This writer is looking for an agent.

• Editor and memoir coach
• StorySLAM Champ at The Moth
• Biographer and public speaker
• Owner of Writers' Haven LLC, a cooperative workspace for women writers
• Former opinion columnist for Sun-Times Media and Chicago Tribune (Pioneer Press)
• Interviewed President Barack Obama in the first-ever Google+ Hangout from the White House

Artist's Statement:
I write in order to give language to life’s most challenging experiences and feelings – among them grief, loss, addiction, and issues concerning mental health. I write to make sense of pain and chaos, to find my way through forests of uncertainty.

My goal is to write with purpose and compassion, reflecting authentically about what I’ve learned and how I’ve changed in order to help humanize the topics readers often fear. I want to help others notice when they’re seeing things in black or white, and to encourage readers to appreciate life’s nuanced shades and hues.

I write to understand myself and the world, and to find meaning in life’s deeply moving moments of sorrow, joy, and love. I believe that spent alone wrestling with words is, though lonely, also worthwhile, and that from it, I not only find personal healing, but also deep connections with readers who, like me, find comfort in the community we create.

"Working with Christine was one of the best things I've done as a new writer. She helped me pull my story together and encouraged me from the very beginning. I would've been lost without her guidance and support. She pointed me in the right direction and asked thought-provoking questions that made me a better writer. I'm so grateful that I got to meet and work with her, and I'm definitely walking away with a new friend and the memories of an amazing experience!"
—V.M. (August 2022)
Memoirist

“In addition to being super excited about working with you as a coach, I couldn’t be happier to spend more time with someone as empathetic and wise as you are. It all just feels so perfectly aligned.”
—Prospective Client (August 2022)
First Time Memoirist

“You are the nicest person in the world and I'm so glad my Google research led me to you! I have no idea what I would've done without you, you have been a tremendous help and a good friend!”
—Client Email (June 2022)
First Time Memoirist

“Thank you from the center of my open heart. As usual, you have surpassed my vision of what I wanted. Your summation and the way you bring to light the healing journey —not only that I have taken, but what is in store for my readers if they choose to invite these ideas and processes into their lives—is fabulous! I love it! I will send my manuscript over to the publishing team now, to do what they see fit. It’s all so exciting. I so appreciate the editing tweaks you’ve suggested, and I’m going to implement them before sending the manuscript back to the publishing team. Christine, I feel incredibly blessed to have your friendship, your brilliance, and your expertise woven throughout my experience and this beautiful book that I am delighted to share with the world. I can’t thank you enough.”
—Client Email (December 2021)
Published Author and First Time Memoirist

“I had a chance to visit some of your stories and presence on the internet and love that you are so passionate about writing and about helping others experience the craft and find their voice too. There is so much heart in your writing! Christine, I am grateful that you are involved with this effort. You are helping me with this in more ways than I will ever know. Your contribution makes a difference!”
—L.K.R. (August 2021)
Published Author

“I’m so grateful for connecting with you, for your faith in me and my book’s message. Thank you for being part of my life.”
—Client Email (July 2021)
Published Author

“Thank you for spending time with me and helping me with the eulogy for my dad’s memorial service. Your patience, help, support, and expertise mean so much to me. It is so important to me that I deliver a message that my dad would be proud of. Your help and guidance is making that possible, and I am forever grateful. I am also so grateful for your help in opening the door (for me) to begin writing with purpose. It is exactly what I need to be doing right now and I am so looking forward to working with you!”
—K.S. (July 2021)
First Time Memoirist

”Thank you again for every precious little detail of your work with me and my manuscript. I just sent it off to the publisher…”
—D.P. (June 2021)
Published Author and First Time Memoirist

“After writing 50 pages of my story, trying to navigate my way into my memoir, I knew I was in dire need of a mentor, a coach — someone to get me through this mentally. I think every writer needs someone. So, I started my hunt and it was not easy--scrolling through the Internet night and day trying to find that needle in a haystack. It was quite the project, as I had 3 ZOOM calls with coaches, an email exchange, and a phone call with someone in Canada. After every session, I actually sat and wondered if that perfect person was out there, because none of these coaches got my story or my vision. A few days later, it was Saturday morning. I got up early and sat in my chair, and again Googled ‘memoir coaches.’ I scrolled down, and there you were, staring at me. I stared back for a few seconds and read your bio, then read it again, and again. I sat there in thought, then said to myself, ‘I have found my memoir coach’ without even meeting you. I had this gut feeling. My partner was like, ‘You haven't even met her yet!’ Yeah, but words on a website can be powerful, emotional, and eye-opening...and deep down in my heart, I knew it was destiny. Right place, right time. And it just worked. I felt it. It was…the perfect fit. I still can't describe it. Maybe someday :) So, thank you for everything so far. It's been an incredible journey, and I’m looking forward to many many more sessions. We will find the right literary agent. When that connection happens, I will know, just like I knew with you. Have an awesome day and keep editing...you are simply amazing!!”
—Client testimonial after working together for five months (May 2021)

“Christine is a remarkable editor, writing coach, and human being. Throughout all of our conversations and correspondence she has been warm, insightful, and generous with her time. I can be open and vulnerable with her, secure in the knowledge that I will only ever get her support and honesty in return. It is obvious to me that she cares deeply about her clients and their work, and I am happy to have found in her a person who truly believes in my writing and in the importance of the story I want to tell. I believe that with her expert critique, encouragement, and finessing, I will be able to birth the book that I have always dreamed of writing. If you are considering working with Christine then I highly recommend that you get in touch with her. You will not regret it!”
—E.V. (May 2021)
Writer and First Time Memoirist

“Christine, I so appreciate you. Working with you is truly inspiring for me. It’s great to feel we are in sync and have a clear picture of what to do next. I want you to know what a blessing it is for me to work with you, Christine. Your vision, and insight has been invaluable. Thank you.”
—D.L.P. (May 2021)
Published Author and First Time Memoirist

“I can’t imagine myself with any other mentor/coach. THANK YOU so much again for your support and guidance.”
—T.M. (Feb 2021)
Writer and First Time Memoirist

“Christine, it was delightful to meet and talk with you just now! Thank you for your time. I already appreciate your support and feel that you’ll be able to give me very valuable insights and direction, and look forward to hearing everything you have to offer.”
—Client Testimonial following our free, 20-Minute Consult (Feb 2021)

“It was such a pleasure meeting and chatting with you, and I can already feel how exciting it is to be able to TALK to someone about what I’ve been working on for so long!”
—Client testimonial following our initial, one hour consult (Feb 2021)

“I Googled writing coaches in Evanston. When I read Christine's bio I saw that she had worked with a range of topics, that appealed to me. I write about psychology and human experience and didn't want my work to be too academic (even though it’s for an academic/professional context), and Christine’s range of writing interests seemed like a good fit.I wanted a professional to support my first experience of writing a chapter in an edited volume of essays. Christine is really great. I felt comfortable with her right away. We sat in front of her fireplace and talked about my project. She was very interested, and had intelligent and encouraging thoughts about it right away. She is very smart, warm, authentic and enthusiastic. She offered her ideas, but respected my knowledge and preferences. She was willing to play with thoughts and ideas. She also has expertise, and knew just how to work with a project such as mine — its structure, process, etc. That helped me to feel comfortable and more confident since this is new to me. Throughout the journey, she supported and encouraged me. She really helped me to feel confident about the direction I was going. I also trusted that she would tell me if it was not going in a good direction. I would definitely take advantage of the community Christine has created.”
—B.R. (May 2020)
Writer of professional and academic essays

For privacy purposes, I do not share my clients' names

A political biography about two former members of the United States Congress.

• Memoir and writing coach
• Former opinion columnist for Sun-Times Media and Chicago Tribune (Pioneer Press)
• Interviewed President Barack Obama in the first-ever Google+ Hangout from the White House

• StorySLAM Champion at The Moth (June 2022)
• Honorable Mention, National Society of Newspaper Columnists (2017)

• My first memoir is "Dear Elizabeth: A True Story of Sisterhood Lost & Found". It spans the four years between suddenly losing my younger sister Elizabeth, then, after taking a recreational DNA test, discovering the older sister we never knew we had (also named Elizabeth). I'm eager to find an agent to encourage me through the writing of this groundbreaking story about family secrets, personal boundaries, and radical acceptance.