Hello all,
Welcome to the 26nd edition of Women Writing! So, what is book coaching anyway? Maybe you’ve been wondering if this career is an actual thing. When I first stumbled across book coaching, I thought it couldn’t possibly be real. You mean, I can work with writers and help them develop their manuscripts? I can read and discuss books as a job? Um, yeah. Sign me up. And I couldn’t be happier about changing my career path from teacher to book coach. Truthfully, I still consider myself a teacher (you can’t really turn it off), but now all my skills go towards helping writers, and often other teachers.
In a nutshell, a book coach is a writer’s champion. We provide support, encouragement, accountability, mentorship, and feedback. We celebrate your successes and give you a shoulder to cry on. Every book coach offers slightly different services based on their own expertise, but many work with writers from the initial seed of an idea right to publication, based on the writer’s needs.
Dream job? You bet.
And now to our featured author and newly certified Author Accelerator book coach, Michaela von Schweinitz. And a very happy birthday to Michaela!
About the author…
Michaela von Schweinitz is a German-American writer. An award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter, she lived in Los Angeles for fifteen years. When Michaela moved to New York City in 2017, a vibrant writing community welcomed her. She joined Naked Angels NYC where excerpts from her screenplay, the murder mystery Alice Is Gone, have been read on stage. Her essays were published in various anthologies. Spanish Beach Vacation, her first publication, was published by Red Wheelbarrow Writers in the Anthology Spring and All. Me Gusta, Oaxaca: A Love Letter, her travel-log from her first trip to Mexico, appeared in Oaxaca – A Wayfaring Writers' Anthology. Her essay Calling Home, appears in True Stories Volume VI, published by Sidekick Press. Listen in on Calling Home on her website and Spanish Beach Vacation on her YouTube channel Kiss Productions. Michaela also writes on Substack.
“Our stories have been silenced for too long. If the story you carry inside of you wants to get out, start writing. I want to read more stories from women.”
On a writing routine …
It doesn't matter what time of day it is but I write during daylight. I aim for blocking off the morning hours between 9 and noon. I put my phone on Do Not Disturb and shut down all apps on my desktop to retreat into this realm of creation. Sometimes I keep email open but I turn off sound and have long disabled the counter telling me how many unread emails I have.
Nothing is more important to me than expressing myself in writing. Probably because here I'm in full control of the words that come out. I built my life around my writing. Writing is the only thing that satisfies me. I get cranky if I don't write.
If life takes me away from writing it also brings me back to writing. When I get stuck writing, I go back to living. There is no one way of being a writer and writing is not a one-way street.
Writing is an exchange of expressions. What comes to mind goes on the page. What I have written is different than what was in my head. I have to rewrite to get it right. This exchange helps me sort through my thinking which isn't always as clear as I wish it was.
On writing spaces …
When I was younger my desk was a dinner table covered in my work. Now it just so fits my computer, a mousepad, a note pad and a glass of water. The less clutter around me the better I can focus. I am easily distracted and don't need a candle nor music to write. All I need is the quiet and solitude of my apartment. No bustling coffee house for me. I have trained myself. Whenever I need to step back from my story to gain perspective, for that moment I have a glass of water. I reach for that water. It’s a reflex by now. It gives my hands something to do without thinking about the thing I do. In that moment the story has a chance to approach me in a new way. Because I didn’t step away from my desk, I am ready to write whatever comes up. If I stepped farther away, stuff gets stuck in my head and by the time I am back at my desk it might be too late to get it out.
On writing communities …
I'm a member of several writing groups. One meets every morning to write for three hours in silence. Another one meets every other Saturday to read each other's work and give feedback. But the most vital community for me are the Naked Angels, NYC. They meet in person for cold readings of works in progress on Tuesdays@9. I love this group of writers and actors. As a writer I get to submit new pages every Tuesday. That's a great deadline to have. The live reading is an invaluable experience on many levels. Hearing my words spoken by actors tells me where I failed to express myself. I started having fun cutting down my words because this clears out excess and brings the essence of my writing into focus.
On challenges …
Writing is a daily struggle. That struggle is twofold. First I have to win the battle to sit down and write. That's unpleasant because that entire time feels wasted. And a feeling of guilt builds. Then comes the labor to express the thoughts in my head and the feelings in my body. That's what writing is all about. I enjoy this effort, a conversation I have with myself.
Once I've overcome the hurdles set up in the world around me, there are more challenges to conquer as I write. To make space for me to write is a mental practice in acceptance. Let's face it, my sudden need to get up and make coffee is my writer's brain looking for an escape. Fleeing from that uncomfortable thought that darkened my mood. Avoidance, denial, distraction, it doesn't matter what I call it, in the end a writer will take any excuse not to write.
I have to create that mental space where it is okay to write. To be confident that writing is not a waste of my time and not something I need to make excuses for. Whenever my young daughter had an idea, she jumped away from the kitchen table where we just sat down to eat. As a writer I know how precious this moment is. I regret the moments when I did not honor my ideas. When I did not take the time to capture that fleeting thought. We need to allow ourselves to write. We need to learn that to express ourselves is our right.
On the best writing advice …
Slow down where it hurts. Become aware of superficial writing, of clichés that stay on the surface. Be specific and dig deeper into the details of your story. It's in the details I tend to rush through or brush over where the gold is. There lies the reason why this story matters to me and I have to unearth it for the reader. Readers want juicy details and hard-won insights.
On the worst writing advice …
The worst advice I heard was "Only write if you have something to say." It took me a long time to get over this demand and to accept that I am a writer. This "advice" is no inspiration for any writer setting out to work. Advice like this stifles creativity by putting the carriage before the horse. It makes a writer doubt that they have something to say before they have written even a single word. Starting out as a writer, all you have to do is write. The rest will come in the process.
On advice from personal experiences …
If you don't like to eat the crust of your pizza, what do you eat first? Do you eat the middle first because that's the best part and you want to enjoy it while it's still hot? Or do you eat the crust first so you can finish with what you like best? Recently, I realized that I seem to do the latter more often than is good for me or my writing. I do the day-to-day stuff first to have it out of the way. Then I disconnect from any outside demands and immerse in my story world.
But what is right for you? Do you write first because that's most important to you? Of course, our choice depends on how many balls we juggle and how we feel about one of the balls dropping. Some balls we can't allow to drop: children, rent, health .... Still, we have to learn to carve out time to write. It doesn't take longer than five minutes to write down an idea. That creative moment will tide us over until the job is done or the kids are in bed.
Writers, like all humans, express themselves given their circumstances. Writing is one way I express myself. My advice: Trust your own story. Drop any excuse not to write. If you hear a voice that says, your story doesn't matter, remind yourself, that this is an excuse not to do the work. Too many women give in to this voice. We don't hear enough from women because we were told to eat the crust first. Our stories have been silenced for too long. If the story you carry inside of you wants to get out, start writing. I want to read more stories from women.
Michaela’s online spaces …
Spring Group Book Coaching
I still have a few spaces open for the Spring Group Book Coaching sessions starting on April 8. If you have a story idea or need to refocus on a work-in-progress, join a small group of writers for support, encouragement, deadlines, and feedback. Learn more here or email me to apply.
Are you getting ready to query? If so, download my free “20 Essential Querying Steps” checklist. Happy querying!
Attention teachers!
If you’re a teacher, I have something special just for you. Download a free copy of my workbook, Beyond the Blackboard: Empowering Teachers to Write Fiction. You have all the skills you need to learn how to write that book already.
Happy writing!
Women Writing is a weekly newsletter featuring women who are doing the difficult work of writing. If you enjoyed reading the newsletter, please share it with a fellow writer. Let’s inspire each other!
Great post Michaela!