Write and finish your damn (good) book!

Claire L. Fishback, Certified Book Coach & Author

Hi! I'm Claire! An enthusiastic and imaginative book coach who uses way too many exclamation points, talks too much about my beloved pittie mix, Kira, and is fueled by inspiring and motivating fellow writers! I'm an Author Accelerator certified book coach and Writing From the Top of Your Head certified facilitator. From first spark to final page, I help fiction writers ditch the rules, fall back in love with writing, and finally finish their damn (good) stories! Sign up for mini-book coaching in your inbox, subscriber only specials, and general shenanigans.

A woman holds a peach up toward a full moon while manuscript pages flutter around her.

You don’t have to point your 🍑 at the moon

Hi Reader, I’m coming in with a little cheek today (get it? Peach emoji… butts… cheek?) The listening tour (see footer) has been going on for a few weeks and one thing I’ve noticed so far is, when asked “What do I do in your words?” The answers are… all over the place! 🫠🙃🫣 I think one person came close when she said, “You’re like a life coach... but for writers.” So, to help explain what I actually do around here, I wrote a little ditty about it. You can read that here. But never fear. I’m...

about 1 month ago • 3 min read

Soup 🍲, games 🕹️, and inspiration ✨

Hi Reader, Since I’ve asked so much of you lately, I’m keeping this one short and sweet. I have a few things to share that I think you just might love. If it’s cold right now where you live, this amazing soup will warm you right up! (Warning: it is 100% not fat free, which is probably why it is sooooo yummy). A fun little break from the daily grind (xenials will adore this) This inspiring article for writers (very on fleek with what I’ve been talking about of late… do people still say, on...

4 days ago • 1 min read

Today’s the day! ACE your story with me!

Hi Reader! Just a quick note to let you know my talk, ACE Your Story: 3 Things You Need to Craft a Compelling Story goes live today at 4pm MST (3pm Pacific, 6pm Eastern) at the Perfect Your Process summit! This is a free event for writers who want to create joyful writing practices. I’ll be in the comments answering questions! Come join me! It’s gonna be FUN!!! If you haven’t already, Register here Plus, you’ll get access to the ACE Diagnostic Tool! Claire 💛 P.S. This is the last email you'll...

11 days ago • 1 min read

Perfect Your Process Summit starts tomorrow!

Don't get FOMO. Summit starts tomorrow!

Hi Reader! Just a quick reminder, in case you haven’t gotten your free ticket yet, the summit starts tomorrow! Join me and a bunch of other amazing speakers here. Among MANY others, here are a few of the talks I’m especially interested in: Structuring Your Memoir with Marion Roach Smith (I have a memoir about all the dogs I’ve loved in my life in my idea bank that is demanding to be written!) Your Writing Personality: The Hidden Key to Your Creative Process with Rachel Clair How to Find the...

14 days ago • 1 min read

Amazing event for writers happening in two days

Hi Reader! I know I’ve been asking a lot of you lately, and here I am again with another thing that’s happening! 🫣 I had the honor of being invited to speak at Daniel David Wallace’s Perfect Your Process summit. This is an annual writing habits and practices summit happening over the weekend into next week! I hope you'll come and see my presentation! It goes live on March 23rd at 4pm MST (that’s 3pm Pacific, 6pm Eastern) If you're here reading my newsletters and articles, you probably love...

16 days ago • 1 min read

The creative reboot you’ve been looking for

Hi Reader, I’ve sent a couple emails about this already, and I’m going to send one more just in case you were on the fence about joining the workshop on the 25th. Because there might be something I’ve failed to mention: This workshop isn’t about tips and tricks. It isn’t about plotting. It isn’t about “how to be marketable.” It’s a creative reboot. It’s for the writer who: Keeps overthinking their beginning (👋 hi!) Feels creatively rusty Misses the version of themselves who used to write...

about 1 month ago • 2 min read

Two blond dogs with pink noses and Pooh and Piglet toys.

Keepin' it short (just a quick Q)

WRITE AND FINISH YOUR DAMN (GOOD) BOOK Hi Reader, Today is my husband’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Husband! (yes, I do call him Husband as a term of endearment, usually with a strange accent, so it’s like Hoos-bahnd). If you are celebrating a b’day in January, Happy Birthday to you, too! In fact, if you’re celebrating a birthday at any time this year, happy birthday! 😜 I have a LOT of ideas this year (now that my brain has come back online). In order to work on what will best serve YOU, I’d...

2 months ago • 1 min read

Creativity is hard when things suck

WRITE AND FINISH YOUR DAMN (GOOD) BOOK Hi Reader, I don't usually email more than once a week, but I can’t ignore it anymore. I know I usually come in here with sparkles and sunshine and creative chaos, but today I’m feeling things differently and I'm running out of effs to give. The world sucks right now. It’s killing my desire to write and be creative. Maybe because my head feels like it’s full of goo, like Slimer’s ectoplasm, but it’s also just the incredulity of the things going on in the...

3 months ago • 3 min read

Blond dog in a downward dog style stretch

Creativity thrives with constraints, not a death grip

WRITE AND FINISH YOUR DAMN (GOOD) BOOK 💌 Loving this newsletter? Forward it to a friend who’d enjoy it too. Got this from a friend? You can sign up for your own copy right here. Hi Reader, Last week, I wrote about not being ready with “new year new me” energy (it was more like, new year, who dis? 🤨). I was so happy to get a bunch of replies that made me feel less alone! Oh the resonance, amiright? Last September, I participated in a program that changed me. Not in the, I now have a hand...

3 months ago • 2 min read

A blond dog with a golden bow lays on an orange blanket

Permission to not be ready 🫣

WRITE AND FINISH YOUR DAMN (GOOD) BOOK Hi Reader, How are you? Oh, Happy New Year if you celebrate the calendar new year, which I don’t… Okay, that’s not true. I celebrate it, but I don’t personally acknowledge it as The Time of the Year in Which All the Things Must Be Figured Out for the Coming Year. For me (and this is just my humble opinion of course!): Winter is a time for rest, recuperation, incubation, and did I mention rest? Winter is not a time of renewal (though you’d never guess it...

3 months ago • 2 min read