Shelley Wilson Writing Mentor

My writing career began in May 2014 when I self-published my first book, How I Changed My Life in a Year. It was a blog to book project that did change my life! The book was picked up by an Amazon top 100 book blogger, and fortunately, she loved it – her review helped it skyrocket up the best seller charts until it hit the number one spot in January 2015 in self-help and women’s biographies. It bounced around the top 10 for four years before my now publisher bought the rights and re-launched it under their imprint.

Once I’d published the first book the floodgates opened, and I went on to independently publish a further eight titles (non-fiction self-help and young adult fantasy fiction) before signing with a traditional publisher on a ten-book contract in 2017.

I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was eight years old, and that’s why I’m so passionate about writing and publishing. You could say I’ve got ink running through my veins rather than blood. However, you don’t have to be as crazy as me when it comes to rattling out the manuscripts.

That single book (How I Changed My Life in a Year) opened so many doors and business opportunities for me, and I started to believe that it was possible to write for a living, but what if writing isn’t your end goal. What if all you need is a boost to raise awareness of your business?

Perhaps you’re a life coach, a florist, or a therapist? How can writing a book make a difference to you and your business?

Let me give you an example: Continue reading “Write Your Way to Business Success #NonFiction #Writing” →

Publishing, Writing Tips

Top 10 Self-Publishing Tips by ‘PJ’ #WritingTips #Authors

March 2, 2020March 9, 2020 shelleywilson72

I run a successful feature on my author blog called Top 10 Writing Tips where twenty-seven incredible authors share valuable writing advice. You can find all the links to each post at https://shelleywilsonauthor.com/writing-tips. When I approached PJ about providing his top tips I was delighted when he sent me a twist to the theme – self-publishing tips! What a perfect way to help new authors understand the world of independent publishing. Allow me to introduce PJ:

PJ is a long-time self-published author who occasionally turns his hand to a little freelance book-formatting and cover-design work, helping those of us who missed out on the tech-gene. Having helped many, many authors over the years bring their book to market (myself included) he’s the go-to-guy for all your self-publishing tech questions.

Here then are PJ’s top ten tips for self-publishing:

1. First, finish your manuscript

Whilst it’s important to start “building an author platform” and “creating a frisson of excitement about your forthcoming book” it’s far more important to actually FINISH the book. A book usually takes a year to write. START NOW. (If you haven’t finished your book, stop reading this blog post and get back to it.)

2. When it comes to your book’s interior steer clear of anything ‘complicated’

Illustrations or photographs might seem like a good idea, but they make the formatting of your book many times more complicated. If you’re not doing the formatting yourself that could translate to significant hike in book production costs. I charge my clients double if their books contain pictures. Even bullet points are a major headache. Stick to text and headings. That’s all.

3. Edit your book. Continue reading “Top 10 Self-Publishing Tips by ‘PJ’ #WritingTips #Authors” →

Overcoming self-doubt as a writer, Shelley Wilson Writing Mentor, Writing Community

Writing Tips

Overcoming Self-Doubt as a Writer #WritingTips

January 8, 2020March 9, 2020 shelleywilson72

Overcoming Self-Doubt as a Writer

Oh boy! Have I picked a difficult topic to tackle!

What the devil is self-doubt? In basic terms it’s ‘a lack of confidence in yourself and your own abilities.’ When you read that single sentence, it doesn’t sound so bad. However, if you’ve ever ‘felt’ the physical and emotional reactions of self-doubt then I’m sure you’ll agree that there’s nothing basic about it.

It’s worth noting that a smidge of self-doubt is acceptable, after all, we need to learn that we’re not always going to be right – yes, I’m talking to my kids here! If you ever want to relate to other people (aka: play nice) then you must develop the skills to reflect on your thoughts and actions.

If those thoughts and actions prevent you from leaving your home or picking up a pen to write then you’ve stepped into dangerous self-doubt territory. Chronic self-doubt is when you look at a piece of work you’ve written and believe it to be a pile of crap, this then spirals into feelings of failure, a lack of motivation, unworthiness, no direction…and on and on.

We’ve all had days where a chapter, poem, short story, or even a blog post has felt wrong. It doesn’t flow, your grammar sucks, and the idea you have in your head has in no way transferred to the page. The fabulous #WritingCommunity on Twitter thrive on lifting fellow scribes up when they’ve had a dire writing day, but how can you do this for yourself?

First, you need to recognise the triggers that show you’re slipping into a dangerous self-doubt zone. Once you know them it’s easier to turn your mindset from negative to positive. Have you heard yourself saying any of the following? Continue reading “Overcoming Self-Doubt as a Writer #WritingTips” →

Shelley Wilson Writing Mentor, Writing at Christmas

Writing Tips

How To Focus on Your Writing Projects Over the Festive Period #WritingTips

December 2, 2019March 9, 2020 shelleywilson72

How to Focus on Your Writing Projects Over the Festive Period

December is upon us, and you’re either excited about the prospect of wearing your Christmas jumper and attending all the glittering parties, or you’re in a blind panic about how much you’ve got left to do. It’s the same with our writing projects. We can enjoy any time off from work by allocating some creative time, or we can struggle to fit in a single sentence as the chaos of Christmas unfolds.

How can you focus on your writing then? Here are my top 5 tips for staying motivated over the festive period. Continue reading “How To Focus on Your Writing Projects Over the Festive Period #WritingTips” →

Business Support, Networking

Nail Your 60 Second Networking Pitch

November 18, 2019March 9, 2020 shelleywilson72

Nail Your 60 Second Pitch

Nail Your 60 Second Networking Pitch, Shelley Wilson Writing Mentor Blog

If you’ve ever been to a networking event there’s a strong likelihood that you’ve been asked to introduce yourself and your business in a short amount of time. Some groups are relaxed about this introduction and allow you to pace yourself and include a few anecdotes, whereas other groups use a stopwatch to ensure you don’t go over that allocated 60 second slot.

If you pre-plan your pitch then no matter how a group is run (relaxed or regimented), you’ll nail your moment in the spotlight and gain valuable connections.

There are different ways of referring to this process:

60 second pitch

Elevator pitch

Mission statement

Brand story or message

Whatever you choose to call it isn’t important, but what you say can make the difference between capturing a lead or disappearing into a sea of faces in a large networking room. There have been certain pitches I’ve heard over the years that have prompted me to seek out the speaker and introduce myself after the introductions. Not necessarily because I needed their services or products, but because they left a positive impression and I felt the pull to find out more.

If you follow a few basic rules when planning your 60 second pitch then you won’t go wrong. Continue reading “Nail Your 60 Second Networking Pitch” →