Fully Booked Bookfest

Interview with Money and Business coach, Ray Dodd

One of the major things that holds people back from writing their book is the belief that they don't have a big enough audience to be able to sell enough books.
Ray Dodd runs a course on making a small audience work for you, so I knew she'd be a good person to talk to about this.

Interview with Melanie Clark Pullen, actor, writer and camera confidence coach

Melanie and I talked about how to become more comfortable with being on video, since this is increasingly essential for book promotion, whether that is doing Facebook Lives and Instagram stories or whether it is taking part in online book tours, video interviews or online conferences.
Melanie shares breathing exercises and tips on how to feel more comfortable and natural on camera.

Interview with communications & leadership coach, Beth Collier

I wanted to talk to Beth because public speaking is part of the writing life - from author tours and festivals to conferences and webinars - but it's not always a skill people feel comfortable with, to say the least.
Beth and I talked about how to plan for giving a talk, how to calm your nerves, and how to become a more memorable speaker.

Interview with social media manager, Jen Eastwood

Today's Bookfest interview is with Jen Eastwood, social media manager. We talked about using social media for connection and prioritising engagement over follower numbers and about protecting your mental health while still getting to use social media to promote our businesses and books.

Interview with writer and visibility coach Suzy Darke

Suzy and I discuss gentle ways to become more visible in your business and with your writing, letting go of the 'shoulds' and getting more aligned with your values, so that you can call in your ideal clients or readers. 
We talk about the importance of not 'pushing through' but instead taking a much more playful approach and tuning into the purpose and why behind your work and writing, trusting that you're enough as yourself. 

Interview with Katie Sadler, marketing expert

Today's Bookfest interview is with Katie Sadler, marketing expert. Katie works both within publishing and with small business owners, which is why I wanted to get her perspective. 
We talked about what the Marketing department in a traditional publishing house does, about book launches and about the timescales within traditional publishing.

Solo episode with Sophy

A bit of background on what I set up Bookfest to do, and a sneak peek into my new small group programme, The Writing Studio.

Interview with PR expert & author, Lucy Werner

Lucy and I talked about PR for authors and small business owners, and about how she managed to fit writing a book into her demanding schedule. We also covered why she wanted to write a book in the first place and how it fits into her plans for her business overall - and some ideas on how to make book launches better.

Interview with photographer & personal branding coach, Sophie Carefull

Sophie is a portrait photographer and personal branding coach. I wanted to talk to her, because something that holds back many of my writing clients is an unease (or downright fear!) about needing to get more visible if you're to be a published author.
In our interview, we discussed different ways to feel more at ease about getting visible and being photographed.

Interview with Facebook ads strategist for authors & publishers, Kelly Weekes

Kelly is a former publisher herself, having worked with big name authors including Stephen King and Jodi Picoult. 
We talked through the basics of how FB ads work and what to consider to make your ads perform better.⁠ If you've never done more than boost a post on Facebook, this interview will be a great primer.