Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know.

We have writers from all over the world, some of whom are writing in their second language. Our courses are accompanied by a translation tool that renders the course in 99 languages and includes a read-aloud option.  

We’re comfortable working with all writers at any stage of their writing and we warmly welcome beginners as well as non-native English writers. You can give us a try and see what you think, secure in the knowledge that you have a full 14-day money-back guarantee.

We’re proud of all the writers in our diverse community.

We strongly advise against this, particularly if your goal is to publish your book.

Literary agents and publishers will ask you to assure them that you didn’t generate your work of fiction using AI before you sign the contract. AI-generated creative work cannot be registered for copyright per the guidance of the U.S. Copyright Office.

At The Novelry, we train writers on where to find authentic ideas for the stories only they can write and how to write them to the standards that meet the requirements of traditional publishers.

If you would like more comprehensive feedback on your manuscript, we suggest you choose The Finished Novel Course. This includes a full assessment of your entire book to help you prepare for submission.

Once you join us, and when you reach your second draft, you can get fast feedback on your work from the best beta readers (writers!) in our online community day and night. You can also purchase a paid feedback session for $545 or £450. These sessions offer detailed feedback on your writing in a report and a live online debrief with one of our editors.

We don’t believe that you should share and expose your work to others who are also writing their very first novels while you’re writing your first draft. It’s not fair on anyone and it’s a little bit cheeky for a course provider to ask students to teach students at first draft!

At The Novelry, you’ll be supported by an experienced writing coach who cares about you and your story, and wants the very best for you. Feel free to ask any questions you wish; no question is too silly!

Writers often come to us asking: Can I write? But the question you should be asking is: Have I got a good story?

Your storyline is the first base of a good read. Great writing has more to do with storytelling and less to do with fine and fancy words! The Novelry is unique in that we will help you find, shape, and structure a story from the outset. Great ideas (almost) write themselves.

Whether your ambition is to finally finish a book to share with friends and family, to self-publish, or to make the journey to becoming a traditionally published author, we’ll make a plan to get you there and ensure you’re writing the right story, the right way.

Yes, we do.

Each and every one of us at The Novelry is the living proof of it. All writers learn to write and most take courses. The sole qualification is an enjoyment of reading fiction. You can read some of our writers’ stories and reviews of the courses. They were once browsing the website as you are, and now they are writers with novels to their names.The question is — do you want to write a novel? If you do, you’ve come to the right place.

We don’t push tired old literary theory, textbook teaching, or academic coursework created elsewhere. There isn’t only one way to write a book. But there are lots of consistent elements to a great story, and quite a few things to avoid in the writing to help your reader turn those pages faster!

We’ll give you tools, not rules.

You’ll get some shiny new equipment for your writer’s toolkit based on insights into the craft techniques of famous and bestselling authors, the greats, and contemporary writers, too. We will give you a fresh solution for every problem you meet. What’s more, you’ll get just the right advice for you and your story with your coaching.

The content of our writing classes was developed by our founder and course director, Booker Prize-listed, award-winning author Louise Dean, to share more than 20 years of writing experience. You can read our story here to find out why and how Louise decided to create a radical new approach to writing fiction.

Yes! But we will convert those nerves toexcitement within seconds of your arrival.

Only one writer has ever arrived at The Novelry not feeling nervous. (Hello, Sean!)

There’s a very warm welcome waiting for you at The Novelry. We’re a friendly bunch. We know how much this means to you.

We were once sitting where you are now, and the truth is, we all feel nervous when we start a new novel, no matter how many we have written or had published. No writer is ever completely secure in their work, but we’ll show you why those nerves are important later in your writing life (taste and judgment!). All you need to get going is warmth, community, a sense of purposeful play, and someone credible who believes in you (your coach!).

There’s never a good time, so the best time isprobably now.

And while there’s never a good time, there is a great place. Our courses were designed for busy people with day jobs, family life, and many calls on their time. We’ll show you our One Hour a Day writing method,  and do a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to structure and planning, ideas and inspiration. You’ll wish you’d started years ago.

As Doris Lessing said, “Whatever you’re meant to do, do it now. The conditions are always impossible.” Start today!

The best writers tend to think they’re not very good. Even the greats despair about their writing. John Steinbeck kept a journal during the 100 days he spent writing The Grapes of Wrath, in which he stated that he wasn’t really a writer at all — that he’d been fooling everyone — and then tells himself to stop worrying and to get on with it. “Just a stint every day does it.”

Every writer learns to write! Many writers take courses. Our curiosity, as writers, means we never stop learning.

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Your course access lasts one year from purchase, and there’s no pressure to finish in that time: the lessons are self-paced and you book coaching whenever suits you. If you’d like longer, the Rollover Plan extends your access — $59 USD / £49 GBP a month, or $599 USD / £499 GBP for a further full year — and carries over any unused coaching or editorial sessions.

Yes. The Ultimate Manuscript Assessment is a comprehensive editorial review of your full manuscript, included in The Finished Novel Course and available to members. It delivers the most value once the foundations of your novel — structure, character, pacing — are in place, so the feedback can refine and elevate a strong manuscript rather than diagnose issues the course itself will resolve.

We guide you on this in the opening lessons. Once you’ve scoped your story and clarified your genre, the best-fit coach is usually clear and we’re happy to advise once we’ve seen your storyline. You’re free to work with different coaches as your project develops, whether for specialist craft input, a fresh perspective or expertise at a particular stage. Behind the scenes, our coaching and editorial teams keep careful records and share insights, so your story is always supported by the team as a whole.

Your coach reviews your planned storyline in advance, using our interactive planning tool, The Plan. Sessions are 45 minutes long, live and online, and recorded for you to keep; you book them whenever suits you. At first, the focus is on shaping and stress-testing your story idea. As you write, your coach tracks your progress and helps you solve plot problems session by session.

Master of Fine Arts (MFA) is a graduate degree that usually takes two to three years to complete. Applications for Creative Writing MFAs require a portfolio for admission, and fees can range from $12,000 to $48,000. As with any graduate degree, these courses vary greatly in terms of quality and resources. But one thing’s for sure: publishers aren’t looking for qualifications. They just want top-quality submissions.

Students join The Novelry to write a book that will sell. More affordable than a Creative Writing MFA, our most comprehensive course (The Finished Novel Course) is just a fraction of the cost. Most importantly, graduates leave our program holding a full manuscript, having worked with global bestselling authors and professional editors to reach publishing standards.

Our self-paced writing courses start the moment you sign up. Ready when you are!

You have a year of access to your course, but can easily extend your program with our Rollover Plan of $59 or £49 a month (less if you buy an annual plan).

No. All of our courses are self-paced, so you can enroll and begin whenever you’re ready.

The Finished Novel Course brings together all three of our courses — The Big Idea, The Big Write and The Big Edit — with a complete read of your finished novel by a professional editor through The Ultimate Manuscript Assessment, worth $2,595 USD / £1,995 GBP on its own. The package represents a substantial saving on buying each element separately. You can spread the cost through Klarna, PayPal or Afterpay in the USA, or PayPal in the UK, and afterward extend your access to the whole program for $59 USD / £49 GBP a month. This bundled price is available only at initial purchase and cannot be added later.

A comprehensive editorial assessment of your complete novel, up to 100,000 words, by a professional editor with Big Five publishing experience. It’s included in The Finished Novel Course and is worth $2,595 USD / £1,995 GBP on its own; members may also purchase it separately.

Your investment is in the quality of the experience and the expertise of our people: an in-house team of world-class writers and editors. You’ll develop your novel with a New York Times or Sunday Times bestselling author, then work with editors who have acquired novels for Big Five publishers. Our lessons are written by a Booker Prize-listed author, and we offer 40+ live classes and workshops every month.

We welcome serious writers. You don’t need a finished draft or a publishing history, but you do need the commitment to see a novel through. Our typical writer has long wanted to write a book, reads widely and is serious about the path to publication. Our program is built to take you there.

Yes. Our writing community is online worldwide, 24/7, so you’ll find company whenever you’re seeking it. You’re invited into the closed, secure community as soon as you join a course, and Catch Up TV lets you watch our recorded events whenever suits you.

We offer 40+ live classes every month, including Masterclasses, Craft Conversations, Genre Clubs and Story Clinics hosted by our writing coaches, plus special guest sessions with bestselling authors and industry professionals. If you miss one, it’ll be waiting for you in Catch Up TV.

Our courses are self-paced. We suggest one lesson a day (20–30 minutes), and most writers follow their lesson with time to write or edit. During The Big Write, we suggest an hour a day while you complete your first draft. You schedule your coaching and editorial sessions at times that suit you, and you’ll want to allow time for the live classes you choose to attend.

Yes. Alongside feedback from the writing community, you can book one-on-one feedback sessions with our professional editors. The Big Edit includes two editorial sessions, and The Finished Novel Course includes those sessions plus a complete read of your manuscript through The Ultimate Manuscript Assessment.

You have a year’s access to your course from the date of purchase.

The courses are self-paced, so you can take the lessons in your own time. You can schedule your coaching sessions at times to suit you, too.

We cannot pause or freeze subscriptions, but don’t worry! You can easily extend access to your program with our Rollover Plan for just $59 or £49 a month, or $599 or £499 a year. Most of our members do because they love writing with The Novelry.

‍Data Protection and Copyright

Your work always remains yours. All team members, including coaches and editors, are bound by strict confidentiality rules, and material is never shared or reused outside of The Novelry.

We have a company wide policy to protect and safeguard your data. We do not retain your content or materials outside secure company systems or for longer than needed to work with you. Once your account is closed, your data is deleted in line with our retention schedule, and we carry out regular audits to clean and maintain our systems.

All material you share with us — including drafts, outlines, synopses, and ideas discussed in coaching or editorial sessions — is treated in strict confidence. Your copyright remains entirely yours, and no member of our team may share your work or ideas without your express permission. While copyright protects the expression of ideas, not the ideas themselves, we treat all creative material you share with us with the same respect and care. Please take care if you choose to share your writing or ideas with other companies, platforms, or services, as not all providers offer the same level of protection or confidentiality that we guarantee.

Please review our Privacy Policy, and see our cautionary advice on the use of AI at our AI Policy here.

Yes. At checkout, you can choose Klarna, PayPal, or Afterpay, and each offers repayment plans of up to 24 months depending on your eligibility and the purchase amount.

Klarna offers Pay in 4 (four interest-free payments over six weeks) and monthly financing over 6, 12, 18, or 24 months. PayPal Pay Later offers Pay in 4 and Pay Monthly, with fixed payments over terms from 3 to 24 months. Afterpay offers Pay in 4 and monthly payments over 3, 6, 12, or 24 months on larger purchases. Terms, eligibility, and interest rates are set by each provider and can vary, so please check klarna.com, paypal.com, or afterpay.com for current details.

Our courses are open to adult writers aged 18 and over; by enrolling you confirm you’re 18+. Every course carries a 14-day, no-questions-asked money-back guarantee . Simply email hello@thenovelry.com to let us know.

Only from official @thenovelry.com email addresses. We never approach writers from personal accounts, and we never offer representation or publishing opportunities out of the blue. If you’ve received a suspicious email claiming to be from our team, see our Fraud Advice page.

You can email us at hello@thenovelry.com and we’ll respond quickly to your question.

Because publishing is global, so are we! We are located in the U.K. and the U.S.A., with offices in London and New York, and our companies are registered in both the United States and England and Wales. You can find our details on our Contact Us page here. We offer annual parties in New York and London, and we coach and work with writers worldwide in all time zones.

Sign up on the website and you can start straight away. Prices are shown in US dollars and pounds sterling; all currencies are accepted and converted at the day’s rate at checkout.

At your very first session with your writing coach, the first question we ask you is: What do you want? That’s your brief to us so that we can support you in your chosen direction. If you’re planning to self-publish, we will ensure the work you produce is to industry standards. In The Big Edit, you will be guided not only to prepare a story that readers love, a book that sells, but also on how to work to the highest worldwide publishing standards. You’ll be among friends in our worldwide online community of authors, many of whom have self-published before.

No, and we never will. Most literary consultancies take a 10% commission on your publishing contract; add that to the 15–20% a literary agent takes and 25–30% of your hard-earned income as a writer is gone. We neither ask for nor accept any commission on your advance or future royalties.

Every member is eligible. We are highly selective, because our agents’ trust is what makes an introduction worth having, and most manuscripts need several drafts to reach that standard. If we believe your manuscript may be a match for one or more of our trusted literary agents, you’ll be invited into our submissions process. There’s no cost, and we neither ask for nor accept commission.

We can’t promise publication, but we’ll give you every tool to write and edit to publishing standard. We have a strong track record of members securing literary agency representation, and we’re rated Excellent on Trustpilot.