Stop wishing. Start writing. Craft a piece of writing you love.
Are you struggling to write your story?
You have something you need to write.
Maybe it’s the copy for your website. Marketing newsletters. A personal essay. Short stories. A speech you need to give for your work.
You want to write — after all, you have always loved stories and words — but you doubt yourself too much to get started.
Work with me. I will lead you through the 6-step process of starting and finishing a piece of writing that satisfies you.
You might learn to trust yourself more as a writer.
Hire Me to Be Your Storytelling Doula.
I’ve written and published 5 critically acclaimed books — a food memoir; 3 cookbooks filled with narrative essays; and a memoir thousands of women have loved.
Helping people to find their own story gives me enormous joy.
Listening is my superpower. I will listen to you, type while you talk, ask you questions to draw you out and feel heard, then pick up patterns in your narrative.
I’ll be your guide and ally in discovering the power of your own story.
I call myself a storytelling doula, because the word doula, in the ancient Greek language, meant “someone who serves.” And through this process, I’m going to help you “birth” your story.
This is why I only work with people one-on-one in this process. You need someone who is solely focused on you.
I can help you cut down on the intense labor of bringing your story to life, reduce your anxiety of writing and revising your story, and share your story with the world.
Shauna’s workshop helped me find my love for words again and remember why I enjoy writing. I’m so glad I finally made the commitment. Shauna creates a wonderful supportive space for you to play. I feel like I’ve already become a better writer, and discovered so many things about myself that I didn’t know I needed to write down.
—Jackie P.
Here’s how we’ll work together.
We’ll meet over Zoom, in one-hour sessions, for 6 weeks in a row.
First session
We’ll start with you talking and me listening to your experience with writing. I cannot wait to hear your story. We’ll talk about the writing process I use, which eliminates fear and self-doubt.
At the end of the session, I’ll assign you a daily writing assignment that requires only 15 minutes of your day.
Second session
We’ll talk about what you wrote during the week. And I’ll guide you to getting curious about your writing instead of judgmental. Afterward, I’ll ask you to write a chaos draft, which you’ll bring to our next session.
Third session
In this session, I’ll share with you the two structures for writing you can use for any piece. These structures bring clarity and ease.
Fourth session
We’ll discuss the fine art of cutting away what isn’t necessary in your writing. We’ll also play with sounds and sentence structure. And we’ll put your chaos draft into the structure we choose for your piece.
Fifth session
In this session, we’ll workshop the fully finished first draft.
You’ll receive feedback and constructive critique from me. And then I’ll send you off to work on that draft again
Sixth session
In our final session, we’ll read through the draft you worked on all week.
And I’ll give you suggestions for your next steps.v
NEXT STEPS
If you’re interested in working with me, email me at shauna@youcanhavemorejoy.com. Tell me about your project and how you’d like to work together.
If we seem to be a good fit, I’ll send you a calendar link for a free, 30-minute consultation. We’ll also discuss rates and talk about the details and deadlines.
If you’re an agent or publishing professional working with an author who could also use my help, send me a message.
I wish you joy.
Shauna