Now that every online platform and their German Shepherd have a messaging facility, do you ever find it hard to remember who’s messaged you where? Of course, I’m a boring old goat who now uses the excuse of advancing years to cover up the fact I’ve been a scatterbrain since birth. But come on …. really? What really banboozles me is trying to remember who messaged me, on what platform. Here are the main messaging platforms I use… Facebook / Messenger LinkedIn Twitter WhatsApp Instagram IPhone Texts And then there are many more, as you know. Far too many to register here. What bamboozles my in ..read more

OK, I get lots of spammers trying to sell me web development, design, articles about silent toilet flushers that they just know all my readers will find fascinating, etc. But for some reason this one got right up both my nostrils and thought I would share it with you, to show just how ****ing rude some spammers can be – as if that were going to persuade me to buy from them? Even threatened me with being put on the naughty step by Google, Yahoo and Bing, because the site is so bad? BTW this site is on page 1 of Google right now, under ‘How To Write Better.’ That’s out of just over 2 billion ..read more

If you’re anything like me, sometimes you’ll find it hard to kick-start yourself and get into writing mode. If you’re writing at home this can be even harder, because there are endless distractions around the place to help you procrastinate … housework, dog walking, grass cutting, cooking, eating, you name it. Even if you’re in work mode and can justify business hours spent on your book, blog, article, speech or whatever because it will be a business tool, the reality is it can be hard to focus and make the best of those hours. Peace and privacy are essential if you are to organise your tho ..read more

For generations people have been saying that laughter is good medicine. And now the scientists have taken an interest it turns out great-grandma was right. The boffins have discovered that laughter releases helpful goodies in the body which boost your immune system. As long as the butt of the joke is a set of circumstances, not the people, you’re far less likely to upset anyone. In fact the therapeutic benefits of laughter are harnessed by academia and the business community into laughter workshops and other formalised chuckle sessions. Get the workers laughing and you raise productivity ..read more

As you can’t fail to have heard I have just published another nonfiction book of my own (as well as some of my clients’ new books!) … and the experience of marketing them has reaffirmed my convictions that most books benefit from being regarded as ‘products’ as well as works of art. Without being too pedantic, here’s a reminder of the Four P’s Of Marketing Before you jump down my throat and call me a Philistine, let’s take a deeper look As you you know ‘marketing’ can mean anything from an academic structure within commerce to walking down the street to buy groceries. I lean towards the form ..read more

One of the best things about the current spread of media and publication options is that the basic content from your book can be shared in many more different ways than was the case 20 or even 10 years ago. I have mentioned quite a few of these en passant in my new book but it’s worth taking another look at the main ones, so you can bear them in mind. Who knows to what other communication treasures your book could lead you? Blog to book and back again Depending on the nature of your content, a series of blog posts form a very good basis for a book. I’ve done this a couple of times now and ..read more

I’d love to help you write your book but frankly, with all my experience and skills having been poured into this book, you probably won’t need me! “Suzan is full of knowledge and common sense so this book is a must have from the moment you consider writing a book” – Elizabeth Toogood, Insightful Business Mentor It’s here at last for you to learn, write, make the right decisions about publishing, and above all to enjoy the whole experience. I give you… the long promised, much-agonised-over How To Write A Brilliant Nonfiction Book! It was worth the wait… Look no further. You have now found th ..read more

I’d love to help you write your book but frankly, with all my experience and skills having been poured into this book, you probably won’t need me! It’s here at last for you to learn, write, make the right decisions about publishing, and above all to enjoy the whole experience. I give you… the long promised, much-agonised-over How To Write A Brilliant Nonfiction Book!It’s on all the Amazons: UK version is here  …. “Suzan is full of knowledge and common sense so this book is a must have from the moment you consider writing a book” – E.T ..read more

If you want to write a nonfiction book to help promote your business, charity or other activity, you may find that – to start with – you don’t have a clear idea on what content your readers would appreciate most. In this article, adapted from my new book which will be published early November 2020, you’ll find a number of suggestions that will fire up your inspiration and help you refine your choices. Here are some ideas to be going on with (see below): Many people imagine that good ideas appear by magic, like those cartoon light bulbs that switch themselves on over a character’s head with a ..read more

Here are the latest ‘shorty’ posts I’ve been sharing on social media recently … the first two are about books, and the last two are about writing in general. Enjoy! Can you tell if a book has been produced professionally? Here’s how The cover should still be readable and attractive when its image is small, e.g. on Amazon The back cover ‘blurb’ must be enticing and correct, and text on the book’s ‘spine,’ straight and centred. The first few pages should contain publishing data, followed by an introduction, contents, and perhaps a foreword and/or preface. These initial pages should be nu ..read more