In this month's Favorite Five, I'm featuring five of my favorite books about creativity from authors who are champions of the authentic courageous creative voice inside each of us. I like to refer to these books when my inner author/creator is needing an encouraging pep talk to go out and bravely do the work she came here for. And as a book coach, I offer these to my clients as essential resources to support their connection to creativity.

Do you have an idea for a book? How do you know if it’s a good one? One worth investing your creative time and energy? How do we answer this question from a place other than our own resistance? This post offers 6 “tests” you can use to see if your book idea is one worth pursuing.

Did you know the more specific and concrete you can make your memoir, the more it will become relatable to others? But the secret doesn’t necessarily lie in the details you offer (though they are potent vehicles). What you need for great memoir writing starts with an E, actually 3 interrelated E words…come in and see what they are!

“Not having the time” is the number one reason that prevents would-be authors from sitting down to write the book they deeply yearn to write.  Many people assume they don’t have time to write a book, without having a clear understanding of what time commitment a book actually requires.  In this blog, I’ll help you get a clearer sense of how long it’ll likely take you to write your book, so that you can decide if you can realistically commit to writing a book, now or in the future. 

Did you know that most great creatives through time employed some kind of (often quirky) ritual before, during and after engaging their creative work? Beethoven is rumored to have sprinkled water around his flat before he composed music. Establishing creative rituals can remove the need to constantly make new decisions about our process/behavior, help us focus, alleviate nervous jitters, act as conscious and intentional openings and closings of our creative space, and much more. Read on to learn how to create your own writing rituals.

Here are 10 criteria of books that readers care about, so you can evaluate your book idea and answer the question “Will anyone care about what I write?” from a place other than fear!

In this blog, I explore the difference between showing and telling in our writing, what that means, and how to craft a compelling story using both scene and summary.

How do you stay aligned with your own inner truth and purpose when you have a whole audience to consider? In this blog, I describe what I call Knowing the Field, a process of carefully considering the impact of your message on others while also staying true to your creativity, purpose and authenticity.

A short history of book coaching and why most successful authors have a book coach. This blog also explores how a book coach is different from a writing group, editor, or workshop and the unique value a book coach will bring to your life.