Work with me 1:1

Creativity and Writing Coaching

Coaching that marries craft, meaning, purpose, and spirituality.

I help writers, creatives, and anyone seeking to enhance their creative purpose.

Contact me for a 15-minute free trial session. If we both feel like it’s a good fit, we’ll move on from there!

Sign up for a creativity toolkit + coaching session and receive the following:

A preliminary questionnaire with reflection exercises that will help identify your desires, values, worldview, aesthetics, self-care needs, and goals. I’ll use this questionnaire to design your personalized toolkit and coaching session.

3-5 creative prompts personalized for your challenges and interests. These prompts may involve writing, doodling, photography, collage, music, experiential learning, and mind/body meditations.

A list of 5-7 resources, curated especially for you, that will inspire your work, help you overcome obstacles, and meet your goals.

45-minutes of 1:1 guidance and direct instruction from an accomplished writer and professor who teaches at Northwestern University.

My Coaching Philosophy

There is no muse.

Creativity comes from the heart and body.

Cultivate an attitude of curiosity, wonder, experimentation, and joyful effort.

Helpful feedback is both honest and kind.

Gentleness and rigor are not contradictions.

The best creativity coaching is designed by working creatives—because we’ve been there.

I draw on my experience as:

• A writer whose work has been both published and distinguished in The Best American Short Stories series, The New York Times, and other critically acclaimed publications.

• A creative writing professor who teaches at Northwestern University.

• A teacher and consultant at StoryStudio, a leading national creative writing center.

• The creator of a newsletter that focuses on the intersection of creative practice and Buddhism.

Book a three session coaching package at a 20% discount:

Session 1: Reflection, Self-Care, and Goals

• Reflect on your aesthetic values.

• Identify areas where you need support.

• Create goals that are supported by artistic self-care.

• Receive your personalized Creativity Toolkit.

Session 2: Inspiration, Meaning, and Craft

• Find your sources of inspiration and meaning.

• Connect your creative work to your worldview.

Session 3: Joy, Devotion, and Discipline

• Form strategies to support in your creative work for the long term.

• Develop a plan to enhance your skills and craft.

What people say about my teaching and writing:

For the past fifteen years, Sarah has continually impressed me with her talent and unceasing imagination. She fearlessly tackles worlds, large and small, with a distillation that comes from knowing what’s absolutely essential. I’m a big fan.

—Cristina García, author of Vanishing Maps

As a teacher and mentor, Sarah is an expert at purposeful play—while mindful of the goals of a given session, she is also sensitive to the process that goes into achieving your goals. She is always prepared with an insight or exercise to move you forward, wherever you may find yourself in the creative process.

—Pedro Ponce, author of The Devil and the Dairy Princess

Sarah is a generous, insightful facilitator. She has a wealth of practical tips and wisdom for writers of all ages or experience levels. Time with Sarah has made me a better writer and teacher, and I aspire to her sense of joy in the craft.

—Connor Shioshita-Pickett

Sarah is a keen reader and has a unique knack for seeing what a writer is striving for in a draft and what may be holding them back from achieving their aim. She has deep knowledge of craft and deft writing skills and pairs them with a level of close attention that only comes from true dedication and respect for others' work. Sarah's approach, which helps writers get outside of themselves and learn to see what's on the page (and what's missing), is truly one of a kind. It's a way of showing you yourself. 

—Serena Simpson

"Sarah is deeply thoughtful, incredibly sharp, and unfailingly kind—she's the kind of educator who is committed to creating a shared understanding."

—Joe Scapellato, author of The Made-Up Man

Sarah is a fantastic leader and teacher, and her approach to incorporating play into the classroom is both thoughtful and energizing. It’s been a pleasure for me to learn from her as both a teacher and a writer, and I’m confident that working with her can make anyone’s teaching and writing better.

—Michelle Falkoff, author of How to Pack for the End of the World