What kind of work do you do/business do you run?

I’m a book coach and publisher specializing in business/how-to/self-help books. I want to help position vegan entrepreneurs as an authority in their field by becoming a professionally published vegan author.

What do you love about it?

I love being the person who helps vegan entrepreneurs boost their visibility, authority, sales & profits by becoming published authors.

As a former copywriter and ghostwriter, I’ve written all kinds of business content, from brochures, leaflets, and ads, to email campaigns, sales pages, and landing pages. When I’ve spoken to clients, they all tell me that nothing changes the course of their business the way a book does.

I love how I can help remove overwhelm and kill imposter syndrome that most people have when they think about becoming a published author.

And I love that, by amplifying the visibility and voice of vegan entrepreneurs, I can support those who have the same values as I do.

What’s your ‘why’ in life? What drives you?

I’ve been vegan since 2013 (courtesy of a rescue tabby who taught me how intelligent and sentient animals are).

But it wasn’t until early 2021, it dawned on me that I was almost halfway through my life. And my dream of a vegan mainstream world, where eating and using animal products is abhorrent to all, will not be realized unless vegan voices became louder.

I want to amplify the voices of vegan entrepreneurs. If I can do this for enough of them, our screams to end animal cruelty will be too loud to be ignored.

Why are you a member of VIVAS?

What’s there not to love? I’ve been part of several non-vegan networking groups, and it’s a case of ‘try and find at least one person I want to stay in touch with.’ But in VIVAS, practically everyone is amazing!

It doesn’t surprise me. In non-vegan networking groups, it’s not likely that everyone will have the same principles and values. But in VIVAS, it’s like having a secret list of the coolest people on the planet to be connected with.

What’s been the biggest highlight or ‘wow’ moment of your career/business/professional life?

It has to be March this year (2021). As a previous copywriter and ghostwriter, I was used to writing, and others getting the credit.

Becoming a published author in my own right was an incredible moment for me (I was full of the typical imposter syndrome!)

And then when it hit bestseller status in the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia… you can imagine how I felt. I was so high, I needed peeling of the ceiling!

How do you handle failures, fear, and disappointment?

I always turn lemons into lemonade! It’s the only option. I learned this when I was just 4 years old.

On my very first day at nursery/kindergarten, I happily ran away from my mother, excited to make new friends (I think it was my mother who was in tears!)

Unfortunately, I had no concept that the language I spoke (Bengali) was not the language the other kids spoke. Very quickly, I felt alone and frightened. My mother tells me I ran off into the corner library and started reading.

I have no idea how or why I made the connection between language and books and yet I had.

After this, my mother tells me every time she dropped me off, I would run into the library, and I’d still be there when she picked me up hours later. After a year, my teacher had to buy more books for the library as I had read them all.

My love for books, and then later writing, came from feeling ostracized because I couldn’t communicate with my peers. It taught me that even when the worst happens, there’s a blessing there somewhere – just wait for it to come.

What would you tell your 16-year-old self?

At 16, I just wanted to be accepted. Just 3 short years later I was addicted to amphetamines and homeless.

And I know the reason why I had taken drugs in the first place – acceptance from others.

I wish I could go back to that young teen and tell her that it doesn’t matter if others accept you. It only matters if you accept you.

Which women inspire you and why?

As a child, I was always inspired by Queens of England – they always seemed just far better at their jobs than the Kings! Elizabeth I, Victoria, and of course our current Queen.

I’m not a royalist, but I can’t help but admire our female queens as they genuinely cared about doing the best for their country – a far cry from most of the kings who seem to have been drunk on power.

Since turning vegan, I’m inspired by notable vegan figures. Dr. Melanie Joy introduced the word ‘carnism’ into my vocabulary.

And Aph Ko is a hero in my eyes in shining a light on black vegans.

What’s been the biggest obstacle you’ve faced and how has it helped mould who you are now?

The biggest has to be becoming addicted to amphetamines at the age of 19 and becoming homeless. I lived in homeless shelters for over a year. Getting clean was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

I also watched my ex-partner descend into the hell of schizophrenia.

I don’t regret any of it, however. These experiences have made me resilient.

I’m not one to sweat the small stuff. Trust me, when you’ve experienced going to sleep with an empty stomach, wondering when your next meal will be, most other problems are just no big deal.

What’s your super-power? What are you amazing at? 

Let me be clear here. I am genuinely terrible at most things. I burn food. I have no sense of direction and can get lost in a tunnel.

I’ve completely wrecked three cars (I’ve since discovered I have dyspraxia, so for the safety of the UK population, you’ll be glad to know I’ve taken myself off the roads permanently!)

I could go on, but you get the picture.

Thankfully, I was given this was super-power: The ability to inspire and move through the written word.

At 16, I won a nationwide scholarship to a writers’ camp where I co-wrote an episode of Brookside.

At 22, I was a busy freelancer reporter writing for several newspapers and magazines in the northwest of England, including the Manchester Evening News.

And as a ghostwriter and copywriter, I’ve helped clients build huge businesses through my content.

Thank God I have this skill because I really would be up the creek without a paddle otherwise – I can’t do anything else!

What brings you joy?

Watching animals. The cute ones of course (there’s something wrong with a human being who doesn’t like dog and cat videos on YouTube – period). But I love watching snakes, spiders, and so on. Octopuses are a personal favorite.

I think watching brings me joy because they know how to live in the moment. They don’t appear to be ‘in their heads’ as we are.

And of course, seeing the looks on a client’s face when they get their first copy of their published book delivered to them. I always tell them to breathe in that ‘new book’ smell. I should turn that into a perfume, Eau De Livre – a new business idea!

How do you define success, and how will you know when you’ve achieved it?

Success for me is to be able to live life on my own terms. I don’t have religion, so this life is it. This isn’t a dress rehearsal, it’s the main event. So I don’t want to spend the finite amount of time I have in places I don’t want to be with people I don’t want to hang out with.

I also define success by the impact I make. I’m excited to see the kind of impact I can make in the world by amplifying vegan voices.

Ultimate success will be to see a vegan mainstream world.

What’s your vision for yourself and your business/career for the future?

My vision is to be ‘The Vegan Authority Creator’ amplifying the voices of vegan entrepreneurs worldwide.

I want to make the author journey as simple as possible, so even those who feel they have impediments to writing, such as dyslexia, are empowered into becoming an author.

No other written content will give the visibility and authority a book does. I want all vegan entrepreneurs to become huge authorities – the rest of the world had better watch out!

Anything else you want to tell us?

About a year ago, I learned some memory enhancement tricks. I can list every US president, forward and backward, and recite Pi to 21 decimal places.

However, please don’t ask me to recall anything useful, such as where I left my front door keys.

Oh yes, I also dance like a lunatic to cure writers’ block. Try it – it works!