I’ve been to some of the best book writing workshops in the world, and also some of the worst.
The worst are glorified sales pitches; “free” writers workshops put on by coaches or publishing companies who want to sell you something.
The best workshops, on the other hand, offer experiences that can change your life. They provide expert guidance to overcome the fears and obstacles that every first-time Author faces:
- Feeling overwhelmed by the scope of the project.
- Not knowing where to start.
- Feeling alone in the process.
Most importantly, the best workshops get you results. They give you a foundation and set you on a path to not just write your book, but publish it, too.
Choosing the right workshop for you depends on your goals. If you just want to have fun and explore book writing, go to a local $300 workshop first because it’s low risk and an easy way to start.
But if you’re committed to both writing and publishing, you should choose a workshop with a proven track record of helping writers become published Authors.
This is what we’ve developed at Scribe—a nonfiction book writing workshop for professionals who want the best guidance in the world on writing and self-publishing.
In this post, I cover:
- The key difference between Scribe’s workshop and other book writing workshops.
- The immense ongoing support that makes it more than just a workshop (including weekly group coaching calls and quarterly masterclasses with me).
- The 3-day agenda and breakdown for how we run our workshops.
With Scribe’s book writing workshop, as long as you do exactly what we tell you to do, you’ll finish your book. We can guarantee this because we have a proven process that’s guided thousands of Authors from idea to published book.
As you’ll learn below, the workshop we offer is a part of our Guided Author Program, which involves group coaching and other forms of ongoing support after the workshop finishes. Click here to learn more, or schedule a consult to connect on a call with our team.
What Differentiates Scribe’s Book Writing Workshop?
Typical book writing workshops are primarily tactical. They consist of a variety of lectures and writing exercises that provide Authors with the information they need to write a book.
But let’s be honest—information isn’t the real reason people attend a book writing workshop. There are hundreds of blog posts on how to write a book or improve at the craft of writing.
We’ve published a 500+ page book on writing and publishing called The Scribe Method that anyone can read. And we’ve also made our online course, Scribe Book School, completely free for anyone who wants all the information necessary to write a book.
The real reason people attend book writing workshops (whether they acknowledge it or not) is to get the emotional support and accountability that’s needed in the book writing process.
They want the opportunity to join a community of writers and book coaches who will:
- Keep them accountable.
- Help them feel less alone on the journey.
- Support and push them to actually finish and publish their book.
Why?
Because writing a book isn’t just a tactical endeavor. It’s a deeply emotional one, too.
In Scribe workshops, of course we give you strategic, actionable advice on the process of writing a book.
But we don’t just help you learn to write or sort your concepts into a book. We help you learn to work through the struggle of the creative process.
We do this by helping you focus on the specific value you’re delivering to your readers. When you focus on the change you can make in their lives, it makes your book about a purpose bigger than you.
And that is what gives you the motivation to keep going when it’s hard.
The vast majority of writing workshops and coaches fail for this exact reason—they only give information, and they don’t address the emotional issues that surround writing a book.
Beyond Just a Workshop: The Ongoing Support Offered to Every Participant
Let’s face it—you aren’t going to finish your book during a workshop. You’re typically just getting started or right in the middle of it (if anyone tells you that you can “write a bestseller in a weekend” they are a fraud out to scam you).
Without ongoing support once it ends, you’re far less likely to ever finish your book, let alone publish it.
At Scribe, we provide a level of ongoing support that far exceeds your typical book writing workshop. After our workshop ends, you get access to:
- Weekly Group Coaching Calls
- Quarterly Masterclasses
- An Active Community of Writers
- Three 1-on-1 Calls with Your Editor
Below I’ll explain how each of these work.
1. Weekly Group Coaching Calls
Following your workshop, you’ll be invited to join a weekly group coaching call with our senior book coaches.
They’ll help you and your peers work through obstacles you encounter while writing your book. You can get personalized feedback on the challenges you’re facing and also learn from the challenges your peers are working through.
For example, one of our Authors was trying to sort through a manuscript he’d written that clocked in at over 200,000 words. He sent a chapter to an editor who instantly saw the problem: he was trying to pack too many promises into one chapter.
The editor challenged him to zoom all the way out to identify the transformation he was promising his reader in the book—and then break down that transformation into one specific promise he would deliver per chapter.
In one 30 minute call, the Author got an immense amount of clarity. He finally understood how to revise his chapters and cut the mountain of material in front of him down to a cohesive, well-structured manuscript.
We see these types of breakthroughs happening every week for our Authors. And the weekly cadence works as a form of accountability to help them make consistent progress.
2. Quarterly Masterclasses with a 4x New York Times Best-Selling Author
Each quarter, you’ll be invited to attend a masterclass taught by me. I host them online via Zoom, so you can attend from anywhere in the world.
I cover topics that range from book marketing to published Author AMAs to the fears that stop Authors in their tracks.
The masterclasses are 1 hour long, with special guests who share their wisdom and always open the floor to Q&A.
Those who attend come away with a balanced perspective of what the Author journey entails. That way, when they hit the highs and inevitable lows, they know they’re not alone—and they know how others have made their way to become successful Authors.
3. Become a Member of Our Exclusive Writing Community
In addition to weekly group coaching calls and quarterly masterclasses, you also receive access to a private online community that includes me, the Scribe editors from your workshop, and your peers.
Our community has created a culture of camaraderie and support that provides motivation and inspiration for each other.
Authors share their creative battles and also the moments that drive them to keep pushing:
Book writing—as I’ll discuss more below—is an emotional journey.
Authors find the support found in our community to be invaluable as they navigate the ups and downs of the process.
4. Three 1-on-1 Calls with Your Editor
While our weekly coaching calls give Authors a forum to ask questions and learn from each other, we also provide 3 individual coaching sessions with an editor. This allows the Author to get specific feedback on the direction of their work.
Before each session, Authors send their editor the work they’d like reviewed. It can range from structural content (such as their positioning and outline) to sections of their manuscript (such as a chapter they’ve written).
In this one-on-one setting, editors can leave specific, actionable advice directly on the Author’s work, including global notes to amplify the quality of their entire manuscript.
Authors then get personal time on the call to ask questions and ensure they have a solid plan for moving forward.
How It Works: The 3-Day Agenda of Our Book Writing Workshop
In most book writing workshops, the work doesn’t begin until you arrive. There aren’t specific exercises to complete beforehand or materials you’re meant to show up with.
And as a result, it takes longer to reach a stage where critiquing and real feedback begin.
With our workshop, your work begins before it even starts.
We have you review a set of teaching videos from Scribe Book School and fill out a book positioning template (outlining your objectives, audience, and book idea).
This way, you’ve already begun to think about your book, and you show up with material that our coaches can work with to help you find holes, think through different angles, and improve what you’ve already created—right from the start.
This format increases productivity during the workshop and ensures that Authors leave with actionable feedback.
Note: We have an hour each day of the workshop devoted to 1-1 editor consultations, so you can continue to get personalized feedback on your work and further develop your outline.
The 3-day agenda of our workshop goes like this:
Day 1
We kick off by talking about Author psychology and the shift in identity that takes place when you decide to write a book.
This is because, for many Authors, the battle with Imposter Syndrome either has already begun or will soon. By addressing the identity shift around becoming an Author from the start, we help our Authors know what’s coming and how to deal with it when it does.
Then, we spend the rest of the day in small groups, each led by a senior editor, where we workshop the book positioning doc that you and your peers have drafted.
Positioning is the most important part of your book and your answer to the question that every reader asks:
Why should I read this book?
Failing to define this early on in the book writing process is one of the mistakes that leads new Authors to experience writer’s block.
Ideally, you want to get your positioning correct before you even start your book. Fixing your positioning later in the process can require significant revisions.
And if you never define it, you’ll end up with a bad book.
Day 2
On Day 2, we discuss the book writing journey and the psychological milestones you’ll encounter along the way.
Confidence ebbs and flows throughout the writing process. We help you learn to set the right expectations: sometimes you’ll feel accomplished, other times you’ll hate your work. By preparing for the hard times, you won’t be caught off guard when they come, and you’ll be able to overcome them sooner rather than later.
Then we teach you the overall process for writing your first draft. We walk you step by step through developing a writing plan. This helps you envision your daily writing practice and set project timelines. That includes:
- Identifying the milestones of your book, such as finishing your vomit draft (AKA your first draft).
- Finishing your editing.
- Publishing your book.
Failing to create a writing plan is the second most common reason why most Authors never finish. By defining when and where you’ll write your book, you have a reliable plan that helps you reduce overwhelm and stay on track.
We also talk you through the principles of good writing and editing. And we leave lots of time for detailed Q&A to discuss tactical questions and how to address emotional hurdles when they come.
Day 3
On Day 3, we start with a Q&A with me. Then we head into teaching you about:
- The publishing process.
- An overview of marketing your book.
- Details of the support you can expect from us and the Author community as you write, edit, and publish.
We devote a large part of the final day to an interactive “Fear Solving” process. We provide strategies you can use to uncover and work through your fears by tapping into the purpose behind your work.
We do this in a workshop-style format so you can hear each other’s responses and build confidence in your own capability to finish your book.
We end the workshop by prompting each Author to make a commitment to write their book and share their wisdom with the people it’s meant to help. It’s empowering to state your commitment out loud. It sets you up to persevere through the entire process.
How to Join Our Book Writing Workshop
We offer the Scribe book writing workshop as a part of our Guided Author program. It’s the kick-off that leads into the ongoing coaching and support as you work on your book.
We have a calendar of scheduled workshops throughout the year. You have the option to join one of our virtual workshops if you prefer to attend remotely. Or, you can attend an in-person workshop at our office in Austin, Texas.
In addition to everything I’ve covered above, you also receive a full manuscript evaluation when you’ve completed your first draft.
Our editors point out exactly what needs to be done to your manuscript. For example, they help you learn how to improve the structure, see where readers might get lost, and spot inconsistencies in voice or tone. Ultimately, you get a roadmap of the edits needed to make your book great.
But honestly, as much as our Authors love going through the program—the 3-day workshop, weekly group coaching, quarterly masterclasses, and writing community—the real value is in the results. It’s in the transformation that happens in their lives and businesses.
We’ve seen Authors:
- Start entirely new businesses thanks to their books.
- Attract a new level of client they’ve always wanted.
- Develop courses based on their book material.
- Grow their teaching abilities exponentially.
- Go on to become massive bestsellers.
Hundreds of Authors have gone through the program. If this sounds like the kind of transformation you’re looking for, check out our Guided Author Program to learn more or read testimonials from our Authors. If you’re ready to take the next step, schedule a consult with our team.
