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We wanted to get to know Jeanne Grunert (NAIWE’s Branding & Marketing Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

What is personal branding?

Personal branding is the art and science of developing a brand presence online. It’s an intentional effort to position yourself as an expert in a specific niche area to help generate positive awareness for your work, talents, and services. Just like a company builds a brand so that its brand recognition acts as a sort of shorthand for their products and services, your personal brand becomes a shorthand for what clients can expect from you.

 

What are the components of personal branding?

Many people think of branding as just a logo, or a visual identity, or a logo and a tag line — the slogan a company uses along with the logo. But branding encompasses much more than that. It is not just the visual representation or the written slogan, but the interactions and delivery on the brand promise itself that encompass a full brand.

There are many components of a personal brand, but the very first step is to understand yourself as a brand. Who are you? What do you deliver? What makes your services or writing unique? Who do you sell it to?

From there, you can develop your own “brand statement” and a “tag line” that sum up your brand promise, along with the ideas you wish to convey that accurately represent YOU. A personal brand must be a strong, clear, and true representation of yourself and your services to be effective. (If you put on an act, it won’t stick — it won’t feel right to you or to your customers if you try to be something you’re not or build a personal brand around attributes you just don’t have. I made this mistake for years until I learned how to find my authentic self and build a brand around it.)

 

What are the benefits of building a personal brand?

There are many benefits of building a personal brand as a writer, editor, or service provider in our industry. Whether you publish fiction, nonfiction, ghostwrite for others, or write commercial copy, personal branding will help you to:

• Increased Visibility: Personal branding helps you stand out in a crowded marketplace, making it easier for people to notice and remember you, whether you’re a job seeker, entrepreneur, or professional.
• Career Advancement: A strong personal brand can enhance your career prospects by showcasing your expertise and unique qualities, leading to more opportunities and promotions.
• Trust and Credibility: Building a consistent personal brand builds trust and credibility with your audience, as they come to rely on your expertise and authenticity.
• Networking Opportunities: A strong personal brand can attract like-minded individuals and open doors to valuable networking opportunities, enabling you to connect with influential people in your industry.
• Monetization Potential: A well-established personal brand can lead to various income streams, such as speaking engagements, book deals, sponsorships, and consulting, turning your expertise into a profitable venture.

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Jeanne Grunert will lead Part 2 of the workshop. In Part 2, participants will be encouraged to review their results from Part 1 and identify their own unique personal branding “calling cards”. Then, through various exercises, participants will develop their personal brand profile and leave the workshop with several ideas on how they can share their personal brand profile.

You can join in this conversation on November 9, at 2:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on branding your freelance business. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Jeanne Grunert is the president and founder of Seven Oaks Consulting, a business-to-business content marketing agency. She is an award-winning writer and direct marketing expert with over 30 years of writing, marketing, and business experience. Prior to founding Seven Oaks Consulting, Jeanne led marketing for divisions of McGraw-Hill Education, Teachers College Columbia University, The College Board, and retail, publishing, and financial service companies in the New York City area. Known worldwide for her exceptional leadership and communication skills, Jeanne works seamlessly across cultural and corporate barriers to achieve outstanding results. She holds an M.A. in writing and an M.S. in direct and digital marketing (awarded with distinction) from New York University, as well as certifications in social media marketing, content marketing, adult education, and personal branding. Originally from the New York City area, Jeanne currently resides with her husband, John, and many pets on a 17-acre farm in rural Virginia. When not leading marketing teams through her work at Seven Oaks Consulting, she enjoys gardening, reading, cooking, and writing mystery novels.

We wanted to get to know Suzanne Sherman (NAIWE’s Memoir Coach Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

How is writing a memoir different than writing a fiction work?

Memoir is interested in the power of the personal. Memoir is a genre known also by the name creative nonfiction. Memoir is nonfiction; it is not fiction. Memoir does, however, share some of narrative tools fiction uses, such as the inclusion of both scene and narrative, the use of character development, plot that drives the story, and narrative arc (the protagonist, or author’s, growth journey from start to finish). Memoir is not autobiography. Autobiography is a story OF a life. Memoir is a story FROM a life, usually one with relatable aspects readers can learn from. Memoir has a theme, usually a focused topic or time period, such as overcoming an addiction (Drinking: A Love Story by Carolyn Knapp), coming to terms with the death of a loved one (Wild by Cheryl Strayed), carrying a child with Down’s Syndrome while in graduate school at Harvard (Expecting Adam by Martha Beck). Writing memoir is different from writing fiction in part because authors are drawing on their experience and animating that core truth with believable characters in unfolding scenes that move the story from beginning to end.

 

Does an author need permission to write about those who may have caused harm to the author?

Memoirists are not required to receive verbal or written permission by anyone mentioned or even featured in a book. In this webinar, Methods for Managing Exposure of Self and Others in Memoir, I will discuss this important detail, sharing information supplied by an attorney who specializes in self-publishing. Authors can choose one of several options if they are concerned about revealing someone’s identity in their book.

 

Why do some authors of memoirs use pen names?

Using a pen name is one of the ways authors sometimes publish to avoid revealing their identity if they are concerned about that, for personal or professional reasons. There can be relief for some in knowing their identity isn’t known when their book is published. There can, however, be drawbacks with this too. In the webinar, I’ll discuss the pros and cons of using a pen name.

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Different from fiction, memoir can often lead a writer into some emotionally challenging territory. Writers often have to spend time exploring material that is essential for their book but is uncomfortable to dive into deeply to craft scenes and write an engaging narrative that includes what’s needed.

How do successful memoir authors do it? Jeannette Walls (The Glass Castle), Caroline Knapp (Drinking: A Love Story), and Vince Granata (Everything Is Fine) are just a few writers who have published critically acclaimed memoirs with emotionally challenging material in recent years. Cheryl Strayed (Wild) and Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love) wrote bestselling memoirs that showcased their vulnerabilities without shame.

Suzanne Sherman will give you helpful tips and tested methods for navigating the emotional territory that can come with writing memoir so you can successfully include what is essential if you want to write a memoir. She will address self-exposure and the exposure of others and show ways other authors work with it. Suzanne will provide information about relevant legalities and discuss the pros and cons of pen names.

Take advantage of this unique opportunity to benefit your writing.

You can join in this conversation on November 14, at 2:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on feeling vulnerable in writing your memoir. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Suzanne Sherman is an author, book and magazine editor, and writing and publishing coach and consultant. She specializes in memoir and nonfiction and offers a weekly memoir writing class on Zoom. Her latest book is Girlhood in America: Personal Stories 1910–2010.

We wanted to get to know MJ Courchesne (NAIWE’s Copyright & Permissions Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

How can one identify when content is AI generated?

This is still difficult to do. The best practices I have seen so far include running a manuscript (or content) through plagiarism software like ithenticate.com or other such tools. Other than that, a well-read human or editor is likely to catch non-sensical statements and grammatical errors that don’t make sense. I’m sure the proper technology will be developed to make this easier.

 

Are AI and authors, and AI and editors competing for the same jobs?

I would say not. From what I have learned, authors and editors are generally using AI for ideation and some initial work. With that said, at the moment AI is not wholly replacing anyone.

 

We hear about all the negative news around AI and the publishing industry. Is there any positive news to share?

Of course. Publishers are looking at ways to make sure that the author’s voice comes through, and that it is a human author. Importantly, the US Copyright Office has posted guidance that AI-generated materials cannot be copyrighted. As the human requirement is necessary for copyright, publishers are seeking ways to ensure they are not publishing wholly-AI generated materials. I do not see the industry becoming wholly AI very soon.

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Join us for this round-up of current issues surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) and the world of creative content. We’ll review pending cases, as well as what the Copyright Office, publishers, creators, and some of the major associations representing creators and publishers have to say about generative AI. We’ll also explore some language you might see in contracts going forward and review some tips, tricks, and tools that may serve you as we move into a future where AI-generated content becomes more ubiquitous.

You can join in this conversation on September 26, at 7:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on artificial intelligence and author works. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Mary Jo (“MJ”) Courchesne is the owner and principal consultant of Gryphon Publishing Consulting. A publishing veteran with more than 20 years of experience in trade, academic, and direct-response publishing, she has spent nearly two decades specializing in licensing, subsidiary rights, and permissions. MJ is a frequent and polished presenter on licensing and copyright, instructing future publishing professionals in the George Washington University’s Masters in Publishing program for the last 16 years. She currently serves on the Board of Experts for the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors, serves on the Advocacy Committee for the Independent Book Publishers Association, and holds memberships with the Book Industry Study Group and the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators.