Elevate
A coaching and editing program for academic book writers.
Join a community that provides support, camaraderie, and accountability.
About Elevate
While you’re working on your book, academic feedback usually looks something like this: write, write, and write some more, then muster up the courage to ask a friend, colleague, or mentor to look at your work. Meanwhile, you’re making *** all the excuses ***
They won’t have time to read it - especially during a pandemic.
It’s not “ready” yet.
They’re too expert to want to read my work.
I don’t have time to wait for feedback, I just have to submit!
If you do get feedback, you’re often left to your own devices to incorporate the feedback, unsure if you’re doing it “right.”
Or the worst happens: you present at a workshop or a conference, and an adversarial (cough, racist, cough, misogynist, cough) participant tears your work apart. No constructive criticism, just attacks or comments that seem benignly unhelpful but actually reek of prejudice.
In Elevate, feedback is transformed. You get regular, useful feedback on your writing. And because we see your drafts evolve over time, you know you’re putting the feedback to good use. We’re not just your editor, we’re your partner.
Because Elevate offers you the opportunity to present rough drafts and get written feedback, you can share the early versions of your work that you don’t feel confident sharing with others.
Let’s face it: not everyone’s given the grace to present rough drafts without those early missteps being seen as an indictment on their intelligence. And, if you’re not the type of person to throw their hand in the air and shout “ME” when it comes to presenting your work in workshops, this is the solution.
It’s an introvert’s dream. More importantly, it’s a response to the racism that empowers certain academics to present more frequently/monopolize workshops because they take for granted that their work is always welcome.
Elevate is a group coaching program for academic book writers. In Elevate, we combine coaching, editorial feedback, and project management techniques to help you write your book with clarity, confidence, and joy.
In ELEVATE we address three questions that all authors struggle with:
How do I write this book?
I give you a formula: learn a system, try it out yourself, get feedback, make it your own, write again, get more feedback.
When do I write this book?
You get the project management and productivity tools you need to write a book while you’re doing all the other work required of an academic.
Who am I to write this book?
We take out the trash that’s in your brain. We also help you develop a shield to protect you from all the trash being thrown your way.
In Elevate, you'll receive...
WEEKLY LESSONS ON WRITING, MINDSET, AND PLANNING.
A combination of live and recorded lessons based on the Elevate framework.
WEEKLY EDITORIAL HOT SEATS
You submit up to 5 written pages of writing for live feedback from a developmental editor. You then have access to the recording of the feedback.
1:1 COACHING CALLS
Quarterly one-hour-long 1:1 coaching calls over the course of your membership where we can discuss mindset, your writing practice, how to organize your writing schedule, any fears or misgivings you have about your writing.
WRITTEN FEEDBACK ON YOUR WORK.
You have regular opportunities to submit your writing for written feedback.
A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY OF ACADEMICS FACING THE SAME CHALLENGES THAT YOU ARE
I personally get on a call with every member of Elevate so that I can ensure everyone who joins is a good fit. This is not only because I want to make sure that prospective members will get the most out of this program, but also so that I can guarantee the community will feel like somewhere you’re comfortable sharing unpolished work and bringing all of sh*t that stops you from working on your manuscript. The Elevate community is an academic-fronting-free zone, where honesty and imperfection are encouraged. It’s also NOT on Facebook, so checking in with the group doesn’t mean getting distracted by your newsfeed.
Elevate is the only program that combines coaching and systematic, regular editorial support from experienced developmental editors.
It’s not peer review!
You don’t have to wait until your manuscript is complete - you get feedback at every stage of your writing.
We help you address both structural issues within your writing and emotional roadblocks that are keeping you stuck.
“One of my favorite things about Editorial Hot Seats is how Jane can take a lesson specific to one scholar’s writing and expand it to make a broader editorial lesson relevant for the rest of the group. It’s been useful to apply these lessons to any writing project.”
— Assistant Professor, Urban Studies and Planning
What's included in my membership?
Feedback
Early & ongoing feedback on your work from an experienced developmental editor in the weekly editorial hot seats. You can submit up to 5 pages for live feedback, and you’ll have access to the recording. This means you can address any issues within your manuscript before you get to the final page.
Weekly Video Lessons
Weekly video lessons on writing, mindset, and planning. These sessions will bring clarity to your writing process, give you the confidence to claim your expertise so that you can establish yourself as an expert in your field, and set you up with a strategy to refine your writing plan, create healthy boundaries around your work and cultivate a supportive community of mentors and peers.
Feedback, solidarity, and support
Written feedback on your work (whatever stage it’s in) from experienced developmental editors whose goal is not to tear you down, judge your prose, or get through your text as quickly as possible. This is a unique opportunity to get expert eyes on your writing, safe in the knowledge that all criticism will be constructive.
A supportive community of tenure-track academics who are facing the same challenges that you are. Because I’ve personally vetted everyone who joins the program, I can assure you that the Elevate community is an academic-fronting-free zone, where honesty and imperfection are encouraged. It’s also NOT on Facebook, so checking in with the group doesn’t mean getting distracted by your newsfeed.
1:1 coaching calls where you set the agenda
We can work through negative beliefs, further refine your writing practice, find more time to write in your already-packed schedule, or address any fears or misgivings you have about your writing.
In addition, when you sign up for Elevate, you also get:
- Immediate access to Jumpstart, my independent study program that will teach you everything you need to know to create and implement a writing plan for your book.
Jumpstart takes the overwhelming goal of “writing a book” and breaks it down into small, realistic tasks that you can actually achieve. By the time you finish this course, you’ll not only know what you need to do, but also how and when to do it.
You’ll learn:
- What a typical publication timeline looks like
- Why it's OK if your writing schedule doesn’t match anyone else’s
You’ll also learn how to:
- use reverse planning to make sure you hit your tenure and promotion milestones
- develop a publication strategy so that you can work on your book alongside other writing projects
- analyze your writing practice so that you can make the most of the time you actually have to devote to your writing
- develop durable writing habits that will keep you on track no matter what the second half of 2020 has in store.
“Jumpstart helped me acquire a realistic sense of the critical and multiple time frames I had to consider in completing a book manuscript, not only from proposal submission to book production, but also the demands of the academic calendar and the tenure clock. The worksheets and tools provided were all useful and helpful. Above all, through Jumpstart, I felt more knowledgeable in my interactions with the editor. I knew what the critical questions were and where I could--and should--negotiate. Totally worth it!"
— Assistant Professor, Humanities
I know what it’s like to live in that stressed-out space between hysterical laughter and uncontrollable crying.
Hi, I’m Jane Jones, PhD. And I get it— the tenure clock is ticking!
That’s why I help busy academics like you transform your relationship with writing. So that you can open up that book chapter you’ve been avoiding for months and actually polish it up to the point where you feel proud to call it “done”.
As a former assistant professor on the tenure track, I know that your days are already SO full: prepping courses, grading papers, and now having to figure out how to do your job online. Writing your first book can feel like cooking Gordon Ramsey a 5-course meal without a single recipe to refer to.
Getting your book published is essential to your tenure application. But all your academic training failed to give you the skills you need to tackle a book all on your own, manage multiple other projects simultaneously, and deal with the sometimes-savage (and racist) feedback you’ve received on early drafts.
If you want to learn specific tactics to help you get your first book written and big picture strategies to overcome the doubts and negative beliefs that plague early-career academics, I’m here to show you how.
Tenure track professors don’t have enough hours in the day.
You’re under enormous pressure to get your book written AND fulfill the rest of your job requirements. Right now, that job is more challenging than ever. Elevate gives you the ongoing editorial feedback you’ve been craving, and the emotional support of a community of like-minded peers.
Elevate is a group coaching program designed to help you get early & ongoing feedback from experienced developmental editors. The weekly video lessons and online community of tenure-track profs mean you also get the practical tips and the emotional support you need to fulfill the requirements for tenure without burning out. From a former tenure track professor who knows how the game is played.
Get ongoing editorial feedback, practical writing tips, and the emotional support you need to meet your publication goals. So that you can finish your book without burning out, and still have the energy to focus on making a bigger contribution to the world.
Writing your book feels like an insurmountable challenge. But no book = no tenure. If you’re ready to accept that it’ll be easier with some support, then let’s talk more about whether Elevate is right for you.
“Jane Jones and the Up In Consulting team are just what I needed to reenergize my book project. I came to Up In Consulting needing to find a new entryway to engage my work. I’d spent about two years looking at my dissertation trying to reconfigure it into my first book, and I was left disenchanted that I’d ever be able to get out of my head and actually start writing again. The Elevate program was just what I needed to get out of my head and set up an affirming writing program that fits in with my life.
— Assistant Professor, Archaeology
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
We've got A's for your Q's
My packed schedule means I won’t be able to make it to the weekly lessons live—I might not even make the editorial hot seats. Is it still worth it for me to join?
Absolutely. To get feedback on your work, you have the opportunity to submit your pages ahead of time and then catch the recording of the session at a time that works for you.
The same is true of the weekly lessons.
Everything is recorded so that you can watch it when (and as many times) as you need to.
I’m not sure if Elevate is right for me because my book is [_________].
Rather than being focused on the substantive content of your book, Elevate is designed to help you learn the strategies that will help you develop smart writing habits and to give you the essential feedback that allows you to confidently move forward on your manuscript. So in that sense, the program is field agnostic and useful for academics across the humanities and social sciences.
No matter what you’re studying, you’ll benefit from getting regular editorial feedback and the writing skills you develop in the course of this program will pay off for the rest of your academic career.
That being said, if you’re still not sure, I’m happy to give you my honest opinion on an enrollment call, which you can book by clicking through right here.
I have X number of chapters done and want to achieve Y by the time the program ends. Is it possible?
That depends. In Jumpstart (which is the planning course that’s part of Elevate), I teach you my exact system for determining the answer based on your unique circumstances.
In Elevate, I’ll coach you through the system and help you deal with the emotions that will inevitably arise as you create deadlines, learn your goals aren’t realistic (it happens!), and develop a schedule that works for you.
I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to get done this semester. Should I wait until the next time you offer Elevate?
We’re all working in great uncertainty right now. There’s no easy answer to this question, but in my experience as a coach, I’ll say this: waiting until there’s certainty is a recipe for indefinite stalling.
Here’s why: you have no idea when that certainty will come. Second, you have no idea what that certainty will look like, because your brain will always convince you it’s not a good time to work on your book.
Working in a program like Elevate is an opportunity for you to create some certainty by doubling down on routines, developing habits that are relevant for your life now, and working with a coach & developmental editor who has experience coaching writers through all sorts of circumstances.
Will you work with universities for payment?
Yes. We’re happy to work with you and your institution by completing tax forms and communicating via email with your administrators.
We do ask that if you’re using university funding, you make every attempt to pay in full ($3000 for 3 months or $5700 for 6 months of the program.) This saves all of us the hassle of monitoring monthly payments.
Will Elevate work for ME?
First off, here are 4 signs that signing up for Elevate is NOT going to work for you.
If any of the following apply to you, I wish you the best, but this particular program isn’t the right fit:
It’s been 6 months since you’ve written as much as a paragraph, and you’re looking for some kind of breakthrough to help you fall back in love with your writing.
→ Elevate was designed for junior academics who are already working on their books, but desperately want early & ongoing feedback to help make sure they’re on the right track. There are definitely coaches/programs out there that can help you cure that writer’s block, but in the words of Bob Dylan, “It ain’t me, babe”.
You’re only looking for positive reinforcement of the fact that everything you write is already perfect.
→ Sorry (not sorry) to break the news, but the odds are high that at least some of what you write will need to be re-worked. That’s not a condemnation of your skills, it’s just a fact.
The good news is, when you hear constructive criticism early enough, you can make the necessary changes early, instead of after you’ve sent off your finished manuscript.
You’re an academic who thinks the system is A-OK as it is.
→ There are lots of places for you to get support, but Elevate simply isn’t one of them. With this program, I’m intentionally creating a space for minoritized scholars to present and discuss their work without having to worry about adversarial feedback or prejudice.
You’re unwilling to submit your work for feedback.
I get it. Sharing your work is scary, for all the reasons I’ve outlined on this page! But, for you to fully benefit from the investment you’re making in this course, you must submit your work for feedback - either written or conversational, as we offer in hot seats.
If you can put a mental ✅ next to at least 5 of the next 7 points, you owe it to yourself, your mental health, your friends, family, and the future of your academic career…
...to book your 20-minute consultation call because I can tell you right now, Elevate is going to be an excellent fit for you.
You’re exactly the busy academic this unique group coaching program was designed for if:
- You’re a tenure-track professor and you need to finish your book before your time runs out.
- You want to write and are writing, but you need to work on sticking to your writing plan, creating boundaries around your time, and stepping into your rightful role as an expert in your field.
- You have ambitious goals when it comes to your impact, and you’re passionate about your research, but you feel like you’re too close to your work to see its flaws, so you’d love to get feedback from a pair of experienced fresh eyes.
- You’re willing to show up and take action based on the lessons you’ll learn and the feedback you’ll get inside of Elevate. Even if you can’t always make it to the sessions live, you’re committed to upgrading your relationship with writing.
- You can handle constructive feedback: Past editing clients have told me that I bring the perfect balance of encouragement and tough love. I’m firm but fair, and I don’t mince words.
- You’re a minoritized scholar who’d love to work with a coach who knows exactly what it’s like to deal with the particular challenges you face in the university context.
- Your discipline is sociology, another of the social sciences, or the humanities, and you love the idea that the other Elevate participants and I will understand your work without you having to translate your ideas into terms we’ll understand.