About

Writing can be a fun hobby or a seriously challenging business. Sometimes it's detrimental to your health. 

I learnt this the hard way when I had a stroke in 2020. Fortunately, the stroke was minor and, with the benefit of hindsight, I now consider it a pivotal moment in my life - a blessing even. 

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My stroke made me take a good look at how I was living through fresh lenses. It forced me to think about my values and reevaluate my priorities. I needed to reconnect with nature, my family and friends, and me, myself and I as a human being and as a writer. This may all sound a bit woowoo to you, but if you ask anyone who has had a serious health scare, you'll probably find a similar story.

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In the process of delving into my self-awareness, I also became increasingly aware of what a tough gig writing is for so many writers, even when they loved the physical act of writing - there was all that other stress and emotional baggage to carry!

The ugly truth:
 

As writers, it's very common to become anxious about submitting our work for publication or writing competitions. One author I know even compared it to feeling as exposed as if he'd stripped off and walked down the street parading his wares naked! Writers constantly have to suffer the torment of waiting for months to hear back from publishers or agents, not to mention the humiliation of curt one-size-fits-all rejections or no response at all. Is it little wonder so many of us are plagued by doubts or suffer from anxiety? When other authors make being a successful author look oh-so easy knocking out half a dozen books a year and still managing to look glamorous and unfazed. Is it surprising that many of us think we're doing it all wrong?

Most of us writers are chasing that elusive bubble of success and happiness. Even when it's suddenly within our grasp, it's fleeting. One puff of wind and - poof - it's gone. Then we're chasing the next book, the next challenge, the next worry, chasing our dreams like a headless chicken stuck in a coop with a fox ...

Time to learn some cunning!

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My husband is a business and life coach. Through conversations with him and listening to podcasts such as 'How to Fail' and 'Diary of a CEO', I became interested, and then totally  invested, in learning about positive psychology. I wanted to help not only myself but also other writers to write and thrive! Throw into the crucible my years of experience (teaching leadership and motivation in the British military, being a corporate spokesperson and running Microsoft's UK Press Centre, teaching students, tutoring adults and working with authors on their fiction) ... and Foxkirk Coaching and Editing was born.

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I believe reflection and reevaluation and taking positive action are essential for writers, so that's where I usually start new clients. It's only natural for us to get distracted by pretty, shiny writing ideas. It's only natural to be diverted from our chosen path by friends and colleagues and other authors now and again. But it's essential to listen first and foremost to ourselves and find our way back to our ideal path, even though it can sometimes feel like fighting our way through a shitstorm. We can't control what life is going to throw at us any more than we can control the weather, but we can learn to control how we respond. We can build resilience and a growth mindset.

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Understanding your writing 'compass', finding a clear and fulfilling path to your creative work, strengthening your positive mindset and enjoying the writing journey are equally as important as kicking writing goals.

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Writing should feel like a gift not a burden! 

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For me, rebuilding my confidence, understanding my strengths and values, re-evaluating my priorities, re-engineering and re-imagining who I wanted to be, have taken considerable time, effort and consideration, but it has proven invaluable. I can help you to do this too. 

Writing is an essential part of who I am, but it's far from everything. I no longer fool myself into thinking that being traditionally published, or writing more books, will bring me happiness, and besides, I don't want my happiness to be tied to something outside my own control.

Hackneyed as it may sound, there is joy to be found in the here and now. There is joy to be found in the writing process. For me, there is also so much joy in helping others.

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As Joseph Campbell, author of The Hero's Journey wrote,

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"We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy."

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I can be your compass and your companion on your writing journey.

Isn't it about time to learn how you may be sabotaging your own happiness and well-being. 

Isn't about time you rediscover the joy of writing!

Now is the time to​

Write & thrive!