I’M ERIN

Writer, developmental editor, and book coach.

A Passion for Story

Like a lot of writers, I started playing with stories as a kid. I launched Spot News, the daily newspaper of record on Jupiter. Wrote a book of myths. Rewrote key scenes from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe so Lucy had a sword instead of a horn.

I followed that passion for stories into a career as a documentary television series producer and scriptwriter. My job: to watch hours of raw footage shot in the field and find the story. Piece it together into a 23-minute story, or even a 6-minute story, depending on the show. Do it again the next week. Over the course of fourteen years, I worked on shows ranging from PBS to HGTV to the Food Network. Taking in the raw material. Finding the heart of the story. Making it shine.

But my first love – fiction – was calling. I dove back into creative writing, publishing several short stories. I began writing my first manuscript.

Then I got stuck. Like, really stuck.

Hitting a Plateau

I had a full draft of my manuscript, but I knew in my heart it wasn’t working. Months, and then years, went by while I rewrote this chapter, that chapter. But I never made any meaningful progress. I was stuck and frustrated.

So I went to grad school to earn my MFA in creative writing. When I sat down with my first advisor, I told her I wanted to learn how to revise. That I knew how to put words on a page and invent characters and string together a plot, but that I didn’t know how to take all those elements and make them work.

I spent the next two years studying the revision process and working through a (finally successful) revision of my manuscript. So many light bulbs went off. And I finally had a manuscript I was proud of. It was an amazing feeling.

Finding My Calling

Grad school is where I first learned about developmental editing. This phase of editing focuses on the big picture. It asks the question, does this story work? And it uses story structure to answer that question.

In many ways, it’s like writing documentary television shows. Take in the raw material. Find the heart of the story. Make it shine.

I realized developmental editing was the work I’d been doing my whole career.

As soon as I finished my MFA program, I set out to become a developmental editor and book coach so I could help writers out of that frustrating ‘stuck’ place. So they could have the same light bulb moments I did and finally have a manuscript they can be proud of.

And because I’m not the sort of person to just hang up a Book Coach sign without some serious preparation, I chose to take the time to learn from the best. I’m proud to be an Author Accelerator-certified book coach, a professional organization dedicated to excellence and integrity in book coaching.

“I reached out to Erin when I completed the first draft of my YA contemporary novel. I’m fortunate to know several talented book coaches, but I was eager to work with Erin because of her attention to craft and her skillful approach to revision. My book is much stronger as a result of her insightful feedback.”
— Sara Gentry

Why Coaching Can Help You Level-Up Your Story and Your Writing Skills

Writing classes and workshops and conferences and craft books are great at introducing us writers to all aspects of craft. How to worldbuild. How to craft believable characters. How to craft sparkling dialogue. How to outline. How to layer in theme. And subplot. And setting.

What they can’t do, is tell you if your specific story is working.

And this is where writers often get stuck.

Revision is a skill that is rarely taught to writers. Because you can’t really capture the heart of revision in the craft book, or teach it in a class. It’s too specific to each manuscript. To throw a twist on Tolstoy, every unhappy book is unhappy in it’s own way.

This is where book coaching comes in. It’s an individualized, hands-on approach that focuses on the key elements of craft – characters, plot, and theme – and how they’re landing on the page in your story, not a theoretical one.

I don’t have any evergreen, self-paced courses. Because that isn’t what you need right now. You need a partner. Someone to wrestle plot problems to the ground with. Someone to brainstorm with. Someone who wants to see you get to The End as much as you do.

With every deadline, you get detailed feedback on your story that will help you see what’s working, what’s not yet working, why, and what to do about it so you can move forward with clarity and confidence.

Think of me as a set of fresh eyes. A super-reader, with nearly 25 years of storytelling experience under my belt and a deep knowledge of what makes stories work.

You don’t have to figure all this out alone. I can help.

The Whole Story Coach Way

My mission: To help writers stand back and see their whole story. To understand what they’ve made, or are in the midst of making. To identify what’s working, and what isn’t, and why. To build an effective revision plan so they can finally bridge the gap between their vision and what’s landing on the page.

And the first step is not a plot outline.

Writing from the Inside Out

Successful stories are written from the inside out. That’s why tips, tricks, and formulas often fail to get writers to The End. Unless you know WHY you are writing this story and what it is you’re trying to say and how your protagonist will be changed by the story - AKA the inner core of your story - you’ll struggle to write a story that works.

So that’s where I start. With you. With your Why. Your vision. Then together, we work outward to your Who (your characters) and to your What (your plot). When you take the time to understand your story at this deep level, you’ll finally be able to weave theme and character and plot together into the story you’ve always dreamed of telling.

“Working with Erin is the single best investment I made for my novel. Erin made the effort to really grasp the larger story I was telling, and guided me through the necessary steps to ‘re-envision’ my novel. Her insightful questions and outside perspective were keys that unlocked all the places I’d been stuck and have allowed me to move into my revision with game-changing clarity and the fresh energy I needed to move forward effectively. I feel so lucky to have Erin in my writing corner!”
— Cindy Giovagnoli

My Background

I’m an Author Accelerator Certified Book Coach, which means I’ve received in-depth training in developmental editing and book coaching from some of the best in the business.

As an Author Accelerator certified book coach, I am dedicated to integrity, kindness, and professionalism in the practice of book coaching.

I earned my MFA in writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University in 2021, where I received the Herman W. Block Award, judged by Kate DiCamillo, for excellence in writing for young people; the T.A. Barron Award for excellence in fantasy writing; and the Francis and Kermit Rudolf Award for excellence in nonfiction writing.

I mentor young writers through the Society of Young Inklings, a non=profit dedicated to helping young artists find their voices and build the skill and confidence to reach their writing goals.

As a contributing writer to the literary magazine Short Fiction Break, I’ve published more than a dozen short stories, including “Blue” which went on to win the Herman. W. Block Award.

I am the Regional Advisor for the Minnesota chapter of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

Where to Find Me

More About Me

I love to travel. I’ve hiked glaciers in New Zealand, scuba dove the Great Barrier Reef, jumped waterfalls in Jamaica. I’ve wandered the back roads of Ireland, gotten lost in the Louvre, zipped around Rome in a golf cart. Eaten strudel in Vienna, and more strudel in Budapest. I’ve stood before stone age wonders, from Stonehenge to Knowth. Strolled through Greek and Roman ruins. I am continuously amazed and delighted by this world I get to live in. And I can’t wait for my next adventure.

It goes without saying that I love to read. It’s impossible to pick favorites, but some of my heroes include Margaret Atwood, Ursula LeGuin, Agatha Christie, Octavia Butler, Daphne DuMaurier, Beverly Cleary, Judy Blume, Phillip Pullman, J.R.R. Tolkien, Madeline L’Engle, Madeline Miller, Pat Barker, Kazuo Ishiguro, V.E. Schwab, Suzanne Collins, Elana K. Arnold, Laura Ruby, N.K. Jemisin, just to name a few. I don’t read a lot of nonfiction, but when I do I love sweeping histories, like those by Dan Jones, Yuval Noah Harari, Kathleen Duval, and those The Dawn of Everything guys.

I love music. Again, impossible to pick favorites. But in heavy rotation at the moment: Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Laufey, Tate McRae, Lady Gaga, the Arcane soundtrack, CHVRCHES, Chappell Roan, MUNA, Brandi Carlile, the Cactus Blossoms, Gillian Welch, Patty Griffin, Paramore, HAIM, Ethel Cain, Paris Paloma, and U2 always, just to name a few. I play piano and guitar and, for some reason, recently got completely hooked on making acoustic arrangements of synth-y 80s pop.

Some of my favorite TV shows: The Bear, Andor, The Handmaid’s Tale, House of the Dragon, The Crown, Stranger Things, The Patriot, Severance, the Gilded Age, the first three seasons of For all Mankind. And so many favorite movies. Where to start?? Movies with sweeping worldbuildiing like Lord of the Rings and Dune, anything that takes place in Britain in the 1800s, all things Christopher Nolan (Interstellar!) and Greta Gerwig (Barbie!), anything with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt (and, yes, I loved Fall Guy), all music biopics, even the bad ones.

I live in St. Paul, Minnesota, with my husband, three kids, and a very nutty mini labradoodle named Ginger.

Ready to work with me?

The first step is to reach out.

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