Finish Your Novel
ongoing group with tons of support & accountability
Want to make dramatic progress on your novel … in just six weeks? Finish Your Novel is a small, focused group with loads of hands-on support from me. It runs through my Writers’ Cafe community.
In your first six weeks, you’ll come up with a clear roadmap to finish your novel.
Our next group runs from Monday 20th October to Sunday 30th November.
Your Next Six Weeks
In just six weeks, you’ll get on track to finish your novel. Here’s how it works.
We kick things off with:
🎯 A workshop session to brainstorm or nail down the major structural moments in your novel
🎯 Guided goal-setting so you can make significant progress, broken down into manageable weekly chunks
Then throughout the six weeks, we have:
📝 Weekly check-ins for building sustainable writing habits so you can go the distance (with our support!)
📝 Weekly group calls for direct support from me on anything you’re stuck with
📝 Weekly themes with clear examples and focused, practical tips from me on different areas of novel-writing
To wrap it up in week six, we have:
🚀 Our final group call, where we get clear on your plan for finishing your novel’s current or next draft
🚀 The option to continue in the group for longer-term support and momentum
We also have: fellow writers who care about your novel and want to cheer you on, space to submit work for honest, constructive feedback from me and fellow members, and gentle chasing up from me if you don’t check in each week.
We don’t have: a mountain of course material you have to work through, “writing exercises” that have nothing to do with your novel, or lots of waffle!
Finish Your Novel costs $200 for the full six weeks (£150 if you prefer GBP) which includes everything. You can pay upfront or weekly.
What Members Say
Valerie Says...
The novel group is a safe space for writers who want to learn and finish their novels. Each week, we focused on a new writing technique and shared our scenes. We gave honest, supportive feedback, and as we got to know each other’s stories and characters, I think we all became more invested, not just in our own work, but in each other’s.
I felt an unexpected lift from the group as the weeks went on, a kind of momentum I didn’t anticipate going in. And I’m excited for all of us to reach “the end.”
—Valerie Buchanan, author of the Honeycomb Beach Series
Jo Says...
This course has provided much needed motivation to carry on with my novel and I highly recommend it. Having a weekly focus, and a deadline, has made me think about my writing more and actually sit down and do some! The opportunity to give and received feedback has been especially useful as reading other peoples’ writing has helped me to analyse my own while receiving feedback on my writing has provided new insights and also encouragement. The chance to meet weekly with other writers and talk about your and their ideas is both fun and motivating, and everyone, especially Ali, is very supportive.
— Jo Hunter
A J Linney Says...
This course has been just what I needed. I am at the stage of working through a developmental edit on my second novel, and this was the point where I felt exhausted and ready to put it aside. Instead, I joined Ali’s course and received the encouragement to continue instead of procrastinating!
Each week provided something different, from looking at structure to reworking scenes. The themed weeks were useful, allowing us to focus on a specific topic such as action, viewpoints, setting and more. We chose scenes from our novels depending on the topic, and submitted them for feedback.
The members of the group have offered insightful feedback and encouragement. Working together means having extra input, which has been helpful for us all, allowing more ideas to flow.
Ali is an amazing teacher, and I highly recommend this course for anyone working on a novel.
— A. J. Linney, author of Bitter Pill
What’s Included
Overall Goal Setting
During “Week 0” (just before the six weeks begins), we each set our own individual goal for the six weeks.
That might be something like:
- Write an outline of the first three chapters
- Write the next 30,000 words of my novel
- Finish my current draft
- Restructure my novel and prepare for Draft 2
We also each share a brief summary of our novel or novel idea, so that other members have an overall sense of what we’re working on (helpful when giving feedback on specific scenes).
Weekly Group Calls
Our weekly group calls last for 90 minutes. You can come along with any writing question or problem: I’m here to help!
You can also bring draft work (up to 1,500 words per week) for feedback. If possible, please post this in the group 24 hours ahead, so people have time to read it in advance.
Each call is recorded, so even if you can’t make it one week, you can catch up afterwards. It’s often really helpful to hear other people’s questions, problems, and feedback on work-in-progress, as you may well find these resonate with you too.
Weekly Accountability Check-In
Each Monday, I post in our group space to ask everyone’s goals for the week. We share our individual targets, e.g. “Write 5,000 words”.
(If you don’t reply by Wednesday, I contact you to check if everything’s going okay and if you need any extra support.)
The following Monday, I post again to ask how you got on, tagging you and reminding you of your target. We share the progress we made along with our goals for the coming week.
Six Week Schedule: Mon 20th Oct – Sun 30th Nov
Week 0: Welcome & Goal Setting
Our registration & welcome week. Getting to know everyone, setting and sharing your goals.
What to Expect
Week 0 is where you get settled in, set, and share your goal for the six weeks.
After that, each week has:
- A weekly check-in, within our private space
- A weekly video, introducing the topic & examples (around 15-20 mins)
- An optional worksheet for your novel, relating to that week’s topic
- A weekly live discussion call (1.5 hours)
Week 1: Structuring Your Novel
Mon 20th Oct – Sun 26th Oct
A big picture view of the overall structure of your novel, pinning down crucial moments like your inciting event, midpoint, and climax.
Week 2: Types of Conflict
Mon 27th Oct – Sun 2nd Nov
Understanding the different types of conflict (both external and internal) and knowing how to use and combine them effectively.
Week 3: Sympathetic Characters
Mon 3rd Nov – Sun 9th Nov
What makes for a “sympathetic” character? How can you get readers to identify with and/or care about your characters?
Week 4: Scenes vs Chapters
Mon 10th Nov – Sun 16th Nov
Where should you put a scene break? How should you divide your novel into chapters, and how long should those chapters be?
Week 5: Pacing
Mon 17th Nov – Sun 23rd Nov
Is your pacing too fast, too slow, or just right? Practical ways to adjust pacing and why (e.g. action scene vs more reflective scene).
Week 6: Getting to "The End"
Mon 24th Nov – Sun 30th Nov
Creating a plan to get you to “the end” of your current draft (or if you’re almost done with it, to the end of your next draft).
About Ali
I write both fiction and non-fiction, and I’ve been making a living writing since 2008.
Over the years, I’ve written fiction around all kinds of situations: a full-time job, alongside studies, as a full-time freelancer, and while raising kids (they’re now 10 and 12). I know how hard it can be sometimes to see a big project like a novel through to “the end”.
During my writing journey so far, I’ve had plenty of high points, like signing a book deal for Publishing Ebooks for Dummies to publishing three novels and a novella.
But I also know the challenges involved in things like getting all the way to “The End” of a draft, wrestling a novel into shape, plucking up the courage to self-publish it or send it out to agents, and struggling to prioritise your writing in the midst of a busy life.
Throughout my whole writing journey, the feedback and support I’ve received from writing tutors, editors, and peers has been hugely valuable to me. I’ve previously offered this to others through one-to-one coaching, but I think it’s especially valuable for novelists to have the encouragement and support of a small group. It also lets you get direct, detailed feedback and advice from me at a fraction of the cost of one-to-one coaching.
Join Us Now
The six-week Finish Your Novel group is just $200 (£150 in GBP).
That covers everything: group calls, check-ins, videos, worksheets, etc.
You can pay in full upfront or you can split the cost into six weekly instalments: you’ll be able to choose between these options when you check out.
There’s no ongoing commitment, though you’re welcome to join us for longer at the end of the six weeks.