Course Description

Shaa Wasmund MBE is one of Britain's most highly regarded female entrepreneurs and No. 1 bestselling author of “Stop Talking and Start Doing”, which spent fourteen months at the top of the charts at WH Smith. In her first set of videos, Shaa talks about:

• How she knocked Sir Richard Brandson off the #1 book spot in WH Smith
• The mistakes all first-time authors will make and how to learn from and deal with them
• Why you should write your book now to differentiate yourself in the market

Aspiring authors and experts are taken through the principles of how to develop a book, get it published and build an audience and public platform to ensure bestseller status. The course material draws on the experiences of successful writers and publishers and is hosted by Shaa, who has been featured in The Sunday Times, The Guardian and on the BBC.

This course is packed full of content relating to the following topics, and is presented through videos which are fun and easy to consume:

  • Avoiding Mistakes First Time Authors Make
  • Finding the Right Publisher
  • Is Traditional Publishing Right for You?
  • Going Solo or a Team Effort
  • Nailing your Book Idea
  • Getting the Most from your Publisher
  • Turning a Book into a Bestseller

Shaa Wasmund MBE

I’m an entrepreneur, public speaker and the author of #1 bestselling books ‘Stop Talking, Start Doing’ and ‘Do Less, Get More’. In 2015 I was awarded an MBE for ‘Services to Business and Entrepreneurship’ and was recently named one of the UK’s Top 20 Influential Entrepreneurs by The Sunday Times.Born in the US and raised in the UK, I studied at the London School of Economics before becoming the only female boxing promoter in the UK, representing World Champion Chris Eubank and working with the infamous Don King before starting my own PR company helping grow the Dyson brand from around Sir James Dyson’s kitchen table.I was part of the founding team at Deckchair.com with Sir Bob Geldof and started one of the first social networks, MyKindaPlace, eventually selling it to BSkyB.Next I headed up investment fund Bright Station Ventures before starting the award-winning Smarta.com, UK’s #1 website for small businesses. At Smarta we helped more than 12 million people into business and grew an active online community of over 500,000 small businesses.I’ll help you unlock your full potential: to build a better business; stop trading time for money; make serious money online and be free to live how you choose.I’ll show you how to take the skills, knowledge and expertise you already have; to use the smartcuts I’ve mastered to become a recognised expert in your field, create epic digital products and sell them to 100,000s of people; grow a digital audience and mailing list of raving fans around your true passion; and create an authentic personal brand to create demand and charge a premium for what you do.If you’re looking for practical, results-orientated breakthroughs in a fun, compassionate but no-nonsense environment, come say hi.

Course curriculum

  • 1

    PART 1 – AVOIDING MISTAKES FIRST TIME AUTHORS MAKE

    • SHAA WASMUND BIO

    • INTRODUCTION

    • GAIN INSIGHTS FROM OTHER PARTICIPANTS: LISTEN TO WHAT THEY WANT

    • MISTAKES FIRST-TIME AUTHORS MAKE
  • 2

    PART 2 - FINDING THE RIGHT PUBLISHER

    • IAIN CAMPBELL BIO

    • Q&A ON FINDING A PUBLISHER

    • BUILDING A PLATFORM & CREATING A USER CONTENT JOURNEY

    • CREATING CONTENT AND GREAT HEADLINES

    • Q&A
  • 3

    PART 3 - IS TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING RIGHT FOR YOU?

    • LUCY MCCARRAHER BIO

    • WHAT DO PUBLISHERS ACTUALLY DO?

    • HOW TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING WORKS

    • HOW SELF PUBLISHING WORKS

    • HOW HYBRID PUBLISHING WORKS

    • HOW TO DECIDE WHICH PUBLISHING OPTION YOU SHOULD CHOOSE
  • 4

    PART 4 - GOING SOLO OR A TEAM EFFORT

    • JOHN BOND BIO

    • DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A CO-AUTHOR, GHOST WRITER & COLLABORATOR

    • HOW PUBLISHERS AND BOOK AGENTS THINK AND OPERATE

    • HOW PUBLISHERS CALCULATE ADVANCE PAYMENTS

    • HOW TO DETERMINE THE LENGTH OF YOUR BOOK
  • 5

    PART 5 - NAILING YOUR BOOK IDEA

    • KATE ADAMS BIO

    • NAILING YOUR BOOK IDEA AND TITLE

    • WHO TO GO TO IF YOU NEED HELP WRITING OR PUBLISHING

  • 6

    PART 6 - GETTING THE MOST FROM YOUR PUBLISHER

    • JAMIE SMART BIO

    • HOW HE GOT HIS BOOK TO #1 AT WH SMITH

    • HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR PUBLISHER

    • TWO QUESTIONS YOU MUST ASK ANY POTENTIAL PUBLISHER

    • TWO QUESTIONS YOU MUST ASK ANY POTENTIAL PUBLISHER

    • TWO QUESTIONS YOU MUST ASK ANY POTENTIAL PUBLISHER
  • 7

    PART 7 - TURNING A BOOK INTO A BESTSELLER

    • WHAT IS A PLATFORM AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

    • HOW TO BUILD A PLATFORM AROUND YOU AND YOUR BOOK (PART 1)

    • HOW TO BUILD A PLATFORM AROUND YOU AND YOUR BOOK (PART 2)

    • CREATING CONTENT TO SUPPORT YOUR BOOK

    • WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO PUBLISH NEW CONTENT ON YOUR PLATFORM

    • HOW TO LEVERAGE YOUR NETWORK FOR YOUR BOOK

    • WHY YOU NEED ENDORSEMENTS AND HOW TO GET THEM

    • BOOK TITLES AND BOOK COVERS

    • HOW MUCH CONTROL DO YOU HAVE WHEN YOU GO THROUGH A PUBLISHER

    • LAST TIPS FOR WRITING YOUR BOOK