Book Coach for MG and YA Novelists
You have big writing ambitions
Perhaps you’ve earned an MFA in writing for children and young adults and/or published a novel or two (or more). You’ve invested in your talent, your skill, and your dreams. And yet it’s still so hard. I hear you.
One way to ease that burden is to stop believing you have to do it all by yourself. Professional athletes have coaches, why not professional writers?
A book coach, someone trained in giving honest, empathetic, actionable feedback, can help you achieve your writing goals.
How can a book coach help you?
Get your novel unstuck.
It can be so hard to see your own work clearly and objectively, especially if you feel like you’re mired in a deep rut. As a result of our work together, you’ll be able to
see what’s working and what’s not
find solutions to your specific story problems
feel accountable and confident as you make progress toward your goals
talk with me on a regular basis to discuss ideas, feedback
Think deeply about your why.
As a novelist, you have something to say about human beings and the state of the world. I can help you dig into what you have to say and why. Why this story, this character, this place, this problem, this fill-in-the-blank that’s meaningful to you.
It’s hard work, but it’s worth it. And it’s valuable whether you’re starting a novel from scratch or working on a revision. Because a novel that’s aligned with your why and has a meaningful point to make is going to resonate with readers.
Market your work.
As your book coach, I will help you become more market aware so that you can present your work in the most compelling way possible to agents and editors. I will not advise you to write to the trend du jour.
Knowing where your book would fit on the shelves of a bookstore can help you at the query stage, but also at the earliest planning and drafting stages.
What it’s like to work with me
Tanja Bauerle is a picture book writer/illustrator who’d been working on a middle-grade historical novel. She had a big chunk of it drafted and had received encouraging feedback from an agent about it. The agent loved the idea but felt the story’s voice was too distant. She wanted Tanja to bring the narrative in closer to the protagonist.
I suggested Tanja try journaling from her protagonist’s point of view and also an important secondary character’s POV. I wanted her to really get inside of these characters’ heads and hear their voices more clearly and feel their feelings. Tanja hadn’t tried first person before, but she was game.
Here’s what Tanja had to say about the experience:
“I really enjoyed journaling. I was surprised at what came out of that—a sense of humor! [Journaling] is really helpful. … I’m excited. I feel I’m on the right track. I would keep you on a regular retainer if I could.”
“I cannot thank you enough for the help you’ve given me in restarting my work on my novel. I had been so stuck and confused by the conflicting advice I’d received from critique groups and writing instructors that I was ready to give up. Finding you was like being thrown a life-life and I now believe I can make this happen.”
— Andrea Leigh Ptak
“When the query I’d thought was great didn’t get results, I turned to Michele and was blown away by her fabulous insights. She pointed out a number of spots that needed improvement, and with her guidance my synopsis and pitch went from okay to excellent. Thank you so much, Michele! I’ve returned to querying with a newfound sense of confidence and hope.”
My book coaching credentials
I’m an Author Accelerator certified book coach in fiction, which I earned in 2021.
I earned my MFA in writing for children and young adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2008, where my advisers included Rita Williams-Garcia, Uma Krishnaswami, Margaret Bechard, and Ellen Howard—all fabulous writers, teachers, and role models.
I have 20 years of experience working with writers both as a college English teacher and as an editor. My feedback is kind, honest, and helpful.
My particular strengths and interests
Plot and story structure are pieces I’m especially good at helping writers with. So if structure or plot are things you struggle with, we may be a good fit.
Whether you’re writing contemporary, historical, fantasy, science fiction, or mystery, if it’s for middle grade readers, I’d love to help.
If young adult fiction is your focus, I can help best with suspense/thriller/mystery, low fantasy, and historical novels.
My history with mysteries
When I was 9, an aunt gave me several of her Nancy Drew mysteries, the original ones, which were first published in the 1930s. I became hooked on mysteries and have read nearly every kind.
I’ve also studied them. For my MA in English literature at Iowa State University, I did my thesis on female detective fiction, focusing on work by Sara Paretsky, Linda Barnes, and Sue Grafton. Paretsky’s V.I. Warshawski character was my favorite.
Years later, for my MFA critical thesis, I wrote about children’s detective fiction, again focusing on female characters. I called it “Under the Magnifying Glass: The Making of Literary, Girl-Detective Fiction.”