mentor

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How Are You Setting Up Your Writing Success?

Take a moment, right now, and ask yourself:

How am I setting myself up for writing success?

If you’re like most of the authors I work with, that answer is going to surprise you. Authors fall into two camps:

I’m so organized my PAPERCLIPS are alphabetized. (And I don’t write because I’m afraid of messing it up!)

OR

My piles make sense… to me. And if you need something, I just need to shift four piles to get it. (And I don’t write because the clutter is actually out of control BUT I neither want to admit that NOR deal with it!)

By the way, I fall FIRMLY in category two. I have been cleaning my office lately but to anyone else’s eyes, it’s still a disaster.

Now, no matter which extreme end of the organizing continuum you fall on, one thing remains:

How are you setting yourself up for writing success?

Because it’s so EASY to just focus on the STUFF. The neat office. The pretty mug full of perfectly sharpened pencils. The exact right journal. The software. The comfy chair. The perfect temperature cup of coffee.

But are these outside things REALLY helping you write?

Probably not. Because writing is so much more than the writing space. It’s more than the computer or journal or perfect pen.

So where do you fall in these categories?

Writing mentorship
Are you STUDYING writing? Or are you just sticking words on the page and HOPING it gets your message across?

Feedback
Who is reading your stuff? Is it someone who KNOWS how to write a book or just someone who knows how to hunt down commas? Or worse – is it someone who blows smoke and tells you how wonderful your writing is? (Positive encouragement is SUPER important – but it won’t point out your weaknesses!)

Community
Who do you know who is also writing a book? Who is serious about it?

Investment
Where are you investing your money in your writing? While writing may be the cheapest of all the arts (you don’t need expensive paints or a pricy instrument) that doesn’t mean that it is actually FREE. What events are you attending? (And yes, a paid event IS going to offer better content than a free event!)

Writing time
Are you ACTUALLY writing? Or is it just lip service?

Guess what? You get all this AND MORE when you join me for the live-but-virtual three-day event, “Brew Your Book: Stop ‘Percolating’ on Your Message and FINALLY Write Your Book” happening September 21-23.

Register Here

Keep Reading!

You Don’t Have to Be the Expert

100% of my clients write their books to help people (i.e. their readers). 100% of my clients write their books to share their message with the world. A fair number of my clients ALSO write their books to grow their business – including as being seen as an expert in their field.

Which is great!

Until it isn’t…

Because there’s a huge difference between being an expert and having all the answers.

Today, I had a lovely call with one of my favorite clients. And I didn’t have all the answers. Her book is “done” – as in it’s fully written. AND there’s something wrong with the structure. She can see it, I can see it.

What I can’t see is exactly WHAT needs to be done. I know what isn’t working – and why. But what I can’t offer is what I really wanted to:

Move this here
Beef up this transition
Add this story

I wanted the next step to be clear and easy. I wanted to BE that expert saying, “Yep, it’s not working but just do THIS and it will.”

And with much of my coaching, I CAN do that. Give a clear path to my authors.

But not always.

Keep Reading!

5 Indicators You’re Ready for A Writing Mentor

In the first 90 days of 2020, I’ve had Discovery Sessions with lots of authors. They all have two things in common:

  1. They are passionate about their message – and the world needs this message Right Now.
  2. They need help, mentorship, guidance, and support to get to the next step in the process.

(Now, you KNOW I have my soapbox about the importance of your message so there is one thing I have to tell you:

No, not EVERY author I speak to is writing a message-driven book. A few are looking no further than “credibility” or “expertise”. There’s no passion there. And no, not someone I take on as a client!)

But these authors – without exception – have a message that is ready to move out into the world.

The other thing these authors recognized is that they’ve gone as far as they can – by themselves. There are questions unanswered (What comes next? Am I being boring? Is this the right place for this story/this teaching? How do I publish? What will it take to be a best-seller?) that they’re seeking out help to find the answers.

There’s a deep strength in realizing that you aren’t infallible. That you don’t have all the answers. That no matter how much research you do on your own, nothing is a substitute for guidance from someone who not only has walked that path with her own books (21, to be exact) but who has also guided others through the same proven system.

So how do you know if you [insert your name here] is ready for mentorship? Here are five key indicators.

1. You’re sick and tired of being stuck, frustrated, and searching for next steps.

As humans we KNOW that help is always available – once you ask for it. And we also have a stubbornness that keeps us from humbling ourselves and asking for it.

(Come on, you KNOW that’s true!)

At some point, you reach a point where you’re at the end of your rope – and you’re still 15 feet above the ground. The only options LEFT to you are A.) quit or B.) get help.

Please, please, don’t quit.

2. You’re coachable and ready to listen – and do!

No one mentor has all the answers – not me and not any other coach, mentor, or expert. But I have MORE knowledge about books and all their steps than you do. So why on Earth would you ask for help and then not be ready to listen and take actions?

(Remember what I said about being stubborn?)

It’s humbling to ask for the help and then (sometimes this HURTS) to listen and accept the advice when it’s given. You’re ready for mentorship if you can listen with an open mind, ask questions for deeper understanding, and willing to do the work.

3. The idea of facing another birthday, anniversary, New Years without having your book done is abhorrent to you.

MORE than abhorrent, you can’t stand to look at yourself with yet another broken promise. It’s harsh, it hurts, and it’s REAL.

You have that precious message inside – and you’re kidding yourself if you say that you’ve been a good steward of it. You recognize that you’ve been waiting, putting off, and letting it slip away while you’ve been doing…

What exactly?

You’re ready for mentorship if you’re really ready to DO THE THING. Now. No more waiting. Keep Reading!

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It *Might* Be Time to Throw Out Your Writing…

When I was a kid, I took several semesters of art classes at the local community college. These classes were for retired folks and the occasional homeschooled kid. (That was me; homeschooled in eighth grade.)

There was this gentleman, let’s call him, George, who took this class, semester after semester, year after year. He loved painting and over the years had drastically improved his skills.

At least once per semester, George would set up his easel and out would come … the brown horse. It was a large painting of a brown horse in a field of green.

And it was terrible.

You could barely tell it was a horse! The colors were muddy, the lines were uneven, the shading and tones of the paint … you get the picture. (Now, remember, George actually was a skilled artist. By this time, he’d started displaying and selling his works in local cafes.)

No matter what George tried, that brown horse was unfixable. There just wasn’t enough paint in the world – or an artist skilled enough – to make it look anything other than what it was: a crappy painting.

Then, one fateful blustery afternoon in early March—the kind of afternoon that makes you feel like you’ll never be properly warm again—our art instructor, Joanna, pondered George’s painting. She’d been watching him struggle with this painting for several weeks (in this semester). With a hand wrapped around her chin, she finally said,

Keep Reading!

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How Do You Know You’re Ready for Help?

In the last week, I’ve spoken to five authors about their books. They’re all in different phases of writing, editing, publishing, and launching, but they all have two things in common:

  1. They are passionate about their message – and the world needs this message Right Now.
  2. They need help, mentorship, guidance, and support to get to the next step in the process.

(Now, you KNOW I have my soapbox about the importance of your message so there is one thing I have to tell you:

No, not EVERY author I speak to is writing a message-driven book. A few are looking no further than “credibility” or “expertise”. There’s no passion there. And no, not someone I take on as a client!)

But these five authors – without exception – have a message that is ready to move out into the world.

The other thing these authors recognized is that they’ve gone as far as they can – by themselves. There are questions unanswered (What comes next? Am I being boring? Is this the right place for this story/this teaching? How do I publish? What will it take to be a best-seller?) that they’re seeking out help to find the answers.

There’s a deep strength in realizing that you aren’t infallible. That you don’t have all the answers. That no matter how much research you do on your own, nothing is a substitute for guidance from someone who not only has walked that path with her own books (20, to be exact) but who has also guided others through the same proven system.

Five Key Indicators that you're ready to hire a mentor. Click To Tweet
So how do you know if you [insert your name here] is ready for mentorship? Here are five key indicators.

1. You’re sick and tired of being stuck, frustrated, and searching for next steps.

As humans we KNOW that help is always available – once you ask for it. And we also have a stubbornness that keeps us from humbling ourselves and asking for it.

(Come on, you KNOW that’s true!)

At some point, you reach a point where you’re at the end of your rope – and you’re still 15 feet above the ground. The only options LEFT to you are A.) quit or B.) get help.

Please, please, don’t quit. You’re ready for mentorship when quitting isn’t an option.

2. You’re coachable and ready to listen – and do!

No one mentor has all the answers – not me and not any other coach, mentor, or expert. But I have MORE knowledge about books and all their steps than you do. So why on Earth would you ask for help and then not be ready to listen and take actions?

(Remember what I said about being stubborn?)

It’s humbling to ask for the help and then (sometimes this HURTS) to listen and accept the advice when it’s given. You’re ready for mentorship if you can listen with an open mind, ask questions for deeper understanding, and willing to do the work.

Keep Reading!

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Video – Do You Need a Mentor to Help with Your Book?

Have you ever wondered if NOW is the right time to find a mentor to help you with your book? I know that just answering that question can be overwhelming – let alone knowing what working with a mentor would look like!

Here’s a quick video where I share how I personally know when I’m ready to take that leap – and how you can check in with yourself to decide if it’s the right time for you too.


And if you’re ready, here’s a link to apply for a Writing Adventure Discovery Session. It’s free!

To watch move videos like this, please subscribe to my YouTube channel.