Expert Author Community applications open 1st May 2024
The expert-guided, community-powered experience for innovators, disruptors, creative thinkers and changemakers who are ready to place a strategic flag in the ground. Not just "write a book"
(with all the content, coaching, conversations and connections in ONE space)
SAY NO MORE, IM INIf you want to start conversations, grow relationships, create legacies and ultimately build the value of your brand and business...
...you already know that you need to write a non-fiction book.
THE TROUBLE IS….
When you show up to write a book without a plan and without a supportive community, things start to get a little overwhelming.
And who do you turn to when you start grappling with all the big (and totally normal) questions, like:
From one business owner to another - we both know that running a business on your own is hard and lonely. Add to that the pressure of writing a book alone, and it can start to feel isolating.
And it all leads to unfocused action, wasted time, poor decision-making, and feelings of overwhelm and isolation.
Whether you call yourself a thought leader, solopreneur or founder-led business owner, the struggles are all the same: Loneliness. Knowledge gaps. No peers or experts to turn to. Relentless distractions. Confusion about process. Fear of rejection.
What if you could solve all these problems in one place?
What you really need is these 3 pillars, and I can give them to you:
Expert Author Community is a course and year-long community and coaching experience designed to support you through one year of your journey to becoming a non-fiction author.
And it’s all designed to help action-takers who are ready to write, publish and market a brand-building book…. while feeling supported as they do it.
What you get
1. Community
2. Coaching
3. Content
Expert Author Community is like having a book coach in your backpocket, a safe space to untangle all your ideas, and a roadmap to guide you every step of the way.
What you'll learn
Let's look at the 5 phase curriculum
By the end of Phase 1, all of your core habits and systems will be set up, and your confidence will be sky-high!
By the end of Phase 2, you’ll be crystal clear on how to communicate who you are, how you’re different, and the value you bring. You will have confidence that your book will support your broader commercial and marketing goals.
By the end of Phase 3, you’ll have an outline for every chapter and know the goal for every single chapter before you start writing.
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By the end of Phase 4, you will have distilled your IP into a marketable business message with commercial appeal. Plus, you’ll have a deep well of content to use on repeat in your business marketing materials (all those social media posts and signature talks have just written themselves!)
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By the end of Phase 5, you will have a solid plan for pitching, publishing and marketing your book. You’ll know exactly how your book will work hard for you and lay the foundation revenue-generating opportunities.
Mark landed strong offers in the five-figure range from two
publishers
"Kelly understands what publishers are looking for in a proposal in terms of commercial viability and topics, she knows how to craft a proposal well, and her contacts in the publishing industry means she can get a proposal in front of the right people, quickly.
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Mark Wales, Author of
Survivor: Life in the SAS
(Pan Macmillan)
She understands the common errors new writers make, she educates you on the mechanics of storytelling and development of a protagonists arc. She is the best mix of a drill sergeant that will get the best from you, and an empathic writing peer that understands the process can be hard and solitary."
Expert Author Community have been seen and heard in:
“A highlight for me has been alleviating that feeling of loneliness and hearing that others live similar experiences of roadblocks and frustrations.”
We’ve had members:
Kelly understands her role beautifully – which is to guide the ‘expert’ (ie the author) through the structuring process of a book so the ‘non-expert’ (ie the reader) can ‘get’ the concepts quickly and easy. If you’re looking to have a book published, Kelly would be a great inclusion to have on your team.
PATRICK HOLLINGWORTH published by John Wiley
Want to hear from some of our members what it’s like having the support of the community?
Here you go...
A GLOBAL EDUCATION-BASED COMMUNITY
Yes, we’re based in Australia, but thanks to the wonders of the internet, we have members from all over the world with alumni mentors to suit nearly every timezone
INVESTMENT
6 INSTALMENTS
$297 AUD
1 INSTALMENT
$7995 AUD
MEET THE ALUMNI MENTORS
The Authorhood community is led by me, Kelly Irving, with the strong support of our curated network of alumni mentors. Our mentors are on stand-by to share first-hand insights, open up conversations, build genuine connections with you, and help you push forward. They also run Masterclasses focused on your education, encouragement, and empowerment.
Expert Author Community gives you everything you need to write, publish, and leverage your book to accelerate your business and personal evolution.
Denise Collazo's book led to:
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Donna McGeorge’s books led to:
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Keegan Luiters' book led to:
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Ciara Lancaster's book led to:
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Cassandra Goodman’s book led to:
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And while publishing a book is why we’re all here, opportunities come *well before* the book.
Even without a published book in hand, there are ways to start reaching a wider audience and getting in front of the right people. Like….. using the book’s message as a foundation for your thought leadership platform and pulling out parts of your book to form your signature presentations.
Just like author David Knoff did.
He leveraged his book to position himself as an expert and sought-after speaker - before his best-selling book 537 Days of Winter was more than a couple of chapters long.
“I wanted to transition to running leadership workshops and training and becoming a keynote speaker. I signed with Saxton speakers on the promise that there was a book on the horizon. Since the book, I get a lot more enquiries, a lot more opportunities, the audience is larger, and my product is better. The book has really launched me as an expert and a professional speaker and I wouldn’t be here without Kelly.”
Put another way, you *could* hire…..
OR
You could work through all that 👆 stuff in one place, save $50k+, and start leveraging your ideas and expertise immediately.
Sound like the kind of support, know-how and accountability you need to write and publish your book?
I’m ready to bring ease and light into the process!Stories from the Expert Author Community
Bestselling book coach, Australian Business Book
Awards Judge and creator of Expert Author Community
In case you couldn't tell, I'm creating a new experience for non-fiction authors. One that focuses on both the book AND the person writing it.
It's wild out there. So much information, but little disruption. Plenty of chest-beating, but limited connection. Masses of messages, but minimal clarity. Lots of effort, but few results.
I'm changing that, one book at a time.
Imagine creating something that gets everyone talking about you and lining up to work with you. It's exactly what a strategically written book should do.
And it's exactly what my approach has helped hundreds of authors do......create genuine connection and reader impact, all while powerfully marketing their business.
The work we will do together in Expert Author Community is right at the intersection of strategic brand-building and transformative reader experiences.
We're not just writing a book. We're building your
brand. Claiming your intellectual property.
Faithfully championing your work. And building
relationships with your people.
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Books by Expert Author Community:
Writing a book asks a lot of you - the magic happens in the personal and professional discovery. And it’s exactly this deep work that leads to…..
If you're having a little tug o' war with yourself right
now, this might help....
Sometimes the only way to really know whether a community is the right fit
for is to meet our members
Let us know if you'd like to chat to someone, because if you still think you'd like to go it alone, remember....
The truth is...you’ve already been doing the work.
But you’ve been doing it alone and without really enjoying the process. Joining this community is just the next natural step for you.
And even though you feel slightly uncomfortable, you know it’s that exciting-pre-growth kind of uncomfortable that makes an appearance every time something life-changing is about to happen. It's actually a great place to be in.
The most difficult part of all is deciding to act. The rest just falls into place.
We meet you where you’re at. I’ve had people join before with absolutely no idea and others with the makings of a draft book. As long as you want all the opportunities that come with writing a non-fiction book, you’re in the right place.
Applications open in November, in preparation for program kick-off in early December. We begin with a Welcome Session that is designed to settle you in, show you how everything works, how to best manage your time and, of course, give you an opportunity to meet some other members.
We have about 150 members in the Expert Author Community. But not everyone has access to the live coaching. Expect around 20-25 people on the live coaching sessions, with opportunities for smaller breakout rooms. Sometimes less, sometimes a little more if it's an event. Numbers are managed to keep our sessions dynamic and interactive, so no one gets lost or feels overwhelmed. One of our amazing benefits is the safe judgment-free space we have created. You also have the option of additional small group Focus Friends for even more intimate conversation and support, and member-led Writing Sprint sessions, with usually only 2 or 3 other peers. You are important to us.
The short answer is: yes. You will need to consider costs like hiring an editor, designer, printer, publisher, and marketer. I can’t tell you exactly how much those will be since every author’s writing and publishing choices are different. but we do discuss this a lot in the group and work off guides for everyone based on their budget. What I can tell you is that using my method to get your book into really good shape upfront will save you thousands of dollars. I’m also giving you my Directory of Trusted Suppliers, and access to my special relationships, so you will save time and money.
On average, it’ll take 4-6 dedicated months to get a book from initial idea to final edit. The Fast-Track Project Plan maps out the entire process by weekly tasks so you hit the milestones toward your target. As a guide, at first, you'll only need a couple of hours a week to work on materials, then when you start writing, you’ll get best results if you can allocate 5-7 hours per week. The Expert Author Community is designed for busy professionals who are delivering client work, but still keeps the pressure on to ensure you do the work.
You do not need to come to everything or every session live. There will be times when "stuff happens". You can dip in, and dip out of sessions as you choose. And there are always opportunities to reconnect with the materials and the members.
Once the program is finished, you get the opportunity to stay on in the community at a reduced price (people don’t like to leave! This commitment ensures we maintain a small, engaged group dynamic for our live sessions).
You have the flexibility to make progress as quickly as you like, according to your own schedule. We’ve had people picked up by a publisher in a few weeks from joining, people who have written their books in just 8 weeks and those who like to take much longer and enjoy the ride! Remember, you can dip in, and dip out, of sessions as you choose. You are not expected to turn up to every session - pick what suits you and when! If you get your book written quicker, then you have more time to focus on and get support with your launch.
While I would never talk someone into doing this if they didn't really want to, just know that there is never really a "right time" to write your book. In my honest experience, it's the people who have some hesitation, who doubt "can I really do this" that actually make the best members and go on to have the most fun and success!
So you can wait until next week/ year/ lifetime or our next intake (June) to write and publish a book. Or, you could ask yourself whether this👇 stuff can wait?
If you’ve got a publishing deal already, we might be able to work together. But for anyone else, Expert Author Community is the prerequisite for working with me. This is because when working 1:1 you need to work through a certain section of materials anyway before we can kick off our first session. Joining and doing those materials through The Expert Author Community means you get more bang for your buck and you get to test out this whole book writing process and get ready to dive in working with me more intensely. Community members get priority to any 1:1 spots, and we have an exclusive Nail it Now masterclass offered only to community members for an additional investment and "my editorial eyes on your actual stuff".
The community is a 6-month experience to keep you supported, but deadline driven (I'd be doing you a disservice otherwise). Once the time is up, we invite you to stay on to access the live coaching, at a heavily discounted membership so you can keep learning and leveraging the hell out of your work.
The resources, worksheets, templates and processes can be used time and time again for each and every book, long after your time in the Expert Author Community. We never just kick you out and sever our relationship. You are important to us and will continue to be long after our time together.
We are a global group of authors, spread out in nearly every continent. As such, we have Focus Friends, and Alumni Mentors on hand to support you based on your location. Member-led sessions and live coaching sessions are scheduled taking into account different timezones, where possible, but we generally meet at 9.30am AEST, which we find works best for most members and locations. We have global guests so times/dates of some sessions may change to accommodate them.
To ensure we have a variety of different access points for different schedules and timezones, we encourage members to host their own 1-hour Writing Sprint sessions. These are so easy to set up and require absolutely no experience or specialist skills. All you have to do is pick a date and time that suits you and 2 or 3 other peers will jump into your session and work with you.
In any case...
If the pay-in-full price tag isn’t doable, you can opt for the 4-month payment plan. If that's an issue, I encourage you to privately reach out to me. I don’t ever want to place you in financial stress and am sure we can work something out that makes you feel good about joining us.
Time for some basic maths. Here are 3 ways you could leverage your book and 10x your investment:
1. Create a signature program, based on your methodology which you’ve codified as part of writing your book, and sell that for $2000 to 10 people
2. Sign on one client for a high ticket consulting package
3. Land 4 speaking gigs at $5k each
Of course, that's why the best thing to do is Express your Interest and then come to our free Open House in November 2023! You can learn more about us, and we can learn more about you and your goals and how we can help. You'll have the opportunity to meet and greet current members (without me in the room) so you can ask them anything you like to determine if we're the right fit for you. Otherwise, send me a message and I’ll put you in touch with someone in your industry and/or your timezone.
