In Finishing School

people come together
to help each other
stay on schedule with creative tasks
and get projects finished.

PRAISE FOR FINISHING SCHOOL

 “Countless writers have dream projects they just can’t seem to get finished or even off the ground, a problem that Tennis and Morton tackle with a combination of sensitivity and practicality. . . . Straightforward and realistic, Finishing School offers a viable option for anyone longing to complete a writing project.”Booklist

“Advice and methodology…useful for countless writers and would-be writers, and for people wanting to complete unfinished projects of any kind.”—Publishers Weekly

“A practical guide for fellow procrastinators. Whether it’s your term paper or business plan, here’s how to get the job done. ”Metro US

TESTIMONIALS

In Finishing School I came into being a writer, the personality and the habits of being a writer. It gave me a place where I validated the writer in me, and that let me take chances. I turned in the first article to a magazine I was thrilled when they referred to me as the writer. Most of the time I’m a banker or a mother, but the foundation of my identity is as a writer and Finishing School brought that to me.

Fay
a screenwriter who launched a film festival after two months in Finishing School

I felt like the novel was incomplete, but at the same time I didn’t have the motivation to carry it through on my own. There was something about sitting in front of my own computer, staring at that screen; it just wasn’t coming. On my 13th rewrite, no one was telling me that this needed to get done this year or the following year. I had some magical thinking going on. ‘I’ll take care of it. I’ll get to it.’ That magic never came through. Finishing School gave me a group of people rooting for me and if I said to them, ‘Oh, I fucked off.’ I wouldn’t feel very good about myself.

George
completed a novel he’d been working on for 13 years and is now sending it out to agents

Having it in your head is one thing. Putting it down on the page is another. This is no longer potential or dream or anything like that. It’s getting done.

Robert
revived his interest in a novel he’d set aside for five years

Finishing school is like a lifeline to me. I had been doing The Artist’s Way program, and I was writing, but I wasn’t finishing things. You start, you accumulate material, start great things, but how do you finish them? How do we complete things? How do we say that we’re done? The Artist’s Way gets you started. Finishing School gets you finished.

Christina
completed a memoir in one two-month session and a draft of a screenplay in another

Finishing School was awesome! As an overachieving/creative-brained and highly disorganized but ambitious human, his concrete step by step break-down plan truly helped me figure out a way to strategize and realistically plan out my writing goals—and stick to them! Having a partner, a cheering squad, someone with whom to be accountable made all the difference in the world. Finishing School has changed not just how I approach my writing goals but also how I handle those dreaded and hateful chores, in a way that is far more manageable, thus clearing more brain space for my creative endeavors. Thank you Cary & Danelle! You’ve been a lifesaver!

For months, pages and pages of my novel-in-progress sat on my computer, where I ignored them. Finishing School gave me the tools–and the confidence–to open the files and look to see what I had. More than I thought! Using course techniques, and with the support of the group, I inched the manuscript forward to the next step. Thank you, Finishing School!”

–Jessica O’Dwyer, author of Mamalita: An Adoption Memoir

Jessica

You’ll never know until you finish.

Finishing School, as described in this groundbreaking book, is a lively weekly class that helps you define and commit to the time you can work, identify a task you can complete, and motivate yourself to finish that task in the time you have set aside.