Expert support for authors: interview with The Author Clinic
Today, I’m excited to be sharing an interview about a brand new service that I WISH I had had when I first started writing: The Author Clinic. I’ve known the ladies who set this up for a while now, and when I first heard about their new venture, I found it hard to believe no one had thought of doing something like this before…
I’m sure it’s going to be so helpful to so many authors - so without further ado, let’s get into the interview.
Hi Ladies! Thanks for being here. First of all, please can you explain a little bit about what The Author Clinic is, and what service it offers.
The Author Clinic is a bespoke service where anyone, published author or a writer just starting out, can book an hour long, paid video chat with any one of the five of us. The idea is that you can ask literally anything, writing or publishing related, and we will do our best to answer your questions, brainstorm, help solve a writing problem, or share our insider experience of the publishing world from an author’s perspective.
“Having someone who is both experienced and unconnected with you in any way to bounce an idea off, might be just what is needed.”
What prompted you to launch The Author Clinic now?
Our reason for starting The Author Clinic was that there simply wasn’t anything else like this out there, and we thought, well why not start it? The five authors behind The Author Clinic all met during our debut year, 2020, the worst possible year (we would argue) for our debuts to be launched! But the positive side of it was that we, together with a great bunch of other debut authors, all found ways to support each other, and this has continued over the years.
Between us, we have experienced a full range of the ups and downs of the publishing industry, many of which are not shared in public, for obvious reasons. But it means we have experience which we feel could be of great use and support to other writers. It can be a very lonely business, and sometimes decisions about what to do are hard to make. Having someone who is both experienced and unconnected with you in any way to bounce an idea off, might be just what is needed.
How does this differ from existing writing programmes, mentoring schemes, or paid coaching?
We’re unique because what we’re offering is a dip-in service. You don’t need to sign up for a course, you’re not tied into several sessions - you’re literally booking a one hour, one-on-one virtual session. You’re under no obligation to book again, though of course if you want to we’re always here. We charge £60 for the hour, and that’s it. No other charges, no extras. Our research shows this is a very competitive price - pair that with the fact that you can choose whichever author you want to speak to and ask us anything writing or publishing related, and we think The Author Clinic offers great value.
Another difference is that sometimes you just need to address a very specific issue - you may not have the time or the resources to enter a mentoring relationship or start a course. You just need a burst of immediate, specific support. That’s what we do best. And of course it’s confidential.
What kinds of questions or challenges do debut authors bring versus mid‑career or experienced writers?
As a debut there’s so much you don’t know - how publishing works, what your editor might expect of you, how agents work. Debuts often are so grateful to be published and don’t want to rock the boat, so they don’t ask enough questions, but the better informed you are, the more you’ll get out of the process. It’s also reassuring to know that others have gone through what you’re experiencing and, with hindsight, can offer good advice on coping strategies. For example, it’s normal to feel like you’ve broken your book during edits, or perhaps have a sense of deflation after publication date, or maybe feel you can't possibly write a second book because this one took everything out of you. Everyone in the Author Clinic has had these experiences and we’re here to offer support and strategies for dealing with them.
With experienced writers, these feelings don’t necessarily disappear, but there might be additional questions around career: what to do if your debut didn’t sell, if your editor leaves, if you want to switch genres or leave your agent. We’re here to offer advice. Getting published is hard enough, staying published can be the greater challenge. Of course we can also help with the nitty-gritty of novel-writing, too, such as plot brainstorming, pitching ideas, and so on.
How do you tailor your advice to meet both ends of the spectrum - someone just finding their voice and someone seeking to polish or reinvent their career?
I think this is where we have an advantage over some other similar writing services that are available to authors - everyone in The Author Clinic has been a debut author themselves, and has then gone on to be someone who has needed to polish or reinvent their career. We have had experience of changing agents, or publishers, or genres. We know exactly what kind of advice would have been useful at those different stages of our career and can now provide that to others.
“We’d love to become the go-to drop- in service for authors.”
Can you share a moment in your own journey as an author when some targeted advice would’ve completely changed your path?
When I wrote ‘the end’ on the first novel I wrote after leaving university, I thought it was finished. I’m an impatient person, and I wanted to get my book in front of an agent as soon as possible. I wish I could have spoken to someone who had been through the process at that point as they would have made me realise I needed to take a step back, put the manuscript away for a while, and then come back and edit it - preferably with some input from someone with publishing experience. I jumped in straight away and sent out a draft that wasn’t ready, and unsurprisingly didn’t get an agent. If I’d realised that you only get one chance to send your book to an agent, I wouldn’t have done that, and perhaps I would have managed to get a publishing deal without having a whole other career first!
Each of you brings unique experiences. Can you outline a little about each of your specialities to help people choose the right writer for them?
Yes, sure! I’m Nikki Smith - I write commercial thrillers and have been published by both Orion and Penguin so I know what it’s like to move publishers! I’m happy to assist with any publishing problems, but particularly enjoy helping unpublished authors get the best possible submission package ready to send to an agent.
I’m Louise Fein and I write historical fiction based in different time periods and countries. I’ve been published by Head of Zeus and William Morrow (an imprint of HarperCollins) and have experience of being published in the UK, the US and in other territories. I am happy to talk about publishing and agents in general, as well as on the writing side, helping with finding that important hook, structure, world building, and working with multiple time-lines and points of view.
I’m Eleni Kyriacou and I write historical crime, set in the 1950s. My first publisher was Hodder, and my current one is Head of Zeus. I have a lot of experience of rejection! When my second book was on submission it took about 18 months to find a home, so I know what it feels like to write a book you love that nobody seems to ‘get’. I was so ready to give up. It was eventually published and ended up being chosen for the BBC’s Between the Covers book club which shows how unpredictable publishing can be. I particularly enjoy helping anyone who feels stuck - whether an aspiring, debut or established author.
I’m Charlotte Levin. My first two books were published by Pan Macmillan and my third is due to be published by Oneworld. All of my books seem to be slightly different and straddle genres, so for a start, I’m here to advise authors not to do that! After five years in the industry, I have learnt so much about its working and pitfalls and I know how tough it can be both before securing an agent and after being published, so I’m here to help authors negotiate this unusual journey, whatever stage they’re at. I also love brainstorming plot ideas and fixing issues with my writer friends, so I’m here to help anyone who is struggling or blocked with their books.
I’m Louise Hare and I mostly write historical fiction, though I’m planning to dabble in other genres in my next few books! I’m published by HQ (HarperCollins) in the UK and my crime series was published by Berkley (PRH) in the US. For the past five years I’ve also worked with The History Quill and Fabled Planet, editing for, tutoring and coaching writers of historical, fantasy and sci-fi fiction. I love problem solving but also just talking to other writers, which can be so cathartic. At this stage I think all five of us are aware of the peaks and troughs of this business so we’re well placed to offer advice or even just be the person who listens and understands!
What does success look like for The Author Clinic?
We’d love to become the go-to drop- in service for authors. So new and existing clients can use the service ad hoc throughout their writing journey for various reasons. It would be great if authors at any stage in their career knew that whatever issue they were facing, however stuck they were on a project, that there was a service that could potentially help. We’d also love to extend the services to publishers within their author care packages for debut authors. Providing an opportunity for new authors to ask all the questions and hopefully help them with what can be an anxious time.
What do you see as the biggest hurdles for writers today, and how can your service bridge that?
The publishing industry feels like it is in a state of flux at the moment, with a lot of uncertainty over what effect AI will have, the threats to copyright from changes in government policy and wholesale theft of our work by the tech companies, not to mention the sustainability of physical book shops into the future. We can’t possibly solve those existential issues, but we all have faith in the notion that there will be a healthy publishing industry going forward and that human authored books will always have appeal. Readers will continue to want to read great books and ultimately that will need writers to write them. We can help by sharing our real-world experience, give honest and constructive advice, author to author. We can lift each other up, and that is what we hope to do on a wider scale.
Looking ahead a year or two, where do you see The Author Clinic going?
At the moment we’re concentrating on the one-to-one online consultations, but who knows in the future. Though as individuals we are also free to offer different services if requested and it suits the individual clinic author.
How can people find out more about you, and how can they book in a slot?
We have an Instagram page which has links in our profile that will take people straight to a booking page for that author where you can book and pay for a session whenever is convenient. It’s as simple as that!
We also have a Facebook page and you can get in touch with us through that as well, or through our own websites.
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