This month, I’m tackling a topic that I get asked about a lot: what is the difference between a writing coach and a book editor?
Though it seems like they would be doing the same thing, the jobs are very different. For starters, the writing coach’s job is to help you get the book out of your head and on paper, while the editor’s job is to clean up the text and make it publishable.
For this post, I’m going to cover what a writing coach does. For the book editor portion, please check back in two weeks (or read the next post, if it’s past January 2019).
A writing coach can solve a lot of the problems you may have for completing your manuscript. If you’ve never written a book before, and you want the process to be fast and simple, then a writing coach is a great option. From figuring out your outline to fleshing out the book to bashing through writer’s block, if anything is an issue, a writing coach is the person to talk to.
Writing coaches can take a variety of approaches and offer different programs to help you write your book. On the low-touch end of the range, a writing coach can provide accountability. They might help you set goals and meet them by checking in weekly or biweekly. They may also provide periodic phone call or email access to ask questions or bounce ideas around.
On the high-touch end of the spectrum, a writing coach could delve into the book alongside you. They may review the book chapter by chapter and do calls (phone or video) to discuss the chapters. This is how I handle my one-on-one coaching with clients who purchase a package (rather than a one-off session). When I do these calls, I like to review the notes I’ve taken while reading the chapter, including changes that would tighten or redirect the book and additions that would make the book more complete. A lot of my notes tend to be questions I have while reading the text. For example: “How can I do this part myself?” “Should I invest in software, or do you do something simple?” “Is this story important to the narrative? I feel like it’s detracting from what you were explaining.” And so on.
The biggest benefits of having a writing coach include having someone work alongside you who has been through the book process before and having an outsider look at your book. The toughest part of writing a book, even if it isn’t your first, is that you know what you mean to say. But the reader may not. When you work with a writing coach, you have someone looking for holes in your explanation. You have someone looking for ways you can be more thorough, direct, and impactful.
And, if you need a cheerleader, you have that too. A writing coach gets you to the finish line and celebrates every win along the way, especially the big publishing one!
When I coach a client, I also provide them with assistance on every part of the book process: publishing advice (self or traditional), book cover, editing, starting marketing, and anything else they have questions about. I provide handouts on these topics so we don’t spend valuable coaching time on them unless the client has specific questions, doesn’t know how to set up their Ingram account, etc.
Is a coach right for you? Consider these questions to help you decide:
Do you struggle with working steadily to meet deadlines?
Do you have a great book idea but don’t really know what all the chapters should or shouldn’t cover (you may need a single session for this)?
Do you want reassurance before you finish your book that you are heading in the right direction, making sense, and staying focused on the goal for your book? If you answered “yes” to these, then contact a writing coach (like me!) to discuss your needs. You will be so happy you did it before you sent your book to an editor who returned it with mostly red ink.