Courtney St Croix 2024-03-22 Courtney St Croix 2024-03-22

Effective Book Marketing Strategies for Self-Published Authors

Top book marketing strategies for independent and self-published authors

Effective Book Marketing Strategies for Self-Published Authors

Introduction: Marketing plays a pivotal role in the success of any self-published book. While writing a compelling story is crucial, it's equally important to ensure that your book reaches its intended audience. In this blog post, we'll explore some practical book marketing strategies specifically tailored for self-published authors. By implementing these strategies, you can increase the visibility of your book and maximize your chances of success in the competitive publishing landscape.

Know Your Target Audience:
Before diving into marketing efforts, it's essential to have a clear understanding of your target audience. Identify the demographics, interests, and preferences of your ideal readers. This knowledge will guide your marketing decisions and help you tailor your messaging to resonate with your audience effectively.
Build an Author Platform:
An author platform is a crucial asset for self-published authors. It encompasses your online presence, including your website, blog, social media profiles, and email list. Invest time in building and nurturing your author platform, as it serves as a central hub for connecting with your readers and promoting your books.
Leverage Social Media:

Social media platforms offer powerful tools for promoting your books and engaging with your audience. Choose the platforms where your target audience is most active and establish a presence there. Share valuable content, interact with your followers, and leverage features like live videos, stories, and hashtags to increase visibility.
Utilize Book Promotion Sites:
There are numerous book promotion sites and services available that can help boost the visibility of your book. Research and identify reputable promotion sites within your genre or niche, and consider running promotions or advertising campaigns to reach a broader audience.
Collaborate with Influencers and Bloggers:
Partnering with influencers and bloggers in your niche can significantly expand your book's reach. Reach out to influencers and bloggers who cater to your target audience and propose collaboration opportunities, such as guest blogging, book reviews, or social media shoutouts.
Offer Value through Content Marketing:
Content marketing involves creating and sharing valuable content that resonates with your target audience. Consider creating blog posts, articles, podcasts, or videos related to your book's themes, characters, or research insights. Providing value through content can attract readers to your book and establish you as an authority in your genre.
Engage with Book Communities:
Engaging with online book communities and forums is an excellent way to connect with avid readers and fellow authors. Participate in discussions, share recommendations, and offer insights related to your book and genre. Building genuine relationships within these communities can lead to valuable word-of-mouth promotion.

Effective book marketing is essential for self-published authors to reach their target audience and achieve success in the competitive publishing industry. By implementing these strategies – knowing your target audience, building an author platform, leveraging social media, utilizing book promotion sites, collaborating with influencers, offering value through content marketing, and engaging with book communities – you can enhance the visibility of your book and increase your chances of reaching more readers.

Remember that book marketing is an ongoing process, and it requires patience, persistence, and creativity. Stay committed to promoting your book and connecting with your audience, and over time, you'll reap the rewards of your marketing efforts.

Courtney St Croix 2024-03-04 Courtney St Croix 2024-03-04

Bleed settings on Amazon KDP

What are “bleed” settings”? How to select the proper bleed settings on Amazon KDP.

Whether you're self-publishing a book or creating marketing materials, mastering bleed settings is crucial for ensuring your designs look polished and seamless.

In this comprehensive guide, we'll delve into the intricacies of bleed settings, exploring what they are, why they matter, and how to leverage them effectively for top-notch prints.

What are Bleed Settings?
Bleed settings refer to the extra area of your design that extends beyond the final trim size of your printed piece.

This additional space ensures that when the pages are trimmed to their final size, there won't be any unwanted white edges or gaps along the edges of your design. Essentially, bleed gives your design room to "bleed" off the page, creating a seamless look from edge to edge.

Why Do Bleed Settings Matter?

Bleed settings play a critical role in achieving professional print results for several reasons:

Preventing White Edges:
Without bleed settings, there's a risk of white edges appearing along the trimmed edges of your printed piece, which can detract from the overall look and feel of your design.
Ensuring Consistency:
Bleed settings help maintain consistency across multiple copies of your printed piece. By extending your design beyond the trim size, you ensure that each copy looks identical and professional.
Professional Presentation:
In today's competitive publishing landscape, attention to detail matters. Proper bleed settings demonstrate professionalism and care in your print materials, leaving a lasting impression on your audience.

How to Set Bleed Settings:

Setting bleed settings for your print project is relatively straightforward, but it's essential to do it correctly to achieve optimal results. Here's a step-by-step guide:

Determine Your Printer's Requirements:
Different printers may have specific bleed requirements, so it's essential to check with your printer or print service provider before setting your bleed dimensions.
Add Bleed to Your Design:
In design software like Adobe InDesign or Photoshop, you can typically set bleed dimensions when creating a new document or adjusting document settings. The standard bleed size is usually 0.125 inches (3mm) on all sides.
Extend Your Design:
Once you've set your bleed dimensions, extend your design elements (such as images or backgrounds) beyond the trim size by the specified bleed amount.
Export Your File:
When exporting your design for printing, be sure to include bleed in your final file. Most design software will have an option to include bleed when exporting.

Mastering bleed settings is essential for achieving professional print results in self-publishing and print design. By understanding what bleed settings are, why they matter, and how to set them correctly, you can ensure that your prints look polished, seamless, and impressive.

Whether you're creating a book cover, brochure, or flyer, proper bleed settings demonstrate professionalism and attention to detail, setting your prints apart from the rest. With this comprehensive guide, you're well-equipped to leverage bleed settings effectively and take your print projects to the next level.

To learn more about self-publishing (and how to feel confident doing it!) grab a copy of AUTHORIZED: How to Write and Self-Publish a Non-Fiction Book on Amazon

Courtney St Croix 2024-02-21 Courtney St Croix 2024-02-21

How to pick (the best!) book title

Today, we're diving into a crucial aspect of the book publishing process: writing a compelling book title. Your book's title is like a storefront window—it's the first thing potential readers see, and it needs to grab their attention instantly.

As much as we’ve been told not to judge books by their covers…we all do. And, that includes the book’s title.

So, let's explore some tips and strategies to craft a title that sells.

[Check out my video on this topic, here! ⬇️]

1. Understanding Your Audience

The key to writing a compelling book title begins with understanding your target audience. Who are they? What genres or themes resonate with them? Conducting market research can provide invaluable insights into the preferences and expectations of your potential readers.

Understanding WHO you are speaking to will be crucial in ensuring your book is titled properly for the market you’re trying to attract. Think about Amazon and other bookseller platforms as a way for new readers to FIND YOU…even if you already have an existing audience. Think big picture here, and be strategic.

Do some brainstorming on your ideal reader. (You can create an entire avatar of your ideal reader, as well as map out your book from start to finish by getting my Book Clarity Blueprint HERE!)

Food for thought: a book that’s titled for identifying women will be inherently different than a book that’s titled for identifying men. A book that’s titled for a younger demographic will be different from that of a boomer population. Consider books in the genres and age ranges of your ideal reader, and make notes on any trends you notice in terms of language, length, tone, and complexity.

2. Strategic Titling & Search-Friendly Language

Most people who come across your book through e-commerce platforms alone will NOT KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

Even if you have a unique system or method that you’ve trademarked, I’d encourage you to NOT use this terminology in a clever and cute brand-aligned title – because those who DON’T ALREADY KNOW YOU will not be drawn to this unknown language.

Simple, straightforward titles that focus on EXACTLY what the book does will ALWAYS win here.

Here’s an example:

My first self-published nonfiction book is called “Momfident As F*ck”. It was about learning to build body confidence and self-love as a new mom in your postpartum phase.

At the time, I had built a confidence and self-love brand for moms, which was called, unsurprisingly, “Momfident AF.” I had amassed a large amount of followers, and knew I would use my social media platforms to sell the book.

But…I was missing the opportunity for NEW readers to find me through Amazon alone, because “MOMFIDENT” is not a searchable term…I’m pretty sure I made it up.

In order to attract NEW readers, who DON’T CARE ABOUT ME, BUT JUST WANT THE CONTENT I’VE WRITTEN, I would have been FAR better to use the phrase “Confident As F*ck” – or literally anything with CONFIDENCE vs. MOMFIDENCE.

My existing audience would buy my book no matter what I called it.

A new potential reader does not care about my brand (or me, for that matter!) but ONLY wants to learn how to build better confidence.

Lean on simplicity and be as straightforward as possible when creating your titles.

3. Keep it Short and Memorable

Listen, attention spans are shorter than ever these days. Aim for a title that is concise and easy to remember. Short titles are not only more memorable but also more visually appealing on book covers and in marketing materials.

Consider brainstorming titles that are clear and straightforward, but memorable with a “make people notice” element.

For example, one of my favourite authors is a woman named Denise Duffield-Thomas. She has multiple books, but the one that drew me in (and made my buy all her other books!) was one titled “Get Rich, Lucky Bitch!”. I did not know Denise at ALL when I came across this book, and the title of it alone made me click the “buy” button. From there, I became a multiple-book customer of hers, and even purchased one of her online courses and joined her email list. THIS is the power of creating a compelling book title – if done right, it properly starts the sequence of a buyer’s journey, and you can use this to your advantage if you do it right!

4. Testing and Refining

Don't be afraid to test different title options with focus groups, beta readers, or through A/B testing. Feedback from others can provide valuable insights and help you refine your title until it resonates with your target audience.

Be sure to consider your testing group when conducting this research – friends and family members aren’t always the ideal candidates for this kind of feedback. Consider your ideal client avatar and find people who fit within that demographic. Getting their honest feedback will be far more valuable and useful than if you ask your mom. (Unless, of course, your mom fits your ideal reader avatar!)

For my second non-fiction book titled “Author-ized”, I did a lot more strategic A/B testing and asked for a ton of feedback on my cover and title. Essentially the biggest change came down to my subtitle, which was too complex and not simple enough for a 5 year old to understand what my book would be about.

(And, for even more on titles, cover design, and exactly how to write a non-fiction book, you can get a copy of Authorized HERE!)

Writing a compelling book title is both an art and a science. By understanding your audience, capturing the essence of your book, keeping it short and memorable, evoking emotion, and testing and refining your title, you can increase the chances of grabbing readers' attention and enticing them to explore your book further.

Courtney St Croix 2023-09-05 Courtney St Croix 2023-09-05

How to organize your non-fiction book (…so you can actually self-publish it)

Writing a book can be a big task. It IS a big task.

There are a lot of steps to not only writing the content for your manuscript, but also in preparing it for self-publishing when you’re finished.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. In order to write a book, you have to write a book.

So the first part of your book-writing-and-then-self-publishing journey is… finishing your damn manuscript.

In order to do THAT…you’ll need a good strategy for finding clarity in the content and direction of your book.
(Access the free Book Clarity Blueprint RIGHT HERE!)

And, if you’re already feeling overwhelmed, I want you to know I’ve got a killer resource that could be perfect for you - my own self-published book AUTHORIZED is like a pep-talk from your BFF explaining the process of self-publishing for you in simple terms. Check it out on Amazon!

Now, when it comes to physically writing your own non-fiction book, here are a few tips for you:

Create a Writing Schedule: Set aside dedicated time for writing in your daily or weekly routine. Consistency is key, so find a schedule that works for you and stick to it.
Set Clear Goals: Define your writing goals and establish a realistic word count or chapter target for each writing session. Having specific objectives will keep you focused and motivated.
Eliminate Distractions: Find a quiet and comfortable place to write where you can minimize interruptions. Turn off notifications on your devices and consider using website blockers if you find yourself getting distracted online.
Outline Your Manuscript: Having a clear outline or structure for your manuscript can be immensely helpful. It provides a roadmap for your writing and keeps you on track. (Here is the FREE TOOL for organizing your non-fiction book!)
Write First, Edit Later: Don't get caught up in perfecting every sentence during the first draft. Focus on getting your ideas down on paper, and save the editing for later stages of the writing process.
Accountability: Share your writing goals with a writing group or a trusted friend who can help hold you accountable. Knowing that someone else is aware of your progress can provide motivation.
Stay Inspired: Surround yourself with inspiration. Read books in your genre, listen to podcasts, attend writing workshops, or explore other creative outlets to keep your enthusiasm alive.
Break It Down: Writing an entire manuscript can feel overwhelming. Break it into smaller, manageable tasks, such as writing a certain number of words each day or completing one chapter at a time.
Reward Yourself: Celebrate your milestones, whether it's finishing a chapter or reaching a word count goal. Rewards can provide positive reinforcement for your progress.
Seek Feedback: Once you've completed your manuscript, consider getting feedback from beta readers or joining a writing group for critique. Constructive feedback can help you refine your work.
Revision and Editing: After finishing your manuscript, take a break before starting the revision and editing process. This will allow you to approach your work with fresh eyes and make necessary improvements.

As a business owner, self-publishing a non-fiction book offers numerous advantages. Firstly, it's a fantastic way to showcase your expertise and solidify your position as an industry authority. This credibility boost can lead to increased trust among your customers, ultimately driving more business your way.

Beyond that, a book can exponentially expand your reach. It's not limited by geographic boundaries, allowing you to connect with a global audience. Plus, your book serves as a powerful marketing tool, helping you promote your products or services while providing valuable insights.

Financially, it's a win-win. Not only can a well-written book generate passive income for years, but it also opens doors to speaking engagements and networking opportunities. Your book becomes an extension of your brand, reinforcing your message and leaving a lasting legacy. Lastly, don't forget the personal satisfaction of unleashing your creativity and sharing your knowledge with the world. In short, self-publishing is a remarkable way to supercharge your business journey.

If you’re ready to get started mapping out your own book, download the free Book Clarity Blueprint here!

Aspiring writers and ambitious entrepreneurs: self-publishing non-fiction books offers a powerful avenue to share knowledge, establish authority, and reach a global audience. You can embark on a journey to transform your ideas into compelling, marketable works of non-fiction literature. Remember to conduct thorough research, craft engaging content, and leverage effective marketing strategies to maximize your success in the self-publishing realm. With dedication and the right approach, your non-fiction book can become a valuable asset in your personal and professional journey, allowing you to inspire, educate, and leave a lasting impact on your readers."

Courtney St Croix 2022-07-12 Courtney St Croix 2022-07-12

Why co-author?

Why Co-Author? Well, let me tell you a little more about publishing.

When you think about writing a book and becoming a published author, you're probably picturing the media's representation of the traditional publishing route:

Think Carrie Bradshaw snagging her book deal, having meetings in her swanky Boutique Publishing House in Manhattan, and getting $25,000 book advances.

The thing is, that route still exists. It's still possible to get a book deal with mid-high level traditional Publishing Houses. It's not impossible. They're just usually reserved for traditionally famous people, with massive reach and exposure.

Remember, Carrie Bradshaw (though fictional) was relatively well-known in New York as a newspaper columnist (...called "Sex And The City" 🤣), her first book was a collection of her previously written columns, and she had some clout as a mid-level "celebrity" status freelancer, even before blogs, YouTube and social media made people "famous".

Traditional Publishing was THE ONLY way, for a very long time. And it isn't going anywhere.

Technology has changed, and some amazing advances have been developed for writers who are willing to put in their time, effort, and money in order to stick it to traditional publishing and become independent (and independently funded) authors.

Enter: Self-Publishing.

With this new option, those who had been rejected by traditional publishing houses could simply publish their own manuscript.

But... book production costs money.

I'm not just talking about the printing of the actual COPIES of the book, either.

I'm talking about CREATING the actual book that you wind up holding in your hands.

Things like multiple stage editing ($$$$),
cover design ($$$),
art direction ($$$),
interior layout ($$$),
typesetting ($$$),
marketing efforts ($$)...
and a multitude of variable costs that come up from delays, changes, technology issues, and more.

Self-Publishing is controlled by the author, and usually fully funded by the author.

To put together a good-quality book, you're looking at an investment of anywhere between $5000 - $10,000, or more. There are a lot of costs that go into publishing.

You're also responsible for finding the time and creativity required for actually writing the entire book (50,000 words or more) - which is more difficult than you might think. It's not as easy as fingers on a keyboard and *VOILA*, a book appears. It's actually quite a challenge.

I think the idea that it costs money to become an author comes as a surprise to some, because if you've only ever known the traditional publishing route, you're used to hearing that publishing companies PAY THE AUTHOR for their work.

That's true, they do. But they also recoup that initial investment back via book sales and the author doesn't generally make money until the "advance" is paid back. They also fully own your intellectual property. They also make all the decisions about style, cover, and content. They also usually get about 6-10% in royalties, vs. 60-70% with self-publishing.

(Example: if you're paid a $25,000 book advance, you don't make royalties until the book is on sale, and makes $25,000, and the publishing company retrieves that amount. Then, they take a percentage of your royalties forever. So you get money in advance *woo hoo!* but then you may not make money again until the book makes that much money.)

(I don’t hate traditional publishing; it is a viable option and should that opportunity arise for you, it could be the perfect fit!)

If you don't have the time, energy, or financial backing required to spend $5000-$10,000 and publish your OWN book, there's a way you can do it for a fraction of the time, energy, and money. It's also a lot of fun, highly rewarding, personal-growth focused, and virtually hands-free.

It's Co-Authoring.

The investment is fixed, and substantially less than what you'd need to publish your own book.

Yes, there is still an investment, and that goes in part towards the aforementioned publishing costs required (which can be MORE than mentioned above, because a collaborative book has multiple authors with multiple writing abilities and the editing costs are always higher).

But your investment also goes towards the time, experience, commitment and energy of a real human being hosting the program, facilitating the group environment, compensating the Lead Author, spending 9-12 months orchestrating all moving parts, and fulfilling all processes required to take everybody's chapters from word document to published paperback.

That time and energy is a SERVICE and it's provided for you at a COST. You will have the opportunity to make back some or all of your investment, if you choose to... but the investment you're making is mostly for the production of the book from start to finish.

Lastly, let's be real - you're also paying for the convenience of doing it this way.

You have two commitments: write your chapter, and participate in the author team community. That's basically it. You don't have to lift a finger doing anything else on the road to becoming a published author. Publishing costs money and it's also a learned skill that improves with experience and that's something valuable and worth paying someone else to do for you. You even get support, guidance, and training during the writing phase, which you don't get (without paying for it) when writing your own book.

There are pros and cons to co-authoring. Let me clear one thing up before you go: no, you will not have rights to the published work or revenue/profits on Amazon as a co-author, and in order to generate a revenue stream from a collaborative project, you are responsible for leading your own sales campaigns (selling books at retail price, and purchasing inventory at wholesale cost - just like any other product).

You CAN make money by adding your book to your existing business, or creating a business around the book. But it is UP TO YOU to take that seriously. It's possible; it's not guaranteed. Your results will reflect your efforts, just like everything else in life. If you don't want to sell books, that's your prerogative. Some co-authors simply want to get their words in print and are satisfied with holding a book THEY WROTE in their hands. They don’t care about selling and just want a copy on their shelf or for their family/friends.

You can create a revenue stream by selling books direct to customer (and make a far higher profit margin anyway!) But if you want to create a revenue stream with Amazon directly, and reap the benefits of that system, you need to write your own book and be the solo author of it. Which, as mentioned, requires a lot more time, energy, and money.

Do-able, but a few more roadblocks exist there.

Many co-authors make back a large percentage of their investment during our initial "pre-order" campaign, before the book is available on Amazon. Some have made back their entire investment. Some do not put in any effort and make back $0 - but they don't care because they simply wanted to invest in themselves and crush a long-standing goal: become an author.

Ultimately, you decide if co-authoring is something you want to pursue. It's not for everyone, but if it's for you, I promise you we'll have a FREAKING BLAST working together in the process.

Apply to an open project today if you’re interested!

Courtney St Croix 2022-06-03 Courtney St Croix 2022-06-03

How To Write A Book

Guys, it's not as difficult as you may think to become a published author, and there are many benefits to self-publishing and getting your work out there.

Back in the day, (I'm talking even 5-10 years ago) it was a lot less common that you'd have the opportunity to become a published author. Technology has been opening up opportunities for us, and if you have a message to share and want to spread it to even more people... writing a book is a really great medium to do it through.

Let's start first with the most obvious benefits of self-publishing.

1. You don't have to wait to be "picked"

Old school publishing is not the only way any more. You no longer need to find a literary agent, pitch your manuscript and then sit pretty waiting for someone to select you. Not that this is a bad route - it just isn't guaranteed. I'd rather "just do it" and pick myself. That's the message I want the universe to hear: I need nobody's approval!

2. Passive income

When you have a book on #Amazon, it becomes a passive recurring revenue source from an "evergreen" product. Evergreen means it's something that isn't time-limited and is available at all times, anywhere. It's not like that group coaching program that has closed doors after X date. It's there, it's live, and even though you're not making hundreds of dollars per sale, it's an easy product to market and you can point people to it for years.

3. Exposure / Reach

If you also run a business, #Amazon is a potentially untapped resource for you to expand your reach and exposure to new people. Once you've launched your product, not only do you have the ability to start raking in your royalties, the platform will also recommend your book to potential shoppers who have searched for books with similar themes, search terms or categories. BOOM.

4. Searchability

Speaking of search-ability, what better piece of info to pop up when someone googles you than "OH COOL, SHE WROTE A FREAKING BOOK!" That will happen and direct people to Amazon to snag their own copy. Then they get the ultimate in "like, know, trust" as they get to spend an entire book with you and your wisdom! Win-win.

5. Credibility / Expert Status

Now, I'm not saying I think I'm an EXPERT - I actually feel more like a mentor and like I contribute to the conversations of online business and self-publishing than I am a guru of either - but it does establish me as someone who is of "expert" status, and gives me credibility for expanding my network and for future networking opportunities. Conferences, Podcast Hosts, and Panels find your title of "Published Author" very attractive and it establishes you as an expert when you're introduced to bigger audiences who know nothing about you. If you're an author, it immediately creates an image of credibility before you even open your mouth.

Then you can open your mouth and tell them to go buy your book.

Win-win-win!

You will have to invest in yourself in order to get your project to completion, but aren't you worth the investment? If this is a goal of yours, don't you think it's time you start putting some energy into the process, instead of just wishing and hoping someday it'll happen?

Well, I wanna give you a quick kick in the pants, okay?

Without investing ANYTHING, I'm gonna give you my personal book mapping workbook (for free, you're welcome) so you can stop dreaming and start DOING. That's a great first step. Download it here.

The next step is to actually START WRITING! You can't move forward with publishing a book if you don't have content for the book that can be published!

So start writing. Generally, a manuscript for a small-medium sized book could be about 25,000-50,000 words. If you wrote 1000 words a week, you could crush your manuscript in about 6 months of focused effort.

If you write 1000 words a day, though... Does that sound like a lot? 1000 words? It's only 4 paragraphs. Or, about 1 word-document-sized page per day.

Speaking of word documents, that's really all you need in order to write! You don't need any fancy technology in order to do it. Just open up your word processor of choice and focus on writing.

I like to plan my writing time and work through chunks every week. You could also write for 20-30 minutes EVERY DAY. It doesn't really matter HOW, you just have to commit to DOING it. Because writing a book does not give you any instant gratification or benefits along the way, it's going to be reaaaaal easy to just put it off and onto the back burner.

RESIST THE URGE!!! I promise, finishing this thing WILL have some real rewards and benefits, including financial benefits, but in order for that to happen, you need the horse ahead of the cart.

GET. WRITING!

(Remember, if you're stuck for how to do that or don't know where to start, you can get my free book mapping workbook HERE!)

When your manuscript is done, here's what you need to do next:

-Find and hire an editor
-Get the manuscript edited
-Find and hire a designer
-Get your cover designed
-Find and hire an interior designer
-Have your edited manuscript laid out
-Upload your files to Amazon
-CELEBRATE YOUR LAUNCH!

This is a super top-level overview, but that's the format you'll follow in order to self-publish. It's not HARD, it just takes TIME. If you have any questions about the process, feel free to find me @leadherpublishing and hit my DMs with any questions! HAPPY WRITING!

(Oh, right, if you wanna get any of my books, you can find them, on Amazon, obviously.) HA!

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-30 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-30

What You Need To Do If You Want To Write A Book

It's not impossible. Not anymore.

Writing a book used to be QUITE difficult. Not only did you need to write it all before you even knew if someone would select you out of a mass of applicants, but there was no guarantee that your hard work would be turned into a book anyway - because traditional publishing houses are... picky.

They don't just pick anybody. These days, they pick mostly celebrities or TikTok influencers. (Just kidding. Kind of.) You likely need to be a traditional celebrity or someone of substantial influence on a popular technology platform, like YouTube, Instagam, or you gotta be, like, TikTok Famous.

People like Michelle Obama? They can just... write books. And have massive publishing houses say yes. It isn't so easy for everybody else.

Now, there's one thing I want to mention before I move forward, and it's something that may come as a surprise to you.

Not everybody should write a book.

"Pardon? Aren't you like, trying to help anybody who wants to write a book... write one?"

No. Not anybody. People who have a beneficial story to share, and who want to share it via writing and publishing.

And while I do believe that we ALL have a story to share, not everybody is destined to become a published author.

Why?

It's a long process.

It's a high commitment project.

It requires a financial investment (in yourself)

It's not something that everybody has the patience (or skill) to accomplish.

It requires your own marketing and advertising.

It requires you to take a chance on yourself, and... It's hard work.

Writing a book (and then publishing it) IS. NOT. FOR. EVERYONE.

Just like not everybody should start a podcast. There are many people who have started podcasts because it was the "thing to do", and then have either stopped because they didn't enjoy it, didn't see the ROI from pursuing free work for a long period of time, or simply weren't well suited to the audio format.

You should not just write a book because you think you should write a book. Or because your sister's friend's cousin wrote and published one, and look at HER success. Or because someone else you know in your industry wrote one, so maybe you should too.

If you are well suited to writing a book, you'll know it.

How?

Here are some ways to tell:

1. You've thought about writing a book for a long time. Maybe "always" is a good adverb to describe your desire.

2. You have an idea for what you'd write about. Maybe you don't have the entire manuscript planned, but you have at least a little idea of what you'd write. A personal life experience, a journey through healing, or maybe explaining in long-form your method, system, or blueprint for helping people accomplish X.

3. You enjoy writing. This isn't mandatory, but you should at least have some interest in it, since you're going to be writing, like, 30,000 - 70,000 words at least.

4. You're already sharing. Maybe you talk casually about your story, journey, path, system, method, or idea on your social platform, your blog, or your podcast.

5. Becoming an author is a big goal of yours. A "bucket list" goal, you might say. Something you would feel very proud accomplishing and so, you don't mind the long-term commitment and investment in both time, money, and energy required to get going. Holding that finished product would be more than enough for you.

6. You're interested in creating a passive income stream. Yes, this is something probably everybody wants in some capacity - and it's definitely a benefit of self-publishing and promoting your book when it's finished. But you definitely need to be ready to receive the benefits of your hard work AND... you will have to tell people over, and over, and over again about your book. It doesn't sell itself.

7. You know your story (method, system, path, blueprint... etc.) has the power to help someone. Just one person, even. Chances are, if there's one person, there are many - but you need to be sure that what you're sharing will be helpful for people. That's who you're writing this for. To serve other people and help them, whether it's with information, advice, inspiration, or entertainment. People buy books to serve a purpose.

If you answered YES to at least 5 of the above statements, then sure as sh*t, you're probably a good candidate to pursue the book-writing process.

YAY! That's great news.

Now... what are you gonna write about?
How are you gonna structure it?
How are you gonna organize your topics?
Should you have sub-topics?
Should you have parts or sections?
Should you have information with your story, or should it just be your story?
Should you plan things ahead of time, or just write?
How long is it gonna take?
Should you write every day, or just once a week?
How many words should each chapter be?
How many chapters should each section be?
How are you going to find the time necessary to bang out your weekly word count?
What tools and tech will you need to get going?

AHH! So many questions, right? Self-publishing is available to everybody, but that doesn't mean it's EASY!

I told you already, it is going to take TIME. Energy. Resources. Strength. Patience. Trust. And at some points, money. But I DO have one shred of really great news for you... if you feel inspired to start, but don't want to invest anything until you KNOW...

I have a resource for you! It's called the Book Mapping Workbook, and it's the method I use when planning and organizing all my past (and future) books. It's full of information, resources, and worksheets to help you get organized AND - to test if what you want to say is actually worth writing an entire book. It will help answer all of the above questions. It will give you something tangible to get your ideas organized on. It will help get you started, going, and get/stay motivated. AND IT'S FREE! It's all yours. I want to support you in this journey, but the thing is - before you publish anything, you gotta WRITE IT!

YOU'RE WELCOME, FRIEND!!! Love ya! XO

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-27 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-27

Why you should become an author in 2022.

I am often asked about book-writing and of course, how to self-publish on #AMAZON. What better project to work on than something you can accomplish in a few minutes a day, from the comfort of your own home, and make available to your audience and potential clients from one of the most popular international e-commerce platforms?

It's not as difficult as you may think, and there are many benefits to self-publishing and getting your work out there. Let's start with the most obvious benefits:

1. You don't have to wait to be "picked"

2. Passive income

3. Exposure / Reach

4. Searchability

5. Credibility / Expert Status

Then you can open your mouth and tell them to go buy your book.

Win-win-win!

Well, I wanna give you a quick kick in the pants, okay?

Without investing ANYTHING, I'm gonna give you my personal Book Mapping Workbook (for free, you're welcome) so you can stop dreaming and start DOING.

That's a great first step. Download it here. Now, start thinking about your launch date and GET WRITING! You can do this. I promise!

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-26 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-26

How To Get Published On #Amazon

OOH girl. I see you, reeling with ideas for a book you'll write "someday".

Coming up with chapter titles.

Brainstorming topics.

Writing post-it notes, or maybe, adding to a never-ending "book stuff" note on on your iPhone.

I've been there.

I've been the one thinking, quietly, "I really want to be an author one day", but then silently waving goodbye to the thought because...

HOW ON EARTH IS THAT GOING TO HAPPEN?

I mean, haven't you seen all the movies and TV shows that portray what it's like to work in the publishing industry? Haven't you seen how hard it is to even find a literary agent? Write a book proposal? Pitch publishing houses?

THAT SHIT IS CRAZY.

But you know what? Things have changed. You don't have to sit back and *wait* for someone else to *pick* you.

You don't need to be approved by someone else.

You don't need to pitch people.

You can JUST DO THE DAMN THING.

Technology really has made our world exceptionally different than it was even ten years ago. I've wanted to be an author my entire life; I've been a writer for as long as I can remember, but after hearing time and time again that pursuing authorship is a waste of time, that I'll never get an agent, let alone be "big" enough to be signed by a major publishing house... I thought it wouldn't happen for me.

And then, one day, I decided to say "f*ck this shit" and created the path for myself, instead of telling myself it wasn't in the cards for me. Self-publishing is a real and rewarding alternative to traditional publishing, and it's allowing for women like YOU to pick your own damn self and just GO FOR IT.

Yes, it is a time commitment. You need to write your manuscript.

Yes, it is a financial commitment. You need to fund your own project.

Yes, there are a lot of steps involved. You need to figure it all out on your own. (Well, maybe not all on your own. You can book a 1:1 Strategy Intensive and I'll take all the guesswork away for you... that will save you time and money right off the top. It's the easiest way to take all of the guesswork out of self-publishing, I promise! 👉🏼 Find out more HERE.)

Yes, it looks a little different than traditional publishing, but it's legit. It's real, and you deserve to PICK YOURSELF in this world.

So? Here's a basic rundown of how to get published on #amazon:

**SECRET STEP 0: GET YOUR MIND RIGHT! If you don't believe you can do this, if you think you don't have time to write a book, if you are telling yourself you're a "nobody" or that "no one" will buy/read your book... it's time to get through that mindset work REAL QUICK. Snag my SELF-PUBLISHING TOOL-KIT to get your head in the right place. Then...

Step 1: You gotta write your book, girl! That's the most important step, right there!

Step 2: Find an editor. A good one, who has a fair price. #SupportLocal, if you can!

Step 3: Have your book laid out for you. An "interior designer" for your book, so to speak.

Step 4: Hire a graphic designer to create your cover, specifically for Amazon.

Step 5: Create an account on Amazon KDP.

Step 6: Upload your manuscript and cover design.

Step 7: Assign your ISBN.

Step 8: Submit for publishing

Step 9: ALERT THE MASSES! START THE CAR!!!

Step 10: Launch your book!

That seems pretty simple, right? It isn't HARD. It's just a PROCESS. Each step takes time, and this could be something you're working on for 6-12 months. Good things come to those who wait. Er, those who work hard in small increments and get their book done over a reasonable timeframe. 😎

So, I can help you do this - if you want help along the way. But honestly, YOU CAN DO THIS! Trust me. I promise. Follow me on TikTok or check out my YouTube page to get more insight on the self-publishing process, and when the time is right, let's DO THIS THANG!

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-25 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-25

How to stay motivated (even when it's hard)

During a panel I was speaking on recently, the facilitator asked myself and my fellow panelists how we "keep the our fire burning" - meaning, how do we stay constantly motivated in order to run businesses, navigate natural lags in motivation, etc.

When it was my turn to answer, I shared a sort of embarrassing true fact that was not only relevant to the question, but exceptionally timely.

🎧 Episode HOW TO GET + STAY MOTIVATED on The Lead Her Show 🎧

I raised my hand inside my video-call square.

"Can I tell you something?" I asked.

(Well, I "asked" but of course this was a virtual summit, I had the floor, everybody else was on mute... so I didn't so much ask as open with a rhetorical question.)

The facilitator urged me to go on.

"This may sound outrageous to all of you, but I only recently just learned how to start an actual fire, by myself." I felt like a loser admitting it, if I'm being honest, but it was the truth. I explained:

We'd just recently moved to a new house, and... (I swear there's a really great point here, hang on...) Our old home didn't have a fireplace. My husband happens to be a bit of a pyromaniac, so any time there's a chance we'll be having a fire, inside or out, he takes on the task of doing it himself. He likes doing, it, and I like casually sauntering up to the fire pit at the exact moment it's ready, with my wine, ugg boots, and freshly cleaned marshmallow skewer. I've never really paid much attention, and I've never asked to learn how. *Shrugs*.

Well, this new house has a fireplace and a fire pit, and because it's September and somewhat chilly in North-ish Ontario, it was good weather for a fire. In fact, we're planning to use the fire place to help heat our home through the winter, so a fire will be going on a somewhat regular basis from now on.

Over the last week, I've learned how to actually start a fire myself.

Groundbreaking, I know, and I realize fire management isn't necessarily difficult.

But I didn't know how before and I now understand fire more than I ever have in the past.

A fire is more than just sticks and matches. A fire is more complicated to start than just a lighter and some newspaper.

There's a strategy to starting a good, lasting fire, with tools that are beneficial to have nearby before you start. (Ahem, if you haven't yet related this to motivation in life and business, read on.)

You need to create a healthy environment that's not only filled with the obvious fuel (the wood) but also space for the fire to thrive, and in this case I mean air.

Even though air can stifle a delicate, single flame, it's necessary for a fire to grow and build.

You must create space in the fireplace for oxygen to breathe life into the fire as it builds, otherwise it will not catch or stay lit long-term.

Then, once the fire is gaining in strength, you must keep the momentum going by stoking it regularly.

"My fire is always going," I explained, "but the flame isn't always a raging blaze."

Sometimes the flame is massive, other times it's small.
Sometimes the flame nearly goes out, though the coals are still hot and easily buildable, (so long as I notice before they've completely gone cold.)
Sometimes the fire needs a little bit of kindling; sometimes the fire needs some crumpled or torn up newspaper; sometimes the fire needs a big piece of firewood, and sometimes the fire just needs to sit untouched, to rest, and breathe, without any intervention.

It matters the quality of your fuel, too.
You can't have wet wood, or it won't catch.
You shouldn't use a coated paper; magazine pages aren't as good as dry newspaper pages.
Kindling must be a certain size and thickness, or else it won't provide the quick-lighting purpose it's designed for.
You must also use the right type of wood, or else your fire will be inefficient or ineffective. (Note that all of these things must be planned in advance, too; if you go trying to haphazardly start a fire with a magazine, fore-arm thick kindling, unseasoned or wet spruce and no ventilation, you will almost certainly not be successful.)

My husband has pre-cut hardwood kindling in a basket near the fire place, along with collected old newspaper and a lighter on top of the mantle. He has a pile of seasoned hardwood in the garage, and carries armfuls in to sit beside the kindling as logs need to be added. There is, indeed, some thought that goes into being prepared to start and maintain a fire.

So, in a long-winded fire analogy, I explained that there are a lot of pieces to the puzzle when it comes to motivation (and also, keeping a fire going.)

My motivation is always there, it's just not always a roaring blaze. And it's okay that your fire doesn't burn raging hot all the time - honour the phases of your fire.

I honour the times my motivation (/flame) is low, and pay attention to what it needs when that happens. Does it need space? Or should I intervene with a tool? It's not the same answer every time, and in order to know what it needs, I must be self-aware and mindful of how I'm feeling.

It's completely natural for a fire to ebb and flow, as it is for your motivation levels to ebb and flow. There's nothing wrong with an ebb, and there's nothing wrong with a flow. It isn't necessary for a fire to be constantly massive in order for it to provide light and warmth. It can be big or small, as long as someone is regularly checking in on its status.

So I concluded that in your life and your business, it's important to keep on top of your mood and your motivation by paying attention to what you really need. Wood, kindling, paper, air... it doesn't always need to be fired up in order to be consistent.

One more thing that beautifully relates to the fire analogy: It doesn't make sense to keep a fire burning with a massive flame 24/7. Not only is it unnecessary, but at some point - you'll probably run out of wood and the fire will then have no choice but to burn out.

How's that for an analogy? Don't let yourself burn out.

Pay attention to the size of your flame, and respect when you need different elements in order to keep the blaze going, no matter what size it is.

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-24 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-24

5 Reasons Why Doing Less In A Day Is MORE Productive.

I’m here to blow your mind with a simple productivity hack that every busy mom and business owner should know. Ready?

Be more organized by doing less tasks.

WHAT?! Taking things OFF your to-do list when you have so much to do?!

YES. Wild, I know. But trying to get *all the things* done off a mile-long to-do list while adding new things is...well, I’m just going to say it. It’s impossible.

So, in a work smarter not harder type of way, here’s why you need to start to be intentional and limit the tasks you take on each day (I have a simple 5-task per day method):

1. Overwhelm = unorganized (or vice versa). Not being organized leads to important things being missed. It’s kind of like when you don’t create a grocery list for yourself (because you can remember everything!) and then you end up forgetting the *one thing* you really needed. Now you have to make a second trip, which is the opposite of time-saving.

As much as people want to believe they work best under pressure, we truly do not think or perform our best when we’re stressed or overwhelmed. Things end up being missed, which can cause more work for you in the end. Plus if you stay organized, you don’t have to constantly get organized. That’s the dream..I know.

2. You’re more efficient when you’re actually focused on something.

When you gain clarity about wtf you actually need to do in a day, you’ve already won half the productivity battle my friend. Having less to do in a day means you have to spend less time on task-switching and have more time to focus on what’s in front of you. It's so much easier to accomplish things when you don’t have the threat of a chaotic task-list in the back of your brain at all times. Everybody can handle a few tasks per day.

3. Checking things off gives you that sweet serotonin.

Instead of stopping and starting a bunch of things in a day if you prioritize and limit your daily tasks to only what’s necessary you can actually get sh*t done. Know what that means? You get to do the best serotonin-inducing productivity task there is - crossing off a task as you complete it. At the end of the day, you have nothing but checked off tasks?! Look at you go, nailing this whole productivity thing. Take that life.

4. Actually completing your to-do lists gives your brain the confidence to keep it up.

I’m just going to be honest, when you give yourself an overwhelming and unrealistic list of things to accomplish in a day you set yourself up for failure. Constantly having untouched and overdue tasks tells your brain to expect disappointment and feeling unaccomplished. When you set a realistic task list and actually complete it? You’re more likely to keep up your productivity momentum and feel accomplished. So be nice to yourself, nobody is accomplishing 25 things in a day (yes, even you Karen!)

5. There’s a really cool journal that actually helps you take this less is more concept, braindump your tasks and actually get sh*t done. I wrote it.

Sure you could just brain dump everything and write it all out into a plain old notebook but that’s just one more thing to do, isn’t it? Plus it’s scientifically proven that having a cute journal will motivate you to actually use it (ok, not actually scientifically proven unless Lisa Frank counts). In WTF Am I Even Doing (Today) you get monthly braindump/idea pages, weekly task lists and daily pages to help you prioritize the crap you gotta get done. Each day you narrow down the FIVE things you want to accomplish (not 12 or 26, ONLY 5 THINGS) so you stress less and get more done.

It’s available NOW on Amazon.

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-24 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-24

20 Prompts To Help You Write A Bestseller

Deciding you want to write a book and actually writing the book are two completely different things. Trust me, as an author of multiple self-published books I’m very aware of the disparity. Sometimes you have ideas but no time to write. Sometimes you have great intentions, scheduled time to sit down to write and well, the words just don't come.

Yes, my friend, I'm talking about writers’ block.

Avoiding writer’s block is why I always outline my book before I start writing so that I have an idea of what I'm writing about, I can follow a schedule and not be left at the mercy of inspiration.

But what if you’re stuck during the outline process? You might have an idea of what you want to write about, generally but you’re drawing a blank when it comes to putting pen to paper and start writing down some tangible topics. I've got you friend.

Whether you're looking to turn “I've got an idea for a book” into, you know, an actual book or you're desperately seeking new inspiration for a work in progress collecting virtual dust, this post is for you. Here are a collection of prompts that will help you reach deep into the banks of your memory to pull out almost-forgotten moments and start to think critically about some themes you can include in your book.

Go through and try to journal about each one without censoring yourself, and just let whatever comes out naturally flow. Be warned - these are pretty juicy so make sure you’re in a space to write some ideas as they come to you.

Here's a tip - keep a “parking lot” handy while you write, aka a specific spot in your notebook to park your ideas while you’re actively writing or working on something else. This spot will help you actively clear your mind so you can focus on what you’re working on, and make sure you don’t lose any of those precious fleeting ideas. When you’re sitting down to outline your book or expand on any of the themes you can refer back to your parking lot of juicy ideas ready and waiting for you.

Best-selling non-fiction writing prompts:

What is an important message you want readers to take away?
What is a distinct before/after moment that stands out?
What is something you wish your younger self would've known?
When were you afraid but did it anyway?
What moment of personal growth do you feel others could relate to?
What is something most people would be surprised to learn about you?
What is something you learned that still has an impact on your daily life?
Where do you find the most peace? Inspiration? Energy?
What motivates you the most?
What have you learned that you would teach other people to make their lives easier/better?
How would you sum up your life in a headline?
What is one of your favourite quotes? Why does it have an impact on you?
What events have changed your perspective on life? How?
What did you learn from your first job that is still useful to this day?
How do think others view you? How do you want them to view you?
Who had the most impact on you when you were younger? How about as an adult? What did you learn from them?
Do you have 2 parts of your identity that conflict each other? How do you balance them?
If you could rewrite your own life story, what would you change about it?
What obstacles or events in your life do you think help define who you are today?
What do you want people to take from your book? Inspiration? Advice? Feeling seen?

If writer’s block has set you back on more than one occasion you might need more than a little bit of inspiration. How about a really solid plan, done-for-you templates *and* writing buddy accountability? My new course Write Now is created for writers just like you who have the DESIRE to write a book but need a little help getting started (...okay and finishing).

This downloadable mini-course comes with a writer’s dream toolkit including a book clarity blueprint, non-fiction book outline template, done-for-you writing calendar & word count, video training and accountability nudges. It’s self-paced and instantly downloadable so you can get started as soon as you’re ready! Click here to check out the course.

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-20 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-20

Want to start an online business? Start here.

When I first started my entrepreneurial journey, I didn't really know it. I'd started a blog, and it became a brand, but it wasn't really a business. Why? Because I wasn't generating any revenue. I was writing blog posts, making graphics, posting cute selfies and working my ass off to build a reputation for by brand, but I had nothing to offer anybody who enjoyed my content.

The first thing I created was called the "Fit Mama Planner" and was my first actual "lead magnet" that was supposed to give my audience something valuable in exchange for their email address.

At the time, I didn't know why I wanted their email address and I also didn't market the free planner very well (...it also wasn't really very good but, it was the first "thing" I'd created and I took A REALLY LONG TIME creating it so I was proud of it 😂) I should also note here that when I was doing this, Canva wasn't as good as it is now and didn't have templates or any other amazing features. It was basic AF. I made it entirely in MICROSOFT WORD and it took me HOURSSSSSS. There are so many amazing resources available now! The following tips are things I really wish I had executed on BEFORE I started creating free resources and paid offers for my potential clients. If you're in the early stages, this should help you clarify what you can bring to the table.

1. Define who you're going to help.

This can be called your Ideal Client Avatar (ICA), your Target Demographic, your ideal customer profile... whatever you want to call it. You need to know who it is you're going to help.

Now, I don't believe you need to draw a stick person to represent this person and then draw little arrows all around him/her with verbs that describe what they're like. (But you can if you want to...) Many times, your ideal client is YOU, a few months/years ago. That may be the case for you; it definitely was for me. This means you may also not have too many testimonials at the beginning, but you have YOU as a success story. That's what you'll go by to start.

Your ideal client does not NEED to be just like you; you might start a virtual assistant business and maybe you want to focus specifically on podcasters because even though you don't have your own podcast, something from your past has equipped you with excellent editing and production skills. There is a massive need for this type of administrative work and you could build a really great business helping that ideal client even though they're not YOU a few months ago.

Don't make this cheesy or overly complicated, just ask yourself: who am I helping? If you want to come up with a whole bunch of sentences that describe this person, go for it. I do actually suggest you NAME your ideal client, because it'll help you to create aligned products, services, and valuable content with him/her in mind.

Every time you consider creating something, picture your ideal client. Ask yourself "Does Kristen need this?" "Would this be helpful for Tracey?" If the answer is a resounding yes, move forward. When you write content, think about how what you're writing can land with Kristen or Tracey or whoever.

So anyway, figure out WHO it is you are going to help. Also consider: what are some of your ideal clients PROBLEMS? Define those too. What problems does he/she have, and how can YOU help solve them?

2. Get clear and strategic about your content pillars.

I really wish I had organized my content prior to just talking about anything and everything when I first started. Here's what I want you to do: *Now would be a good time to mention that there's a workbook that goes right along with these suggestions; so you can take this from a hypothetical brainstorm to a tangible reality. Get used to taking action, friend. It'll serve you well! Get the workbook here:

Get it here!

In order to do this, you need to get this one thing straight: the idea is to be a BIG FISH in a SMALL POND, and not the other way around. The reason we go NARROW instead of WIDE is because you want to really go deep with the people you want to work with. If you try to talk to everyone, you talk to no one. So? Get really clear and specific about what things you WILL talk about, and what you AREN'T planning to talk about.

Just because you're going to be a "fitness expert" doesn't mean you need to talk to every human on earth who's interest in fitness. If YOU were looking for a fitness expert, would you gravitate towards a big, muscle-y man with massive pecs? Or would you gravitate to a woman similar to you? I can't answer that for you, but the point is - you'd pick one over the other. Your best friend would pick one over the other. Your husband's best friend's brother would pick one vs. the other. Am I right? You need to define who you're speaking to and then NARROW DOWN your topics. You don't want to speak to a room of 1000 people if only 2 of them are interested in what you have to say. You want to speak to a room of 100 people who are all highly engaged with what you do.

To start, what's your GENERAL topic? Example: Fitness Next, what's your LEAD topic? This is a strategy to narrow down WHO exactly you're working with, inside your general topic. It's helpful to think of this like __________ for __________. Virtual Assistant for Podcasters; Copywriter for Real Estate Agents, etc. Example: Fitness for moms.

Then, decide what sub-topics you will focus on. I call these "follow" topics. (Because they follow the lead topic/demographic.) Pick 2-3 follow topics. Not 18, 2-3. NARROW, not wide, remember?

Example: Fitness for moms

Follow Topic 1: Working out with your kids

Follow Topic 2: Quick healthy meals

NOW is where you can brainstorm MULTIPLE different topics that fit under your follow topics. This keeps you FOCUSED. Yes, I know, it may seem like you're going to exhaust your audience or exhaust your message - on the contrary. You can come up with many different ways to talk about many different topics inside your 2-3 follow topics. THIS IS THE POINT. Decide you'll focus there instead of saying "I talk about fitness" and then talking about ANYTHING fitness related. That's talking to 1000 people in the room and very few of them are aligned. When you narrow down, you're speaking to the 100 engaged people. (Brainstorm your topics inside the Biz Clarity Workbook!)

3. Create content on your own real estate, not a rental It took me a long time to really understand this one. You might spend a lot of time connecting with people via social media, and think you have a really great audience and community. But... what if Instagram disappeared tomorrow? What if they decided to delete your account for no reason, by accident, and you couldn't get it back? How would you build a business if you didn't have instagram? My mom built an incredible business teaching piano lessons when I was a kid. I never really realized that my mom was an entrepreneur when I was a kid, but she was an amazing entrepreneur who worked completely from home running her business. She had a very successful practice and ran it out of our main floor office. She did not have instagram to grow her business, she did things old school. She did great work and got lots of neighbourhood referrals. If my mom was leaning only on the mailman to deliver flyers for her, and then the mailman quit or didn't follow through on her marketing... how would she build her business? The point of this is: don't spend all your time working on content that winds up on a platform NOT OWNED by you. Don't spend all your time painting and renovating your rental, when it could be ripped from underneath you without notice. Spend your time upgrading the space you OWN. Your website, your podcast, your blog... create long form content and then create market-able repurposed content that can be used on your marketing platforms - like Pinterest, instagram, facebook, twitter, etc. Start by using your one long-form piece of content to create all the other pieces of content. Lead your ideal client to an initial problem with your long-form content, then offer more to the puzzle with your lead magnet. When you repurpose the content, always drive people back to your blog/website/podcast, etc.

THINGS TO CONSIDER:

STEP 1: What's the purpose of your content? Direct people to some kind of free download, AKA a "Lead Magnet". This should be something your ideal client would LOVE. Create it in Canva or another simple graphic design software you're comfortable with. It doesn't need to be crazy. Put it somewhere; like your website, or keep it on a landing page using software like Mailchimp or ConvertKit.

STEP 2: Create content on YOUR OWN PLATFORMS FIRST. One long form piece of content that you'll create smaller, repurposed content from. I always begin with a BLOG POST. Then I create a podcast episode, and 4-5 social posts that correspond to this ONE thing I'm talking about in my blog post. No need to re-invent the wheel. Let's get as much as we can from this ONE piece of content you're creating.

STEP 3: Repurpose. Create a corresponding podcast episode, social posts, YouTube or IGTV video, Pinterest graphics, etc. All these re-purposed pieces should drive people back to the content you own with the embedded freebie.

STEP 4: Give each re-purpose a specific call to action. When recording podcast episodes (or videos for YouTube or IGTV) make sure you're pointing the person to either the existing blog post (where the freebie is embedded) or directing them straight to the freebie (your website link, or landing page). In each social post, direct them to the blog post or to the landing page. Get these people used to taking action for you.

STEP 5: Use the same topic/theme and write another blog post that can correspond with the same download-able freebie. One blog post could be "How to re-fuel after a workout" and can be centred around your top tips for eating after you workout. Another post could be "Top post-workout snacks for women" - leading to the same exact lead magnet. Another still could be "3 important nutrients to eat after you sweat"... leading to the same lead magnet again. Do you see what I mean? WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER!

The bottom line, that took me a LONG TIME to figure out... is that instagram could delete their entire platform TOMORROW. Or, your account could get deleted for no reason and you'd suddenly have zero audience. Don't allow someone else to have all the power. Create valuable content, and keep it on your own platforms. Then use social media as a marketing tool to drive people to your owned real estate, and collect their email address so you can email market to them in the future. Win win.

4. Always have an offer

This doesn't mean you always need to have a PAID offer, but the point of always having an offer is to train your audience to take action with your content. Ask them to leave a comment, send you a message, go to your website, subscribe to your newsletter, or download your free workbook/e-book/guide/worksheet/video/mini-course - whatever. Eventually, you'll get them so used to consuming all the value you're providing, that when you have a paid offer, it won't be a big deal. Ideally, it will follow nicely with what you've already been putting out there (AKA, liked my free post-workout snack recipes? Awesome! I'm running a nutrition workshop in two weeks! I'll be going into even more detail about what to eat post-workout and why. It's $27 to save your spot!) You want people to see you as someone who has valuable things to offer - both for free and for sale. Not just someone whose hobby is posting on Instagram and "building a community".

If that's all you're after, this isn't the post for you and I'm sure you've left already. Lol.

These are 4 big things I wish I'd sorted out and planned better before starting my brand in 2015. It didn't become a business until 2018 and even then, I didn't have a clear idea of what my business was for. Until I figured that out, things couldn't really take off.

Let me know if you enjoy using the workbook to map out your own business strategy! Get clear and things will happen much faster, I promise!

Courtney St Croix 2022-05-19 Courtney St Croix 2022-05-19

5 ways to narrow your daily focus as an entrepreneur to be productive af.

When I started my first blog, transitioned into MomfidentAF and launched my first book the Self-Love Journal ,I didn’t have a huge team behind me. I had to figure out most of the hard stuff on my own.

To say it can feel overwhelming to try and navigate day-to-day life as an entrepreneur and reach all of our goals is an understatement. Even as your business grows and gets some help you can still be left thinking WTF am I supposed to be doing today?!

How does everyone else get so much stuff done?

Am I actually being productive or just feeling busy?

I’ve been there before, friend. One thing that I have found to be the most helpful when it comes to ditching the feeling of overwhelm and actually getting sh*t done is to narrow down my focus for the day. That’s right, I’m talking about taking things off your list instead of adding to it. Crazy concept, I know! Here are 5 easy ways you can start making your to-do list work for you:

1. Set goals and work backwards to create steps towards them daily

Want to know wtf you’re supposed to be doing? Start with where you want to end up. Identifying your short & long-term goals, and breaking them ALL the way down into actionable steps can help you start scheduling the things that really matter instead of time-wasters.

For example - want to write a book? Great. But that’s a big goal. How are you supposed to focus or even know what the heck you’re doing when your schedule just says “write a book”?? Instead, we need to break down how to make that happen and start working backwards until you have small daily steps. That means, outline what you want to write about and make sure you’re prioritizing writing XX amount per day in accordance with your outline.

2. Physically write out a to-do list to help clarify and prioritize tasks.

It’s easy to get confused and feel overwhelmed when your whole to-do list lives inside your head. Instead, brain dump everything you need to do by writing it all out. Once you can see everything in front of you, it will help you determine what actually needs your attention and what can be put off for another time. Eliminating the unnecessary helps us focus on the things we need to do RIGHT NOW that will drive us forward. Check out the WTF Am I Even Doing Today planner for an easy, guided (and cute!) way to do this!

3. Determine what tasks are most important either by deadline or income-generating. Outsource what you can that isn’t “important”.

Along the same line, once you have a visual breakdown of what tasks need to be completed you can start to prioritize them based on their deadline, income-generating potential or other systems you’ve put in place. Figuring out what tasks are most important and focusing on those isn’t *groundbreaking* advice, but it’s the most logical and yet somehow we always seem to let this one slide???

Whatever you don’t deem to be important or urgent, outsource it (if you can!). That could mean hiring a virtual assistant a few hours a week to manage your inbox or a housekeeper to help you maintain your chores at home, or even something as simple as ordering groceries so you don’t have to spend hours in a store. Unimportant tasks drain us of our energy and take away focus from what we truly need to accomplish, so take everything off your plate that you can.

4. Tackle big things first

Once you’ve determined the tasks you need to accomplish during the week/day, try to get through your biggest task first. It’s easy to get burnt out from dealing with a bunch of smaller things first and it almost always guarantees that time will get away from you. It can be intimidating to tackle a time-heavy or difficult task first but there is lots of evidence to suggest that this is the best way to actually get the most done in a day. If you typically structure your day the other way, starting with smaller or easier tasks first give this a try and let me know what you think!

5. Don’t get distracted by your inbox.

Finally, the golden rule of productivity - don’t get distracted. Schedule time to check your inbox & respond to messages so you don’t feel like you constantly have to manage your notifications. Once you have set out your focus for the day, you need to *actually* focus on those tasks. Easier said than done, I know but distraction is the killer of productivity so do what you have to do to manage it. Work on airplane mode. Keep your phone in another room. Work where you feel the most creative, like a Starbucks if you have to.

Bonus tip - Get the WTF Am I Even Doing Today planner to help you brain dump, prioritize, plan and accomplish 5 of your most important tasks per day. This beautiful planner will help you accomplish more by trying to do less, so just like mentioned above you can focus on the tasks that really matter. It’s available from Amazon starting on October 30th (which happens to be National Checklist Day), but you can pre-order ahead of time and get it as soon as it comes out.

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How to actually START writing your book

Courtney, how do I start writing a book?!

This is a question I get asked all the time. Literally, ALL the time it’s probably about half of my DMs and messages and the first thing non-fiction writers ask when they find out I’m a self-publishing coach.

Honestly, I’m not even really sure what kind of answer everyone is expecting. Maybe they think there’s a trick, or prerequisite or some type of winning formula I’ve developed that will make the work of writing less, you know, actual work.

Here’s the big reveal you’re all looking for...

You actually have to start writing the book.

Wait, what? If I want to write a book, I just need to sit down and write?

I mean YEAH, that’s pretty much it. That’s the meat and potatoes my friend. The best way to do it, is just to DO IT. Schedule some time in your calendar and call it “Actually write a book”. There’s no secret. I recommend starting a regular Google Doc or Pages Doc with no fancy formatting or adjustments and titling it “My Book”. That’s where you’ll sit down and start to word vomit basically an entire book’s worth of content on one flight home (oh wait, is that just me…?)

But honestly? Even THAT isn’t a MUST-HAVE. The Harry Potter books were started on cocktail napkins, so literally, anything is possible. The important thing is that you take your ideas and turn them into words - that’s how you start writing. You’ll have to turn your manuscript into a document later, but if writing with a pen and notebook is better for you...do that!

All that to say, it’s best to be smart about it before you start. You don’t want to get halfway through writing and stop to wonder, wait wtf am I even writing about?! Here’s how you can do some brainstorming first:

Think about who your ideal reader is. Who will benefit the most from the story you want to tell? What life experiences do you have that they will be able to relate to (things like balancing business & parenthood, finding spirituality later in life, or rebuilding life after a divorce). Give them a name & start building a reader persona, which will help you with the next thing..
What topics do you want to write about? Identify the main theme of your book and then start breaking that down into smaller topics. For example, in Momfident AF the theme of the book was confidence & self-love so some of my topics were body image, fitness and body acceptance. Just sit down and freely brainstorm some topics you feel confident writing about.
What would 10 chapters be about? If your book was 10 good-sized chapters long, what would be the main idea of each one? These will be similar to your topics, just a little bit more specific & expanded upon. Fitness - my experience in the fitness industry.
Explain your book in 1 sentence. This is helpful to summarize your ideas, give you a solid reference point to always come back to and possibly even ideas for titles. One sentence, not two or three or four. ONE!
What does your reader get from reading your book? The most important thing you want to plan out - WHY you’re writing this book. What’s in it for your reader? How are you helping them? Seriously, if nothing else don’t skip this one.

Bonus tip - If you’re writing a non-fiction book you might also need to start outlining your book in more detail or dedicating some time to research, depending on the type of book. Keep your research notes in a separate document so your manuscript document is a clean slate for your creative writing.

Okay so if you’re feeling a little more motivated to start writing but are still like ok but how do I turn my ideas into a book? How do I know how many words I need to write? Who’s going to keep me on track?! DON’T WORRY, I’ve got you!

If you’re looking for a book outline resource to help strategically work through brainstorming all of your ideas, you can download my free book mapping workbook. It will guide you through all of the theme, topic, sub-topics you’ll need to have a complete book outline by the end of it.

If you’re looking for a little bit more structure & accountability, my Write Now writing course is available as a self-directed resource complete with all of the tools and templates you need to start writing your book WRITE NOW (get it!). Plus you get bonus accountability emails to keep you on track so you’re ready to actually write that book sister.

You can totally do this!

Xo Courtney

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Self-publishing a book: Is it better than traditional publishing?

Have you ever thought about writing a book? Chances are the traditional publishing route is what probably comes to mind. This is the image of a writer that’s sold to us through movies & tv shows like Sex and the City where a book is “chosen” or picked up by a publishing house and the author is offered a lucrative book deal.

Although this is still a plausible & profitable option for authors to get their work published, thankfully due to technology it’s no longer the only way to profit from your writing.

Enter self-publishing.

Self-publishing allows you, the author, to take the writing and publishing process into your own hands and removes the idea that you have to wait to be chosen by someone else. This is a very beneficial option for those who have their own business, as it gives you the ability to publish work that is complementary to your niche or service.

Traditional vs self-publishing - what’s the difference?

The main difference between traditional & self-publishing is that when you self-publish you remain in control & ownership of your work. It’s up to you, the author, to create a finished product and make it available for purchase which means you are responsible for all of the costs and tasks associated with finishing your manuscript, getting a final version online and marketing the book. If you don’t plan to do everything yourself this also includes things such as hiring an editor, designing the cover and promoting the book through social media or paid ads.

Big publishing houses have teams for editing, designing and marketing so in the traditional publishing route all of those tasks are handled for you, and the costs are covered. In exchange, you relinquish the intellectual property and creative control to your publisher and receive royalties of the book sales.

Pros & Cons of Traditional Publishing

One of the biggest benefits of traditional publishing is the hands-off aspect of getting your book on shelves after turning in your manuscript. You save time trying to source talent to edit & market your book yourself and enjoy the support of an experienced team. Oftentimes publishers will also offer a book advance which means that you can get paid while you write.

A little-known con to accepting an advance, however, is that you will not receive any royalties until that amount is paid back. For example, if you receive a $60k advance and make $3 per book you won’t be paid any royalties until at least 20,000 copies of the book are sold. In order to pay for the team behind your book, the publisher takes a pretty big cut of the royalties, leaving you with between 6-15%.

You also agree to relinquish the intellectual property meaning the publishing house owns your work, not you. This can impact the creative control you have over final manuscripts, cover design and even marketing of your book. Smaller authors don’t always receive big marketing budgets from publishers as well, which means that your book might not even receive the PR it deserves.

Pros & Cons of Self-Publishing

As a self-publishing coach and multi-bestselling self-published author, I truly believe there are many benefits that come with self-publishing. For one, you retain all the rights to your work which means you can even pursue other means of publishing it in the future. You also retain total creative control over all aspects of the publishing process from the title to cover design and beyond.

When it comes to getting paid with self-publishing you get a higher percentage of royalties. You keep 100% of your entitled royalties after the platform takes a cut, so on average, you’re making between $8-12 per book. So even if you sell fewer copies in the beginning, you’re making more per book than you would with a traditional publisher.

As I mentioned earlier since you maintain ownership over your work you also maintain the responsibility of creating a finished book and making it available for purchase. If you’ll be outsourcing some of the tasks such as editing, interior and cover design you’ll be required to make an upfront investment. The good news is that because you make a sizable amount per book it’s not hard to make that back fairly quickly.

The hardest part of self-publishing for most writers is actually finishing their manuscript. Most publishers will set deadlines for their authors, forcing them to be accountable and finish writing. When left to your own devices, that can mean manuscripts collecting virtual dust for a lot of writers.

Final Thoughts

There are obviously benefits to both traditional and self-publishing, it just comes down to what is best for you as an author. If you’ve never considered self-publishing before I would highly recommend checking out some of my other content (such as this YouTube video, or my Tiktok channel) and researching if this avenue could benefit you.

If you are considering writing a nonfiction book or journal, have a specific idea for one or are in the midst of writing your manuscript and need the accountability to finish I have the perfect solution for you! WriteHer is a group writing program to help you write your damn book already, and enrollment is open now. Check it out here.

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20 Nonfiction Writing Prompts to help you write your damn book.

If this is your first time attempting to write a book, you may be surprised to learn how much actual writing is involved. You’d think it wouldn’t be that surprising, most want-to-be writers are avid readers and know how long a book is. But actually WRITING that many words? Well, we can’t always put that into perspective until we’re *in it*.

Whatever your writing goal is, whether it’s 10 chapters or 1000 words a day, there’s a certain rhythm we must find as a writer in order to get those words out. I’ll be honest, 10 chapters is a lot. 1000 words a day is a lot. But, once you find that flow it starts to come a little bit easier.

Here’s some tough love, the best way to get better at writing is to keep on writing. So if you’re just getting started with your project, you’re stuck somewhere in the middle, or you’re looking for some fresh inspiration, try this:

Clear off your desk/writing space
Get yourself a nice hot coffee or your favourite tea. Something that makes you feel good!
Put your phone on airplane mode
Pull up a writing playlist or some inspiring music
Set a timer for 30 minutes, 60 minutes or whatever you can spare
Use some of these prompts below and just WRITE.

Even if you don’t think they will directly benefit your manuscript, just allowing your mind to be open, recall memories, and think in a different perspective will get your creative juices flowing. Plus, any exercise in sitting down to actually write something is beneficial for forming the habit.

After your session, any ideas that came up about your book, be sure to put them in a separate document to come back to later!

Ready? Here are 20 nonfiction writing prompts to help you write your damn book:

What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
What is your favourite thing to learn about?
What have you learned about yourself in 2022?
What makes you feel alive? How can you incorporate more of this into your life?
Retell a story from your memories from an alternate perspective. How would they see it differently than you did?
Recall a specific memory in as much detail surrounding it as you can. Where were you? What were you wearing? What were some things you saw or heard or smelled?
What is something you’ve never experienced that you’ve always wanted to?
What is one of your biggest desires? Write about it in detail.
How would you describe your “journey”? Where did you start? Where did you end up?
What’s something you’d love to experience again for the first time?
What is one piece of advice you’d give to your younger self? How young are you in this scenario?
What is the next or biggest goal you’re working towards? What would achieving it look like for you?
What is something you thought you’d never do, but did anyway?
Recall an obstacle, event or conflict that changed you for the better
Where do you want to be 1 year from right now? How about 5 years?
What’s a word or quote that feels most impactful to you right now?
Name a time you’ve felt the most seen or understood recently? In a book? A movie or tv character? A podcast? A conversation with friends or loved ones?
How would you describe yourself to someone who has never met you?
What experiences have you had that you're grateful for, or have learned from?
What do you feel is holding you back? How can you let it go?

Ps - I know that sexy, brooding & reclusive writers are one of Hollywood’s favourite stereotypes, but you don’t actually have to do this whole “writing a book” thing alone. In fact, I created a program just for that reason. WriteHer is a group writing program for accountability and empowerment to write your damn book already. Enroll now!

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Publishing on Amazon: Is self-publishing a book worth it?

Are you like me and have always dreamed about having your name on the cover of a book?

Ever since I was little I remember filling notebooks and eventually my family’s PC with stories (oops!) Becoming an author has always been the *dream*. I chose and continue to choose self-publishing because that’s something I wanted to make happen for myself. I didn’t want to wait to be picked or told my story was good enough by a traditional publisher.

One of the most common questions I get asked by those with a similar dream is if self-publishing is actually profitable and worth the time and money investment.

To be frank, nothing in life is free. Both forms of publishing require a time and money investment. Self-publishing means that it requires an upfront investment by the author.

So, with these expenses in mind - is self-publishing actually worth it?

In my opinion, YES! If having your name on a published book and creating a passive income stream is important to you then I think it’s 100% worth it. Here’s why:

1. It’s easy to make your initial investment back

As a self-published author, you are responsible for getting your final assets online. That means a final edited manuscript and design assets (including your cover and interior design of the manuscript). If you have some design or editing skills (or the time to learn how to DIY!) you can probably do some of the work yourself to reduce your upfront costs.

My first journal cost me about $800 to make, and I made that back on my initial launch! From there your work becomes an evergreen revenue source, meaning you continue to make money off of it without having to do any more work. I’m still making income from my very first publication!

2. There are other benefits besides monetary

If you’ve seen some of my other content (like this TikTok) I’ve discussed in length all of the benefits I’ve received from self-publishing. These include

Credibility in your industry by having a published title in your niche
Global exposure on a huge platform
A new network of potential customers
Increased searchability for your business

3. It’s great experience and a foot in the door for future publishing opportunities

Starting with something smaller such as a journal, workbook or shorter book means a smaller investment upfront along with the experience you need & opportunity to create more content in the future with an audience you’ve already built trust with.

Plus, a low purchase price but high value is a great way to help move people to your higher-priced services.

4. It gives you a tangible tool to use to help build your business/exposure

Having access to Amazon’s wholesale & print on-demand services means that you can easily gift clients, provide copies for prizes or provide copies to VIPs in your network at little cost to you without having to pay for shipping or storing a bunch of copies.

You can include this tangible tool as additional or supplementary material in events, courses or services you provide at your discretion! This is a very cool unique perk to self-publishing that in my opinion, almost alone makes it worth it! E-books are great but there’s nothing like a beautifully printed book to help you grow your business.

Of course, these perspectives are offered by someone who has exclusively self-published. But these experiences are not uniquely mine! I’ve helped dozens of women self-publish complementary tools and beautiful books and become best-selling authors.

If you’re interested in learning more about self-publishing I highly recommend watching this video about self-publishing or booking a VIP intensive session. I’m here to help answer all your manuscript and self-publishing questions!

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Biggest book writing secrets.

Top secrets for getting started writing and self publishing a book.

Hi, I’m Courtney! If you’re new to LeadHer Publishing, well, first of all welcome. We write books here (and I help self-publish them!).

If you found your way here maybe you’re thinking about writing a book of your own as well.

Good for you! You should. (I say that as you know, a totally unbiased neutral party ;) ). Not only is holding your book in your hands (and seeing it on shelves in the store, like Jeenie!) the COOLEST feeling but it can also bring you:

1. Evergreen passive income (you only have to write it once and keep making money off it!) 2. Exposure on one of the biggest platforms in the world 3. Credibility, I mean come on you’re a freaking published author amirite?! 4. Value to your target audience

So if you’re thinking about it, you should probably just do it.

Ok, so this is the part where most people say “wtf Courtney, how am I supposed to write a whole book?!” And I know! Having a vague idea & trying to turn that into a full-length manuscript can be daunting.

I won’t lie, I’ve fallen victim to staring at a blinking cursor and taking a longer than intended “break from writing”. I don’t want that for you.

I like you.

So, I’m going to give you my tried and true BIGGEST secrets to writing a book. These are the exact secrets that have led to dozens of LeadHer women becoming best-selling authors on Amazing including Jeenie, Grace & Cori.

LET’S DO THIS…

Start by planning what you’re ACTUALLY going to write about. Having a book write itself is a fantasy that most writers fall into. If you want to write an actual book you need to map it. That means
Narrowing down who your book is for
Determining how is it going to help them
Mapping out what you’re going to write about I have a tool just for that. It’s the exact way I planned out (and actually finished!) my first book. Download How tf do I start writing a book.
Don’t rely on motivation. Sure, sometimes you’ll be feeling creative and have a flow of ideas coming to you, but if you WAIT for that to happen we’ll be on Fast & Furious #96 before you finish your book (trust me, no one wants that). Create a habit by structuring your writing (see secret #1) and scheduling in writing time. I know it doesn’t sound sexy but you know what is sexy…becoming a PUBLISHED FREAKIN’ AUTHOR.
Start small. (Yes, in this case size really does matter 😆) Starting from nothing to a full manuscript can be a lot. Why not start with a journal, a smaller book (that way you can publish another as a follow up!) or as part of a group project (like co-authoring!). BONUS- this is a cost effective way to get started since you do have to invest out of pocket to self-publish.
Don’t do it alone! If you’re the kind of person who thrives with accountability & group motivation set that up for yourself! Write with a friend who you regularly check in with. You can also join a group project like one of LeadHer’s regular co-author projects [Join the waitlist here] OR get some accountability from ME, a self-publishing & writing coach by joining Write Now! [Sign up here]
Finally, just f*kin start ok?! I promise you about half of your blocks & excuses will disappear if you just follow these steps, focus on what you want to write about and just sit down to WRITE. #WILLPOWER friend.

Access all of these tools and MORE support at https://www.leadherpublishing.com/. If you need even more help getting started or publishing I also have publishing coaching & VIP support options available.

Believe me, you can absolutely do this my friend!

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The hard truth about writing a book.

Writing a book is both simple and complex.

Great books aren’t just written, they are crafted. Feeling like it needs to be perfect right off the bat is something that holds so many want-to-be authors back from even trying to write their book. Who am I to write a book? I’m not that great at grammar or spelling. English was never my strong suit in school. When would I even find time to write a book? Who would even want to hear what I have to say?

Maybe it’s thoughts like these that are keeping you from writing. Or maybe you’ve sat down to start putting thoughts into a document but never opened it back up again.

I’m here to tell you that your story is valuable. Publishing a book can open so many doors for you, either in your business or personal brand. It can help people across the world.

You absolutely can write a book, but the truth is…no one can do it for you.

Does that mean you have to be the world’s best writer, grammar aficionado or linguistics expert? No. That’s what editors, proof-readers and test readers are for.

Does it mean you have to want to write, commit to doing it, get off your ass and actually write? Yes, yes it does.

If you have the desire to see your name on a published book you owe it yourself to open up that document, push past the negative thoughts and allow your ideas to become words. It’s time to get writing, friend.

You have to trust yourself & your story, lean into your creativity and allow yourself to just write without feeling like you need to filter or restrict yourself. Just remember that a first draft of your manuscript = a rough draft. It still needs to be edited and revised. Let yourself feel that freedom. I promise your writing will turn out better.

Here are a few more ways you can help harness your creativity and get to writing that book!

Tap into your creativity by setting a daily goal and finding time to write every day, yes EVERY day. It doesn’t always have to be your manuscript, maybe it’s a journal or even a social media caption but actively sitting down and writing something every day will actively train your brain to get used to writing. Plus in order to get better at something you have to actually do it…you know that whole practise makes perfect thing?
Cultivate a creative environment where you block out distractions and feel more compelled to write. Clean off your desk. Close out all your other tabs. Sit in a different place than where you work (if you work from home, or do stuff like pay bills). Create a writing ritual with your favourite drink, lighting a candle or some aromatherapy and choose a playlist that matches your writing.
Keep track of your progress and reward yourself. We feel rewarded when we’re able to check things off or see physical proof of our progress so create some sort of progress tracker for yourself, by word count, chapters or days in a row, whatever works! And be sure to assign a reward such as a fancy Starbucks drink, or your favourite takeout lunch!
Take your time and go for walks or be outside in nature when you’re in need of some creative inspiration. It’s so healing and sometimes that break away from screens and distractions is exactly what will spark your next idea.
If you’ve got a case of writer’s block try following some writing prompts to get the creative juices flowing again. Even just short journal sessions can help you get back into the habit of writing.

You can more writing tips, motivation and prompts by following me on Instagram or Tiktok!