COACHING FOR CREATIVE WRITERS
Do you have a story to tell? Do you have questions about how to find an agent or a publisher or about how writers make a living? Are you ready to finish a project or start a new one? Are you stuck? Are you struggling with structure? With editing? With making time to write?
I work with writers in all genres – from published writers to grocery list writers, from novice to advanced, from academics to novelists to memoirists and everything in between. I can help you find your voice and make time for the work that matters to you.
Your personalized coaching sessions are designed to build your writer’s toolbox and revitalize your creative practice. I’ll also help you clear out the gunk that keeps you from putting writing at the center of your life.
Don’t delay. The world needs your writing.
“I had a dream about writing and publishing a book seven years ago, but it took finding Sarah Sentilles to make it happen. Hiring Sarah as my coach has been the single best use of my resources and time as a writer. She has pushed me to understand and be able to write the story I wanted to tell. Sarah gives honest feedback, provides structure, offers spot on insight, and pushes her clients to think bigger and write better. Her expertise as a first reader, editor, story whisperer, and mentor have been invaluable. She cares and genuinely challenges her clients to achieve their best work. I’m beyond grateful to have found Sarah and will use her for every book I intend to write. Thank you, Sarah!”
“Working with Sarah Sentilles on a recent book project was —hands down—the best investment I have made in my professional growth. Across the planning, composition, revision, and editing stages of the writing process, Sarah provided me with valuable insight, thoughtful critique, and fresh ideas for conceptualizing my project in a new light. In large part, I credit my project’s expedited review process to Sarah’s gifted mentorship.”
COACHING FOR ACADEMICS
I read theory for fun. But let’s face it: most people don’t. Academic writing can be powerful and illuminating, but it can also be soul sucking and impenetrable. Dry. Boring. Dense. Jargon-filled. You’ve spent decades studying a specialized subject. Don’t you want people to know why it matters? Yes, you need to write peer-reviewed journal articles to build up that CV, but you can also take your careful, nuanced, expert thinking and write essays for publications that reach a wider audience.
I know how to help you do both. I’ve written a dissertation and published academic journal articles – and I’ve also written four trade books and essays in places like The New Yorker and CNN and Ms. Based on my dissertation research, my latest book was featured in Oprah’s O Magazine. The transition from academic to trade writing is not easy. But sharing your ideas with wider audiences and contributing to public conversations will help you remember why you do what you do. Ideas make a difference. Thinking matters.
I taught at universities for ten years, and I edited an academic journal for three. I’m familiar with the pressures of an academic schedule, how teaching and committee work and service can fill every hour of every day. I know well the habit of giving away your time to other people’s needs and priorities. If you want to write, if it’s important to you, then you need to protect time to write. I can help you establish routines that sustain and center your creative work.
From figuring out structure to translating research into clear and compelling prose, from finishing dissertations to preparing a manuscript for publication – I work with academics in all stages of the writing process, on all kinds of projects.