The Gateway to Publishing Memoir

What you need to know and how to get started.

As part of an accidental series on my journey to writing memoir, I have shared a part 1 last year and part 2 this spring.

Photo by Nicolas Hoizey on Unsplash

I began to share my journey from the moment I sat down to the serious business of book writing, because I wanted readers to know that the launch of a book is not an overnight success. It’s years in the making.

Seeds are planted, events are attended, support is brought in, connections with other published authors are made and you discover many different routes to publication.

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I had no idea when I first published the odd post the other summer - where I boldly declared that I was writing a book and what it was about and how I was going about it - that I was guiding other authors along the way. This has since materialised into a Healing Through Writing circle every Monday morning, 9:30am (GMT).

Last month we had Partnership Publishing come in to speak to us about the Pathway to Publishing. The biggest takeaway and most important message to me was when one of us asked the question

I want to write a book. It’s all in my head, I know what I want to say but I can’t get it out of my head and on to paper. Where do I start?

“Start with imposter syndrome¹.” was the response.

Where did your journey start and how has the business of book writing progressed along the way?

When I look back on my journey to publishing transformative one year memoir and 3 part journal, Unleashing My Inner Power: Daring to Dream & Flying Fearless, the very best thing I did was join a writing group.

The community, the support, the insight, knowledge and wisdom shared made this book possible. To the extent that this was the latest book I wrote and yet it was the first to be published!

Order your copy here.

To add further context, the drafts I have created (one 3 years ago this month) are still been worked upon behind the scenes².

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This month, we have

Katie Beete

from Tarot for Visibility joining us on Wednesday 27th November @ 7:30pm³. She is delivering a talk on not only how to identify who you are uniquely here to serve but also how to align your brand with those you are uniquely here to serve.

Though with all that value adding promotion being out of the way, what I want this post to be about is a part of the journey I appear to have been resisting. Putting off. Delaying. The reason why I am not yet sure of. Fear perhaps. Fear of success? Quite likely.

Fear of failure we talk about a lot. But what of our fear of success?

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”

Marian Woodward.

Over summer, I completed an Author Q&A exploring insight into my personal journey and inspiration for writing Unleashing My Inner Power, the challenges to writing such a deeply vulnerable account of some very personal circumstances surrounding heartbreak, chronic illness and adversity and the lessons I’ve learnt around it which I share with you.

Self belief is at the route of all success. And bringing in the support to meet the needs you have to help facilitate that success is just as crucial. Whether this is the writing of your book or navigating your way through the complex and misunderstood journey of chronic illness. But not first, without checking in with your inner compass.

Where is your inner compass guiding you? (Photo by Tim Graf on Unsplash)

1. I’m personally not a fan of this expression but it is the term they used and a popular one amongst many. A syndrome is a condition with no known cause. My understanding is that the “not enough” wound is at the root of feeling an imposter. Whether that’s not pretty/slim/rich/talented enough. It is a belief. And, to me, belief is something we can work on, can transform. It is, in big part, where I started 2.5 years ago - alongside all the research, study and implementation of what I was learning. Not too dissimilar a path to my healing and overcoming of chronic illness.

2. Migraine and Me: The Journal will be available for pre-order by Christmas. Migraine: A Journey - Longing to be Heard, Waiting to be Seen, Being Understood will follow next year.

3. Read more about my working relationship with

Katie Beete

and her magical powers here: