The Menu
As someone who worked in the service industry for over 10 years, I know my way around a menu. Stuffing them with the newly printed-out specials at the top of every shift. Wiping down their sticky bindings at the end of the night. Pre-meal in the kitchen with the chef. Using the discarded menu pages for scratch paper to write down my tables’ orders. The menu is most often why you go to a restaurant and, for a former waitress, the menu also dictated how my night could go. Would I be splashed with lobster juice more than once? Would I keep forgetting to bring steak knives to the table? Would I mispronounce “coq au vin” and embarrass the hell out of myself?
During my last few years working in the service industry, I wrote about it a lot. This newsletter was born during that time. “In the Weeds” can mean a number of things, but for me, it was how I felt during a slammed summer evening when all the tables in the country club dining room were full, and I couldn’t remember the last time I was able to sit down. When I needed to get to table 24, but 32, 25, and 26 were still waiting on me. “I’m weeded,” we would say to each other under our breath as we pulled plates off the line, as the hot metal surface burned my fingers.
Most of this writing came from working on my novel over the past 5 years, the one that is now currently out on submission. It was set in the same familiar setting, a fictionalized version of the country clubs where I waited tables and bartended. While I was still very much in the messy middle of drafting, I remember times when I would run to the server station to write down interactions or conversations I had with customers quickly. With details from the kitchen, I wanted to remember for my book. I wanted my story to be as authentic as I could while also fictionalizing that world. It’s been months now that the book has been out of my hands, that no more edits have needed to be made (for now), and as much as I was excited to take a break and think about something else, I actually do still miss writing about the service industry. Especially where I’m not writing about it here either, since I’m entering my second year of not working there anymore.
It’s funny how often you want to get out of something so badly, only to miss it again.
I’ve always tried to connect my waitressing life to my writing life. Not only for this newsletter, but also because I think working in a restaurant can teach you so much. About yourself, about the world, about how to interact with others. And all of that has deeply enriched my writing!
Being a waitress has also been a great lesson in assessing others’ needs. Now, of course, I could digress and give you a million stories about how irrational some people are, how you can never please them, and the ridiculous things that have been requested of me over the years, but you are going to have to wait for my novel to be published for that :))
Part of being a good waitress, which I strived to be, is understanding when to give people space and when to help them. When to give suggestions and when to anticipate what they will want. I think this lesson has also bled into this newer phase of my life, which has been being a teacher and a coach. Being in hospitality has now led me, in a way, to creative support. And I love it. Writing is such an important part of my life and so I want to help those who want to make it an important part of theirs. Or who feel discouraged and need to be lifted. Who need concrete advice, not vague platitudes. Who value art-making despite the world we live in, where everything is reduced to profit and status. Writing is the real work and supporting writers has slowly become one of the deepest joys of my creative life.
Over the past few years, through workshops, cohorts, and one-on-one conversations, I’ve had the honor of sitting beside so many writers at every stage of the process — the hopeful beginning, the messy middle, the uncertain almost-there. And I’ve learned that sometimes the simplest thing, like clearly knowing what kind of support exists, can make the difference between staying stuck and finally feeling ready to move forward.
Recently, I heard someone describe your offerings as a “menu.” Not in a cheesy branding way, but in the sense that, if you’re going to help people, it helps them to know what’s available. So here I present my very own menu. I wish I could present it to you in a leather-bound book with fancy gold etching or a tasteful border. But instead, you’ll have to imagine me handing it to you across the table.
Happy New Year, friends! And cheers to being “in the weeds” with you always ♡
✧ Immersive Group Experiences
⤷ The Wild Draft— a 6 Month Novel Writing Cohort
The Wild Draft is a six-month small-group experience for writers ready to conjure their wildest (or first) draft. This is a high-touch experience designed to help you finish a draft of your novel—and believe in it. We meet biweekly from January through June, building your novel through craft lessons, feedback, accountability, and creative devotion.
This cohort is for anyone with a story idea who craves community, structure, and the guidance of an experienced writer and writing coach. Through thoughtful support, creative experimentation, and an emphasis on writerly joy (because we all need that!), you’ll write a complete draft—the one that’s been living inside you, waiting for space to emerge.
Who This Is For
You have a story you can’t stop thinking about. Maybe it’s just an idea, a voice, a fragment—or maybe you’ve started this novel before but never made it all the way through. You’re craving structure, creative momentum, and the kind of community that makes writing feel alive again.
You don’t need a perfect outline or a writing degree. You just need the willingness to show up, embrace the mess, and keep going.
No matter what your novel genre is (or could be!), this cohort is here to help you take that story and turn it into a draft—your first, your fiercest, or your most unfinished one yet.
Time Frame: January 15 – June 18, 2026
Live Meetings: Biweekly Thursdays, 7–8:30 PM EST
Group Size: 6–10 writers per cohort (limited spots)
Payment Plans: Pay in full or split into 6 monthly payments
Enrollment closed THIS THURSDAY, January 8th, with just a few spots left! Claim your spot by clicking the button below!
⤷ How to Query Your Novel
A 2-month small-group cohort designed to help you polish your query letter, build a strong agent list, and walk into the new year ready to query with confidence.
Over the course of 3 live sessions, you’ll learn the anatomy of a winning query letter, how to research agents, and receive 2 personalized edits of your query letter from me. You’ll also get worksheets, templates, and guidance on choosing comps and creating a submission strategy that works for you.
Timeframe: February 11 - March 18
Live Meetings: Biweekly, Wednesday, 7 - 8:30 PM EST
You don’t have to query alone! Join the waitlist to be the first to know when enrollment opens soon.
⤷ The Novel Revision Lab — A 3-month cohort
The Novel Revision Lab is a three-month, small-group experience for writers standing at the threshold between a messy draft and the novel they know it can become. This container is designed to help you see your story clearly, understand what it needs, and begin shaping a second draft with confidence, clarity, and care.
Together, we’ll move through a structured rhythm of biweekly lessons, guided write-ins, and weekly check-ins that keep you anchored to your work. You’ll learn how to read your draft with discernment, rebuild its architecture, and rewrite from a place of intention rather than overwhelm. With craft guidance, supportive tools, and space to ask real questions, you’ll begin transforming chaos into something purposeful—one step at a time!
But the real strength of this experience is the community you’ll revise alongside. Revision can feel isolating; here, it becomes shared. You’ll be surrounded by writers who are in the same tender, uncertain stage—people who understand what it means to question your pages, reimagine your scenes, and stay committed to the work even when it feels daunting. Their momentum will help sustain yours. Their breakthroughs will spark your own. Their encouragement will remind you, again and again, that you’re not doing this alone! ♡ Coming to you this April!
✧ 1:1 Coaching & Mentorship
⤷ After the Draft: How to Understand What You’ve Written and What Comes Next
A 2-month, high-touch recalibration roadmap for writers ready to move from messy first draft to meaningful revision. This program is for writers who want real support at this fragile, formative stage—not a fast edit, not a full rewrite, but a guided path to deepen their story and see it clearly.
You’ll leave with fresh insight, a personalized revision map, and renewed trust in what you’ve made.
Book a free 15-minute call with me to discuss if this is right for you or grab one of the limited spaces available for January — March.
⤷ À La Carte Coaching
Don’t see anything that works for you, but still craving support? Let’s meet for a coaching call and discuss your writing needs!
Whether you’re just getting started, deep in the messy middle, or preparing to revise or query, this free 15-minute call is a chance for us to connect. You’ll share a bit about your goals and current challenges, and I’ll ask a few questions to learn more about where you’re at and what kind of support you’re looking for.
"And I’ve learned that sometimes the simplest thing, like clearly knowing what kind of support exists, can make the difference between staying stuck and finally feeling ready to move forward."-- grateful for you and your wisdom <3
Such exciting news, Kailey! Good luck with the submission process and your educational offerings! ❤️