Hey there!
I’m Kim Lozano.
I’m a midwest-based writing coach and workshop leader with an obsession for books, artful narratives, exquisite sentences, and hanging out with other writers.
My idea of a great day is a donut brunch with Elizabeth Strout, book shopping with Gillian Flynn, and a fajita and beer dinner with Shirley Jackson. My favorite TV series is Breaking Bad and my favorite Christmas movie is Die Hard.
who i work with
My editing work is more “developmental” than “proofreading”. Although I offer some copy editing and proofreading advice when I’m working on client projects, I do not offer these as “services”. Meaning, if you’ve finished your book and are looking for someone to help you polish it up so that you can get it formatted for Amazon, I am not who you want to hire. But, if you’ve written a draft and are ready to dive into the real work of shaping it into a sellable book, we might make a terrific team. Let me give you a feel for my writing sensibilities…
I’m a fan of character-focused and plot-driven books. Some of my favorite novels are those that cross genre boundaries—think The Road by Cormac McCarthy and The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Whether you are working on a novel you’d describe as upmarket, women’s fiction, commercial, or literary, if you’re committed to the idea that in a compelling story something “Happens”, and that the craft of writing matters, we’re on the same page.
I often work with people who are ready to write a memoir but are overwhelmed by what exactly they want to put in it. They wonder how to turn the facts of their life into an experience for the reader. If you’re not sure about how to focus your memoir, how to structure it, or whether or not your writing chops are up to the task, I can help you.
If you suspect you’ve got talent and are looking to build your skillset so you can write a short story or essay that a magazine would love to publish, the two of us might be a star-crossed pair.
For over ten years I’ve spoken at writing events, lead writing workshops, and worked privately with writers who are looking to improve their writing skills, finish their books, and get their work ready for publication.
My journey here
Unlike many writers, I didn’t necessarily love writing when I was a kid. In fact, I was a law school dropout and mom-of-five before I realized that I liked writing and wasn’t too shabby at it. I also knew that there was a big difference between what the hobbyists in my online forum were writing and what I was reading in books I bought from the bookstore.
Without shelling out big money for a graduate school degree, I signed up for two writing courses at a local university. I took an online workshop with one of my writing idols. I poured over writing craft books, dissected novels to figure out how they worked, read everything I could from successful published authors about how they did it, joined the best writing critique group I could find, and practiced. And practiced and practiced.
I ended up publishing my own fiction, essays, and poetry in some of the best journals in the country. For the past decade I’ve lead writing workshops, and for six years I served as an editor at a literary magazine. But like I said, I’m not snooty about genre. What I am devoted to is writing that makes an effort toward beauty, meaning, transport, intrigue—work that embodies the maxim that the worst crime a writer can commit is to bore the reader.
On my site you’ll find blog posts on creative writing, free resources, and opportunities to work with me if you’re wanting personalized help.
Wherever you are with your writing right now, you can get better. I’m rooting for you!