What is a Writing Coach?
The good, the bad, and the spiritual…
To answer this question, I want to start by explaining what a writing coach is not.
Actually, I am going to back way up and start with the word coach. I have always had a weird relationship with this word. In high school, I played sports and had great ‘“coaches” that pushed me to my physical limits and filled me with confidence.
The term life coach came into my vernacular two decades ago and it still confuses me. To be clear, I have nothing against life coaches. However, I do think that this broad, all-encompassing term makes me nervous, or at least a little skeptical. Also, compared to counselors and therapists, there is no legal accountability or licensure for life coaching. You can apply for credentials through some of the larger organizations (ie International Coaching Federation), but since there are now a variety of specialized coaches out there in the mix (business, executive, creative, ADHD etc.) it is hard to regulate what coaches promise.
So, why then did I become a coach?
Well, this is a longer story. You can start by reading or listening to my memoir that will take you through my educational life in science and writing to my experiences teaching college classes and running our farm in the very, early stages of motherhood circa 2019. The process of writing a memoir was profound and offered me a sense of contentment—even though I still had a lot of questions and doubts.
By the time 2020 rolled around, I felt lukewarm about being adjunct faculty. On the one hand, I loved my interactions with students and the mentoring work I was doing outside of the classroom. Being adjunct also worked well with our schedule—I was able to teach seasonally around the demands of the farm and motherhood. However, I felt personally unsupported through my maternity (there was no official leave) and going into a global pandemic. I also started offering adult, creative writing workshops and loved these group experiences.
After things shut down, I was pretty sure I didn’t want to be part of a university anymore and was curious how I could continue to work with “students” in a new and different way. I felt called to find a coaching program. I signed up for New Ventures West’s Professional Coaching Course and started on a year-long (online) adventure in fall 2020. I was still teaching and doing my own writing during this time, but wanted to learn more about their integral coaching method.
Integral Coaching evolves to respond to the full range of needs as human beings develop, including the mind, body and spirit.
-New Ventures West
I completed the coaching program in the fall of 2021. It was a complicated time in our country, but the program had a profound effect on me. I realized that even before motherhood, I had been taking on too much at once and pushing myself too hard. Frankly, I didn’t know how to rest and that was part of my story. I was finishing my memoir and had a lot of Aha! moments as a result of all I was learning and integrating from this program.
In my one-on-one student coaching sessions, I found the combination of conversation and reflection with my clients to be powerful and effective. Instead of being a “teacher,” I liked being a guide and ally. I also saw a need to create a safe space for people to tell their stories. Once we find that honest through-line, we are able to better understand and care for ourselves.
I will now revisit that first sentence—what a writing coach is not. A writing coach is not a therapist. A good writing coach will not promise you how to write a best-selling novel in a month. Writing coaching is not only for writers.
I started my writing coaching practice (Ecointegral Coaching) in 2022, the same year my memoir came out. Through this work, I offer individual and group experiences and workshops. I integrate writing and various activities that create awareness—from yin yoga to walking alone outside. Nature is a strong thread in my own creative work, so it makes sense that it’s consciously and unconsciously embedded in my coaching work.
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.”
— Rachel Carson
Yes, I work with people that have an inclination to get their story on the page or finish a book project that has reached a stopping point. I also like meeting with people and offering writing prompts and journaling suggestions to unlock stuck stories—the past hurts and regrets that keep us from evolving or feeling happy. Writing, especially in poetic forms, is an important tool for understanding and processing ecological grief.
The end goal is never the same in this practice, but the intention of my writing coaching is consistent. Heal. Find your way back to your self. Discover new possibilities in your life. Feel grounded and a deeper sense of belonging.
Her Deepest Ecologies newsletter and podcast started in 2022 as well. My overriding ethos of all that I do (coaching, writing, and farming) is we can’t health the Earth, unless we heal ourselves. Writing about my life has given me insight and hope, as well as the motivation to tend and care for this farm.
When I work with a client on a book, there is always a backstory as to why they are writing and what they choose to write about. Someone’s inclination to create is most often rooted in a deep, sometimes obscured, need. A writing coach gives tips and advice on writing process, but there is also a responsibility to unearth the deeper narrative. To offer room for stories to surface—sometimes even the ones that are buried deep down in our body’s tissues.
I have recently rediscovered the term spiritual ecology. While there is a lot of published work on this (both academic and creative), I appreciated this article in Atmos which states that spiritual ecology “ lifts us back into alignment with life, living systems, and the healing power of relationality.” More on this topic in a future post, but I wanted to end here since it’s a new area of exploration for me.
My version of writing coaching has naturally ventured into the realm of the sacred and, at a time of great division, I value the interconnectedness that writing with others and writing about the natural world has brought into my life. Hurt people, hurt people (and the environment) is spot-on. The more we cultivate kindness and compassion through creative work and expression, the less isolated and afraid we will feel.
To summarize, writing coaching is more than just writing and I am glad you are along with me on this journey.
Take good care!
xoJessica
Learn more about Ecointegral Coaching here.
My next class is Place, Presence, Pen: Embodied Nature Writing starting July 7th.
