Let's talk writing. Writing for coaches & educational business owners.

You know you need to hire an editor for your self-published book, but all the different types of editing can be confusing to new authors.

Listen in to learn about:

the different types of editing

which type of editor to hire

how you can ask your friends or colleagues to help

Mentioned on the show:

As business owners, we're busy people. And while while we know writing supports our brand authority in our niche, it can sometimes feel like all that writing isn’t really delivering a return for effort.

Listen in to hear:

why a content strategy is the key to writing that converts

how to create your own content strategy

Amey Lee is a brand and content specialist who works with passionate business owners to build and implement brand story strategy so they can amplify their message and attract their tribe. She’s developed brand story, created content strategy and written content for clients both big and small across the globe.

Connect with Amey:

In this episode you'll learn:

what feedback you need at different stages of the writing journey

how (and who) to ask for feedback

when to take on (or ignore) feedback

Lizzy chats with plain language expert Casey Mank.

Learn how to:

- write so people will read

- translate complex topics

- get your tone right

- sound more confident in your writing

Casey has taught in writing classrooms for over 10 years, most recently at Georgetown University’s School of Nursing and Health Studies. She has taught writing to professionals at Fortune 500s, government agencies, and PR and communication firms. Casey serves on the board of directors at the nonprofit Center for Plain Language and is proud to have helped thousands of writers get to the point and reach their audiences with greater impact.

Stay in touch with Bold Type / Casey:

If you’re creating content for business, there are certainly benefits to being able to get writing out the door quickly, but make sure you allow some space for slow writing as well.

Allowing space for that germ of an idea to grow and not forcing it may just be how you find your next big idea.

Listen in to find out why allowing ideas to percolate will help your writing as a business owner and why we should all allow ourselves to be beginners.

Mentioned on the show:

Claire Louise Owen joined Lizzy to talk about her book 'The soberholic: so much more than sober' and how she empowers women to stop drinking.

In this episode Claire and Lizzy chat about:

- questioning the 'mummy needs wine' culture

- why you don't need permission to write

- why writing a book can be like making an omelette

- how her book can be a key part of your 'funnel'

- how writing a book can help you clarify your framework

Links to resources mentioned on the show:

If you've ever struggled to find the right words to describe what you do or have found yourself questioning the language you see in marketing then this is the episode for you.

Lara Eastburn joined me to talk about sustainable marketing, what it means to 'speak human' and how we can stand out through our word choices and embracing our 'weird'.

We chatted about:

Why Lara’s email list may be THE best I have ever joined.

Why you need to be deliberate in your word choices.

How not to sound like everyone else.

How you can say something that matters.

Why effective copy is about getting rid of most people.

Links to resources mentioned on the show:

Lizzy chats to Bambi French, founder of She is a VIP, an organisation which provides personal development and empowerment coaching for women with disabilities.

Diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition in her mid teens, Bambi knows what it means to navigate life with sight loss while working to remain ambitious and confident about her ability to make a positive impact in the lives of others.

2021 saw the growth of She is a VIP into a movement that seeks to inspire and empower disabled women and girls to build the skills and confidence that will help them to live lives that are not defined by their limitations.

Lizzy and Bambi chat about why you need to make your business and content accessible and practical ways to do this as well as how to find the possibilities that lie beyond your difficulties.

Links to resources mentioned on the podcast:

As writers and business owners, one of the most important things we can do – to stand back, pause and reflect – can sometimes feel counterintuitive. 

But this 'downtime' is often when the biggest writing and business breakthroughs happen.

That’s why I was so excited to talk to today’s guest, author and expert in finding that place of calm and clarity in our minds, Dr Sarah Beth Hunt. Sarah writes fiction and and non-fiction and is the and founder of Messy Luminous Beings, a yoga and meditation platform. She also hosts the podcast Messy Luminous Beings – home to inspirational conversations about weaving spiritual practice into messy real life.

We chat about Sarah's latest book: Forward From Here: spiritual vision in pandemic times, exploring the question of how we create and live and love as we move forward from Covid 19. Sarah shares her lessons learned, what meditation does for her writing, her writing habits as a prolific writer, business owner and mother of young children, and how we can all ensure we're writing for the long game in our business.

This episode is sponsored by Lizzy's blogging course for coaches, consultants and educators, now live on the course creation platform Udemy and available at a special offer to podcast listeners.

Lizzy chats to proofreader and proof-editor,  Nazneen Choudhury. 

If you've ever wanted to get a fresh pair of eyes on your blog post or you're worried about sending your social media posts out into the world, then a proofreader or proof-editor might be what you need.

Nazneen and Lizzy chat about adapting your writing style for different contexts and the importance of finding an editing professional who suits your working style. They also dispel some myths about editors and proofreaders.

Nazneen works with entrepreneurs who want to share their knowledge and have an impact. She works on various formats ranging from social media to long-form online content, business documents and self-publications. Her services include proofreading, content writing support and self-publishing services.

Lizzy chats to veteran ghostwriter and multiple NYT best selling author, Marcia Layton Turner. 

They talk about why authors decide to work with a ghostwriter (it’s not always because they can’t write), how to find a ghostwriter to work with, why working with a ghostwriter to start with gives some writers the confidence to go on to pen their own books, and the pros and cons of traditional versus self publishing. 

This episode is sponsored by my blogging course for coaches, consultants and educators, now live on the course creation platform Udemy and available at a special offer to podcast listeners.

Lizzy chats to BBC journalist turned copywriter and writing coach, Victoria Brown. 

If you’ve ever felt like you’re bugging your email list or wondered how to write a winning about page (especially if you hate the idea of talking about yourself) then tune in to this week's episide. Victoria is all about making great copy simple and fun for business owners -- she doesn't disappoint!

Lizzy talks to author,  editor and writing mentor, Steph Caswell.  They chat about Steph's accidental journey from deputy head teacher to author, about writing anxiety and taming your inner critic, about bouncing back from rejection and about how to be a happy writer! If you're struggling with you writing mindset and want to write a book to grow your business, this is a must-listen episode.

This episode is sponsored by my blogging course for coaches consultants and educators, now live on the course creation platform Udemy and available at a special offer to podcast listeners until 7th July. 

Welcome to the first episode of series two. I’m excited to be back and we’ve got a load of inspirational interviews lined up this season to help inspire and motivate us with our writing.

In this first episode I chat to author and editor Kris Emery about her latest book Destination Author. We talk about what to do if you think your book has already been written, why conversational style isn’t the only way to write and the importance of citing your sources generously. Kris also gives us a mini master class in hook writing.

Listen in and I’m sure you’ll learn as much as I did!

Links to resources mentioned in the episode.

Welcome to the final episode of the season. We've had some fantastic guests on the show and I’m excited to wrap up the season with an interview with the SEO expert and marketer Nicki Sciberras. Nicki worked in corporate advertising for 15 years, and now runs a full service marketing agency specialising in high converting tactics like SEO, Google and Facebook Ads.

If you’re anything like me, you love to write, but perhaps the SEO side of things seem a bit more technical and mysterious. I thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity to question Nicki on everything I wanted to know about SEO and what tactics I could easily implement. Some of the topics Nicki shares are some of the best ways to get started with SEO, why it’s important to have map out a clear customer journey alongside your SEO strategy, and why you don’t need to pay someone for SEO services when you’re just starting out. Nicki is so generous with the information that she shared with me here and has a load of resources for you, so be sure to check out the show notes and actually go and implement some of what we talk about here.

Links mentioned in this episode:

In this episode, I talk to editor Jessica Kate Brown. Jessica is a non-fiction book editor for self-publishing authors. As a professional member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading and having worked on over 50 non-fiction publications to date, for both traditional publishers and independent authors, Jessica now works with purpose-led writers who have a message to share and a drive to help others through their memoir, self-development, or business book. From copyediting the final draft to providing those all-important last-look quality checks, Jessica helps authors refine their manuscript so they can press ‘publish’ with confidence.

Jessica talks about the editing process, how to find editors for your self-published book and at what stage you should start looking. She also shares some invaluable advice on some of the stumbling blocks that self-publishing writers can come up against.

Fine Jessica at:

In this episode I interview Heart and Spirit Coach Joanna Shipley. Joanna is a certified Martha Beck Wayfinder Life Coach (nearly Master Coach) and Shamanic Mentor with over 20 years' experience of working with spirit, groups and 1:1.

When Joanna came to me, it was after she had already joined a 30 day course to draft a mini book that weaves together self coaching and shamanic and animistic practices. Joanna talks about her experience in writing the draft. Having taken on the challenge, Joanna now knows she has what it takes to write a book.

At the time of recording, Joanna hadn't decided what to do with her draft, so it's interesting to hear from someone in the 'messy middle' or even 'messy beginning' of the process. That's something we don't often hear about.

We often hear criticisms about 30-day book writing challenges and programmes, but I think that any challenge that gets you into the habit of writing and becoming a writer, and realising what’s possible, is arguably a good use of time! So Joanna is now at the stage of realising she has what it takes to write a book, and has a messy first draft (which may take months or years to revise depending on her situation and what she wants to do with the book).

I’m looking forward to having Joanna back on the show to see where the rest of this book writing journey goes.

In this episode, Lizzy talks to Million Dollar Story Boss, Jayati Vora, about effective (and fun) email marketing. Jayati talks about how to use stories in your email marketing, why you don't always need to be 'teaching' something and why mistakes are just fine.

Jayati helps small business owners talk to their customers easily, confidently, and in their natural voice. She also gives them ideas for what to write about in her monthly subscription program, Million-Dollar Emails, and works with them to elevate their copy on their social media, in their email lists, on their websites. She spends an inordinate amount of time thinking about words, storytelling, and writing prompts for her clients to use. Prior to owning her own business, Jayati spent 16 years as an editor in print journalism, where she commissioned, directed, and edited columns, and feature and investigative stories, some of which won awards and were translated into other languages. She teaches creative writing to children. She has a podcast called Cutting Chai Stories, which gives business owners practical writing tips in just 15 minutes.

In this episode, Lizzy interviews Publisher in your pocket, Caryn McClesky. 

Caryn has worked in the publishing industry for over 20 years and coaches writers through the publishing process. 

Some of the topics Caryn talks about are her experiences of the publishing industry, how a self-development writer can hone their message, how to approach an agent and why you really should publish your book!

Find Caryn on Instagram @Caryndreams

Mentioned in this episode: