If you are confident, joyful and productive in your writing life, if you understand your place in the world of writing, if you are happy and carefree when you think of what you have written and what you still want to write, this handbook is not for you.


If you have struggled with insecurity, existential angst, being stuck and feeling unworthy; if you have wrestled with writing that is too crazy, too boring, too shameful, unorganized, or just plain sucks, read on.

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"Twenty pages into your book and it feels like I’ve finally found my bible. It has literally never occurred to me that anyone else felt this way. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" —Susan Howson, RVA News

"...[A]n absolutely necessary handbook for anyone who has ever felt that burning longing to write and all the tangled emotions that come with it: doubt, anxiety, fear, self-flagellation. With courage and grace, Valley shares her own struggles so that others will know they're not alone. I read the entire book with a smile on my face... But you will find more than affirmation in this book. You will also find an irresistible invitation to write: to write for 10 minutes at a time, to write without excuses or apologies. Valley offers prompts, gentle guidance and practical advice on how to approach this tricky process of extracting splinters and turning them into stories. If you write, or want to write, or even wish you could write, read this book. It's for you." —Melissa Scott Sinclair, freelance and fiction writer

"The Halfway House for Writers is a gem of a book. Filled with revealing personal anecdotes and honest advice it’s a combination memoir/self-help book disguised as a handbook for aspiring writers." —Noah Scalin, author of "Skull-A-Day"

"...[T]he finest tiny guide to writing of its kind… With advice that's both sobering and promiscuous it's destined to become a cult classic." — Slash Coleman, award winning author of "The Bohemian Love Diaries"