If you want to improve your writing, nothing beats having a mentor who’s already traveled that road on your side.

Sure, you can learn a lot from online courses, but the immediate feedback you get from a live coach is priceless. 

In the book Peak by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool, the authors discuss how purposeful practice is totally different from just doing the same thing over and over again.

While directionless repetition leads to stagnation, intentionally targeting weak areas to improve them is touted as a guaranteed path to growth. 

21 Nonfiction Book Coaches Ready to Help You

Here is our list of nonfiction book coaches you can contact to help you with your nonfiction project: 

1. Andrea Hurst 

With more than 25 years experience in the publishing industry, Andrea Hurst offers book editing and consulting, as well as literary agent services and publishing support. An Amazon bestselling author herself, she also teaches at the Northwest Institute of Literary Arts MFA Creative Writing Program. Some of the clients she has worked with have appeared on Good Morning America, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Oprah Show, the New York Times, and the National Geographic network.

2. Jerry Jenkins

Jerry Jenkins is a 21-time New York Times bestselling author, best known for his Left Behind series co-authored with Tim LaHaye. Both his fiction and nonfiction works have soared in the bestseller lists, and he is also a favorite writer for biographies of famous icons, including Billy Graham’s memoirs Just As I Am.

3. Jennie Nash 

Jennie Nash is a book coach who works primarily with nonfiction works. She can help you develop your book idea, troubleshoot problem areas, and guide you through making strategic decisions for your book. 

Her passion for writing began back in fourth grade, and she published her first book when she was 25 years old. One of her first “clients” was her friend Lisa Cron, who was teaching with Jennie at UCLA and asked her for guidance. From there, Jennie transitioned away from writing into book coaching, believing she can offer exceptional coaching services to bring other writers’ work out where they can make an impact on others.

4. Debbie Weil

As a book coach, Debbie Weil will help you organize your material into a book by giving you professional encouragement and direction. She also offers help in overcoming obstacles, as well as the regular feedback you need to keep improving your work. She also has her own nonfiction imprint, Voxie Media, in case you want to pursue getting published there. 

Debbie was a journalist for 20 years before she jumped onto the Web bandwagon in the early 1990s. Currently, she hosts The Gap Year Podcast, which she created. Debbie loves spending time with her husband of 47 years, Sam Harrington, and her six grandchildren.

5. Lisa Tener 

Lisa Tener is a book writing coach who will show you how to write your book, from organizing your ideas, all the way to creating a proposal for submitting your manuscript. If you opt to self-publish, she also offers editing services and expert advice. 

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business awarded Lisa the Silver Stevie for “Mentor/Coach of the Year.” She also contributed one chapter to The Creativity Workbook for Coaches and Creatives (edited by Eric Maisel and published by Routledge).

6. Beth Barany 

Award-winning novelist Beth Barany offers “creative coaching for writers.” In addition to the fiction series she has independently published, she also has several nonfiction books under her belt. She can coach you through your nonfiction book, though it seems that her expertise is best-suited to novelists. 

Because Beth herself loves writing fiction, the clients she has worked with feel that she understands where they’re coming from.

7. Suzanne Sherman 

Suzanne Sherman is an author and editor, as well as a 35-year veteran in professional publishing. As a memoir coach and book consultant, she offers feedback on the storyline, pacing, characterizations, voice, dialogue, and other aspects necessary for a great memoir. For other nonfiction genres, she offers her services in all areas of planning, research, and getting started with your book.

She has helped clients get published with Wiley & Sons, Chronicle Books, Ten Speed Press, and other publishers. She has also helped other clients self-publish successfully.

8. Jane Friedman

With over 20 years working in publishing and media, Jane Friedman offers her publishing consultancy services to help you make wise decisions in terms of publishing and strategizing for digital media. Her expertise is on developing business strategy for publishers and authors.

Jane is currently the editor of The Hot Sheet, an industry newsletter targeted to authors. Previously, she also wrote for F+W Media and the Virginia Quarterly Review, and won the Publishing Commentator of the Year, awarded by Digital Book World in 2019. She also collaborated with The Authors Guild to produce The Authors Guild Guide to Self-Publishing. She has been featured by The Washington Post, The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, CBS, PBS, NPR, and the National Press Club, among many other publications.

9. Andi Cumbo-Floyd

Andi Cumbo-Foyd is a writer and editor who used to love creative nonfiction, but has since published YA, as well as a cozy mystery series under a pen name with ACF Bookens. Other than writing, she loves doing cross-stitch and gardening.

As a writing coach, offers her services at a budget-friendly rate. You can get a manuscript review from her for feedback on your book’s big picture before finding a comprehensive editor. 

10. Athena Dixon 

Poet, essayist, writer and editor Athena Dixon is the founder of Linden Avenue Literary Journal. Holding an MFA in Creative Writing from Queens University of Charlotte, her writings have been published both in print and online, such as Blackberry: A Magazine, Compose Journal, The Grief Diaries, Narratively, The Rising Phoenix Review, THIS Magazine, Pluck!, and OVS Magazine, among others.

She offers manuscript consultations, which include personal video coaching sessions. 

11. Susan DeFreitas

Having gone to a politically-active college, Susan DeFreitas has a passion for changing culture one book at a time. Since then, she has published a novel entitled Hot Season, awarded the Gold IPPY Award, and also had her work featured in the Huffington Post, Story Magazine, the Writer’s Chronicle, High Desert Journal, Portland Monthly, and Daily Science Fiction, among other anthologies and journals.

Throughout the year, she divides her time between Portland, New Mexico, and Santa Fe, serving as a freelance editor and book coach since 2009. She offers coaching for writers, with a special interest in writers who come from historically marginalized backgrounds, or projects aimed at disrupting the narrative of white supremacy and capitalism. 

12. Lisa Cooper Ellison 

Writer, editor, and book coach Lisa Cooper Ellison offers seminars, classes, and private coaching services to help you propel your nonfiction book toward bestseller status. Her background in Clinical Mental Health Counseling makes her a great choice for those who wish to write memoirs or creative nonfiction. 

Over the years, she has published her writings in international and national publications such as the Huffington Post, The Guardian, and Kenyon Review Online. She has also helped her clients get published in places such as The Hill, Word Riot, and USA Today.

13. Jacqui Lofthouse

Founder of The Writing Coach, London-based Jacqui Lofthouse took up MA in Creative Writing at UEA, and had her first novel, The Temple of Hymen, published by Penguin. She has since written three other novels and is a qualified life coach. She has also taught creative writing and offers coaching services, including professional career development for writers, feedback on any existing work, and coaching in scheduling and time management, among others.

She is married to cartoonist David Lewis and has two adult children.

14. Stephanie Zia 

An editor at Blackbird Digital Books, Stephanie Zia works with fiction and nonfiction projects. She is also the author of self-published ebooks and has worked with many authors in becoming successful ebook and print-on-demand self-publishers. 

Throughout her life, she has worked with the Guardian and the BBC, and also published two commercial fiction novels with Piatkus, and two nonfiction books with Hamlyn. She has been a regular columnist for five years at the Space Solves page of The Guardian Weekend Magazine.

15. Lori Kozlowski 

Founder of the storytelling company and content studio More Light Media, Lori Kozlowski offers her expertise in helping hundreds of authors express what they want to say to bring stories to life. She holds an MFA from USC, and earned her bachelor’s degree from the Claremont Colleges in California.

She has gained experience working with Entrepreneur Magazine, MIT Media Lab Startups, Forbes, Los Angeles Times, Atom Factory, and in 2019, Shondaland, the award-winning production company founded by Shonda Rhimes.

16. Amy Friedman 

With over 25 years’ experience in the field of writing and publishing, writer and developmental editor Amy Friedman is an author and teacher of creative writing. Her books include Nothing Sacred: A Conversation with Feminism, Kick the Dog and Shoot the Cat, and Desperado’s Wife: A Memoir. She also ghostwrites and edits, and has her works appearing in many newspapers, anthologies, and magazines.

She offers her mentoring and coaching services while living in Los Angeles with her husband, writer and teacher Dennis Danziger.

17. Monica Faulkner 

Los Angeles based editor, publishing consultant, and writing coach Monica Faulkner aims to help you reach your full potential as a writer. She believes in working towards developing your career as an author, rather than just focusing on a single book.

She has co-authored the book The Ideal Entrepreneurial Business for You, published by Wiley, and also speaks in numerous writing conferences, including the International Women Writers Guild (IWWG), the Santa Barbara Writers Conference, the SouthWest Writers Conference, the Pasadena City College Writers Forum, Independent Writers of Southern California (IWOSC), and the LA Writers Conference. As a coach, she has worked with fiction writers, nonfiction writers, screenwriters, publishers, agents, and writers who want to self-publish.

18. Deborah A. Lott, MFA

Deborah A. Lott has a special interest in mental health, childhood, psychology, psychiatry, and medicine. She’s an Advisory Board member of AdvocateWeb and was the former chair of  Healthwriters Caucus, Independent Writers of Southern California (IWOSC).

For two decades, she has helped authors plan, develop, write, refine, and publish their work. Her editorial background with Prentice-Hall and other publishing houses gives her insight into both the large and small press environments. You may contact her through her e-mail at [email protected]

19. Nomi Isak 

Nomi Isak is an winning editor, author of over 30 published books, and writing coach who offers support for starting your book and finishing it. She has edited almost forty published books, including clients like the J. Paul Getty Museum, University of California Press, Time-Warner AudioBooks, and individual writers. She served as the developmental editor of Illuminating the Renaissance, which won the Eric Mitchell Prize in 2004.

Nomi has also ghostwritten for fiction and nonfiction books, including the memoir My Gentle Barn by Ellie Laks, published by Harmony/Crown/Random House in 2014. She has also hosted and facilitated writing workshops from as early as 2001.

20. Kate Zentall 

Kate Zentall is known for her extensive experience helping writers clarify, organize and polish both fiction and nonfiction works. She specializes in memoirs and nonfiction books on parenting, lifestyle, and similar topics. She has honed her expertise adapting along with the Internet, and her wide experience writing on a variety of topics gives her confidence to work with just about any genre.

21. Lesley Hyatt

Lesley Hyatt started teaching in 1990, and worked with a wide range of ages for the last 30 years, including grade school and middle school students, and even senior citizens, through her facilitating mindfulness groups. She has written fiction for children, essays for adults, and keeps her poetry a private hobby.

Although she offers coaching for both fiction and nonfiction, she uses her more than 30 years’ experience to offer personal coaching focused on book organization and overall flow. 

22. Derek Doepker

Derek Doepker is a certified content and digital marketing consultant whose work has appeared in Forbes, Entrepreneur, SUCCESS magazine, and other world-renowned publications.

As a consultant, he focuses on results-driven services to help you create marketing messages that generate greater sales and customer loyalty. He can also help you grow your business through email marketing, persuasive ad copy, blog content, and other forms of content marketing.

Finding a Nonfiction Book Coach 

No matter what stage of writing you are in right now, if you are serious about getting published, consider finding a mentor or a coach as soon as possible. The experience that these coaches have in the publishing industry will give you valuable insights that will also help you make your manuscript to the best it can be. 

Alternatively, if hiring a professional coach is still out of reach, you can also consider joining writers’ groups. Continue to seek open, honest, and helpful feedback. You will go a long way as a writer with the right attitude in place! 

Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!

 

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