Fireworks

Are you ready?

Fanfare Please!

Well here’s some big news. I’ve just agreed to do another book!

It’s to be part of the big, new series from Hodder & Staughton – the Science of Success. Obviously I’m doing the book in the series about making better presentations! :)

So what’s it going to look like?

I’m glad you asked! The plan is this.. It’s going to be a completely researched book, with no faff or opinion.  (Remember our mantra of unpacking some of the bollocks that WIKITrainers spread!?). That means that for each chapter I’ll be taking one academic research paper, peer reviewed and published in a high-impact journal and explaining what it means for presenters and giving specific tips about how to use that bit of research.  (For those of you without a research background, ‘peer reviewed etc’ is the Gold Standard for research.)

Simple, eh?

It’s a perfect fit for me. Remember my background of 24 years in research before I moved into training? Well I’ll be using that. Remember how we make ourselves different as trainers by only training material that’s based upon reviewed research?  We’re using that.

How am I going to do it?

Transparently. Not only am I going to write the book (and somehow keep up with the other work – check me out for being organised!) but I’m going to write about the writing – right here.  I’m going to try and keep to the following pattern:

• week one – a blog about making presentations, trying to be as helpful as I’ve tried to be for the past few years
• week two – a blog about the book, perhaps sharing a bit of content; perhaps sharing some material that can’t make it into the book but is useful and interesting; perhaps about the actual process of writing (meetings, software, motivation, problems, solutions, headaches, the whole lot!)
• whenever I can – extra stuff that I find interesting and think will be helpful.

Fair enough?  I’l start pretty soon, introducing the team I’m working with at Hodder, such as Victoria, my Commissioning Editor and talking through the set up, how they found me and all that sort of stuff.

It’ll be a journey. Fancy pegging along? :)