The Ninja Write-a-Long

It all started with my own deadline. I have a novel due to my publisher (MacMillan) by January 1. Because I've been in the middle of finishing up my MFA, I haven't started writing it yet.

I'm starting June 1--right from the beginning, with plotting. And I thought to myself, wouldn't it be amazing if I just brought all of you guys along for the ride?

So the idea behind the Ninja Write-a-Long . . . NWAL for short . . . was born.

Here's how it will work:

Our signature course, A Novel Idea, is actually the exact method I use for writing a novel. I'll be following it step-by-step myself. If you join NWAL, you'll get the course. You'll have instant access to it via Teachable, here. The whole course. But also, I'll drip it out to you at the right pace for getting your book written on a seven-month time table.

(This is the only time in 2018 that A Novel Idea will be available. More than 500 students have taken the course. Many have finished their novels, several have signed with agents and had traditional book deals. Many more have gone on to indie publish. If you want access to A Novel Idea, this is how you do it.)

There will be a private Facebook Group just for NWAL Ninjas. Zach and I will both be in there everyday offering support and mentorship. Plus, it's going to be a great way for you all to connect with each other and start to build a real community. (I'm so excited about this part!)

Zach probably about where you are in his writing career. He's talented. He's written one novel before. He's done NaNoWriMo. He's ready to take it up a notch. I'll be mentoring him through the next seven months, and we're going to share that process with you. We'll host weekly video chats for NWAL participants where we talk about what we did the week before, what the upcoming week has in store, and then answer questions.

There is also going to be a component to the Ninja Write-a-Long that will help you both start to earn some money from your writing, and begin to build your most important marketing tool--an email list. We'll be incorporating a simple blogging strategy into NWAL. And you'll be given monthly challenges to help you grow your audience.

Tons of support. From me. From Zach. From each other. Our goal is to facilitate community. We'll pair you up with a buddy for the whole NWAL experience. And you'll get daily inspiration and accountability texts from us. Plus you'll be able to share your work once a week for peer feedback.

Most importantly: if you stick with it and do the work, you'll write a novel in the next seven months--from plotting through a self-edit. Can you imagine 2019 being the year you put your work out there in the world?

This is more than a course. It's an experience.

When you sign up, you get instant and lifetime access to A Novel Idea. You can use it, like I do, to write book after book--which is the only way to build a writing career.

But this is so much more than a course.

In the next seven months, we're going to build a community of writers who are all dedicated to writing their novels and seeing them out in the world. And we're going to actually finish our books--not sign up for one more course that sits in our email inbox unused.

I'm going to be here to mentor you and show you how it's done, because I'll be doing it right along with you. Every single step of the way.

I've taken courses. I've hired mentors. I've done an MFA. This is the program I wish I'd had all along. I'm building it for myself, hoping you'll be a part of it with me.

Are you in?

What Students Are Saying About Working with Me

Finding Shaunta and The Plotting Workshop, was the best thing I could have ever done for my writing. Before joining my plot lines were weak. Now I have a solid foundation and am working on Act 2 of my WIP.

The community that Shaunta has gathered from her Ninja Writers is everything to an inexperienced writer just starting out. The friends I have met by posting my prompts are amazing. Without their daily encouragement, I don't know where I would be.

With Shaunta's instructions and assignments you will have all the tools you need to sit down and create a book everyone will be dying to read! The only regret you'll have is not finding the courses sooner!!

I feel like I have a better grasp on my story than ever before. Usually I jump right in with a great idea and it fizzles out because I haven't thought through where it's going, who's involved, and what obstacles are going to arise. I love the process of discovery that happens when I write- about my characters, events and relationships that I hadn't even considered- and I don't feel like I'm going to be sacrificing that by plotting so thoroughly.

The Plotting Workshop has for me been a great experience and a crucial tool in planning my novel. It has helped me more than words can say, and I've made some great friends among the Ninja Writers too! I can't thank this program enough! I've found it so helpful for making my plot concrete. It is really bringing all my ideas together and helping me to organize my thoughts and see what is pliable to the story or not.