Coaching

A Message from Jeanne Cavelos, Director, about Coaching:

About

Sometimes I see talented writers give up. Sometimes they’re overwhelmed by discouragement and doubt. Sometimes they prioritize everything before writing, leaving themselves no time to write. Sometimes they let distractions erode their writing time away. Sometimes they lose their passion or become blocked. It can feel like a little death, seeing a good writer stop writing.

So I was very excited when I heard about the work of Sherry Peters. Writers I knew—writers struggling to keep writing—told me how much their productivity had increased because of Sherry’s help.

I realized Sherry had a skill that many writers need, and I asked if she would share her coaching through Odyssey. I was thrilled that she agreed.

To avoid confusion, let me clarify how Odyssey’s coaching differs from Odyssey’s consultations or critique service. Sherry’s coaching focuses on helping you discover what’s holding you back from writing more and providing the tools and support to overcome those obstacles. She doesn’t provide critiques or writing instruction. Odyssey’s consultations help you conquer problems in your writing–problems with a particular story or novel, or problems with your writing in general, such as being unable to create strong endings. Odyssey’s critique service provides in-depth feedback on stories, novel excerpts, or complete novels.

If Sherry’s coaching seems like what you need, read on to find out more.

A Message from Sherry Peters, about Coaching

Do you tell your friends you’re a writer but haven’t written anything in months? Are you facing a publishing deadline that you just don’t think you’ll be able to make? Are you tired of staring at the blank page for hours? Are you tired of blaming your silent or absent muse for your lack of productivity? Are you looking for someone to hold you accountable to your writing goals?

As your coach, I will become a part of your core team and help you to navigate the obstacles that stand in your way of creating the results you desire. I am a firm believer that dreams do come true, but it takes a deep commitment, accountability, openness, and a willingness to unleash the courage to have the life you want. Are you ready to do what it takes and make the level of commitment necessary?

If you are interested in having me help you live a life that you love, fill in the information on the form and we will set up your complementary initial consultation! In the initial consultation, we will explore your challenges, your true desires as a writer, whether coaching is the right direction for you, and whether I can be of service to you.

Request Coaching Information

What is Coaching?

What an athletic coach does for your body, a Success Coach does for your life. Coaching is a powerful one-on-one supportive relationship that will assist you in finding out what winning in life really means to you. A Coach provides the tools, structure and support necessary for you to design a life that has purpose and fulfillment. Coaching works because the immediate focus is on what is most important for the client. The client’s individual needs, values, beliefs, goals, visions and dreams are brought to the forefront. Coaches are trained to help you discover the answers, which are already in your possession, and then utilize them with purpose and clarity. In other words . . . get results faster!

Coaching is not therapy. Therapy focuses on working with the past to heal old wounds. Coaching is positive, working with the present, and successfully moving forward.

How does a coaching session work?

The first session is 60 minutes with subsequent sessions 30 – 45 minutes in length. Before the session, you will be required to fill out a Session Preparation Form to optimize your results and our time together. After the session, you will also be required to complete a Post Coaching Integration Form to support your growth and commitment and success.

I live in a different city, does that matter?

Coaching can be done either in person, via Skype, Google+, Facetime, or over the telephone. The choice is yours!

What about Confidentiality?

Clients’ confidentiality is ensured and information will not be released without informed consent, except in cases where a child/youth’s safety, well-being, or the safety of others is at risk. Specific information may be released, as per the Criminal Code of Canada and the guidelines of the Province of Manitoba, and where the coach is required by law to give evidence in court.

About Sherry

I am a writer and a Success Coach for writers. Though I have always considered myself a writer, I have seriously pursued publication since 2005.

My two novels, Mabel the Lovelorn Dwarf and Mabel the Mafioso Dwarf have both been shortlisted for the Prix Aurora Award, the top Canadian award for speculative fiction, in the Young Adult category. Before those novels came into being, and even as I was writing them, I faced many years of rejection, self-doubt, and frustration with both the process and the business of writing. Over the years, after attending the Odyssey Writing Workshop in 2005 and obtaining my M.A. in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in 2009, I developed several techniques to overcome that doubt and frustration which I now use as a coach and in my workshops. My training as a coach comes from Ericsson College, in Solution Focused Coaching, which means I assist my clients in setting appropriate action steps that will help them reach their goals, using the resources they have and figuring out how to obtain the resources they need. Since 2012, I have coached writers committed to breaking through their writer’s block to increase their productivity and achieve their writing goals though one-on-one coaching and through workshops. I have offered workshops, based on my books Silencing Your Inner Saboteur and Blueprint for Writing Success, in person multiple times at Keycon, Word on the Water, and When Words Collide, and online through www.SavvyAuthors.com and several RWA chapters including From the Heart Romance Writers, Hearts Through History, and North East Ohio Romance Writers.

Coaching Packages

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“As a mid-career, professional novelist, I had not understood everything I might gain from working with a coach until I met Sherry Peters. Sherry’s openness, enthusiasm and sympathy supported me while I worked through some obstacles in my path, and helped me to understand how the setbacks I had experienced early on might still be holding me back. She listened deeply, asked the right questions, and used her silences to encourage me to express all I needed to. Our calls left me excited to get back to work, and gave me concrete action steps I needed to take to reach my goals.

“After working with Sherry, I feel more confident, more motivated and more excited to write. I’m better able to focus on the joys of my career and more optimistic about my writing direction. She helped me to examine my priorities and made me accountable for my progress. Sherry’s coaching has given me a strong boost in the right direction as an author, and the new novel I was intimidated to start is already well under way! I was not convinced when I first made contact that a coach could do a lot for me—and now I feel stronger and more capable, thanks to her. When my new project sells, Sherry Peters deserves the dedication. She is a fantastic partner, cheerleader, and guide in the chaotic career that is writing.”

–ELAINE

“Though my work with Sherry Peters was brief due to unforeseen circumstances in my life, I found each of our three sessions extremely helpful. Sherry has the keen ability to get to the heart of an issue quickly, so I found each session, even though it was only an hour long, we covered a lot of ground and I spend the month between ruminating on what we discussed. We covered three very important tools which, ultimately, helped me make important career decisions not only for professional success but personal well-being. Despite these sessions having a focus on writing, Sherry did not hesitate to explore other avenues, such as deeper personal problems behind career obstacles (in my case, difficulty saying no). Our final session was about setting goals, long-term and short, and I have since made use of this strategy on my own.

“I would recommend Sherry to any writer who wants to take charge of their career and clear away the things that stops them. Often those obstacles have nothing to do with skill and everything to do with self-doubt or personal difficulty, and Sherry’s approach is to address those areas in a sensitive, constructive manner.”

–GRAEME

“As a barely published writer with a pile of unfinished projects and difficulty focusing on one thing from one day to the next, having weekly coaching sessions with Sherry was extremely helpful in bringing me back to my goals. Accountability to a person is certainly a part of this, but only a part. The person matters and Sherry has a gift for asking seemingly innocuous questions that waft right through my confusion and resistance and let me see clearly what aspect of me is getting in my way. My writing is more honest and authentic as a result. I got to know myself better as well, which is rarely pleasant, but always useful. Thanks, Sherry, for your insight, respect, and compassion. You do good work.”

–TANITH

“Sherry helped me to learn new things about my fiction writing habits and myself as a writer that have helped me be more productive and explore my creativity. I would happily recommend her coaching to anyone who wants to bring their writing to another level.”
–ZOEY