One of the things I learned to do last year was to ask for endorsements. Sounds so simple, doesn’t it? In fact, it IS very simple. But it’s also very hard if you’re terribly, terribly British. My instinct when someone says something nice about me is to laugh nervously, flap a hand as though fanning […]
Continue readingToday’s blog is a guest post over at BookMachine, on building the platform before writing the book, with observations from both author (Kelly Pietrangeli) and publisher (Adrian Zackheim). While you’re there, why not take a moment to cast your vote in their blogging award?
Continue readingI did. And I stumbled on this sumptuous Pinterest board from Non Fiction Books – a gallery of gorgeous covers, new and old. Most of the design accolades out there for book covers seem to be focused on fiction, so this is a refreshing and inspiring treat for a NoFi girl like me. https://uk.pinterest.com/martaborrell/non-fiction-books/ Here’s […]
Continue readingToday is Blue Monday, the most depressing day of the year, allegedly. Not on this site. Today we’re celebrating two brilliant new books officially published by Practical Inspiration Publishing. The first is by Maria Hocking, a transformational coach with an incredible personal story. Here’s what readers are saying about Strip Naked and Re-Dress with Happiness: How […]
Continue readingWe’re talking about titles and subtitles today in the 10-day Business Book Proposal Challenge: it’s a hair-standing-up-on-the-back-of-the-neck moment for some challengers who have absolutely nailed it, others know they’re getting close but it’s not quite there yet. They have a working title, and at this stage, that’s good enough. Titles are funny things. I had […]
Continue readingDay 3 is probably the hardest day of the entire 10-day Business Book Proposal Challenge. I ask challengers to distil their complex, nuanced book idea down into a single sentence or two, the summary. I’m not a monster, I give them a process to help them do it, but process or no process it’s a […]
Continue readingDay 2 of the 10-day business book proposal challenge is all about the target market. It’s a tough task, probably one of the toughest (along with tomorrow’s, but shhhh, I don’t have the heart to tell them that right now), but definitely one of the most valuable. It’s all about getting really clear on who […]
Continue readingToday’s blog is a guest post over at Birds on the Blog: http://birdsontheblog.co.uk/writing-book-first-build-platform/. ‘…a book is part of your bigger platform, not a standalone. To get readers, let alone publishers, interested in your book to the point where they’re willing to spend time and money on it, you have to secure their attention and trust. And […]
Continue readingThe 10-day Business Book Proposal Challenge starts on Monday, and the Facebook group is already pretty busy. One of the tasks the challengers will be working on next week is creating a synopsis of their book, which is fearsome hard, so I decided to get them limbering up today by asking: ‘How are you feeling […]
Continue readingIt was inevitable: after a hard day with your adult colouring books, all you want is to cuddle down and listen to an adult bedtime story. App developer Calm has learned the lessons from the recent colouring-book craze and repackaged bedtime stories as tools for mindfulness and better sleep: https://www.thememo.com/2016/12/08/calm-app-sleep-stories-mindfulness-app-meditation-app-bedtime-story/. Don’t they know Radio […]
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