Testimonials
Book Coaching, Teaching, and Developmental Editing:
“The independent study I took with Ammi Keller was really foundational. I was working on what would become The Mothers years later, and she was someone who really mentored me and also helped me realize the psychological aspects of being a writer.”
—Brit Bennett, author #1 New York Times bestseller The Vanishing Half and “5 Under 35” award winning author of The Mothers
“Whenever writers ask me to recommend classes or teachers to them, my first response is always Ammi Keller. Ammi has a brilliant understanding of craft—everything from large narrative structure down to the smallest lines of dialogue—and she conveys her knowledge in such an insightful yet understandable way. She puts her heart and soul into her teaching and into her relationships with students. Her specific feedback on projects, large and small, is also amazing; her insights immeasurably helped my novel.”
—Stacey Swann, author of Olympus, TX
“Ammi Keller is one of the wisest, most loving, and most beloved teachers of writing I have ever known. Her students and clients count themselves incredibly lucky to have the good fortune to work with her and to experience her great generosity and deep knowledge of writing and life.”
—Sarah Stone, author of Hungry Ghost Theater and co-author of Deepening Fiction: A Practical Guide for Intermediate and Advanced Writers
“I’ve taken two classes with Ammi and her guidance was so valuable in improving my novel. She offered thoughtful feedback and practical exercises for developing my story and characters!”
—Tracey Lange, author of We Are The Brennans
“Ammi was initially my brilliant writing teacher in a workshop setting,
and then I decided to ask her to help me edit a historical fiction novel
that I was having a hard time revising. Her feedback was always
encouraging, smart, extremely detailed, and extensive. She gently
pushed me toward meeting my goals, but always with kindness and
flexibility. Working with Ammi on that project helped me understand
what it takes to write a novel, and I believe helped me gain the skills to
write my debut.”
-Julie Min, author of Shanghailanders
"Ammi has a great sense of how to tackle a revision. She's especially helpful in prioritizing tasks so that you're able to form an effective plan that doesn't feel overwhelming. It really feels like she's in the trenches with you, rather than watching from some far-off place."
—Jacquie Walters, author of Dearest
“I got to know Ammi during my first quarter in the Stanford OWC Novel Writing program. As a first generation brown immigrant I had heard enough about MFA and writing programs in general that are not as understanding of points of view different than the mainstream, so was going to assess the program after my first quarter. I decided to stay in that program in large part because of my experience with Ammi. While an excellent teacher, Ammi’s uniqueness lies in her empathy and in her desire to understand and engage with worlds that are different. There is a certain understanding of humanity that she brings that has made me trust her completely with my first novel project. I am really glad to have continued to work with her past the program - she enriches my writing and I think my novel is better thanks to her keen eye and complete engagement with my story and the characters.”
—HM, Stanford Novel Program graduate
Writing Classes:
“This has been my first venture into creative writing, and I feel like I have discovered DJ Ammi's wonderful five-week underground dance party.”
—Helga C.
“I have always loved writing, but never gave it much thought, or time; feeling as though I am not a trained writer made it easy to walk away from what I knew inside would bring me joy. But creative expression can be drawn out, and I thank you for guiding us through this. Words and thoughts flowed freely, unencumbered by self-deprecating thoughts that (used to be) always at bay. It’s as if the self-conscious, self-imposed veil of “feeling stuck, not knowing what to write” but wanting to, was lifted organically. I wrote without preparation, by just responding to your encouraging prompts, as in the moment as it gets."
—Veronica C.
This course was incredibly well constructed, offering daily prompts and encouragement, weekly Zoom lessons that were well organized and thoroughly engaging, and just an overall safe space for writers to gather and grow together. I especially loved that the course offered such a wide variety of writing methods, allowing us to try so many different ways of constructing, imagining, and writing our stories. I could not more highly recommend this course or this professor.
—Anonymous student evaluation
Ammi was amazing -- truly a master at teaching online, she was able to make our sessions together truly interactive and the highlight of each week. I would very much like to take other courses with her in the future!
—Anonymous student evaluation