If you've ever tried to write a book or even thought about it seriously, you know it can be a pretty daunting undertaking. It's lonely work, too, especially when your core skills aren't closely related to writing, publishing, and literary work in general.

Still, it is one of the most gratifying experiences available from life. That's why we do it.

Many of us have the life experience, expert knowledge, and special insights that should be published. Even the most able of us, however, sometimes need support and skilled guidance to make our special understandings and abilities into a quality book. The people I work with know they have something worthwhile to say. They also know that getting a good start on a book project, seeing it through to the end, and attracting the attention of the market takes particular skills and experience. It’s famously said that “every writer needs an editor”. They certainly do; but often they need a good deal more than that, and that’s what we offer—support, in every way possible.

Helping people write
One way or another I've been helping people write and publish for thirty years. After receiving my Ph.D. from Yale, I was Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Berkeley, Rutgers, and The State University of New York. I served as editor of the Viking Press series on humanistic psychology (including editing the work of Abraham Maslow, Lawrence LeShan, Michael Murphy, and Roberto Assagioli, among others).  I was also Senior Editor for acquisitions at Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. My editorial career includes several best sellers: Theory Z (business and Japan), Iron John (psychology and men's studies), and The Home Planet (space and peace).

I also have professional experience in several fields and have consulted on publishing, training, education, health care, and administration to the United States Government and to universities, hospitals, corporations, and nonprofit institutions.

Books I’ve written
 Among my own writings and publications are three books for general audiences:

Hot Springs
 A true-to-life novel, published in hardback by Viking Press and in mass paperback by Bantum.

“A finely paced narrative of ego death and transfiguration,” TIME; “A magical tour de force,” The New Republic; “One of the most unsparing records of a man seeking to turn himself into a mensch,” The New York Times Book Review; “A worthy and entertaining book...funny, true, penetrating,” Los Angeles Times.

Men and Friendship
A social and personal essay, published in hardback by Houghton Mifflin and in quality paper by Tarcher/Dutton. Foreign editions included, Gateway (UK), Laffont (France), DeToorts (Holland), and Kosel Verlag (Germany).

“Poignant,” USA Today; “A probing study,” Publishers Weekly; “A crusading book,” The Irish Times (Ireland); “The book is essential, for all men and women, Telegraff (Holland),  “An excellent book, a lovely book, a true book of love,” The New Statesman (England); “A book which with great sensitivity and subtlety helps us rediscover an essential element of our emotional nature,” La Nazione (Italy); “A remarkable sociological analysis...a fascinating book,” Cosmopolitan (France); “A wise book...You can’t help but admire him...his book reminds us of the mystery and unpredictability of friendship,” Newsday (Canada); “Thanks to Miller one has again thought and dreamed about friendship, and felt more deeply than ever all that it is and that it could be,”  Femmes d’Aujourd’hui (Belgium); “Merits being read with the most serious attention,” 24 Heures (Switzerland).

Painted in Blood: Understanding Europeans
A social, cultural, and historical analysis with many anecdotes about the key differences between Americans and Europeans. First published in the USA by Atheneum/Macmillan, 1st and 2nd rev. paperback editions by John Muir Publications.  Published in Germany in hardback by Rowohlt Verlag and in paperback by Kosel Verlag, as well as being serialized in the authoritative weekly news magazine, Der Spiegel. Also published in Japanese by Hosei University Press.

“Miller exhibits a fine eye and ear for the telling detail or anecdote,” TIME Magazine;  “An absorbing insight into where Europeans are coming from...Invaluable for those who need to know, fascinating for those who want to know, and for anyone who has Europe on his itinerary.”—Forbes Magazine; “Miller’s prose is fresh;. It is elegantly and cogently phrased.  He writes with humor and compassion,” San Francisco Chronicle; “Mr. Miller is very good at turning on their ear European notions of superiority in manners and culture,” The Washington Times; “I wish this book had been available before my last trip to Europe...provides a unique insight into the nature of Europe and its people,” St. Louis Post Dispatch.

I’ve also done three scholarly and professional books:

The Picaresque Novel A work of literary theory, published in first and second editions by Case-Western Reserve University Press

“Miller’s comparisons and analyses are well substantiated and effective, with many personal observations concerning man and the modern situation—at many times an almost philosophical inquiry, Choice; “Conveys a genuine pleasure in the random, chancy, insecure, and vitally exuberant world of picaresque fiction, qualities that make that fiction more congenial to our imagination than to any other of the past century,” Criticism

Measure, Number, and Weight A study of  college grading practices with recommendation for educational policy. Published in seven separate editions, first by The Academic Senate of the University of California at Berkeley and in its last two editions by Michigan State University, Center for Research on Learning and Teaching and the University of Tennessee, Teaching-Learning Center.

Dimensions of Humanistic Medicine A health practices analysis and policy recommendations. Published by the Institute for the Study of Humanistic Medicine and broadly distributed to U.S. Senate and House of Representatives Health Sub-Committees and medical practitioners throughout the world.  Serialized in The American Medical Student Association Journal The New Physician.  Translated and published in Dutch by De Toorts Publishing Company.

Media experience
I have discussed my books and their ideas in hundreds of media interviews throughout the United States and Europe, including appearances on such national television and radio network interview shows as “The Today Show,” “The Last Word,” “CBS Radio/Books,” “New Dimensions,” and “Nightline.”

Some specific ways I can help you
Depending on your particular needs, new writer or experienced, I can support you by:

    • Reviewing your plans and ideas,
    • Assisting in designing the project,
    • Identifying the audience,
    • Assessing your current manuscript,
    • Organizing and outlining the book,
    • Editing and polishing the manuscript,
    • Coaching and tutoring during development,
    • Hand-holding during rough periods and blocks,
    • Helping develop book proposals,
    • Collaborating on writing projects or ghost writing,
    • Acting as your agent or helping you find one,
    • Guiding during contract negotiation, and
    • Designing promotional activities.


Working together: contact and communication
We'll communicate personally through a series of consultations. We'll have face-to-face meetings if distance permits, telephone conversations, and exchanges of written materials by FAX, normal mail, or e-mail. Because I serve clients all over the world, I know that productive collaboration can be maintained with little face-to-face contact, even none at all. It is important, however, to have the intimacy of at least some telephone contact, not only as we get to know each other but also as your work moves forward.

As your coach, I can help you focus your early ideas and approach. I can provide a very wide range of supportive critique, technical advice, and editing as your manuscript develops and grows. I can also provide general counseling or a little handholding during the difficult periods. We'll do whatever it takes to make sure that the project is as satisfying and successful as you hoped it would be when your idea first came to you.

You're the author; I'm merely the coach. Success will ultimately depend on you and your commitment to seeing the project through to the end. I can be helpful to new authors with little writing experience and to those who are already accomplished but who wish to improve their sophistication and their skills.

Depending on the amount of manuscript already available as background, an initial consultation of five to ten hours is usually enough to assess where we are and to design a mutually acceptable program of collaborative work.