Congratulations for being part of the largest webinar audience in the history of Covid programming. Thank you for coming!

Greetings from Toronto

Hi everybody from Victoria, British Columbia

Apologies to all but I’m keeping my video off - Im in a hand cast and can’t get dressed - been living in PJs for the last few weeks.

Haooy Merry all.

Hi everyone and Happy New Year from New York!

Hi Everyone from OKC. I don't seem to have sound?

Keeping mine off too. Just came off the ski slopes to participate. I look a hot, happy mess.

Happy New Year everyone.

Wishes for a safe and healthy 2021 everyone

Happy New Year everyone from Victoria and all the best for 2021, has to get better…

Writing coaching is different from editing. Everyone can benefit from looking at elements of writing in a new way.

Coaches agree to abide by a Code of Conduct.

Please post your questions here.

Hi everyone, as a reminder, please keep yourself on mute.

please mute yourself.

People need to be muted. Victoria and Galaxy

Michael Law please mite yourself

That should say mute yourself…

Catherine, don't you as host, have the ability to mute all?

If you have questions, please send them on. Dawson will be joining us in a few minutes for live Q&A.

Question: So many assignments these days are formulaic, short, round-ups—in other words pieces that don’t seem to allow much personal approach or creativity or fullness of voice. How do we make those better?

will there be some sort of workbook?

I am so tired of service stories that follow a general formula. I want to break away. Also, trying to learn to write for digital and find it’s harder than I thought.

QUESTION: I’d appreciate other tips to consider for picking a manuscript to use to get the most out of this experience. Best to use something already published? (I don’t personally have a lot of unpublished pieces sitting around.)

this is a perfect time to do this....as we continue to hunker down....and at the Canadian Council meeting in Nuevo Vallarta, having a one-on-one with Catherine Hamm as a coach was a highlight!

Thank you, Barbara!

How much time do we have between now and coaching session to try out something new?

What are the qualifications for becoming a coach.

Hi all. Question: How do you fight writing fatigue? I write daily and these days I feel like I’m mainly regurgitating information.

QUESTION: I've found supportive writers groups to be valuable. What suggestions do you have for making writers groups useful?

Please mute everyone. Thank you.

will coaches help with book writing as well?

Lately I keep falling down the rabbit hole of over-researching. Maybe part of that lack of confidence bugaboo. I get so mired in all the information, I lose focus and get really frustrated. Any advice?

Thanks for the great questions. Keep them coming!

Will the coaches want us to send original manuscripts or the published (i.e. edited) work?

How to keep a writer’s voice??

How long should the manuscript be? Is there a suggested minimum or maximum word count? And when will we know if we made the cut for coaching?

Voice is everything — love to have more coaching about this element.

Linda Barnard, I have the same problem--always have. I do a great deal of research, which is great in one sense because you can mine the best, but it can make sitting down and getting started feel so difficult!

If you are a coach, an you also BE coached?

QUESTION: Can this wonderful opportunity (thank you Catherine) be used to help with book manuscripts?

That should say can you also be coached. It is early here in New Zealand!

QUESTION: Will we email our stories to the coaches first so the full half-hour can be spent on improvement?

Yes!

Great comment from Karen Misuraca — voice is everything and was the toughest lesson to learn (and to re-learn over and over).

I admire the SATW freelance writer (who shall remain nameless), who years ago gave a lot of credit to her writing coach. I hadn’t known she had had a coach, but I considered her a good writer and was glad to hear of her experience.

Sorry, “Me” is Martha Steger.

Diana, can you talk about what might be called advanced coaching? Those of us who are offering to coach will be working with established writers, not students, and I'm wondering if there are things we should be talking about that are problems for experienced writers.

In book fiction writing, can a coach help with dialogue?

Thank you

All these bread references. Love it! Hopefully these tips will help us all make some bread (or dough?). :)

REQUEST: Diana Dawson's tips are GREAT! Could we get more sessions like this with her tips (even if there's a fee) please?

We'll look into that, April!

Ditto to April’s request. Thank you Diana for being for us.

Fatigue - I use Pomodoro to stay with the work for a specific, sort of forced, period of time. Helps with pre-planning work time, also.

I have been making so much bread...have fab easy recipe if anyone wants....

Catharine - thanks for bringing so much joy to your questions. You bring the mischievous.

but making bread does not mean making dough but it's a great time to write while it rises...while it bakes.

Barbara, I’d love the bread recipes!

LOVE the reference to mischief because the stories I like to read are full of spunk and play with words in a memorable way.

I have found that reading - and for a while writing fiction and learning that craft - made my nonfiction writing (specifically travel) so much richer. It helped me make mischief with words. :)

Agreed Susan - Happy New Year!

i read a lot of scripts and very helpful to remind me to converse instead of just relay information.

Catherine, thanks for your humility and encouragement!

reading poetry helps vocabulary and mischief words

Agreed Jane Mundy!

Is a book proposal considered a manuscript to submit?

So we need to have a manuscript ready to go in order to apply?

thank you for this!!!!

thank you

THANK YOU!!!

What an incredible introduction! Thank you Diana and Catharine for sharing your experience and inspiration!

thank you very much

If I can help, I’m at Diana.dawson@austin.utexas.edu

What I take away is the importance of being honest, open minded and willing. Thank you.

Interesting that there are more people on this Zoom call at the end of the session than in the middle. Means it’s a fantastic session, thanks, Catharine and Anna....

I need to dash but thank you so much for this great session!

anyone else having trouble with that link?

the link is not working for me

the link isn’t working :(

great way to start the year!

you must type the link exactly (caps etc)

Thanks for having me today!

Thank you so much Diana and Catharine. An inspiring way to kick off 2021.

link not working

worked for me

You have to use the capital letters, by the way.

form comes up but I can't fill it in

i requested permission to edit

thank you!

OK got it. You have to use the caps

it works (the link) you just have to be precise :)

thanks so much!

THANKS AGAIN!

Thank you everyone, amazing session.

Thanks!