Notes in the Margin

Writing a book is not a linear journey—and although it's amazing, it's also haaaaaard! Vicky interviews John Holcroft about the book he's writing—and he shares the most awesome advice and insights about how to talk to people (or really how to listen) and how to make people want to talk to you, instead of climbing out of bathroom windows to escape. Enjoy!

Key Takeaways:

[2:15] A little bit about John and how he got into this line of work!

[2:55] Want to know if your product will work? Talk to your clients!

[3:10] People are afraid to talk to their ideal clients about their product. However, launching a product no one wants is even worse!

[7:10] How do you talk to your ideal client? John shares how he got over the anxiety of interviewing his ideal client.

[8:55] Hard pitching people doesn't work!

[14:20] We're not taught to have the hard conversations. Practicing this skill takes time.

[15:05] Most people are just waiting for their turn to talk.

[17:45] John shares a client story where things went horribly wrong.

[20:15] When John launched his beta course, it was scary. He didn't know if it would work, but he knew he had to collect feedback.

[22:00] When you talk to people who want your service, you're able to cut the fat really quickly and condense your product offering down to something people REALLY want.

[22:20] When is John's new book coming out?

[24:50] The biggest step to writing your book (sounds dumb, but) is writing. You have to take that first step.

[27:00] John had to overcome his perfectionist tendencies when writing. It was a real challenge.

[29:10] The first draft is for your eyes only. Don't try to perfect it just yet. Write for you in the beginning.

[30:35] Vicky has some rapid fire questions for John.

[31:45] How do you make your product special? By making it useful!

[37:10] Want to grab a hold of John's book? He's got a secret 'beta readers only' copy out now. Connect with him through his website!

Mentioned in This Episode:

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Creative Book Coaching

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That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

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John Holcroft

It's extremely hot at Moxie Towers, so lower your expectations for podcast energy levels and excuse the grumpy rant at the start. Then settle back for some gold advice as Vicky and Joe talk about the second edit: what it's for, and how to do it. Enjoy!

Key Takeaways:

[3:25] Vicky and Joe are enjoying a nice bat infestation at the Dingle.

[5:30] Vicky is also sick of her own homegrown cucumbers. There's just too many!

[6:10] So you have your second draft - now what? It's time to do some line editing!

[9:20] What is your signature style? Put some of your personality into your writing so that it's not so dry!

[10:20] It's okay to have writing ticks, but be careful not to overuse it in your book.

[13:15] Look at the structure of your paragraphs. Are they varied and interesting?

[14:35] Vicky shares the difference between showing vs. telling.

[16:55] What's the takeaway? Don't worry too much about spelling, grammar and typos during this stage.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Book a free chat with Vicky!

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

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Project Dingle

Slouching Towards Bethlehem, by Joan Didion

The Practice, by Seth Godin

Vicky is extremely excited this week because she invited Joanna Penn onto her podcast—and Joanna said yes! Come and join us as we wend our way through theology degrees, travelling, career-changing decisions, the joys of indie-publishing, and how writing fiction is different from non-fiction. Bonus ribbons: I asked Joanna about how to get started writing fiction and her generous and full answer knocked my socks off. Enjoy!

Key Takeaways:

[3:35] A little bit about Joanna and the work that she does!

[9:55] How did Joanna transition from the corporate world to being her own boss?

[14:25] Technology is great! It's removed barriers to creating and publishing your own art out there.

[16:45] When the Kindle came out, the whole world changed!

[17:50] Passionate about the future, Joanna shares what she's looking forward to in the next couple of years.

[19:45] How will traditional publishing change over time?

[21:25] What inspired Joanna to write fiction?

[27:35] Joanna shares what kind of mindframe you need to be in to write fiction.

[32:50] If you're an expert in a particular writing style, you just have to let that go and learn something new when writing fiction.

[34:50] Joanna shares a little bit about the traveling memoir she's writing.

[37:45] Want to write in a genre? Spend some time studying the greats!

[40:35] Don't write things you think you 'should' write.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Book a free chat with Vicky!

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

Banish the Blank Page of Doom Fast

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Email Vicky: [email protected]

The Creative Penn.com

Girl One by Sara Flannery Murphy

The Anthropology of Turquoise by Ellen Meloy

James Patterson on Masterclass

When's the last time you played? When were you last really silly? This week, Vicky and Joe are back and they're talking about nerding out with their mates: find out what they get up to every Sunday afternoon and why it's keeping them in tip top condition and ready for action. Plus get a bunch of ideas for how to incorporate play into your days (and nights).

Key Takeaways:

[1:00] Joe has the flu. Oh no!

[8:00] Vicky is really enjoying the book The Elements of Eloquence right now!

[8:45] Today's topic is about playing games! When was the last time you played a game?

[11:00] How do you play Dungeons and Dragons (D&D)?

[13:15] We're taught that once we get older we have to get 'serious' about life. Boo! That's not true.

[15:30] You can't bore people into learning something new. It needs to be fun!

[19:00] Vicky has created some templates so you can write your book easily, and she's included some fun games in these templates!

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Book a free chat with Vicky!

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

Banish the Blank Page of Doom Fast

Grab Vicky's Book Template Bundle

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Overcast

Email Vicky: [email protected]

Me Talk Pretty One Day, by David Sedaris

His Only Wife, by Peace Adzo Medie

The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood

The Elements of Eloquence, by Mark Forsyth

The Practice: Shipping Creative Work, by Seth Godin

Vicky sits down with Mike Garner, who is WRITING HIS FIRST BOOK YAY! They wander around Paris for a while, fall into a romantic tale, and then circle back to what's the most fun and the most difficult thing about writing. Funnily enough, for Mike, they're the same thing. Tune in and get a writer's perspective on writing and a couple of book recommendations!

Key Takeaways:

[3:00] A little bit about Mike!

[6:20[ Mike shares a romantic story of how he met his second wife.

[7:20] Mike has always wanted to write a book. He's been a writer 'in his head' for a long time.

[10:30] Mike has seen a lot of people pass away in his life. He didn't want to live life unfulfilled.

[12:35] One of Mike's friend's inspired him to start writing. He was inspired to write 5,000 words a week.

[14:05] It's never been easier today to tell your story.

[16:55] It's okay to be nervous. It's okay to have self-doubts. The key is to just keep moving forward and ask yourself, 'Am I having fun?'

[17:50] If we're not having fun, what's the point?

[20:50] What is Mike's writing process?

[24:45] Mike's big writing tip? Just write. Don't worry about perfection.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Book a free chat with Vicky!

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

Banish the Blank Page of Doom Fast

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Email Vicky: [email protected]

Thesmartmessageframework.com

Mike Garner on LinkedIn

Mike Garner on Instagram

Mike Garner on Twitter

What do you do when you've emptied your brain onto paper and you're wading around in 50,000 words and you have to make them GOOD words? Walk away, that's what. Then come back and get to work. BUT WHERE DO YOU START? In this episode, Joe and I talk about developmental or structural editing: what it is, why we do it, and how to get started. This is your tiny crash course in taking your weird word mush and making it magnificent.

Key Takeaways:

[5:15] Project Dingle update!

[7:50] Never written a book before? Here's how a professional can help.

[11:15] What is developmental editing?

[18:45] A proof reader is different from a developmental editor.

[20:25] Want to work with Vicky? She has an opening in September and October!

[20:50] Let's talk about why beta readers are so important.

[24:25] Tip: Revisit your outline and see how it's changed.

[26:55] Got any questions? Let Vicky know!

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Book a free chat with Vicky!

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

Banish the Blank Page of Doom Fast

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Overcast

Email Vicky: [email protected]

A Wizard of Earthsea Novel by Ursula K. Le Guin

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

The Elements of Eloquence by Mark Forsyth

This week, Vicky and Joe abandon the planned podcast and talk about something else instead: the stories we tell ourselves. Why we think and believe what we do, why we make snap judgements that we're not proud of, how to stay up to date with what's going on in the world, and how we try to be better people than we were yesterday. There's a little bit of talk-therapy going on, and a special appearance by Whiskey the little grey cat. Enjoy!

Key Takeaways:

[3:00] Vicky and Joe talk about their impression of Nassim Necolas Taleb, the author of the book Antifragile.

[5:15] Vicky sees her parents getting older and having difficulty moving, which makes her strive to get a healthy body.

[7:00] Small businesses individually are fragile, because most of them fail. However, the whole small business community is very antifragile because they learn from each other's mistakes.

[9:15] Joe talks about her parents being left behind by technology and wonders how difficult it would be for him and his wife Vicky after 40 years.

[13:00] Vicky shares the reason why she didn't have a scale in her house.

[14:15] We need to examine how we react to things and the judgments we make.

[15:00] Why is diversity training not useful in many cases?

[16:00] Vicky is frustrated with how people do not seem to be kind enough to others.

[17:30] Misunderstanding feminism prevents us from showing what we really feel. It's hurting not just one person, but everybody.

[19:00] Vicky's perception of how much a person should weigh is due to how she was raised by her mother.

[21:15] It is so hard for people to change their minds in terms of religion or vaccination, because they don't base it on facts but on beliefs.

[23:50] You'll never achieve your goal by putting limits on yourself to do things subconsciously, and not do the things that need you to get there.

[27:40] Always try to be a better human being and be kind.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Buy Vicky's Book

That's What She Said: Tales of Business Success from Women Just like You by Vicky Fraser

Banish the Blank Page of Doom Fast

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Overcast

Email Vicky: [email protected]

Ambercouch.co.uk

Warm Bodies A Novel by Isaac Marion

Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Vicky sits down with coach Christine Meyer and talks about how writing books is a MESSY process. Tune in and listen up as they natter about book covers, breaking rules, embracing emotions, and why our stories matter.

Key Takeaways:

[3:15] A little bit about Christine and what she does.

[5:35] It's so important to embrace and use your emotions as a tool.

[7:20] So many people 'don't' do something or don't feel something. We are told we should only embrace the positive emotions, but that's denying a large portion of life.

[9:55] Why did Christine decide to write her book?

[14:15] What was Christine's book writing process?

[16:10] Once Christine got all the elements needed together, writing the book became easy!

[16:25] What were some of the challenges Christine faced when writing her book?

[19:00] Don't write your book on your own! It's way more fun when you bring in outside help.

[20:55] What's Christine's book about, and how did she come up with the title?

[23:45] Christine is so glad she's written a book, she's been able to help people and that experience has been really rewarding.

[27:15] Christine didn't want to put extra pressure on herself to write everyday on her book, even if she wasn't feeling it. She wanted her book to be fun and enjoyable, so she wrote when she was inspired to write.[27:55] Christine shares her top tip for writing your next book! Set yourself up to be inspired.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

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Email Vicky: [email protected]

An Audience of One: Reclaiming Creativity for Its Own Sake, by Srinivas Rao and Robin Dellabough

Christinemeyercoaching.com

Keep It Simple, Smartypants!, by Christine Meyer

Christine Meyer on Instagram

Christine Meyer on LinkedIn

In this week's episode, Vicky and Joe ruin stories for you forever. Just kidding. But they do utterly spoil The Martian, so if you haven't read or seen it yet, go and do that now, and then come back. Okay. Are you back? GREAT. Now listen in and find out what's the difference between a story and an anecdote, why boring stories are boring, and how you can make all the stories you tell great. Oh, and why you don't have to be a great writer to be a great storyteller. There's gold in this one. GOLD.

Key Takeaways:

[0:45] Vicky made a cake! It was so good!

[4:55] Lots of fun updates about what's happening at the Dingle!

[7:00] What makes a good story?

[8:15] How the story is written doesn't matter as much as the structure does!

[11:40] Story is also not the same as the plot.

[13:50] Vicky shares what a good story structure looks like.

[15:15] Let's deconstruct the book 'The Martian' and how the story is structured.

[21:00] Vicky is always working on her storytelling skills!

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Overcast

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I Am Pilgrim, by Terry Hayes

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage, by Ann Patchett

Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

The Martian, by Andy Weir

Okay everyone—huge treat for you this week because Vicky is talking to her beautiful assistant Harriet! And it's about time too. Tune in to hear them go on a podcast safari from why VAs are awesome, through to creativity, support and loneliness, burlesque and boobs, smashing the patriarchy, and finishing on body image. There's something for everyone here. Enjoy!

Key Takeaways:

[1:55] A little bit about Harriet!

[5:40] Vicky couldn't do what she does without Harriet. She is the backbone of everything!

[7:20] What was it like getting started as a VA?

[10:30] Vicky and Harriet knew each other as friends first before working together!

[12:45] It can be really lonely running a business and it's just nice to get a second brain.

[14:45] Do you need a Facebook ad done? Get in touch with Harriet!

[16:35] Harriet decided to open a burlesque school...and then the world ended.

[22:20] Women want to dance as a form of expression!

[27:00] Harriet loves watching a variety of different women be able to do the same dance move! It's challenging but so rewarding!

[31:00] Let's talk about unattainable bodies.

[35:20] Should you have two Instagrams?

[38:20] You wanna get fit, dance, and be sexy? Harriet's got some moves to show you.

Mentioned in This Episode:

Website

Creative Book Coaching

Join Vicky's Power Hour

Join Vicky's Masterclass

Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, and Overcast

Email Vicky: [email protected]

Glitter Girls - Barcelona Burlesque Academy

Lily La Rosa on Instagram

Email Harriet: [email protected]