Untold millions of writing projects--begun with hope and a little bit of hubris--lay abandoned in desk drawers, dated files on computer desktops, and the far reaches of the mind. Too often, writers get tangled in self-abuse--their self-doubt, shame, yearning for perfection, and even arrogance get in the way. In Finishing School, Tennis and Morton help writers overcome these emotional blocks and break down daunting projects into manageable pieces. Cary Tennis first convened a Finishing School so that writers could help each other stay on track and complete their work. Since they weren't actually critiquing each other's writing, there was no jockeying for the title of best writer or the usual writing group politics; there was only a shared commitment to progress. Without guilt, blame, and outside critique, students were more productive than they imagined possible. Through this program, they were able to complete novels that they'd been struggling with for almost two decades, finish whole screenplays in a single month, and revive interest in long-neglected PhD theses. In this book, the authors share this proven and easily replicable technique, as well as their own writing success stories, with us.