapter into a score-settling exercise.
And we don’t have to limit ourselves to the pages you sent me. We can talk about the larger book: where it begins, where it ends, how it should be structured, what belongs, what doesn’t, what you’re struggling with, what you should write next, or anything else about your memoir that’s keeping you up at night. Heck, we can even talk about the weather. It’s your hour.
My job is to help you figure out how to make your memoir better and how to keep moving forward.
No Program. No Package. No Commitment.
A private coaching session is $395.
That includes:
- Professional critique of up to 5,000 words
- Your manuscript returned with in-line comments and suggestions
- Written overall observations about your work
- A 60-minute private Zoom consultation
That’s it. There’s no coaching package to buy. No subscription. No three-month or six-month commitment.
Maybe one session is all you need, or maybe you’ll go back to work, write another 5,000 words and decide you’d like my thoughts on those, too. Come back whenever you need me. I’ll be here.
Want to get started? Fill out this form and I’ll get back to you personally (typically within 24 hours) with next steps!