Book Coaching Services

Hi there. I’m Michelle Richmond, longtime writing teacher and the author of eight books of fiction. I offer book coaching services to a limited number of writers each year. When you hire me as your book coach, I will help you find your voice and hone your vision for your novel or memoir. Here are a few of the things I can help you accomplish:

• refine your idea
• structure your story
• find your book’s true beginning
• start a new novel or memoir
• complete an unfinished manuscript
• work through writer’s block
• untangle a confusing plot
• create urgency in a lackluster plot
• improve and vary the pacing
• improve the flow of dialogue
• add complexity to characters
• clarify character motivation
• focus the theme of your novel or memoir
• define the best comps for your manuscript
• write a compelling query letter

How Book Coaching Can Help You Succeed

Whether you want to start a new book, work through challenges in a book-in-progress, or finally finish the novel or memoir you started some time I ago, I can help you meet your goals.

I have been writing and publishing for more than twenty years. I know what it’s like to struggle through a novel. I understand the challenges you face when you begin a new book or try to finish a work-in-progress. I also understand the value of persistence.

Writing and Publishing Track Record

I began my writing career with a story collection published by a university press. After publishing my first novel with a small literary publisher in San Francisco, I signed on with a literary agent. Since we began working together, my agent has negotiated contracts for five books with Penguin Random House and two books with Grove Atlantic. She has also worked with foreign and film agents to sell my books in 31 languages and to have my novels optioned repeatedly for film and television. I bring to book coaching a track record of publishing success in multiple genres and a long-term understanding of the industry.

Teaching Experience

I taught creative writing at the university level for more than a decade, working with dozens of graduate students on their novels and short stories. I have taught in the Masters of Fine Arts programs in Creative Writing at The University of San Francisoco, California College of the Arts, St. Mary’s College of Moraga, and Bowling Green State University.

I have also designed and taught courses in the art and craft of the novel for  Stanford Continuing Studies. In the last few years I’ve had the opportunity to develop my own online writing school and the flagship program Novel in Nine, which helps writers complete their novel or memoir in nine months.

In addition to a strong foundation in narrative craft, I have a passionate desire to make every book I work on the best it can be. My goal is to help you stay true to your creative vision, while helping you make choices that will propel your story forward and keep the reader turning pages. I work with only one client at a time in order to ensure that each writer gets my full attention.

I offer transparent rates based on manuscript length. See 2023 book coaching rates and book your session.

New for 2023: Group coaching sessions for writing groups

Michelle Richmond