Writing Services

Let’s build your story!

You have an idea, but it’s still a little cloudy. A Book Coach helps you clear up the problems in your story so you can see the mountain from the mist. The process is not easy, but it is completely worth the time and energy. Please note that writing services is not the same as developmental editing. Developmental editing evaluates a full manuscript while writing services start with the concept. Below are some of the writing elements we will work on throughout the process.

Plot

Plot is trickier than most think. Yes, plot is the actions and events that occur, but it is also so much more. There must be a purpose for each scene to move your story forward. You must make the stakes evident and worthy of your characters.

Pacing

Are you resolving a plot point too quickly? A little resolution in the middle is fine. Just take care to keep that resolution small.

Setting

Most everyone has attended or even participated in a play. Special effects aren’t possible the way they are in movies. Instead, you have to use your imagination to fill in the blanks. Actors can sit on chairs gripping an imaginary steering wheel, and you will automatically know they are driving in a car. Is that visual setting acceptable in movies? Not a chance.

The same goes with novels. Your readers don’t want to read a book where the characters are acting in a vacuum. They need details to fill out the world you have painstakingly built. Reminding the reader regularly allows your reader to immerse themselves in a way only you can facilitate.

Characterization

You can’t have a story without characters. Are yours realistic enough that your readers will believe in their actions, reactions, or thinking patterns? Tackling characterization means bringing your characters up to a higher level. You want your readers to be invested in your characters, or they will lose interest and stop reading.