For Anyone Who’s Tried and Failed (and Tried and Failed) to Finish the First Draft of a Novel
How long have you dreamed about writing a novel? Maybe you’ve started. Stopped. Re-written your first paragraph for the fifth (or 50th) time.
Or maybe you’ve barely dared to open a notebook or fire up your word processor. The vague ideas have only swirled around in your head.
But we all know the only way for your novel to get written is for you to fasten your butt to the chair and get words on the page. Or else your story will never be born, will never be read, and you’ll never have the satisfaction of crossing “write novel” off your bucket list. But writing can be soooooo hard!
I get that. But here’s the truth: writing your novel’s first draft doesn’t have to be a lonely, miserable, procrastination-fueled, guilt-ridden slog.
What if you could finish your first draft in one year? With friends, fun, and a little butt-kicking to help you along your way?
What if this is the year you finally write the first draft of your novel? No more “someday.” No more excuses and procrastination. No more abandoned Word docs gathering cobwebs in the darkest depths of your hard drive.
Don’t let another year pass with your unwritten novel on your conscience.
Who Am I?
Since I’m not Gandalf, you might be asking yourself who the heck am I, inviting you to join a Fellowship?
I’m a freelance writer so I’ve written countless non-fiction articles, and I’ve also published a couple of short stories, but I’m no fiction expert. I’m not an accredited book coach. I haven’t published a book (yet!). I’ve taught at the college/university level, but not English or creative writing.
The First Novel Fellowship isn’t about me teaching you. Nor is this some kind of freaky-weird fan club, with me at the centre. (OMG how to give my uber-introverted heart palpitations.)
I’m in the trenches with you, learning how to get better at putting my butt in the chair and getting sentences on the page, no matter how ugly those first-draft sentences are!
This is a community.
And a community is all about the power of us. Us, working together, cheering each other on, helping each other — with a little extra learning from guest experts along the way.
So you can rest assured that, inside the First Novel Fellowship, there are no upsells to my writing craft workshops or my book coaching packages or my editing services. There are no upsells, because I don’t have any! I’m a bringer-togetherer, not an instructor.
That doesn’t mean that during my writing journey I haven’t learned valuable stuff to share. We all have! (Even if it’s only whether Fight Song is better than Roar to combat peak procrastination.) At this point, I’ve finished three book-length manuscripts, two of which are fiction. The first was my doctoral dissertation. (Finishing that in 2017 gave me the confidence that I could finish long and painfully difficult projects.)
The second was a novel draft I completed during my own personal one-month pseudo NaNoWriMo in 2021. I decided that story was fatally flawed and not worth revising. But I learned soooo much from that experience. It was definitely not wasted time!
The third is a completed novel that I’m currently querying literary agents with. And I’m now working on my fourth and fifth book-length manuscripts — a memoir and another novel.
I’ve been running an in-person writing group since 2018 and ran an online group for novelists through the Federation of BC Writers for about a year.
Over and over again, I’ve seen the power of peer support and accountability. Together, we help one another, hold ourselves accountable, sympathize when things are tough, and celebrate one another’s wins — big and small.
I also belong to three other writing groups. Two of which are online groups especially for historical fiction writers, and one is an in-person group where writers of all genres gather for an hour on Sunday afternoons to write together. Silently. It’s fun! (Don’t worry, we’re not that weird, we do chat a little before and after the hour.) I love hanging out with writers — and people who want to call themselves writers but can’t quite bring themselves to do so! You’re my peeps!
When writers come together, we find moral support and camaraderie. That’s why I created the First Novel Fellowship — an online community where you don’t just dream about writing your novel. You actually write it. Each cohort will be small and cozy so we can all get to know one another and feel comfortable. The doors will close and new people will have to wait for the next cohort to start.
The First Novel Fellowship will bring the magic of in-person writing groups — motivation, focus, accountability, and inspiration — to a geographically broader community of people all focused on the same grand quest: to finish the first draft of their first novel in one year.
Come, you got this!
Why a Fellowship?
Writing a novel is a gloriously big dream, a wonderfully life-affirming goal. It’s worthy of your bucket list — and it deserves more than just your half-hearted wish to “someday” get around to it.
This time, you won’t be writing it alone.
Finishing your first draft is way more doable when you’ve got:
🧙♀️Accountability partners who notice if you ghost your draft
🧙♀️Live writing sessions with your cohort where you show up, sit down, and get words on the page
🧙♀️Regular check-ins so you can celebrate (or commiserate) with people who get it
🧙♀️Guest experts showing you smart ways to outwit your inner critic, manage your writing time, and overcome the inevitable bumps in the road
Who the First Novel Fellowship is for:
🧙♀️Total beginners who don’t know where to start but are ready to try
🧙♀️Serial starters who have a folder full of abandoned Word docs and a closet full of guilt
🧙♀️Anyone who’s sick of disappointing themselves, and ready to finally say: “This is the year I finish my first draft.”
🧙♀️Hobbits
What you get inside the First Novel Fellowship:
🧙♀️Weekly live writing sessions to keep you glued to your chair
🧙♀️Forums and discussion spaces where procrastination turns into progress
🧙♀️Monthly guest workshops or webinars from novelists and other experts who’ve been where you are (Remember, all novels started from a blank page!)
🧙♀️Accountability partners who cheer when you reach milestones (and nudge you when you don’t)
Why This Works
Writing a novel is hard. Really freakin’ hard. Writing a novel alone is even harder.
Most people never finish their first draft because they don’t have structure, support, or anyone to remind them that crappy first drafts are the only kind of first drafts that exist.
The First Novel Fellowship makes sure you:
🧙♀️Show up — even on the days you don’t feel like it
🧙♀️Stick with it — because your fellow writers won’t let you disappear
🧙♀️Celebrate progress! Every page — no matter how crappy — gets you closer to “The End”
You’ll go from:
👎“I’ll get around to it someday…”
👎Opening the same document and closing it again
👎Feeling like maybe you don’t have what it takes to write a novel
To:
✅ Someone who actually follows through on their dreams
✅ A writer with a complete first draft in their hands
✅ A person who can proudly say, “I did it!”
Membership
Join now at the founders’ rate and lock it in. (After the founding cohort, the monthly rate will go up for new members.) Founders, you get a special rate because, by giving me feedback, you’ll help design this community for future members, and there’s bound to be a few technical bumps that need ironing out. A bunch of brains working together is always better than one!
• 14-day full refund window (if you join and realize it’s not for you, you can leave with a full refund, no hard feelings)
• Billed annually (to ensure commitment!)
How much does the Fellowship cost?
For the founding cohort of the First Novel Fellowship, membership is only CAD$19 per month, billed annually.
Ready to Finally Write That First Draft?
You’ve dreamed about it long enough...
Imagine being able to say that you actually finished your draft. Sense the satisfaction of completing a hard project that you've yearned to get done, of finally feeling you can legitimately call yourself a writer.
Now’s the time to put words on the page, with a community that’s got your back.
Join the First Novel Fellowship today, and let’s FINALLY get your draft done.
FAQ
Q: Is the Fellowship a good fit, even though I don't know how to write? A: The best way to learn to write is by writing. A lot. And take the pressure off yourself. Accept that your first draft will be crappy. You make it better in revision. You will inevitably get better at writing as you go along. Do not procrastinate by thinking you’ve got to learn how to write BEFORE you complete your first draft!
Q: What if I don't have time to write a novel? A: You likely have more time than you think, and the real issue is a matter of prioritizing and discipline. Do you spend any time scrolling on social media? Watching Netflix? If so, then — so long as writing your draft is a priority for you — you have time to write a novel. You don’t need a lot of time each day; you just need to consistently use those little bits of time to write. If you genuinely don’t have any leisure time, then the Fellowship may not be a good fit for you right now. I hope life eases up a bit for you soon.
Q: I’ve tried to write my draft and failed every time. How do I know the Fellowship will work for me? A: Of course, life never gives a guarantee. For whatever reason, you might not commit to coming to the writing sessions or you might break both arms (sorry for the visual!) or a family member might get sick and need you to be a full-time caregiver. BUT I do know that joining a supportive community that will help hold you accountable will give you a far greater chance of success than trying to go it alone.
Q: Why do you bill annually instead of monthly? A: A key to success is commitment. If you paid monthly, you’d be much more inclined to give up in month four or seven or whenever writing gets really, really hard, than if you’d already paid for a year. Also, if you leave after a few months, you leave your accountability partner stranded!
Q: But shouldn't I take a writing class or read a writing craft book first? A: Writing classes and craft books are fabulous resources. But, ultimately, the way to get better at writing is by writing. (Y’know, just like you can’t learn how to ride a bike just by reading a book about bike riding.) You could take writing classes while you’re working on your draft. But I’m inclined to think that most people don’t know what it is they need to learn about until they’ve written a bunch. But if you have to choose one or the other, and you’re determined to learn more before embarking on your draft, I recommend Bookfox (John Matthew Fox). Just make sure you’re not using learning as an excuse not to be DOing. We’ll also have some learning events in the community, but I’ve intentionally created the community to be light on learning resources. You can find LOTS of writing classes online and craft books at your local library. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer abundance of learning resources available to you, so the Fellowship is intentionally designed to be lean. It’s about actually writing, rather than learning about writing.
Q: Why is this so expensive? A: Of course, what counts as expensive is relative to each member’s financial circumstances, and for some people investing in this community will be a significant expense, and for others it won't. The price is a balance between accessibility and making business sense for me. If the cost is a hurdle for you, it’s ok to wait until you’re in a financially better situation. Your novel isn’t going anywhere. If it’s any consolation, being a member of this community is a LOT more affordable than hiring a 1:1 book coach to keep you on track. If you’re ready to prioritize your novel, think about the monthly cost for things like Netflix or Spotify. Does your novel deserve a similar investment? If not, that’s ok. If writing a novel is not a priority for you right now, I’m not going to write some overly persuasive copy that tries to override your critical thinking faculties. I don’t want you to have buyer’s remorse. If you join the Fellowship, it’s important that you WANT to be there.
Q: Are there critiques inside the Fellowship? A: No! I strongly believe that, for most writers, getting feedback on a first draft harms the writing process. Either the feedback is negative, which can be discouraging. Or it’s positive, which can make a writer think their first draft is closer to a finished book than it really is. It also can interfere when you’re actually putting words on the page. If you’re worrying about what so-and-so is going to think about your writing, it can paralyze you so you don’t write at all. You need to write your first draft in creative mode, and then revise it in critical mode.
Q: Why a 14-day refund window, instead of 30 days? A: We have accountability partners inside the Fellowship. After 14 days, if your assigned accountability partner leaves, we’ll either find another one or have one group of three partners. 14 days isn’t long enough for anyone to be really attached and dependent on a specific accountability partner.