Vicky Fraser: Moxie Books

My podcast 'Notes in the Margin' is currently on a 6 month hiatus, while I figure out what I want to do with it! In the meantime, I'm delving back into very special guest episodes. In this episode, we heard from @hillaryweiss yelling about branding. Listen in as we chat about: ✍🏼 Where confidence comes from ✍🏽 Why it's scary to put yourself out there ✍🏾 How not to sound like an asshole ✍🏿 And much, much more! Check out https://moxiebooks.co.uk/episode-213/ Enjoy! * * * * * #podcast #goodfaceforradio #writingcoach #writing #nonfiction #moxiebooks

It’s today. You coming? Hot seats are TODAY! And there’s still time to join us if you’d like… even if you don’t have a specific question or submission. Sooooo—if you haven’t already signed up for my absolutely none-dollars hot seat coaching sesh, that means… 1) you haven’t heard about it yet (whyyyyyyy does the algae hate me sob) b) you’re already planning to join Weird + Wonderful and you’re just waiting for me to open the gates (THIS IS AWESOME AND I AM EXCITED) BUT this is your last chance to join me live for an exciting 90-minute hot seat coaching session for amazing misfits who want to write their nonfiction book. We’re live at 7 - 8.30 PM today! Grab your spot via the link in my bio to join us. And—erm—I’m hoping that the reason you haven’t signed up yet is this 👇🏼 iii) you have an excuse about why this hot seat session isn’t for you Like “I don’t have anything to submit!” (Really? No questions about writing a book at all? Even if that’s the case—you’ll learn a TON from watching other people in the hot seat—and there’ll be time for a Q&A at the end, so if you have a question by then you can ask!) “I’m tooooo busy!” (There’s a recording! I’ll send it out the very next morning!) “I won’t be able to say NO to Weird + Wonderful when you talk about it at the end!” (🤩 BUT even if it is a NO, I’d love to see you there anyway) Chuck the excuses in the bin—you have a book to write and dammit I want to help you. And if you really can’t make it live, sign up anyway so I can send you the recording. Today’s the day you challenge your excuses and inner naysayer and DO THE THING. We go from ALL the nopes about writing a book to OH HAI I AM HERE AND READY TO WRITE MY DAMN BOOK NO MORE WAITING There. See? I knew you could do this. The link to last minute sign-up for the Bish Bash Book Hot Seat Coaching Party is in my bio or DM me. It’s like getting private coaching f

When I get stuck, I tend to just… stop. Got nothing to write for my book? Well what’s the point—I’ll just play *Elder Scrolls* until my eyes bleed instead. Which, let’s be honest, isn’t going to get me anywhere except frustrated, guilty, ashamed, and with no feeling in either butt cheek 🍑🍑 I know this is gonna sound overly simplistic, but writing a book really is the act of writing a single word, then another, then another. And, yes, of course it’s more than that—it’s about articulating ideas and crafting messages and telling stories… but I do all that in my head ad nauseum. I have a thousand ideas, messages, and stories, and I bounce them off the inside of my skull like squash balls… but until they’re down on paper, they’re not material progress. The act of writing helps me figure out what I’m thinking, and the writing itself doesn’t have to make sense to start with. It needs to become habit. Ask yourself this: 👉🏼 “What can I stick to—even on my worst day?” For me, that’s writing my morning pages—750 words a day, every day. Even if your book is going nowhere right now KEEP WRITING ANYWAY. Just one word. Then another. And another. And eventually your brain will want to put them together in such a way that they help you do the thing you want to do: write your book. 🌱 Make a tiny habit. 📆 Do it every day. 🎉 Celebrate. (h/t to @jocelthem for this little ritual) I made a Daily Writing Prompt Calendar for just this scenario—it’s free, and it’s for you if you want it. Here’s a recent prompt: **Are you weird?** Well, are you? Count the ways in which you’re weird, and then celebrate them. Check out my Instagram stories today for me writing live based on today’s prompt. * * * * * #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #entrepreneur #writingcoach #nonfiction #moxiebooks #writerslife #writingtips #writingadvice #writersblock #bookcoach #weird+wonderful #writingprompt #areyouweird

I made the mistake of watching a horror film a couple of weeks ago 😱 I don’t watch horror movies. Even though I don’t believe in anything supernatural, they still scare me sh*tless. Hereditary was the culprit this time. It’s the THING in the corner of the room up by the ceiling that undoes me. Just silently watching and waiting to eat your face. So what happens is, I lie in bed rigid with terror trying to talk myself down: it’s not real, stuff like that isn’t a thing, there are no monsters under the bed, STOP IT. Damn my imagination. But then things take a turn: the thing in the corner of my ceiling? IT’S THAT DAMN PROJECT I’VE BEEN NOT WORKING ON. Looking at me accusingly. “You said you were gonna write me,” it whines. “You promised.” “Yeah, well, sh*t came up.” I turn over in a huff and hide. But also, I want to work on the thing. And the only way to do that is to carve out a space and work on the damn thing. I don’t hold with the “we all have the same 24 hours in a day” narrative because we don’t; I don’t have kids, or folks to care for, or a third job… That being said—the only way we’re gonna get the sh*t done that we want to do is make time for it. So my question to myself is: how much do I want to do the thing? Do I want to do it more than that other thing over there? Yes? Better get my butt in gear then. Doesn’t matter if the writing is bad. Doesn’t matter if I don’t know where to start. The secret is to START. With anything. Get some momentum, then keep on trundling. * * * * * #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #author #entrepreneur #writer #writingcoach #writing #nonfiction #moxiebooks #writerslife #writersofig #writingtips #writingadvice #writersblock #bookcoach #teammoxie #storytelling

That feeling when you just know what you’re gonna write today HOLA BOOK WRITERS READ THIS IF YOU FIND YOURSELF MIRED IN YOUR OWN POO (sorry for that visual but if you know, you know) Let’s get you moving on your book with this Hot Tip: 🌟 Create your table of contents early on 🌟 It doesn’t have to be the final contents—this is not the tablets of stone and you are not Moses, you can change it later—but when you have your Big Idea nailed down, make your ToC. Why? Because that’s more-or-less the structure of your book and it means you’re not going in blind. You’re not sitting down to WRITE A BOOK cold (which is a horrifying prospect amiright? Bit like going from couch to marathon or bottom step of stairs to Mount Everest) Instead, you have a ToC to glance at and go, you know, today I feel like writing about this idea. And off you go. You don’t have to start from the beginning if that doesn’t appeal. Or carry on from where you left off if that ideal repels you today. Quick look at your table of contents—ooh yes I made myself chuckle with that idea, let’s do that today—and out the words come. Keep your ToC in front of you and revise it often. It’ll probably change during your book writing adventure—that’s okay, let it. Then at the end, you can turn it into a swanky sales piece that your reader will look and go HOT DAMN I NEED TO READ THIS BOOK because one of the ToC entries is something like “There are bees in my brain” and who doesn’t want to know wtf that’s about? (^^actual title of chapter of book I am currently writing.) Cos that’s what we do when we decide to buy a book: we look at the front, the back, then the ToC, then we decide: buy or ditch. So when you're ready, make the ToC UH-MAZ-ING. (psssst I can help with that) Prevent overwhelm: create ToC. Or at least a rough idea of it. Happy writing! . . . . . #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #author #smallbusiness #entrepreneur #writer #writing

WHY ARE YOU WRITING THIS BOOK? Get to the core truth of it. When I work with private clients, we spend a chunk of time right at the start on this and I hammer away to find out what’s really driving this. What’s the Big Idea you need to share—and why is it setting your hair on fire? If it’s not setting your hair on fire, is it worth it? I dunno. Only you can answer that. Sit down and scribble out your reasons for writing this book. Why this book? Why now? Why you? What if you don’t write it? What if you DO? No half-assing this; no surface level nonsense. Dig deep. Because if you don’t have a strong why for your book you will a) struggle to stay the distance and b) it will show in your writing Grab a big old spoon and dig deep into your brain and find the truth about why you’re writing your book. This is how you get clarity on your Big Book Idea. . . . . . #bookcoach #bookcoachinyourpocket #moxiebooks #nonfiction #writersofinstagram #writingtips #writersblock #writeabook

Greetings and good day to you! I am Vicky Quinn Fraser and I am a book coach and it occurs to me that you may not know what a book coach does. ❌ Editing? 👻 Ghostwriting? 🍌 Small, sentient banana? 🗣️ Person who screams encouragement + mild obscenities at you as you sweat words out of your face? Not so much. Here are 11 things a book coach does. 11 things I do, anyway… 1️⃣ Help you get your idea out of your head + onto the page. Obvs. 2️⃣ You are the most important part of this you absolute unicorn. A book coach focuses on you because you’re the one writing the thing. 3️⃣ Tells the truth—always. With kindness + grace. 4️⃣ Shows you how to write betterer. 5️⃣ Is your #1 cheerleader. Scribbled 100 words even though you feel like hiding? AWESOME. Now how are you celebrating? 6️⃣ Holds you accountable. If you hire a book coach, you’re ready to get serious and FINALLY GET YOUR DAMN BOOK DONE. 7️⃣ Helps you plan for the future. Where does your book fits into your biz + life—beyond the actual publication date? 8️⃣ Helps you make publishing decisions. Indie or find an agent + get a book deal? Aargh! 9️⃣ Ugh, marketing. If it’s a good book, shouldn’t it just sell itself? Sadly, no. Luckily, I used to be a copywriter + marketing bod… 🔟 We know people. I have a list of awesome book production pros to call on—so you don’t have to search blindly. 1️⃣1️⃣ I belieeeeeeeeeve in yoooooooooou + your book (sung to the tune of Believe by Cher). And because I believe in you, you’ll believe in yourself. Promise. This is the difference between an editor + a book coach, and a snifter of the magic that goes into helping lovely humans create fantastic books. Check out my stories all week this week for my mini-series: Book Coach In Your Pocket It’s not as creepy as it sounds—it’s my coaching process in miniature so even if you're not ready to invest in a book coach, you can save and u

People worry about writing a boring-ass book. And when I say people, I mean me. I worry. I worry peeps will hate it, but I worry more that they won’t care at all. As Oscar Wilde said, “There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.” So over the years I’ve compiled a list of deadly sins (imaginative name, I know). Behold, a bunch of things in no particular order for you to avoid if you want to write a book that is not boring: 👿 The 8 Deadly Sins of Basic-Ass Nonfiction Books 👿 1️⃣ Writing a book you think you SHOULD write instead of the book you desperately WANT TO write. 2️⃣ Writing it because a guru has told you it’s a good marketing move and you can tick it off your list. 3️⃣ Creating a fancy glorified business card that “nobody will read anyway.” Please don’t do this! 4️⃣ Playing it safe. There’s a lot of pressure on all of us—and ESPECIALLY on Black writers and authors of colour, on neurodiverse writers, on LGBTQ+ writers—to conform. To dampen down our voices and personalities. To be acceptable to the gaze of the dominant culture. 5️⃣ Writing to a “tried and tested formula” used by 4,291 other business owners. 6️⃣ Writing for bestseller status. You have no control over whether your book becomes a bestseller (or even if it sells any copies, really)—so don’t chase this prize. 7️⃣ Being boring and not telling an actual story. Don’t write an academic paper (unless you're writing an academic paper, and then it’s not a book at all). 8️⃣ Forgetting who you’re writing for. It’s not you (or not *just* you); it’s not some fictional bestseller list, it’s not an ivory-tower publishing god, and it’s not your mum. Probably. There’s tons I could share about writing a not-boring nonfiction book, but keep this in mind when you begin. Full version of this >>> link in bio. * * * * * #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #author #

# Bestseller Badge Balls You’d be forgiven for reading this headline and thinking, “Huh, she’s bitching about bestselling books, I bet she’s not a bestseller. She’s probably crap.” Well, you’d be right: I’m not a bestseller. I’ve never won an award for my books. I’m not famous. (And that’s definitely the way I like it.) But I also am not crap. And neither are you. That being said, it can hurt sometimes—especially when we see our peers and colleagues with their shiny “bestseller” badge. It can feel like a kick in the teeth and prod ye olde imposter syndrome into biting you on the butt. “Oh, you’re not a bestseller? Well. You must be somehow deficient.” Balls to that. You can be amazing at what you do *and* write a wonderful book that never becomes a bestseller. We don’t *need* a bestseller badge or an award to write a meaningful book that makes a difference to people’s lives. And yet... Pretty much everyone who writes a book *wants* that bestseller badge. Including me, if I’m dipping my toe into some personal feelings honesty. I’d love to be top of the *New York Times* bestseller list; I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care. Becoming a bestselling author is definitely an awesome thing and deserving of celebration… But a whole industry has grown up around the idea that we must all write a bestseller: like the now-defunct “Bestselling Book System”, which promised to help you write a bestselling book “*Even if You Have No Book Ideas, Writing Skills, or Any Clue Where To Start*” in a “5 Phase Formula”. Erm. Excuse me? Doesn’t sound shady at alllllll. There’s the Bestseller in a Weekend. Write a Bestseller on Your Cellphone. And tons more. But let me tell you a secret about Amazon bestsellers: I could grab that badge for myself next week with a little prep work and some snappy marketing. /cont in comments * * * * * #writersofinstagram #authorsofinstagram #author #smallbusiness #entrepreneur #w

I had no idea, when I first opened the doors to Weird + Wonderful, what books would come out of it. It’s exceeded my wildest dreams. If you’ve seen the Weird + Wonderful Author Showcase, you’ll understand my delight at the variety of ideas, topics, and writers… Like Melanie Osborne, who I truly believe is some kind of wood elf or wood angel, and who is writing the most sumptuous, delicious, richly evocative book about trees and woodlands and our place in nature. (it is not all business books around here, my friend—it’s any weird and wonderful topic that’s important to you) Come with me today (link in bio) and listen to Mel read an excerpt from her manuscript—and let me know how you feel afterwards. Let me know where she takes you. Mel is one of those rare people who exudes peace and kindess and joy, and you feel better just by being in the same room as her (Zoom room or real one), so when she came to me to write her book I was bouncing like Tigger on Zebedee’s shoulders. She knew she had to write her woodland story; she knew people would want to hear it; she knew it’d help people live a more peaceful, connected-to-nature life. But she didn’t know how to get started, how to gather all the snippets and articles she already had, and turn them into a narrative and story that she could publish. That’s what we spent the first couple of weeks doing in The Weird + Wonderful Book Society: peering at the Big Book Ideas from every angle, considering who it’s for and why it needs to be written, validating it, and then figuring out what comes next. Now Mel is in the final stages of writing and her book will be out this year. I can’t wait. If you have a weird and wonderful book idea, and you’d like a little (or a lot) of help writing it, in a wise, kind, generous, and fun group of humans, we’d love to welcome you in. Don’t leave it any longer; especially if you’ve been putting it off for a while. There’ll never be a better time th

“Because I want to.” I could give you 284 exceptional reasons why you should write a book, but honestly the best one is that one just up there. BECAUSE YOU WANT TO. It’s gotta be fun. If you’re gonna get your book done, it has to make you feel excited, energised, sometimes angry and frustrated it’s true—but you have to really want to do it. And newsflash: its sole purpose doesn’t have to be to grow your business, or position you as the archangel Gabriel, or get you on TV (although those things are cool I’d make a great archangel). Your book’s main—even sole—purpose can simply be because you want to write it. For you. Yes, for readers, of course; but mostly you. It’s not an indulgence if it’s not a “lead magnet.” It’s not a waste of time if it’s not for positioning. It’s not conceited to want to share your story for your story’s sake. Writing a book is a magnificent achievement. If you write a book purely because you want to, because you have a story you must share, the positioning and networking stuff will happen. When we tell our stories and tell them well—and publish them for people to find—they draw people to us. Others will read it and think, “That person sounds amazing, I want to know more about them” and voilà! You have a new fan. Take Sassy Sarah, alumni of The Weird + Wonderful Book Society: she’s a funny lady writing about death, dying, and getting your affairs in order. If you want a traditional, stuffy legal expert, she ain’t your girl. But if you want someone who’s gonna make you laugh as well as take care of your future—she’s it. And by telling her story (and some tall tales) in her upcoming book, she’s going to attract people who want her to help them. Also, she just wanted to write a funny book. Ask yourself this: do you want to write a book? Just because you want to? Is it a bit of a weird idea? Not sure it’ll work? COME INTO MY OFFICE, FRAND. It’s weirdo central here. I

I struggle to just PICK a topic and get in flow. oh my god. THIS. IS. BRAIN. BEING. ASSHAT. ^^ That right there? Common problem among people who are, as @jocelthem puts it, ideaholics. Jocelyn was in The Weird + Wonderful Book Society Round 1, and she’s back with us again in Round 2—because one of the things I’m EXCELLENT at is helping writers choose between ALL THE IDEAS and then actually writing about it. Take Jocelyn, for instance. In just 12 weeks she got clarity, found her direction, + wrote more than 30,000 words despite her brain being a magical asshat. As she said: “You want to write a book? Feeling stuck? Or all over the place? Simple solution: WORK WITH VICKY. I have her to thank for helping me gain clarity on my topic, my working title (Your Brain is a Magical Asshat), my chapter ideas, and most importantly, WRITING THE DAMN THING. Within a few weeks of working with Vicky and her Weird & Wonderful Book Society, i had over 30,000 words, a lot of momentum, and even felt excited about my lil book baby. I’m definitely going to continue working with her as I get over the next hump of finishing my draft and moving into publication. She just brings so much experience, expertise, insight, warmth and is incredibly generous with her time (how the hell do you read and reply to so much, with so much grace and good advice, Vicky??) I’ve recommended her multiple times and will continue to do so, for anyone looking to bring their book baby to life. Thank you Vicky you’re the best!!!” Well 🥲🥲🥲 But you know, Jocelyn had the amazing idea, the wonderful stories, and the will to write. I just opened a door and showed her the way. Do you want to hear her read some of her book? Check out my stories for some snippets from the video, and a link to Jocelyn’s full performance at The Weird + Wonderful Author Showcase last week. Sooo anyway the doors to W+W are opening again for round 2—with our first call on Thus Feb 3. If you’r