Coach Write

How a conference talk led to a Routledge book deal. Clare Mulligan-Foster shares her path to publication, plus drafting, peer review tips, and cupcakes.
Midlife career change and portfolio careers with occupational psychologist Dr Clare Mulligan-Foster, author of Supporting Midlife Career Transitions Through Coaching: A Psychological Guide.
In this episode, you’ll discover:
How a conference talk led to a Routledge book deal, and why booking meetings with publishers in advance is worth the effort
Why Clare writes in extended blocks of time rather than daily word counts, and how a long first draft and peer review shaped her book
What goes into planning a community book launch, and why the cupcakes stole the show
Why mid and later life career transitions are growing, what portfolio careers look like in practice, and the contextual factors coaches need to understand
The true cost of writing a book alongside client work, and how to decide what you want your book to do for your practice
Connect with Clare:
Website: https://www.drclaremulliganfoster.co.uk/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claremulligan/
Book: https://link.amazon/B0iQimQFd
Connect with Helen:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
Coach Write Reflections: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections
Resources mentioned:
2027 Portfolio Career Planning Session waitlist: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/2027plan 
Coach Write Residency expression of interest: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/residency 
EMCC Global projects funded: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5yQpssPbiU 
Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops: https://link.amazon/B0eU7nUOn 
Neilson title editor: https://www.nielsentitleeditor.com/titleeditor/
ALCS: https://www.alcs.co.uk/about-alcs/
Joanna Lott’s business of coaching: https://joannalottcoaching.com/
Gladstone library: https://www.gladstoneslibrary.org/

How much does it cost to self-publish a book? Helen walks through the six main areas where you can spend money, with UK figures for 2026, and shows how to choose between bootstrapping, independent publishing, and hybrid publishing.
In this episode, you'll discover:
The three price point options (bootstrapping, professional independent publishing and hybrid) and what each one is likely to cost you
Why editing is the one area to protect if your budget is tight, and what developmental editing, copy editing and proofreading each involve
What to expect to pay for cover design, formatting, ISBNs (in the UK), plus the legal deposit requirement for UK and Irish authors
How to weigh your time against your money, and where you can sensibly save on formatting and marketing
Connect with Helen:
Join the founder wait list for the 2027 Coach Write 90 programme: https://coachwrite.co.uk/coachwrite90
Newsletter: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections   
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
Books: https://amzn.to/3MPS2Lq
 
Resources Mentioned:
CIEP: https://www.ciep.uk/
99 designs: https://99designs.co.uk/
Canva: https://www.canva.com/
Vellum: https://vellum.pub/
Atticus: https://www.atticus.io/
Neilsen ISBN Store: https://www.nielsenisbnstore.com/

How do you take an idea from a free PDF to a hardback planner in its seventh edition? Helen talks to Fay Wallis, career and executive coach, host of the HR Coffee Time podcast and creator of the Essential HR Planner, about iterating a product, working with printers and Amazon, and how what you publish can be part of a service led business.
In this episode, you'll discover:
How a free PDF of HR awareness days became a hardback planner, and what changed with each edition
What a printer taught Fay about paper, finishes and print batches, and how print on demand through Amazon changed the risk
How Amazon's low content book classification and the rise of AI-generated books affect anyone publishing a planner or workbook
Why mistakes slip past even careful proofreading, and how Fay put things right when they did
How a planner can feed a coaching business through planning days, monthly accountability sessions and client gifts
Connect with Fay:
The Essential HR Planner: https://essentialhrplanner.co.uk/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/faywallis
Website: https://brightskyhr.co.uk/
Connect with Helen:
Book: Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops https://link.amazon/B0g9QtMZu
Coach Write Reflections: https://coachwrite.co.uk/reflections
Wait list for the 2027 Coach Write 90: https://coachwrite.co.uk/coachwrite90
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen/

In this solo episode, Helen answers listener questions about her own path to publication, sharing an honest look behind the scenes of an independent author's book launch on the eve of releasing her fifth book, Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops.
In this episode you'll discover:
Where the idea for Enough came from, and the three pillars, affiliation, achievement and autonomy, that shape Helen's model for resilience
Why Helen chose independent authorship over a traditional publishing deal, and what that decision means for control, timeline and royalties
What actually happens between typing 'the end' and publication day: editing, cover design, metadata, ISBNs and going wide across distributors
How an Advanced Reader Team helps a book get discovered, and why early reviews matter as much as revenue in the first weeks
The promotion strategy behind the Enough launch, from LinkedIn title quizzes to a discounted ebook and a reader-list promotion stack
Connect with Helen
Buy the book: https://link.amazon/B01LuboFk
Newsletter: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections   
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
Subscribe to the Coach Write podcast wherever you're listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review. Your words can make a difference; a review can too.

We're tackling a common misconception this week: that writing has to be a solitary pursuit. Helen unpacks why we default to picturing writers working alone, and makes the case for why writing alongside other people, particularly virtually, changes everything.
In this episode, you'll discover:
Why the image of the lone author at a mahogany desk is a myth, and where that image actually comes from
The three reasons we default to thinking writing has to be a solitary act
How writing without commitment or accountability leads to drift, doubt, and eventually giving up
Why virtual writing sprints and body doubling can be more effective than writing in person
How the Scribe Circle works, and how to find or build your own writing community
Connect with Helen:
Join the Scribe Circle: https://coachwrite.co.uk/scribecircle
Buy Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops: https://link.amazon/B0dyg7r41
Newsletter: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections   
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write

Helen is joined by Heidi Dawson and Dr Lorenzo Mugnai, co-founders of Y Root Coaching, to talk about how a chance meeting turned into a coaching practice, and how their framework became a book, The Y Root Method, published just days before this recording.
In this episode, you'll discover:
How a corridor conversation between an astrophysicist and a leadership programme facilitator led to a coaching business and a shared framework
How the Y Root method borrows its "goal, checks, factors, actions" structure from space science, and why asking 'why' is the opposite of a dirty word in coaching
Why Lorenzo wrote the book with Heidi in mind as the reader, and how that shaped its structure and tone
What it's really like writing a business book in your second language, and the surprising advantage of learning grammar rules as an adult
How Heidi and Lorenzo use AI as a sense check without letting it write their voice, and their honest take on independent publishing, cover design and the "when is enough, enough" question of editing
Connect with Helen
Newsletter: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections   
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
Join the no commitment wait list for the next cohort of Coach Write 90: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/coachwrite90
Books: https://amzn.to/3MPS2Lq
 
Connect with Heidi and Lorenzo
Website: https://yrootcoaching.com/
Heidi Dawson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidi-dawson-36a26820/
Lorenzo Mugnai LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mugnailorenzo/
Book: https://link.amazon/B0eE4wgyz
 
People and Resources Mentioned
Written word media podcast episode on A+ content: https://www.writtenwordmedia.com/how-to-set-up-amazon-a-plus-content-in-30-minutes-or-less/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/
Preorder Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops https://link.amazon/B04frvgKn
Coaching at work magazine: https://www.coaching-at-work.com/

In this solo episode, Helen explores what a strengths-based approach can teach coaches about how they show up not just with clients, but on the page. Drawing on frameworks like Clifton Strengths, DISC, MBTI, and the Enneagram, she looks at how understanding your own strengths can shape a writing process that actually works for you.
In this episode you'll discover
Why a strengths-based approach beats a deficit-based one, both in coaching and in writing
The roots of strengths-based coaching in positive psychology and the work of Martin Seligman
Three simple ways to spot your own strengths: natural talent, energy, and other people's feedback
A tour of four popular frameworks (Clifton Strengths, DISC, MBTI, and the Enneagram) and what each one reveals
How to use your own strengths profile to build a writing process that fits how you actually work
Connect with Helen
Website: coachwrite.co.uk
Newsletter, Coach Write Reflections: coachwrite.co.uk/reflections
LinkedIn: O'Neill Helen (linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen)
Instagram: @coach_write
Subscribe to the Coach Write podcast wherever you're listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review. Your words can make a difference; a review can too.
 

In this episode, Helen is joined by Becca Syme, Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, USA Today bestselling novelist, and founder of the Better Faster Academy, for a conversation about writing rules, strengths and building a coaching and author business that stays true to your values.
In this episode you'll discover:
Why "everything works for someone, and nothing works for everyone" became the guiding philosophy behind Becca's most popular course
How Becca workshopped Write Better Faster for years before it became her signature programme, rather than rushing an evergreen product to market
Why "meet people where they are" beats chasing every shiny new marketing trend
The phased approach to testing demand before committing to direct sales, translations or audio editions
Why staying anchored to your values matters just as much once your business starts to scale
 
People and Resources Mentioned
Pre-order Enough: Rethinking Resilience in a World That Never Stops: https://link.amazon/B0dnHHX0H
ProWriting Aid:  https://prowritingaid.com/?afid=15255
ALCS article https://www.alcs.co.uk/news/ensuring-writers-are-paid-in-the-age-of-ai/?utm_source=Authors%27%20Licensing%20%26%20Collecting%20Society%20Ltd&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=15601920_ALCS%20News%20-%20August&utm_content=AI%20licences%20blog%20-%20button&dm_i=76,9AEIO,EHT86W,131387,1,0,0,0
Ulysses y James Joyce https://link.amazon/B0gaqlKFj
Romance writers of America https://www.rwa.org/
Clifton strengths https://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths
Margie Lawson https://www.margielawson.com/
Silk and sonder https://www.silkandsonder.com/
 
Connect with Becca
The Better Faster Academy https://betterfasteracademy.com/
Becca’s books https://betterfasteracademy.com/books-by-becca-syme/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BeccaSyme
 
Connect with Helen
Website: https://coachwrite.co.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
 
Subscribe to the Coach Write podcast wherever you're listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review. Your words can make a difference; a review can too.

In this solo episode, Helen shares why your email list should be the backbone of your marketing as a coach or author, and exactly how to build, maintain, and use it well.
In this episode:
Why social media is "rented space" and what happens when platforms change or disappear
Why coaches and authors are in the credibility business, and how a consistent newsletter builds trust and connection
Choosing an email platform (Wix, Kartra, MailerLite, Kit, and others) based on budget and technical comfort
Why Substack isn’t a newsletter, and how to think about it strategically
What to actually write about: reflections, behind-the-scenes content, and lessons from client work
Helen's content pillars: portfolio careers, writing and publishing, AI and futurist topics, and life sustainability
Why Helen steers coaches away from using AI to draft newsletters, at least to start with
How to grow your list using tools you already have, including podcast guesting and lead magnets
Why engagement matters more than list size, and Helen's own experience running an email cleanse
The importance of consistency, and why replying personally to subscribers builds real community
 
Resources mentioned:
Coach Write Reflections newsletter: https://coachwrite.co.uk/reflections
MailerLite, Kit (formerly ConvertKit), and Octopus as email platform options
Connect with Helen:
Website: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_write
Books: https://amzn.to/3MPS2Lq

In this episode of the Coach Write Podcast, Helen speaks with Claire Fitzsimmons, co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a wellbeing journal for the anxious, disconnected and uncertain, co-created with illustrator and psychologist Amanda Sheeren. Claire is an ICF Associate Certified Coach, a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, and host of the podcast A Thought I Kept.
In this episode, you’ll discover:
How a serendipitous dinner conversation with a stranger who turned out to run an independent publishing company led to the journal finding its home with an independent, specialist publisher rather than a conventional route
Why Claire and Amanda built the design of the journal around analogue, tactile experience, deliberately pushing back against the digital overwhelm and screen fatigue so many of us are trying to escape
How the book’s ‘untethering’ pathway helps readers get curious about what they’re really seeking when they reach for their phone, rather than trying to demonise technology altogether
The balance Claire and Amanda struck between offering readers real tools and simply adding to the noise and overwhelm of the wellbeing industry, and why curiosity works better than ‘musts’ and ‘shoulds’
Why Claire and Amanda actively choose to support independent bookshops over one-click buying, and what that decision means for the sense of connection and community behind the book
Claire’s advice for aspiring writers: building small, everyday writing habits rather than waiting for the “right” moment or feeling to arrive
 
Resources and people mentioned:
Work with Helen: https://coachwrite.co.uk/services
99 Designs Cover Design: https://99designs.co.uk/
2027 Planner: Plan Your Portfolio: https://link.amazon/B04B49u9p
Coaches Journey Podcast Episode: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/125-helen-oneill-how-to-publish-as-a-coach-build-a-portfolio-career-and-make-your-next-step-count
Support the Coach Write Podcast: https://patreon.com/coachwrite 
 
Connect with Claire
Website: https://www.ifloststarthere.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-fitzsimmons-4130aa100/
Substack More Good Days: https://moregooddays.substack.com
Substack It’s a Lot, Actually https://itsalotactually.substack.com
Book: If Lost Start Here: https://www.ifloststarthere.com/book
A Thought I Kept (podcast): https://www.buzzsprout.com/2521342
 
Connect with Helen
Website: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen
Instagram: @coach_write
Coach Write Reflections newsletter: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/reflections
 
Subscribe to the Coach Write podcast wherever you’re listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review. Your words can make a difference; a review can too.