There’s a reason that the writers you look up to are successful. Yes they’re talented and hard working. But they’ve also found editors and coaches that help them create with confidence, ease, and joy. These writers have learned they need support to overcome self doubt, strengthen their skills, and shine. If you’re ready to invest in your creativity, hiring a developmental editor or a coach is one of the most powerful ways you can grow. It’s less expensive than getting an MFA, but way more personal and strategic. If you’re feeling stuck or unsure how to turn your idea into a book, hiring an editor or a coach will help you move forward in a way nothing else can.

Both editors and coaches can help you become a better writer, but it can be really tricky to know who to hire, because there are differences in style and personality, titles vary, and writers need different kinds of support at different stages of the publishing process. Everyone has their own definitions, but here’s how I think of editors and coaches. (I’m both!) And if you’re still feeling unsure about who to hire, scroll down for a quiz that will help you decide!

Developmental Editors

Focus on making your book amazing

Work on your book after you have a full draft that feels like it’s headed in the right direction
Spend lots time in your manuscript
Give specific suggestions on how to move this draft forward
Provides feedback on character, plot, theme, voice, and marketability
Advocate for your reader and your book

Your relationship with your editor may be very collaborative, with a lot of back and forth about the book at hand. Or if you’re hiring someone for a critique, you might just receive a critique and make revisions on your own. Copyeditors usually just leave their notes in the margins or in track changes, so they don’t send a lot of separate queries. But if you’re hiring someone for developmental editing, there might be more questions and answers for both parties. I work as a developmental editor for publishers and magazines and offer critiques to writers.

When you're making book magic,

slowing down and taking time to think deeply makes all the difference.

Coaches

Focus on you and your experience

Understand how to overcome fears
Look at your whole career
Show you how to become a true artist
Provide emotional support
Help you understand the stories you’re trying to tell
Teach practical tools for developing a writing process that works for you
Provide accountability with goals and timelines
Tend to everything from your mindset and creative process to your marketing efforts
Share their experience with the industry
May or may not read your manuscripts

The word “coach” can evoke images of someone standing at your desk chanting, “Write! Write! Write!” but it’s really a lot gentler (and more effective) than that. It might be better to call what we do “writing therapy,” but that term hasn’t caught on yet.

You can hire a coach before you ever start writing, and you can ask for support at any stage of the publishing process, even when you’re between books. If you’re feeling blocked, a coach can help you move forward. If you’re excited about a new idea, but don’t know if it’s worth pursuing, a coach can help you clarify your idea and give feedback on whether it’s a good fit for your audience. Coaches help writers develop goals and habits for making progress. They also help them overcome fears and navigate changes, so you can keep going, even after a setback.

There are all kinds of coaches. Some are super strategic. Others are more intuitive. Some coaches methodically walk you through their own process. Others are interested in helping you develop your own path to success. You may need to find a coach who focuses on craft and help you write an outline, or maybe you need more accountability and want someone who will help you set a series of goals.

When you work with me, it feels kind of like therapy. I call myself a creative coach,

rather than a book coach or a writing coach, because I tend to all the issues that come during the creative process. I work with bright, visionary writers who want to care for their creativity in the same way they care for their families. I teach my clients how to make pleasure part of the process, follow their creativity, be patient, make room for mystery and magic, break some rules, and play!

When we work together, you can tell me all your publishing fears and secrets and get expert guidance on navigating this intense industry. You’ll discover your creativity identity, better understand your project and personal themes, and learn how you can make a more powerful impact with your work. If you keep getting the same feedback from editors, and you’re not sure how to address it, we can talk about craft. I’ll show you how to build a creative life you adore. I help writers strategize about the best ways to share their work and how to navigate the ups and downs of the publishing process. It’s a powerful investment that it feels like self care.

I believe creativity can be a joyful part of daily life, deeply enlivening and nourishing. I know it’s possible to find ease and joy in the writing process,

and I want that for you too!