Roshaunda Cade

LELA House, Owner & Coach

About

Hi, I’m Dr. Roshaunda. I’m a writer, writing coach, and executive coach who serves as a cultural custodian for Black women scholars and authors. I serve Black women writers because I believe we are unseen, unsupported and undervalued. We have stories to tell that feel like they are outside of what is the norm, and those are exactly the stories we should be telling. These stories highlight our creativity and our struggles and anchor us in our own narratives, our communities, and our future. They help us leave a legacy for others to follow, just like we have done with the women who blazed a trail before us. I am compelled to do this work because I believe God uniquely created each of us with special gifts to transform the world. We are worthy and exceptional yet silenced. It’s time for us to share our stories. I help my clients by providing direction on how to get started writing, help dedicating time to writing, strategies for placing and honoring boundaries around that time, and support and accountability while building a writing habit.

As a person who is very concerned about preserving and sharing history and historical perspectives that have been forgotten, neglected, and are being erased, I started LELA House to support Black women who magnify our stories. LELA House is built on the Life, Education, Literature, and Art (LELA) of our 19th Century ancestral aunties, whose lineage helps us create our legacy. Through LELA House, I help you navigate and manage your processes, incorporate research in an authentic way that maintains and highlights your unique voice, and write your vision.

I hold a bachelors, masters, and Ph.D. in English, with an academic specialty in US literature from the long 19th Century (particularly literature by and/or about African Americans). My academic writing focuses on that period, and I also write biblical and historical drama and fiction.

I am a certified executive life coach (Coach Training EDU), certified fiction book coach (Book Coach Certification Program), certified bibliocoach (Book Therapy), and certified life story coach (Transformation Academy). I’ve spent most of my career supporting people on their writing journeys, and I’ve learned that writing is never just about the writing. It’s about navigating emotions, habits, and mindsets. My background in research and writing, combined with my coaching practice, allows me to hold a safe and structured space for clients where you can navigate your research, hone your writing, and grow into your potential. In other words, God created me and equipped me to do this exact work to support you.

I believe God created every individual (including you) with a unique design to transform your community, and by extension, the world. I can’t wait to work with you and see how God moves through you.
A Few of My Favorite Things

Education – I love education. I have worked in both higher education and secondary education, spending the bulk of my career leading academic teams at the post-secondary level. I understand what it is to lead teams of academic professionals and what it’s like in the throes of day-to-day classroom management. I have a heart for both students and the professionals who serve them. And having run multiple university writing centers, I enjoy working with academic writers and writing. I’m a lifelong learner, and I have yet to find something that doesn’t pique my interest at least a little. I’m particularly fond of the humanities and arts, but I also love science and data. If you are a doctoral student, college or university faculty member, or higher education administrator, you are my people. Please reach out to me, so we can begin our work together.

Writing – I enjoy working with writers who uplift African American women, are strong researchers, and whose writing has a historical bent. I love books that highlight a place or profession or group of people or historical moment or historical movement. I read a little bit of most genres (except horror), and below are some of my favorites. If your writing is similar to any of the works or categories below, please reach out to me, so we can begin our work together. Please note I don’t work with children’s literature, middle grade, YA, or poetry. I do work with romance, but I prefer to work with sweet, closed door, and Christian romance.

Fiction – I love historical fiction, fantasy, romance, romantasy, Westerns, steampunk, alternate histories, alternative timelines, historical retellings, speculative fiction, and science fiction. I love everything by Octavia E. Butler, especially Wild Seed, one of my favorite books of all time. I’m a fan of Lindsay Buroker, and the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. I also really like Beverly Jenkins’ historical novels. Some of my recent favorites are: Unexpected Diva (Tiffany L. Warren), Underground Airlines (Ben H. Winters), Personal Librarian (Marie Benedict and Victoria Chirstopher Murray), When Women Were Dragons (Kelly Barnhill), What You Leave Behind (Wanda M. Morris), Yellow Wife and House of Eve (Sadeqa Johnson), James (Percival Everett), and Hester (Laurie Lico Albanese).

Nonfiction – I love to read about people, stories, and histories that often go untold in history books. The Hemingses of Monticello (Annette Gordon Reed) is one of my favorites. Another is Running A Thousand Miles for Freedom (William Craft and Ellen Craft). Some of my recent favorites are: They Were Her Property (Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers), She Came to Slay (Erica Armstrong Dunbar), Unbought and Unbossed (Shirley Chisholm), Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (Rebecca Skloot), and The Conjuring of America (Lindsey Stewart).

Follow me on Storygraph to see more of what I’m reading.

Packages

Holiday Headway 2026

Holiday Headway is a 90-day writing package designed specifically for Black women scholars and authors who want to protect their intellectual work between October and December without burning out. Protect your manuscript. Preserve your energy. Progress through the holiday season.
Note: Enrollment is limited and closes at 11:59p CT on September 30, 2026.
View details

BTB!: Write Your Blueprint

We will work through Author Accelerator's Blueprint for a Book to give you the strong foundation you need for your writing. 
View details

BTB!: Manuscript Review

Manuscript Review is a coaching package to help you understand how your manuscript works as a whole and help you refine your writing and plot a path forward.
View details

BTB!: Pitch Package

Pitch Package is an 8-week coaching program to help you prepare to pitch your manuscript to an agent. 
View details

BTB!: Synopsis & Query Letter Review

Synopsis & Query Review is a coaching package to help you refine your synopsis and query letter as you prepare pitch materials to submit to agents.
View details

SDJ: Scholarly Accountability Coaching

Weekly Scholarly Accountability Coaching is an 8-week coaching package that offers private, personalized 1:1 coaching to help you navigate your scholarly journey once you’re ABD and beyond. You may be doing self-directed work, but you don’t have to work in a silo.
View details

SDJ: Scholarly Manuscript Review

Scholarly Manuscript Review is an 8-week coaching program to help you work through the sticky spots in your academic writing. 
View details

Testimonials

Dr. Cade has been a major game changer for me.

- Nia H.

Roshaunda was a ray of light!

- Robin E.

Dr. Cade is highly-knowledgable, upbeat, supportive, and always has some words of encouragement. I am forever grateful for the coaching/guidance she provided me.

- Auriel C.

I am incredibly grateful to have ‘found’ Dr. Roshaunda. I was at my wits end, close to finishing my dissertation and yet felt so far from ever completing it. My hope was to find someone to help me across the finish line. Dr, Roshaunda did that and more. During our time together, I was able to create a realistic plan for completion, share my frustrations, insecurities and laugh (she’s a lot of fun). Having her as a coach, cheerleader, guide and support was invaluable to me. In a matter of months, I accomplished what I’d been struggling to do for the past year. I cannot recommend Dr. Roshaunda enough! She is exactly what I needed to help me complete my dissertation. I thank God for connecting us!

- Latricia B.

I've had the privilege of working with Dr. Cade for over a year now as I've worked through an academic research project. Every consultation with Dr. Cade has been absolutely stellar. Writing is complicated on so many levels, from the unique challenges that face individual writers to the complex world of publishing, and Dr. Cade spoke wisely into all of them. She helped me reach clarity as I developed concepts, gave guidance on time-tabling and work rhythms that helped me keep moving forward, and helped me process tricky substantive issues in my argument. With regard to the text itself, she gave incisive critical input as well as much-needed encouragement. I ended every session with more clarity, uplifted and re-inspired to take the next steps. As I finished my write-up, she gave helpful advice as to what to expect in the submission process. I could not be more delighted with my experience as Dr. Cade's client. I would enthusiastically recommend her to any writer, academic or otherwise, and I look forward to further opportunities to work with her.

- Merideth P.

Sometimes we enter into new, foreign territory, and we aren't sure how to navigate the journey. Many of us won't venture into the ‘new’ because we can't SEE where we are headed, even if we've seen others do it. But, we know that new journeys bring new experiences of joy and happiness. What I've learned is that we need people with us along the way. We need people that will meet us where we are and encourage us from that point, until we get to the next point and are ready to try again. It's essential to experience love along the way, and love from others, so we remain courageous and curious about what lies ahead. Roshaunda did that for me. She has been holding my hand during my Ph.D. journey, and for that I am eternally grateful. Let her hold yours. You will thank me later.

- Tiffany S.

Pursuing a doctoral degree for me has elicited an array of raw, intensifying emotions ranging from elation, disappointment, determination, fear, anger, uncertainty and faith. These supercharged emotions over the course of my pursuit to obtain my doctoral degree have afforded me opportunities to interact and forge professional and collegial relationships with an ample number of individuals. Some of the individuals I have encountered enhanced my educational journey, and others created mental and physical barriers that forced me to rely heavily on God and his promises.
I was referred to Dr. Roshaunda Cade for dissertation coaching to pull all of my dissertation loose ends together, and solidify my writing, so that my hard-work and passion for literacy could be conveyed to not only my committee members, but ultimately the world. Over time, my journey to secure such a rewarding and prestigious accomplishment became burdensome and my confidence was shattered, to say the least.
Upon my first coaching session with Dr. Roshaunda Cade, my confidence and my attitude were positively altered, and God gave me peace during my coaching sessions with her. She has a way of inspiring, highlighting and thought-provokingly guiding you to recognize your writing strengths and weaknesses simultaneously. Her kind tone and professional knowledge base ignites one to retrieve from their mental schema the grammar and Standard English rules and protocols warranted for various writing situations. Our weekly sessions unleashed and renewed my passion and rationale for becoming an educator and an advocate for literacy. I am a storyteller and have been noted for my creative flair in teaching and presenting literature. After my first few sessions with her, I felt lighter and free.
Sure, I still encountered disappointments week after week, due to other factors unrelated to her; however, my faith and determination were fierce because we prayed during all of our sessions and we were unified in our teaching and learning efforts, and she made me feel like my doctoral completion was her number one priority.
I would highly recommend Dr. Roshaunda Cade for your dissertation or basic writing needs, because she is highly qualified and passionate about mentoring the whole person and not just their writing needs. There is an old saying which states, “God brings people in your life for various seasons and reasons.” I am extremely glad he brought her into my life, and I am honored to share my experience with you. Seek Dr. Roshaunda Cade for your academic or personal needs. She can definitely aid you in righting your writing wrongs.

- Rashawn J.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is LELA House for?
LELA House is a dedicated, curated space for Black women scholars and authors. Whether you are an ABD doctoral student navigating your dissertation, a scholar working on article submissions, or a fiction writer crafting historical or speculative fiction, LELA House will be your home away from home.

LELA House is for you if you...
  • need to finally finish that project that won't let you go
  • seek deep transformation of your writing and yourself
  • want to unearth hidden histories and tell stories that often go untold
  • desire support juggling competing demands on your time and energy
  • crave deep reflection over quick fixes
  • long to achieve steady writing momentum
  • yearn for a culturally grounded space of like-minded sistahs
When is the best time in my project to start working with you?
My sweet spot is working with clients who are either at the very beginning of a project or pushing toward the finish line. I love getting you off to a solid, visionary start, and I love helping you cross the finish line strong. If you’re feeling stuck at the blueprint stage or trying to summon the stamina and resources for the final push, that is exactly where I step in. I will also hold your hand in between your start and your finish.
How is working with you unique?
At LELA House, you don’t have to perform. Black women have been getting it done, holding it down, and excelling since before the foundation of the US, all while being discounted, underestimated, and overworked. In daily life, we wear many masks. At LELA House, you can finally take off the mask and be your full self.

Think of me as your favorite auntie: I deeply believe in your inherent value and know you are more than capable to accomplish whatever you set your mind to. I love you and want to see you succeed, so I will always keep it real with you when it’s time to move past self-doubt, establish firm boundaries, and get the work done. God created you with a unique design to transform the world, and I get to help you become who were created to be.
What types of services do you offer?
  • Coaching Packages: Structured, high-touch 1:1 coaching designed to tackle a specific phase of your writing or career journey. 
  • Asynchronous Writing Reviews: Coaching packages include thoughtful, detailed editorial feedback on your drafts, manuscript chapters, or pitch materials.
  • LELA House Membership Community: A supportive space for Black women scholars and authors to connect, share space, and grow together without judgment.
How long do we work together?
Most of my 1:1 coaching offers are structured in 8-week packages. Eight weeks provide enough time to build momentum, implement sustainable boundaries, and achieve writing milestones. Because deep transformational work and long-form manuscripts take time, many packages are fully renewable for as long as you need ongoing support.
What does accountability look like in your coaching?
I help you set and maintain boundaries around your writing time, energy, and peace so that your work actually gets finished without burning you out in the process. Accountability isn't about shaming you into submission. It's about supporting you to be the best version of yourself.
How do I know if I’m ready for LELA House?
If you are ready to put down the weight of your mask, ready to take your own ideas seriously, and ready for a supportive space where you are seen, celebrated, and held accountable, you are ready. You don't need a finished outline or a perfect draft to reach out; you just need a willingness to show up as you are.

Receive delightful updates in your inbox

By submitting your email address, you agree to receive emails. You can unsubscribe at any time.