I help writers finish their novels and books. And enjoy the process more too!

Why did I become a writing coach?

My journey to writing coach had its genesis in my own massive, paralyzing writer’s block and fear of writing.

At age 13, with the help of my English teacher Miss Thomas at Orara High School, Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia, I discovered I was a writer.

It appeared I was the only one in class who enjoyed the first creative writing assignment Miss Thomas gave us. I wrote an epic sci-fi tale featuring a character called Trudy Renfrew who was having problems with aliens.

I was so excited about my story I even worked on it in the car during a road trip with my family.

Even though I had early encouragement from my father and Miss Thomas, it wasn’t enough to sustain me over the years. Like many budding writers, I only practiced the craft on and off. I did, however, manage to finish the first draft of my second novel by age 28. That was after an aborted attempt to write my first novel at age 19.

Perhaps I could have developed sooner just by writing a lot. However, starting at age 19, I discovered the perils of sharing your first draft too soon. Over the years I received many ill-conceived critiques from people who didn’t know what they were talking about.

For instance, my mother read the early chapters of my sci-fi novel (courageously banged out on a manual typewriter at age 19) and said “That could never happen.”

She meant well. Probably trying to protect me from failure. But my mother was an avid reader of mysteries. She didn’t “get” the sci-fi genre. In a way, her critique actually showed I was on the right track. After all, the dystopia sub-genre of sci-fi I was writing in was not about her accepted reality. However, her response crushed me and I gave up.

(I guess I was hoping my mother would be thrilled I was writing a novel at such a tender age. However, family does not always = encouragement.)

This pattern was repeated often over the years, with everyone from my mother-in-law to other writers. Eventually I was sick in spirit with a deadly case of fear of writing.

To heal myself, I wrote a book called Fear of Writing: putting the fun back into writing. My book was published when I was 40.

Having a book to promote can either bury you or push you to develop yourself. I was a loner and a hermit, so this was scary stuff. But the passion to find readers for my book (and closet writers to try my method!) pushed me to develop in ways I never would have otherwise.

Among my many adventures in book promotion, I hosted a chatroom for writers and offered a one-day workshop called the Fear of Writing Clinic. In Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico, (as well as Spring Branch, Texas) I ran weekly writing circles using my book and method.

In 2001, with the curriculum design help of my writing colleague J.R. Turner, I started the Fear of Writing Online Course. The course is still open and available for enrollment.

In 2007, one of my graduating students emailed me this appeal: “Milli, I don’t want to go back out into the world alone. I need your continued help and support with writing. Will you be my writing coach?”

And that’s how my coaching service was born, first known as Writer’s Muse Coaching.

I became a fiction writing mentor. Everything from children’s stories—here’s Dandelion Wishes by my client Cheri Wood—to short stories to screenplays and TV pilots. I’m a novel writing mentor. Here’s a novel that I helped author Judith Shaw with from start to finish, entitled Charley’s Horse. I’m an online writing mentor in case you can’t find a writing coach near you. I also help those who want to write nonfiction books.

I’m still a passionate writing coach to this day. (And, by the way, my fear of writing was cured long ago by using my own methods.)

Thank you for visiting. I hope I can help you become a happier writer!

— Milli Thornton