I’m here to help you get your book
planned, written, edited, formatted
and out there for people to read

Why not start doing that, right now?…the book you’ve been thinking about for a while, but don’t know how to go about or are just too busy? or the one you’ve started but don’t seem to be able to make progress with?

I’m a successful author and an experienced book coach and editorial consultant, helping other authors get their books out there. My own books have sold over half a million copies in 20 languages including Chinese.

‘Write Your Book’ course
Shoreham by Sea, West Sussex

Places are now available on the sixth series of popular hands-on classes for writers in the Shoreham area, running weekly on Wednesday evenings, from 7 to 8.30pm

Is there a book you’d like to make progress on? This very practical hands-on course for anyone who is at any stage in the process of creating their book, fiction or non-fiction, for adults or children. You might want to move forward with:

• • thinking up what your book is about in the first place
  • planning the book and its overall shape
  • writing or editing the material
  • getting feedback on what you’ve written
  • getting the book published and read

Places are limited and must be booked and paid for in advance. The course fee is £75, which can be paid to Gerry by bank transfer or Paypal.

 

The course is very much project oriented. At each class, every participant has the opportunity to talk about their own project – what stage they’re at, what obstacles they’re facing – and plan what they will do next, with the support of me and the group. Everyone then goes away and works on the project before reporting back at the next meeting. Some people read extracts of what they’ve done. It’s a very supportive environment.

Much learning about effective writing naturally arises in the course of looking at individuals’ projects. This includes principles such as:

• developing one’s writing style
• overcoming obstacles
• getting work done
• developing one’s own writing ‘voice’
• editing and improving existing material

If someone has to miss any of the meetings they can send in work to be read to the group, and feedback can be provided – or join by Whatsapp.

“Great course, with thoughtful helpful guidance and encouragement. I highly recommend Gerry’s writing class.”

“Since attending Gerry’s very friendly writing class I now have the confidence to put the ideas that have been rolling round in my head (for years) to paper .I am really enjoying the classes; Gerry is very helpful and kind with his suggestions and help . It has been inspiring to meet so many other people with their stories, and to discover that we were all lacking in confidence. This is  great class and I am really enjoying it , Thank you Gerry”

Why write a book?

Almost anyone can produce a good book, with the right encouragement and support. And it can be a satisfying thing to do – and very good for your career.

If you’re in business, writing a non-fiction book on the subject of your expertise can be particularly helpful in promoting your business and your brand. Having a book to your name brings kudos and credibility and makes you more visible and newsworthy, more likely to be invited to be interviewed or give talks. You can become the go-to expert in your field and your locality.

In the course of your work you will have undoubtedly built up expertise and experience, and there will be readers who will benefit from the information you have accrued. You have probably already generated a considerable amount of content on the subject in the form of blogs, articles, notes and website copy.

Or you might want to write that novel you’ve been thinking about for a very long time….

Services available: support with…..

– forming and developing your idea for a book

– getting on with writing the text

– editing your material

– writing a proposal and sample chapters to send to publishers

– advice in finding a publisher, or exploring self-publishing options

– co-authorship and ghostwriting services

Problems you might experience in getting on with your book: read here

How to get started on writing your book: read here

Get in touch for a free chat about how I can help: 

get in touch

 

Have you a book you want to write?

Here’s how to make a start….
…and some of the difficulties you may be facing

 

 

There’s a rather heartless joke in publishing circles that goes “Nowadays everybody thinks they have a book inside them – and that’s often where it should stay”; let’s put this down to bitterness on the part of frustrated editors who’d rather be authors themselves. Actually, almost anyone can produce a good book, with the right encouragement and support. And it can be a satisfying thing to do – and very good for your career.

If you’re in business, writing a book on the subject of your expertise can be particularly helpful in promoting your business and your brand. Having a book to your name brings kudos and credibility and makes you more visible and newsworthy, more likely to be invited to be interviewed or give talks. You can become the go-to expert in your field and your locality.

In the course of your work you will have undoubtedly built up expertise and experience, and there will be readers who will benefit from the information you have accrued. You have probably already generated a considerable amount of content on the subject in the form of blogs, articles, notes and website copy.

Once you’ve decided to write a book, orientation of the content is vital. Ask yourself these questions: What is it about? What can you in particular bring to the subject matter? What distinguishes it from other books in the same area? Who will get value from reading it? How can you speak to these people?

Then you can get down to planning. Think about the shape of the book: how would the content naturally break down into sections? Can you summarise the content of each chapter? What would be the best order to arrange these chapters? Does your planned order have a logical sequence, taking the reader on a journey?

Then you get on and start writing the first material. Discipline is needed for writing; ideally, set aside a regular chunk of time each week and stick to it. You don’t have to get finished copy down in the first go – make notes or a very rough draft to start with, and edit it later. Many people think “I just can’t write; I’m not a writer” If you feel this kind of blockage, just think to yourself, “How would I explain this particular idea if I was directly speaking to another person?” and just write that down, or record it on an app for later transcription. Develop the habit of putting yourself in the position of a listener who doesn’t know this subject matter: what would you need to tell them in order to grasp what you’re explaining? If you really can’t fit it into your busy schedule, or feel it’s beyond you, editorial consultants are available to help.

In the old days, you had to find a commercial publisher who wanted to publish your book; that’s still the holy grail of getting a book out, but publishers are now highly averse to risk and want authors who have huge public profiles. Fortunately that’s no longer the only way. It’s easy to publish your own book, and Amazon make it even easier, promoting your title if you publish through them. Print-on-demand means that an expensive print run isn’t needed. E-books are also popular these days and are even less expensive to get out in the market place.

So think about it: what’s the book you have inside you? What’s the book you’ve always wanted to write? Then go for it!

 

Give Gerry a call on 07986561860 for a free initial consultation

PROBLEMS GETTING ON WITH WRITING YOUR BOOK?

Humorist Peter Cook, when told by a dinner companion that he was writing a book, said “Neither am I.” – clever, funny…and summing a common situation, where you’re ‘writing a book’ but not getting on with it. Is that the situation you’re in?

Many things can get in the way of writing your book:

• too busy
• time flying by
• not sure how to start
• lack of confidence in writing ability
• perfectionism: writing bits then throwing them all away
• not making it a high enough priority
• lack of clarity and direction
• too ambitious scale of project
• pessimism about chances of success
• worry about difficulty in getting published