Ellen Baker on The Writing Coach Podcast: A Coach and Her Client
Ellen joined Kevin T. Johns on The Writing Coach podcast (Episode 240, October 11, 2026) for a first on the show: two guests at once. She talked with her longtime client, Terence Sullivan, about their five years working together and about the two paths to publishing they each took.
Terence’s TikTok story series drew more than six million views and grew into his debut novel, Alice of Oz. Ellen has been his coach and editor the whole way. Together they unpack what that partnership looked like: seven rounds of developmental edits, about a dozen line-editing passes, and a 150-page ending that became its own separate book.
What you’ll hear
Why Terence chose Ellen as his coach after reading her debut, Keeping the House
Why the real work of a novel happens in revision
Why a million followers did not land Terence a traditional book deal, and why he self-published on his agent’s advice
How Ellen set a goal of 100 agent queries so every rejection felt like progress, and how the 75th agent said yes
How Terence used his existing audience to launch his book, then learned Amazon ads
If you’ve wondered what a writing coach can do for your book, or which publishing path fits you, this one is worth a listen.
