Show Notes
Hello, and welcome back to the Hashtag, It’s Summer podcast series which is my invitation to you to stay in touch with your Instagram book marketing and platform building in this super-busy season. I’ve recorded a slightly longer episode this week because it turns out I have A LOT to say about growth (and this version is 15 mins shorter than the original ✂️ 🙈). I actually find it quite tricky to talk about account growth in a generalised sense which I think is why I started to waffle in the og recording. I really dislike it when Instagram ‘gurus’ up and down the internet pretend that driving account growth is as easy as slapping a fill-in-the-blanks hook over the top of some b-roll video and churning out the same content formats as everyone else. These tactics of course have their place but what will deliver sustained and sustainable growth varies enormously across niche, genre, and/ or target audience. Once I got going with my planning for this episode though I realised I was falling foul of The Curse of the Expert. I see this all the time with experts who’re writing in their field. You think the basics are too basic to share when in fact there is always someone who doesn’t know what you have learned over many years, or who may have been waiting for someone like you to say it in a way that is perfect for someone like them. All of that to say that once I started planning this episode I realised there was so much I wanted to say about growth - in different forms - that I actually had to edit 15 minutes off this episode once I’d finished with it 🙈 In this episode I talk about: * why account growth is often a common area of anxiety for writers and authors * three content types to have in the mix if growth is a priority for you * practical advice about driving account growth * how you might reframe growth so you don’t burnout or end up getting The Ick about Instagram. If listening to this podcast has made you curious about the TOO MUCH INSTAGRAM membership, you can find out more here. But in brief, members enjoy: * weekly check in chats where you can share your post plans and get advice * fortnightly Content Create-alongs - these are co-working/ body doubling sessions to ring fence some time to create content and I’m always there to answer any questions you might have * monthly Ask Me Anything clinics when there is space for me to give you more in depth advice and guidance * regular resources such as tutorials, post ideas and guest speakers to learn from * access to the full archive of resources including the Reel-y Simple Reels series and the Growth Sprint To become a member, upgrade your subscription today. If you’re taking a break from Instagram this summer, why not join the WAKE UP INSTAGRAM Challenge at the end of August? WAKE UP is a free seven-day series of tasks and exercises to get you back in front of your favourite online people. You can join by signing up with your email below:
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More from Too Much Social Podcast
Welcome to episode 10 of the Serving Books podcast series! We have covered so much ground in this series, and I hope you have found all of the previous episodes useful and interesting - please forward them on to any writers groups or writer friends you think might be interested. Copy this link and send it to your friends as it will open the podcast on whatever platform they use to listen: https://podfollow.com/1826841227 Today was supposed to be the final episode of the series BUT, as Robert Burns so elegantly put it, ‘the best laid schemes o’ Mice and Men, gang aft agley’… which is a phrase etched into my brain from when I used to teach Steinbeck’s novel to teenagers. Basically, what they were both getting at is that even good preparation can’t always stop things going astray… In my case the things that have gone astray are my ability to sit at my desk thanks to a frozen shoulder and carpal tunnel inflammation which means I never got round to inviting one of the guests I want to interview, while another guest had to postpone recording because of much more important things they needed to make space for in their own lives. This all means that for today, we are going to hear from one of my guests who is going to talk about future-proofing your career as an author. She has so much to say of value that it’s probably for the best that she gets her own episode and I can spread the wisdom out! There will be bonus episodes featuring other special guests once I am able to record them, so please tune in when those episodes are released. Please welcome, Claire Venus ✨ "Queen of Substack" and co-author of How to Build a World Class Substack! Before you dive into this episode though, if you are listening to this episode before the 24th September 2026, you might be interested in a free workshop I am running called Setting Up for Instagram Success. This is a FREE online workshop taking place on Thursday 24th September, 2-3pm GMT (replay available). We’ll spend an hour walking through the 5 opportunities you have to capture the attention of every (relevant) potential reader who lands on your account. You’ll learn how to make the best use of: * your handle * your bio * your profile picture * your links * and your pinned posts Come along and set yourself up for success as an author on Instagram! Sign up for free below to attend live and/ or receive the replay:
Welcome to episode 9 - the penultimate episode! - of Serving Books: from inspiration to publication. The podcast where I map what it takes for a book to go from being a glimmer of an idea to landing in your readers’ hands. In this series I’ve sought to answer the questions I have as a publishing industry outsider by interviewing industry experts including writing mentors, book coaches, writing community founders, editors, agents, book marketers, publicity and pr experts, and book shop owners to bring their insights and knowledge straight to your ears! In this episode I speak with three guests about a variety of ways authors can keep the momentum going post-launch that are off the beaten tracks of newsletters and social media: * James, founder of Reading Rebels, offers his insights into how authors can hold effective school visits * Karen Powell from ethical audiobook platform xigxag talks about the opportunities they offer authors to reach their listeners * and Elizabeth Morris , creator of the Crib Notes newsletter and community, tells us about the possibilities offered by working in collaboration with bookish influencers and content creators If you’re new to the podcast you might want to start at the beginning: Or, select an episode from this list of everything I’ve released so far: ✍🏻 How do you get words on the page?📖 How do you choose the right publishing path for you?🤔 What’s involved in the different stages of editing?🪝 How do you snag an agent and negotiate a book deal?🤝 What are the best ways to work *with* your publisher to prepare and promote your book?🗣️ How might you self-drive your book promotion whether you’re indie or traditional published?📕 What’s the bookseller’s view on how they select the titles they’re going to back?⬆️ How can you keep the ball rolling after publication?🔮 And how might you future-proof your career as an author?
Welcome to episode 8 of Serving Books: from inspiration to publication, the podcast for every industry-outsider who, like me, has lots of questions about how a book goes from being an idea, to landing in readers’ hands. If you’re enjoying the series so far, please share it with all your writerly friends to help me reach more listeners, or if you rate, review and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts this will help the algorithms do their magic 🪄 Serving Books answers questions like… ✍🏻 How do you get words on the page?📖 Which is the right publishing path for you?🤔 What’s involved in the different stages of editing?🪝 How to snag an agent and negotiate a book deal?🤝 What are the best ways to work *with* your publisher to prepare and promote your book?🗣️ How might you self-drive your book promotion, whether you’re indie or traditionally published?📕 What’s the bookseller’s view on how they select the titles they’re going to back?⬆️ How can you keep the ball rolling after publication?🔮 And how might you future-proof your career as an author?
Welcome to episode 7 of Serving Books: from inspiration to publication, the podcast for every industry-outsider who, like me, has lots of questions about how a book goes from being an idea, to landing in readers’ hands. If you’re enjoying the series so far, please share it with all your writerly friends to help me reach more listeners, or if you rate, review and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts this will help the algorithms do their magic 🪄 Serving Books answers questions like… ✍🏻 How do you get words on the page?📖 Which is the right publishing path for you?🤔 What’s involved in the different stages of editing?🪝 How to snag an agent and negotiate a book deal?🤝 What are the best ways to work *with* your publisher to prepare and promote your book?🗣️ How might you create an ‘author brand’ in a way that doesn’t make you want to die of cringe, and self-drive your book promotion, whether you’re indie or traditionally published?📕 What’s the bookseller’s view on how they select the titles they’re going to back?⬆️ How can you keep the ball rolling after publication?🔮 And how might you future-proof your career as an author?
Welcome to episode 6 of Serving Books: from inspiration to publication, the podcast for every industry-outsider who, like me, has lots of questions about how a book goes from being an idea, to landing in readers’ hands. In this series I’ve interviewed industry experts including writing mentors, book coaches, writing community founders, editors, agents, book marketers, publicity and pr experts, and book shop owners to bring their insights and knowledge straight to your ears by answering alllll my nosy questions! If you’re enjoying the series so far, please share with all your writerly friends to help me reach more listeners, or if you rate, review and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts this will help the algorithms do their magic 🪄 Questions like… ✍🏻 How do you get words on the page?📖 Which is the right publishing path for you?🤔 What’s involved in the different stages of editing?🪝 How to snag an agent and negotiate a book deal?🤝 What are the best ways to work *with* your publisher to prepare and promote your book?🗣️ How might you self-drive your book promotion, whether you’re indie or traditionally published?📕 What’s the bookseller’s view on how they select the titles they’re going to back?⬆️ How can you keep the ball rolling after publication?🔮 And how might you future-proof your career as an author?