If you read my last post, you’ll remember that one of the things I think is most critical to writing a successful novel is planning–and part of that is knowing your ‘why’? (You can download a free guide complete with exercises to help you figure that out if you sign up for my newsletter!)

And so I thought it would be appropriate to talk about some of my why’s: how knowing why I wanted to write my novel helped me take it to the next level and why book coaching felt like such a good fit for me.

Knowing the Novel Why

I came to book coaching thinking that I’d use what I learned on my own writing. My novel wasn’t yet what I wanted it to be but I wasn’t sure how to transform it from ‘shitty first draft’ to something that was worthy of precious bookshelf space. While there were some scenes that illustrated a clear cause-and-effect trajectory, there were many more whose connections could be summarized with the dreaded “and then this happened…” 

My first trusted readers had kind words and it was good to hear them but it was clear that no one had suffered late nights and lost sleep because they had to know what happened next.

As part of diagnosing the problem, I looked to a tool from the book coaching course: the Blueprint for a Book. The very first question that it asks is, “Why Write This Book?” As Jennie Nash says, “If you can articulate that, it will give your story all kinds of power. Your readers will be able to feel the why.”

Aha! It was a lightbulb moment. I understood why, as precious as the behemoth first draft of my own novel was, it just didn’t work the way it should. More importantly, I understood how I could fix it.

Digging Deep

Since that time, I’ve generated pages on why I want to write this specific book, what it was that drew me to the story in the first place, why it resonates with me, why I think other people will find it interesting and relevant to today (even though it is set at the turn of the eighteenth century). 

I won’t lie—this can be tough stuff. In those ‘why’ pages, I wrote about things that I have probably only ever said aloud to my therapist. There were tears and no small amount of anxiety. But it also felt powerful and freeing to acknowledge these things that I care about deeply. If I can translate some of that into my narrative, I will have succeeded.

And when I find myself struggling with a story question or trying to evaluate whether something has earned its place within the narrative, I can go back to my answer to “Why?” as a touchstone. Is this scene serving to illustrate something important about what I want to say? No? Then it needs to evolve or disappear. 

The ‘why’ is a critical piece of the framework with which to evaluate the manuscript—especially useful when you have to cut (a lot)! And you don’t have to write page after page (though it can be cathartic). Being able to boil your ‘why’ down to a sentence or two can help you by serving as your novel’s mission statement and can help you frame your eventual elevator pitch.

Have I convinced you yet? Even if you’re still on the fence, grab my “Know Your Why” worksheets and give it a shot! 

Why I Became a Book Coach

As I worked through the coaching course, I found that what I was learning was not only transforming how I thought about and applied the lessons to my own work but also the feedback that I was giving to my fellow writers in workshop classes and in my writing group. 

Explaining why I thought something was working or not, being able to pinpoint gaps in plot or character arc, evaluating a story from a holistic level but also on a chapter, scene, or page level: all of these things became easier and more distinct. I’ve read so much over the years that on some level finding story problems is instinctive but now I have the means to more deeply understand how and why story works, and know better how to convey that to my fellow writers. 

Love a Workshop But…

I’m fortunate to have not experienced a bad writing workshop but like all of us, I’ve heard the horror stories and have clients who are still recovering and re-finding their voices after harsh critique or unnecessarily personal comments. 

As part of the certification process, I had the opportunity to practice my coaching skills on people from previous workshop classes and the experience was transformative. Even in less time (regular coaching calls are usually anywhere from 30-60 minutes as opposed to a 3 hour workshop), we were able to cover more ground. 

• We could dig more deeply into problem areas and generate solutions that felt organic to the writer and the story they wanted to tell. 

• We talked not only about the work itself, but what was going well (or not) with the practice of writing. 

• The writer had more opportunity to ask specific questions and brainstorm out loud. 

• Each session ended with some clear, actionable steps for the writer to take to move the work forward.

This has continued as I’ve started my coaching practice and worked with clients. Writers have gained clarity, had their own lightbulb moments, and gone from feeling confused and stuck to generating more pages than will fit in their deadlines. Some have complete first drafts that have the solid foundations of many revisions.

Support and Community

As an almost-off-the-charts introvert, writing and coaching have given me something else that is precious: a community of people who care deeply about the same things that I do; books, reading, writing, elevating less-heard voices, encouraging and nurturing creativity. Sure, writing is essentially a solitary activity but having the support of those who are going through the same things is crucial.

I am thrilled that I get to do this thing that I love–talk about writing and books with people who love them as much as I do–in a professional capacity. I believe that we need more voices, more stories, more opportunities for people to get their creative work into the world, and if I can be a small part of that success for someone, lucky me!!