The Extraordinary Business Book Club

' I think reading a book is sometimes like... you've slowed things down. You're in this present moment, working on this very particular thing. And I think we want more of that in our lives.' What makes a business book worth reading - or publishing? If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the sheer volume (and, let’s be honest, variable quality) of business books on the market, you’ll appreciate Todd Sattersten's refreshingly thoughtful approach. As the author of The 100 Best Business Books of All-Time and the upcoming 100 Best Books for Work and Life, he's done a lot of leg work on your behalf as a reader.  And as publisher and owner of Bard Press, he's doing his bit for quality over quantity with a startlingly original business model: Bard publishes just one book each year. Risky? Revolutionary? Realistic? All of those things. We also talk about the increasingly blurred lines between business and self-development books, the importance of identifying real-world problems and the route to 100,000 copies. Extraordinary Business Book Club gold. 

Discover the journey of transforming a creative spark into a blazing idea. The importance of permission, preparation, and patience in nurturing creativity takes center stage. Hear about a unique experience at a writing retreat where fire becomes a metaphor for inspiration. Learn how fostering an environment that supports creativity can lead to remarkable results. Plus, insights on how organizations can better support midlife women through transformative literature are shared.

'The foundations of how authors build visibility, build a readership... while the tools change, the principles don't.' Jane Friedman has been commentating on the business of books for many years, and her classic The Business of Being a Writer has demystified the industry for thousands of authors. So on the release of its second edition it seems a good time to ask: what has changed over the seven years since the first edition? It turns out that while the specifics of platforms and tech tools have moved on, the principles of writing and promoting a good book are pretty much as they always were: the fundamental challenge of persuading people to care about your writing still remains, and it's arguably harder than ever in the face of what Jane calls 'the tremendous fragmentation of attention across so many different channels'. And as a writer you need to engage with those channels, in fact you should even be asking if you should be focusing there instead of on a book.  But in any case, one channel that remains powerful for authors, and which Jane herself uses brilliantly, is the newsletter: we talk about how to write a good one, and how and when to migrate to paid subscription. She also shares her own systems and processes for writing, including how she's integrated AI tools. It's part reality check, part masterclass, and it's wholly worth your time.

Leslie Grandy, a seasoned global product executive and founder of the Product Guild, challenges the notion that creativity is an inherent talent. She shares her transformative journey from feeling creatively inadequate to recognizing creativity as a problem-solving skill, which anyone can develop. Discussing her book, Creative Velocity, Leslie offers practical techniques for nurturing creative confidence. She also explores the role of generative AI in enhancing creativity, while sharing lessons learned from her own book production journey. Engaging and insightful!

 'If you just want a machine to write all of this stuff and put your name on it and say it's yours, I don't know what the motivation is. I don't know what results you think it could bring.' What does it look like to use AI in creative activities practically, ethically, and in a human-centred way? One answer to that question might be Cliobooks.ai, the speak-your-book technology developed by publishing entrepreneur and business coach Georgia Kirke.  Starting and ending with humans, and rejecting the quick fix of AI-generated content, this is an attempt to develop workflows that make authorship more accessible and less soul-sucking. But there's no short cuts to the human expertise behind each book (sorry), both on the part of the author and the publishing team around them.   This is a fascinating exploration of how AI can be used for good, the difference between timeless principles and evolving workflows, and the wisdom of understanding the difference between them. 

‘It’s not a presentation or a business card. It’s a conversation.’ This Best Bits episode is a love letter to intentional conversations – the ones that unlock insight, build cohesion, shape identity and, ultimately, bring books into the world. As I looked back over the last few episodes, what stood out was how often my guests spoke about dialogue in all its forms – with ourselves, with each other,and with our readers – as the real work of writing, leading and changing the world. Hear from: Sarah Rozenthuler on the life-changing magic of energising, intentional dialogue; Claire Pedrick on the space between words and the attentiveness behind great coaching – and writing; Wendy Smith on paradox as a creative lens for thinking, leading, and writing; John Dore on the 'glue' that binds people together around ideas; Marissa Eigenbrood on publicity as a bridge into new conversations with new audiences; Petra Molthan-Hill on making complex ideas accessible and immediately useful; David Oxley and Helmut Schuster on creating a character to talk to an audience that's had enough of being talked at; Alison Jones (hello!) on how AI forces us to be more intentional than ever about the conversations we’re having – and who we’re having them with – as authors, publishers, and humans. If you’re writing a business book, or even just thinking about it, this episode is packed with insights to get you talking.

'I didn't just want to do a sort of 'me-too' series just for the sake of it. I wanted to have a series concept that I could really get excited about and which would stand out in quite a crowded marketplace as offering something different.' This week, we're flipping the script a bit. Normally, I'd be bringing you an engaging conversation with a business book author, but this week we're exploring an origin story—one that gives you an insight into the inner workings of publishing as an industry and an individual publisher's mind. A successful book series is the closest thing we have to magic in publishing magic. But how do you go about finding the right concept in a crowded marketplace? Here's how our new 6-Minute Smarts series came about, from a series of conversations at Frankfurt to a 30,000-foot exploratory writing sprint to launch.  Whether you're a reader, an aspiring author, or simply curious about the publishing world, this episode offers insights and inspiration that you won't want to miss.

' We've invented a new genre, at least that's very modestly what we would like to believe. We're calling it Professional Advice Narrative Tales, and we'll leave you to figure out that acronym.' For the new generation entering the workplace, reading a traditional business book has all the appeal of a colonoscopy. So longtime colleagues and collaborators Dr David Oxley and Dr Helmut Schuster realized that if they were to get across their insights and advice, the only way was through storytelling. The result? The series of Shey Sinope books, which explore the complexities, conundrums and constraints young professionals face as they navigate the modern workplace in a lighthearted, readable, engaging way. It's a fresh perspective that speaks directly to the experience of embarking on a profession career; the absurdities and challenges, but also the profound need for meaning and fulfilment. But we all know that writing a standard business book is hard enough - how on earth do you go about writing fiction collaboratively? Find out here.

'[Olympia's] gorgeous vaulted glass roof feels kind of like a metaphor for the fair itself. Rooted in history, but always looking upwards and outwards.' Something a bit different today: join me for a deep dive into a publisher's experience of London Book Fair 2025. I have been to a LOT of book fairs, but this one was a little different. I'm exploring the issues faced by publishers of all sizes today, navigating challenges such as AI’s disruptive potential to the demands of new EU regulations and the current geopolitical chaos, and reflecting on the opportunities they present. Whether you’re in the business or simply curious about the world of books, this episode is a behind-the-scenes look at an industry perpetually on the brink of transformation as well as a very personal reflection on how it feels to be part of it.

 'This is all a web that's woven together, and how it all works is really important. You can't just do one piece of it. And a great partner is someone who understands that this is a marathon, not a sprint.' You think writing a book is hard? Well, ok, yes it is, but it comes as a nasty shock for most authors to realize that writing the damn thing isn't enough - then they have to promote it. Luckily, there are people out there who do this really, really well. And even more luckily, one of them is about to give you a book publicity masterclass.  Marissa Eigenbrood, President at Smith Publicity, specialises in the art of connection, matching the right authors to the right platforms, so the right readers can find the right books. While marketing is great for creating a buzz at launch, publicity helps establish enduring credibility. Marketing directly engages your readers; publicity harnesses the power of established media to supercharge your authority and reach.  The good news is that there's a wealth of opportunities out there. The even better news is that you don't just get one chance to shine; long after publication day, savvy publicity means you can continue to use your book to build an enduring professional presence. Here's to the long game.