A life of meaningful creative work is rarely easy, and at some point we all need guidance. As a dedicated writer, a talented editor and a wise and sensitive critic, Steve Adams understands from the inside out the challenges that writers and artists face. His multiple talents and his kind and open demeanor enable him to adapt to each client’s needs and fulfill many different roles as a coach. He can offer astute critical feedback on a project, recommend new tactics for your creative process, help you define short- and long-term goals, or provide the encouragement or deadlines you need to stay on track toward those goals. My work with Steve has helped me reinvent my writing practice and revitalize my attitude toward my work.
- Valerie Laken, author of
Dream House
Separate Kingdoms
Steve brought calm and grace to an intense and difficult stage of my career. Submitting a novel can be one of the most nerve-wracking situations a writer can face, and my anxiety threatened to overwhelm me. But because of Steve’s empathy, expertise, and clear-sightedness, I was able to navigate that time with equanimity and perspective. If I hadn’t had our work to steady me, I am certain that both my writing and my home life would have been full of turbulence. But his smart and supportive guidance got me through the craziness and the stress. Any artist who struggles with doubt, worry, or anxiety has a true resource in Steve Adams.
- Emily Tedrowe, author of
Commuters
Steve Adams is such a generous and talented writing coach. He has been very helpful on a YA fiction project I’m developing. He simultaneously provides clarity and poetry in his feedback. I think the fact that he is a synesthete makes him even more connected to the creative force. I sincerely recommend him to people who both want to grow and be treated well in the process.
- Maureen Seaberg, author of
Tasting the Universe
Struck by Genius: How a Head Injury Made Me a Mathematical Marvel,
with Jason Padgett
I always send my manuscripts to Steve first because I know he will focus on the big picture rather than dwelling on the small, obvious problems. He has helped me get three books in shape for publication, and I have come to rely heavily on his sound instincts. In today’s publishing world, where agents need manuscripts that are ready to submit and editors have less time to work with writers, Steve’s judicious suggestions have been invaluable to me.
- Scott Zesch, author of
Alamo Heights
The Captured
The Chinatown War
Steve Adams not only “gets” writers but he also gets creativity and the challenges of remaining creative in a life that also involves work, family and study. Steve helped me better understand how to work more efficiently on writing tasks which I’d always thought of as conflicting: short stories and an academic thesis. It was through talking to Steve that I finally got a handle on my own writing process and was able to steer it in the right direction. In the end I was working so well I even branched out and wrote my first play, which has since made it to the stage!
- Patrick Cullen, author of
What Came Between
Steve is a superb coach, coming to the plate with heaps of personal experience and a tremendously positive perspective that helps clarify and ground the work, making the whole writing process more light and approachable and manageable. I found myself deeply inspired by him and believing in myself, laughing through our exchanges and becoming vitally capable to climb my teetering ladder to write my book.
- Cyncie Winter, MH, MA, LPC, Creativity Coach
A deer in the headlights—that’s how I felt when I first realized I had a story to tell and no previous writing training whatsoever. Then a published friend suggested I talk to Steve Adams, and am I glad I listened! It turned out to be a vital step in getting my project off to a healthy start. Steve has an uncanny ability to immediately recognize where you’re going astray in your writing, but also the wisdom and experience to gently turn you around and point you in the right direction. He guides you with humor and encouragement, yet always remains practical and realistic. Steve Adams makes the intimidating mountain of the writing process scalable!
- Hana Holbus, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
I hired Steve as my writing coach in January and had written six, short memoir pieces by July, all of them ready for literary submission. I could not have been this prolific without his encouragement, and I never would have submitted those pieces without his faith in my ability to get published if I just kept writing and putting it out there. Besides the fact that he's a joy to spend an hour with, and has a gentle critique sensibility, he also inspires with his own writing achievements that give us something to aspire to. I highly recommend him as both a writing coach and an author whose work you want to hold in your hands.
- Stefani Zellmer, Austin, Texas