Services
I offer writing coaching, manuscript consultation on fiction and nonfiction projects, and creative writing MFA portfolio preparation.
Writing Coaching
I have been working as a writing coach and editor for Gilliam Writers Group since 2019. My clients include memoirists, novelists, and field specialists with book-length projects in major and academic presses. My approach gets you writing and motivate you to finish. We focus on process over project and in this way, develop ideas and habits that stay with you past our time together.
My rate for this is $100/hour.
Editing
I offer developmental edits focused on the projects structural concerns and
create tangible approaches to seeing the big picture differently. This is helpful for projects that feel stale and immediately evoke exhaustion as well as stuck, unfinished projects. My rate for these edits is $60/hour.
I also offer sentence-level edits focused honing on style, as well as standard copyediting services. My rate for these edits is $40/hour.
Creative Writing MFA Portfolio Consultation
I also offer edits both on fiction/nonfiction writing samples, as well as the statement of purpose, both academic and personal. I can also offer guidance on choosing programs, determining priorities, and organizing an otherwise overwhelming process. We can do it a la carte or as a package, depending on what you’d like help with.
Reach out with a brief project description, wordcount, and any questions. I will offer an estimate. I enjoy this work and I meet you where you are in the process.
Testimonials:
“I've worked with one creative writing coach at GWG on the full extent of one manuscript and parts of a second one, but after the extensive work we had done on the first one, he suggested that I should have ‘a second pair of eyes’ on the full second one for a beta-read. He recommended Darina Sikmashvili. She sent an exceedingly helpful, well-organized and well thought out editorial letter, filled with ‘actionable’ suggestions that all seem absolutely spot-on and the value of which is apparent from the get-go. I'm very happy and feel that it was worth every dollar I spent.”
“After YEARS of trying to write my memoir and hiring various book coaches from social media, I almost gave up. But I was tired of walking the path alone. I needed someone in my corner. Darina Sikmashvili is everything I ever dreamed of as a writing coach. She's confident, direct, compassionate, kind and extremely competent. It's not an overstatement to say — I love her. :) We are working together until this book is finished.”
“This [nonfiction] workshop was invaluable. I learned about the importance of cultivating a relationship with your writing, like you would a friend. It requires time, attention, and commitment. I really enjoyed the pieces we were instructed to read, and learned how important it is to examine exactly why you like or don't like another writer's piece. I also learned that there is no magic involved in writing--that it is a lot of messy frustration involved and that this is normal! I thought it was just me!”
“Darina Sikmashvili is excellent to work with. She listens deeply, is attentive to story and character, and has a great log/summary system to keep me on track and in motion with my writing.”