Coffee, Tea or Something Stronger?: Recent Episodes
Clare Lynch
Clare Lynch interviews her fellow writers about their lives and work. Whether you're a copywriter, blogger, novelist, poet or professor, "Coffee, Tea or Something Stronger?" is designed to give you the shot of inspiration you need to finish that novel, submit that thesis or launch that freelance career.
Clare Lynch talks to author Elisabeth Spencer to find out what makes for a good memoir, and how to write one.
Tune in to hear Nick discuss:
Why nailing tone of voice is so tricky
Examples of companies who’ve got a great tone of voice
Storytelling for business – how to do it well
The key features of a great story
How to explain things clearly
Tune in to hear CC discuss:
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The attractions of horror as a genre
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What scares him
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London as a character in his work
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His creative process – and why he always starts with an elevator pitch
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Why you need to get feedback on your work
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How to deal with negative criticism
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The importance of networking and self-promotion as a horror writer
For this episode of Coffee, Tea or Something Stronger?, Clare Lynch talks to Sophie Green and Charlie Yarwood, local organisers for the London NaNoWriMo region.
Tune in to hear Kathryn discuss:
The need to know your audience – and have a purpose when you talk to them
The one word you should always use to engage your audience
How to develop a conversational style
Why the ‘rule of three’ works well when presenting
How to bring things to life with stories and pictures
How to hook your audience in with a strong opening
How to adapt written text for video
Engaging with your topic and with your audience
Tailoring your approach to different platforms.
Tune in to hear Robbie talk about:
Conversion copy – what it is and how to write it
Why copywriting is like method acting
How to research your target reader to craft copy that makes them buy
The realities of living the remote working dream
The secret to being attractive to clients when you’re working remotely
The remote working sites to avoid – and one to use
The mindset you need to succeed as a remote worker
Creative ways to win your dream clients
Three real-life listener case studies with clever strategies for winning work
Tune in to hear Jamie discuss:
How to structure a story with rule of 3
The Aunt Marjorie test for explaining ideas clearly
How to use numbers to support your story
What makes a good story
How to find a good angle on your story
How examples can bring a story alive
What it’s really like working in a newsroom
How to break into broadcast journalism
Why you don’t need to be able to write well to be a journalist
The power of the full stop
Tune into to hear Vin discuss:
The benefits of writing to a tight word count
Why it’s important to create a sense of ease in your reader
How to use storytelling techniques to hook your audience in
The importance of writing with your audience in mind
How to know if a piece of writing has succeeded
The benefits of taking risks as a writer
Why good writers aren’t afraid of ‘dumbing down’
How to revise a piece when your first draft is terrible
How to use storyboarding to create an effective presentation
How to give helpful feedback on someone else’s writing
Tune in to hear about:
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The role of writing skills in debating
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How debating skills can be applied in the workplace
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How to structure an argument – the three essential elements
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How to research an argument
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Why you don’t need to be an expert in a topic to win an argument
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The benefits of defending a position you don’t hold
Writing as part of a portfolio freelance career
How to gather interesting material by interviewing people
The discipline required to perform well in both writing and music
Why you should always read your work aloud
Why you need to expose yourself to different ‘voices’ – in writing and music
The advantages of coming to music and writing late in life
How to cope with performance anxiety – as a writer and musician
The benefits of ‘free’ writing and writing every day
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What good thought leadership looks like (and what it doesn’t)
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The four essential ingredients for any thought leadership piece
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Two key skills – in addition to writing – you need to produce compelling thought leadership
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How to measure the effectiveness of a piece of thought leadership
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How to balance original thought leadership with the brand voice
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Why you need to appeal to readers at an emotional level – even in professional services
How to write a text so it’s ‘speakable’
The two essential criteria every sentence in a speech must meet
The uses and abuses of ancient rhetorical techniques in modern speech writing
How to kick-start the speech writing process
The three types of speeches – deliberative, judicial and ceremonial
The importance of having a topic for your speech, not just a subject (and knowing the difference)
How to use ‘how’ or ‘why’ phrases to establish your point
The powerful five-part structure for quickly assembling a speech
How to break into speech writing as a profession
Tune in to this episode to discover:
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What internal communicators do – and how they use writing and writers
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The problem of ‘corpspeak’ in large organisations
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The “T-T-T” rule of communication
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How to stand out as a communicator – by asking the right questions
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The qualities internal comms people are looking for in a writer
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Why great listeners make great writers
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How internal comms has changed over the years - current trends
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Opportunities for copywriters hoping to break into the internal comms niche
-The importance of building strong relationships with your clients
Listen to this episode to discover:
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Poetry’s relationship with music, film and rhetoric
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How to ‘train’ to be a poet
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How to tap into your voice as a poet
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The benefits of ‘free writing’ to kick start a poem
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Why even business writers can benefit from understanding poetic technique
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How social media has changed the purpose of blogs in recent years
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Writing as a way of thinking through a problem or answering a question
Corpora (singular "corpus") are large databases of texts that are used for research into the way language is used.
Tune into this episode to discover:
What is a corpus? And why are they useful?
How learners of English can use corpora to write and speak like native speakers
Using corpora to overcome particular writing challenges
Beating writer’s block with corpora
How to approach publishers with your manuscript
How to get started when writing a piece
Tune into this episode to discover:
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Why it helps to play dumb when you’re writing about tech
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How to deal with feedback on your copy
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The benefits (and challenges) of working remotely
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The importance of having a routine when you’re working from home
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Shannon’s strategy for winning new clients
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How to make an income from writing about your hobby or passion
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How to pitch an article that an editor can’t resist
Clare Lynch interviews her fellow writers about their lives and work. Whether you're a copywriter, blogger, novelist, poet or professor, "Coffee, Tea or Something Stronger?" is designed to give you the shot of inspiration you need to finish that novel, submit that thesis or launch that freelance career.
Tune in to discover:
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How Ella and Martin choose which writers to publish
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The relationship between design and the written word
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How they run a creative business around their day jobs
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How print-on-demand technology has allowed publishers to take more creative risks
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Why they haven’t listed their books on Amazon
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Details of their latest project (submissions welcome - deadline closes soon)
Tune into this episode to learn more about:
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The particular challenges of writing at post-graduate level
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Cultural factors that can undermine the effectiveness of your academic writing
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How to bring focus and clarity to an academic argument
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The advantage that comes from writing in English as a second language
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Plagiarism – and how to avoid it
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Writing tips from a Cambridge academic
Tune into this episode now to hear about:
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How to help clients see the value you offer as a copywriter
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The value of being part of a network of copywriters
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Dealing with the solitude of the freelance life
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What Douglas Adams can teach you about writing marketing copy
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Pro tips for better B2B copy
Tune into this episode now to hear about:
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Spotting trends – and how to use them to get a publishing deal
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How to carve out time to write a novel around the day job
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The benefits of taking a writing class – even once you’re published
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Why an author might choose to publish under a different name
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The challenges of writing for theatre – and writing academically!
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Tech tools to help you finish that novel
Tune in to learn about:
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The different grammars of English
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The problem with following the ‘rules’ of grammar
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The differences between spoken and written grammar
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The importance of designing your writing for your audience
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The peaks and valleys of writing - what a good piece of writing looks like
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How to use “What” clauses to bring out your main point
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How to get started when sitting down to write