Celebrating Female Voices in Business and Books

Hearing female voices in business has never been more important. Women have long been under-represented in business, especially in senior positions, and we still have a long journey to go towards equality.  But ensuring more female voices in business are heard will help us pave the way.

Statistics show that in the past four years the number of best-selling female business authors has been dropping every year. In 2018, out of the 200 business best-sellers, 13% were written by women. In 2019, that percentage fell to 11.5% and in 2020 it dropped to 8.5%.

This International Women’s Day, we speak with a few of LID’s female authors to find out what it’s like to publish a business book as a female author. They also tell their tips to other women who are seeking to share their knowledge with the world and write a business book.

Alisa Grafton – author of Great Networking (to be published in April)

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

It is important to hear a wide spectrum of voices when it comes to business books – the readers should be able to relate to the author’s experience. Whilst writing, I felt that my journey was important just as it was – the ups and downs of it – and I tried to be guided by that thought.

I am a multitasker, but whether this has anything to do with my gender, I’m not sure. As I have a pretty busy day job that requires me to be in the office in central London five days a week, as well as attend client meetings, the writing took place in the evenings after my daughter was tucked up in bed and the laundry was done, and around family commitments during weekends. Before you think that I’m some sort of a superwoman, I must add that I have a very hands-on life partner! Such support matters hugely, but so does the power of your ambition. We are often our worst enemies, we hold ourselves back, so it is important to give yourself the permission to be, and to do, your best. And to show positive recognition of the feats achieved by other remarkable women around us who shine and do well.

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

Writing is often a lonely, challenging graft, so knowing why you are doing it, helps you to dig deep when needed. Because of that, working out the purpose for writing the book is the place to start, in my opinion. In Great Networking, I felt for all of the young professionals and all those digital-natives who have not had a chance to practise their face-to-face networking, especially in the last two years, and I thought that my experience could be very useful to them.

And also – allow yourself to do well. There is never the “right time” to write a book, but if you have this calling inside you, give it a chance to come out, invest in making your ambition a reality. It will be worth it in the end.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your book?

LID have provided me with brilliant support from the word go, and right up to the end. They have some amazingly talented women on their team and progressive, forward-thinking men, so I feel proud to have worked with this publisher. They are very well-placed to bring forward much more female talent in the years to come.

Sangeeta Waldron – author of Corporate Social Responsibility Is Not Public Relations

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

It’s a great feeling of accomplishing your thoughts and putting them into a written format for others to read. And you’re sharing your knowledge and your research. It’s a very empowering feeling.

There are not many female business authors who are  also from an ethnic background and while I’ve never experienced any big challenges, I think sometimes you find that people don’t take you as seriously as you would like to be taken.

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

Do your research. Find the publishing house that you think fits your values and understands you as an author. I highly recommend LID; I think they do this very well.

Make sure you feel empowered about what you’re writing – I think that’s really important. And you should have a good book editor. Again, I had that fantastic support from LID.

So, if you’re thinking about writing a book, it’s not just about you getting published but finding the right publishing house for you.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your book?

From start to finish, it’s been really empowering, it’s been fun. It’s just been joyous. I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve learned a lot from the process. And also, LID pushes you, demands the best from you and you want to achieve the best. Sometimes you think, “Oh, this chapter is great”, but then they will find something that will make it even better. When you publish a book you want to be very proud of it and I think that’s what LID does really well. You’re very happy with the end product.

Claire Fox – author of Work-Life Symbiosis

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

It was hugely exciting. I felt empowered and immensely proud that my vision and message was being shared so widely. It is a special feeling to see your own philosophy, concepts, models and hard work published and on a shelf in a book shop. I was grateful for all the support and encouragement I received from friends, family, colleagues and of course LID. 

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

Go for it! Put aside nerves or doubts – we all have them, we’re human. But don’t let them stand in your way – believe in yourself. I would also strongly advocate making your book “you” – be authentic. By bringing yourself and your own personal style to your writing you bring a book to life in a way that enables readers to feel connected with you. We need more female voices to be heard, so know it’s important for you to get your work out there.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your book?

I enjoyed working with LID very much. We worked as an effective team with LID providing the support, guidance and tools I needed, and me producing the content. The breadth of expertise at LID was hugely helpful because I was able to work with different team members on all elements of producing, launching and marketing my book Work-Life Symbiosis: The Model for Happiness and Balance.

Katy Mousinho – co-author of Wonder Women

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

I co-authored the Wonder Women book with an ex-colleague, Giles Lury, which made it all much easier for me as a female author writing a book for the first time.  Giles has had previous books published by LID, so the other advantage I had was that we already had a publisher who was interested in the idea before we started all the really hard work.  Also, from my perspective, it gave the book so much more kudos having a proper publisher.  I was often asked if I was self-publishing and everyone was really impressed when I said we had a publisher.

The process of writing the book was immensely enjoyable as it involved interviewing so many inspirational women together with researching fascinating stories and then bringing it all together to provide our perspective on the future.  This all very much built on my skill-set (I was previously an insight and brand consultant) but stretched me to new heights.  It was certainly more challenging than I had anticipated, but I’d definitely do it again.

The book got tremendous traction and has given me a platform to continue writing (on the Wonder Women – Marketing website and blogs), to speak in webinars and to feel like I’m really making a difference to people’s lives.

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

I would definitely recommend writing down your idea, some chapters and then pitching it to a publisher before going the whole way.  It makes it a much more enjoyable experience when you’re writing and you know you’re going to get the book published at the end of the day.  Also, you know in advance that your idea has value and will be taken seriously.

Writing can be a lonely experience, so don’t work in isolation – make sure you talk to a variety of different people about your idea/s and get others to help you over the hurdles you will inevitably encounter. It’s good to get validation from others around you that all your hard work will be of interest, but, most importantly, it’s good to get their view and opinions.  I was never afraid of critique and was open to those more experienced in writing and publishing than me to give me guidance.

Don’t give up half-way!  Writing a book was much harder work and more time consuming than I had ever anticipated, but it’s all worth it when the book is finally published.

Be brave and take risks.  Before writing the book, I was always so conscious that my writing would not be good enough.  It would take me ages to write one blog and then I’d be fearful of how it would be received.  Now I’m much bolder, have found my own voice and just run with it.  Some people may not like it, but I don’t worry about that anymore.  If I think I’ve got a good and important idea to communicate, I just go with it.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your book?

The LID team were really supportive and helped cement many of the ideas and thinking.  I learnt that so much of the success of a book is in the editing.  We ended up writing far too much, and had to reduce the word count, but that became a very good exercise in expressing ourselves clearly and succinctly – very important for a business book.  They also really made a difference by challenging us to think more about the structure of the book and group our series of stories and interviews around themes, rather than randomly.  It made the book a much more interesting and easy read.

The final thing (which is really important) was LID giving us deadlines!  It really made sure we delivered and made decisions.  Otherwise, there might have been a lot more procrastination.

I loved it when the box of physical books was delivered!

Nicole Soames – author of The Presenting Book, The Negotiation Book, The Coaching Book & The Influence Book

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

It was always on my bucket list to write a book so that I could reach a wider audience. Having done my research, it seemed to me that a lot of the business books on the market were written by men and focused on business theory. I wanted to publish business books that had practical applications for everyday life. As a female author, it was both empowering and enabling to be able to publish a business book that highlighted the power of emotional intelligence (EQ) and helped set people up for success.

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

Have the courage of your convictions and go for it. There is never a “good” time to start writing a business book. You will always feel too busy to fit it into your life. The secret to getting started is to take the time to structure your book and work out a timeline for each chapter so you can hold yourself to account. Silence any self-doubt by reminding yourself why your combination of skills, expertise and experience will make you a great female author and enable you to make a real difference in people’s lives.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your books?

When I first put pen to paper and wrote The Negotiation Book, it took some juggling. I was managing a team of 18 people, delivering a portfolio of programmes to 100s of clients all over the world, as well as being a mum to two teenage daughters. Working with LID helped make the process as seamless as possible. From discussing the initial concept through to the editing and marketing of the book, LID made my journey as an author both enjoyable and rewarding. I was delighted when The Negotiation Book was shortlisted for the CMI Business Book of the Year Award. Since then, I have worked with LID to write three more books: The Influence Book,The Presenting Book and The Coaching Book – all driven by my passion to set people up for success.

Kate Usher – author of Your Second Phase

What is it like to publish a business book as a female author?

It’s an interesting question as I can only speak as a woman. Publishing a book is an all-consuming process, it becomes your waking and sleeping obsession. You are woken with moments of anxiety and inspiration as your brain sifts through the thoughts of the day. If you have children as I do, you definitely need a partner to support you, to take on the day-to-day activities that would remain undone, as you focus on crafting your creation into something meaningful and impactful – hopefully. I talk about Menopause, writing my book felt like something I had to do for myself and every other woman, I felt like I was on a mission.

What would be your tips for any female author looking to publish a business book?

My tips would be:

1. Be committed – it will be a project that will consume your time, your thoughts and your energy. Commit to it and reap the rewards at the other end.
2. Be informed – identify your reader and speak to them. Ensure that you produce something that they want to read
3. Be prepared – to ask for feedback from your review group and to get it. The best feedback is the uncomfortable ones as they make you look harder and think deeper. It will make your book a better one
4. Be your own PR person – long after the initial launch, you will need to promote your book and keep posting it into every opportunity. Don’t give up.

What was it like working with LID in creating and publishing your books?

Working with LID was incredible. The whole team were very supportive throughout. The intensity of the editing process was something I had not expected. While it felt very real going through it and a little scary at times, I never questioned the professionalism of the LID team. The quality of mine, and every other book produced by them, is a testament to this.

 

At LID, we are keen to work with more female authors, to share their stories, their expertise and their empowering experiences.

Martin Liu, LID Publishing’s Chief Operating Officer & Publisher, comments: “LID’s mission is sharing knowledge – it’s spreading important and relevant ideas of thought leaders in the world of business and self-development. But it is only by diversifying our author base – and hearing from all voices –  that we can fully achieve that mission. When it comes to female authors, quite frankly, we have not published enough in the past. We are trying to change this, and we welcome any female author who has a publishing project to discuss that with us.”

Alec Egan, Associate Publisher at LID Publishing, adds: “Around two years ago, we had a series of discussions internally about what we could do differently to diversify our authors, including more female authors. I have to say that it was not easy to come up with a specific strategy. But when we started working on this article last month, I looked back at the authors who I brought to LID in the last ten months and realized that eight of them were women. Is there a law which says you attract that which you think and talk about? Thinking about this interesting ratio, I saw one quite profound outcome of what we started two years ago: more conversations about what you want to happen raise awareness, and that in turn, leads to desired results. To help us further, we would like to ask all of our authors to join in this conversation and pass on the message to their networks that LID is open for discussions with female authors about their book ideas.”

Help us make more female voices heard! If you have a business book proposal, send it to us at info@lidpublishing.com.

If you’re looking for inspiration to start your book project or if you’re simply keen on reading more business books by female authors, please take part in our giveaway for a chance to win seven books written by women and published by LID. Or you can win a 45-minute (free) strengths consultation with Sally Bibb (author of The Strengths Book and The Strengths Workbook). Enter from here.