Author Spotlight interview with Della Judd

There’s no doubt that the challenges and changes of the last couple of years have impacted on our lives and the way we like to work. From home-based working and consideration of how one may want to align their job to a culture, boss or location, it has brought the subject to the fore.

It also inspired Della Judd to write her first book. She joined me on the Smart Author – Fast Track programme last June and her first book, Get The Job You Really Want in a Post Pandemic World, is out in June 2022.

This is the fourth and final interview in our latest Author’s Journey Spotlight interviews and there’s normally one specific salient point I like to focus on. But in this interview, there are three!

The biggest thing I’d like to acknowledge here is how Della used ‘buy one, donate one’ crowdfunding to raise £3k – before her book was published. And this has led to 154 jobseekers in need getting a copy of her book for free!

Although she had an altruistic reason for doing the crowdfunder, it has also given her massive publicity, and many new supporters.

You can find out how she did this by watching the interview below.

You’ll also find out what happened when she realised that writing a book wasn’t a hobby and she had to allocate time to make it happen.

Plus, the turning point that took place when she wondered if she was writing the wrong book.

Della Judd's editing and peer review tips

I’d like to share Della's advice for authors who are going through the editing and peer review process.

When you get to the final manuscript stage – where you are ready to share it with others – most of my authors send out their book to trusted peer reviewers. Because it’s better to get feedback then rather than after it has been published.

In the interview, Della shares how she felt sick when she sent it out for the first time. As she was worried that “everyone knows this”. So, when a respected colleague told her that it was pure gold, she knew she was on the right track.

Her advice for new authors?

• It’s worth getting people to review your book before publishing. Set out expectations in advice and give people a deadline.
• Editing is a choice. If someone suggests you make changes, remember it’s your book and it’s OK not to agree.
• Her daughter suggested she rank her reviewers in terms of importance and how close they are to her ideal reader.
• It’s easy to focus on the criticism rather than what people love about it.
• Don’t underestimate the time it takes to get your book finished and edited. Allow sufficient time for the editing, design and proofing stages.

At the time of the interview with Sheryl last month, she was waiting for the proof copy to arrive and now it’s in her hands!

You can find out more about Della Judd's book here.

If you are interested in finding out more about the Smart Author System and how I can help you, please click here.