Book coaching with Jeanne De Vita
Get help fixing the book so you can publish the book.
Jeanne will review and diagnose the problems in your draft and work with you to solve the issues you know you're struggling with.
Work with a book coach whose clients are New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Amazon bestsellers, traditionally published, agented authors, as well as indies with exceptional reviews and sales.
Revising alone feels like walking through quicksand.
Most writers don't know what they don't know about craft, the market, and their own book's flaws. Get help from an informed, objective editor who makes revisions clear so you can end the cycle of revising and get published.
You’ve never taken a writing class so you're not sure if you've identified the problems correctly
Most college classes and even MFA programs don't teach functional writing craft from an industry perspective.
You listen to podcasts and YouTubers, but you're not sure which information to trust
Free advice is rarely good advice because it's designed to be consumed by a general audience, can be outddated, or simply seeks clicks over quality.
You've spent precious time, energy, and resources and you don't want to waste more
Project fatigue is real, so when you can no longer remember why you're revising or what excited you about your book, it's time to stop churning and start being coached.
Coaching fixes whatever stops you from publishing. Sometimes a book needs a repair, not a reboot. Coaching provides hands-on guidance and education so you learn and grow as a writer.
An editorial service or coaching?
Both start with Jeanne reading your book. The difference is what happens next.
Developmental edit
$3,800
for a 95,000-word novel, at $0.04/word
- One expert read of the draft you have now
- An edit letter and notes throughout the manuscript
- You revise on your own
- Works best on a finished draft
Book Repair and reboot
$6,500
12 weeks, diagnosis included
- Jeanne reads your whole manuscript, then maps the fixes in order
- Six calls to talk through each fix as you make it
- She reads your whole revised book and tells you what worked
- A second review of the chapters that still need it
- Works on unfinished drafts or works in progress
Checking a revision with editing means paying for a second edit which can cost up to $7,600 for two rounds. Book Coaching covers both reads, with Jeanne on calls in between. Prefer to revise on your own? A developmental edit is a great choice.
Step one, for every program
The Manuscript Diagnosis
Most of what’s wrong with a book shows up in its first three chapters. Jeanne reads the first 15,000 words and your synopsis, talks through it with you, and conveys in writing what the book needs and whether coaching can fix it.
Jeanne only takes on books she believes she can fix.
$500
What's Included
- First three chapters (up to 15,000 words) and a synopsis
- A discovery call to address what’s working and what isn’t
- A written analysis of what’s wrong and whether coaching can fix it
- Her recommendation will assess light touch, standard, heavy touch, an edit, or not yet
If you book a coaching program, the $500 is credited against the full package price. If you decide not to continue, the fee covers Jeanne’s reading, assessment, and time and is nonrefundable.
Three ways to fix your book
After your diagnosis, Jeanne recommends the program your book needs. Every price includes the diagnosis, and every program ends with something finished.
Light touch · 8 weeks
Revision Roadmap
You finish knowing exactly what’s wrong, with the chapters that matter most already fixed.
$2,200
$1,700 after your diagnosis · or 2 × $850
What’s included
- A revision roadmap explaining the fixes that matter most, in order
- Four calls, once every two weeks, to work through each fix
- Jeanne reads your revised chapters and tells you if the fix works (*up to 20,000 words)
- A written accountability and progress check-in every two weeks
Bonuses
- Jeanne’s revision toolkit, including beat sheets and a self-editing checklist
For a finished draft that doesn’t work
Standard · 12 weeks
Book Repair and Reboot
You finish with a complete draft that works, start to end, checked by Jeanne.
$6,500
$6,000 after your diagnosis · or 3 × $2,000
What’s included
- Jeanne reads your whole manuscript first
- A revision roadmap, organzing issues in order of impact, so you never guess what to fix next
- Six calls, once every two weeks
- She reads your whole revised book, plus a second round of assessment on the chapters that need it (*up to 100,000 words)
- A short weekly written check-in, answered within 2 business days
Bonuses
- Jeanne’s revision toolkit, including beat sheets and a self-editing checklist
Heavy touch · 6 months
Finished Manuscript Mentorship
You finish with a manuscript ready for agents or a copyedit, even if you started with a broken or unfinished draft.
$15,500
$15,000 after your diagnosis · or 6 × $2,500
What’s included
- A full read at the start and again at the end
- A revision roadmap with monthly milestones
- A call every week: 26 in all
- Two full rounds of revision, read and checked (*up to 200,000 words)
- A short written weekly check-in, plus one support hour per month for in-depth emails
Bonuses
- Jeanne’s revision toolkit, including beat sheets and a self-editing checklist
- A query letter and synopsis review when you finish including comp titles and positioning: 3–5 comparable books
- or An Amazon sales blurb edit for authors who plan to self-publish
*Word count allowances are a pool. Send pages as you revise, up to the stated word count allowance for any one package. Manuscripts that require review of more than the plan's word count allowance require an add-on fee.
Finish any program and get 10% off your next package for your next book or the next level up. Plus 10% off a copyedit when you’re ready.
Need more of Jeanne? Extra hours, full reads and more time can be added once you start.
Add-ons
Want more of Jeanne than your program includes? Keep it simple: add support hours, a full read, or more time.
More of Jeanne
Support hours
$175/hour
sold in packs of 3 ($525)
- An in-depth email: 1 hour each
- An extra call: 1 hour, or half an hour for a quick one
- Extra page notes: about 4,000 words an hour
Use them however suits you. Unused hours carry over until your program ends.
More reading
Full manuscript read
$0.0125/word
$1,000 at 80,000 words
- For Light Touch clients who want the whole book read
- Or a second full read after major revisions
Add-ons are available alongside a program and agreed before they start. [CONFIRM prices with Jeanne]
Is coaching right for you?
Coaching works best when you want to do the work yourself but you need direction, focus, and support.
It’s for you if
- You want to do the revision yourself, with an expert checking it
- You write genre fiction or book club/upmarket fiction
- You can work on the book a few hours a week for two to six months
- You want to understand what isn’t working so the next book is easier
It’s not for you if
- You’d rather hand the manuscript over; a developmental edit suits you better
- The story works and only the prose needs help; a line edit or copyedit is the answer
- You want someone to write it for you; ghostwriting is the better choice
- You can’t make consistent time to work on the book right now
How coaching helps a writer stay focused
Coaching works when you spend goal-focused, structured time on your book. Every program has a clear cadence, and anything extra or outside is quoted and agreed upon by both you and Jeanne before it happens.
- Word count limits. Unused word allowance doesn’t roll over.
- Short check-ins. Up to 3 questions with brief answers, through one form. Anything that needs an in-depth answer will be addressed in your next call, or uses a support hour.
- Extras use support hours. In-depth emails, extra calls, and extra pages all come from one bank of hours explained before the package begins.
- One pause allowed. Booking a package means Jeanne has reserved that time on her schedule just for you. We can accommodate one pause in the schedule for up to 4 weeks, should life circumstances get in the way.
- Paid upfront or on a plan. We can break a package up over several payments. Since Jeanne will clear the time off her schedule at the time of booking, we cannot offer refunds for coaching packages on a payment plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why not just get a developmental edit?
If you want to revise on your own, booking an edit is a great choice. Coaching is specifically designed for writers who want Jeanne to guide the revision process and check the revision itself so you’re not churning over the same pages and not making measurable improvements. She reads the new/revised pages, tells you what worked, and sets a goal for the next pass before you rewrite in the wrong direction.
Why does coaching cost more than an edit?
A coaching plan requires more contact time with Jeanne over a much longer period of time. Book Repair and Reboot, for example, covers a full read of your draft and a full read of your revision, which on its own is roughly two developmental edits (about $7,600 on a 95,000-word novel), plus six calls and weekly check-ins. Coaching is a collaboration that works because the author is applying lessons and a strategy and receiving expert support, feedback, and redirection to make measurable progress on well-defined issues with the book.
What if my book can’t be fixed?
Then the diagnosis will say so, honestly, and explain what would need to change first. Some drafts need a rewrite, more time, or a different kind of help. Jeanne will explain what she sees and how to change the book if there is a clear path to fixing the book. Coaching isn’t the process to rewrite a completely broken book, but is the best process to work with an author to implement large-scale changes when a fix is identified and defined.
Why only the first three chapters?
Structure, voice, pacing and the conventions of the genre all reveal themselves in the first few pages, and should be clearly established within the first 10-15% of the book. That’s usually enough for Jeanne to diagnose what’s wrong and to recommend which program fits. Even if the book “gets better” in the middle or finds its voice later, agents, acquiring editors, and many consumers make decisions on a book in the first 3-5 pages, so with 15,000 words, Jeanne will be able to assess what’s not working.
Which program do I need?
Jeanne will recommends a program in your diagnosis. The Revision Roadmap suits a writer who needs direction; Book Repair and Reboot fixes clearly identified issues in a finished draft that doesn’t work; and the Mentorship takes a broken or unfinished book all the way to a finished manuscript.
What if I fall behind?
Life happens. Every program allows one pause of up to 4 weeks. Please understand that Jeanne’s schedule will be built around her commitment to this process, so we’ll be flexible whenever possible, but coaching is not a good fit for someone who doesn’t have a focused plan to cross the finish line.
Can I email Jeanne between calls?
Each program includes a short written check-in: up to 3 questions with brief answers. For longer written answers between calls, you can add extra hours for an additional fee if you need them. Jeanne will tell you the cost and get your approval before anything is billed.
My draft isn’t finished. Which program?
The Finished Manuscript Mentorship. It works from wherever the book is now, including an outline and partial draft.
Can I switch to an edit partway through?
Yes. If Jeanne thinks an edit will serve the book better, she’ll say so, and the unused part of your program is credited toward the editorial service fee. If you’ve been working according to the plan and paying on a payment plan, then past fees/completed parts of the coaching program are considered “spent” and will not be eligible for credit toward another service.
Fix your book with a focused direction and support.
Jeanne takes a very limited number coaching clients per year. Next opening: November. Book a Manuscript Diagnosis to hold a place; the $500 comes off any program you purchase.