No, not at all. The beauty of our courses is that they are designed for all abilities, skills and levels of knowledge. They have been developed to cover the information you need in a way that works for you, regardless of your previous experience.

No, none. The price you pay for your course or package includes everything stated within the specification. You are not expected to make any additional purchases. The only exception is with the Outsource package in which you choose what elements to include and can add more at any time should you so wish. Both our Co-Source and Outsource packages (plus Treasured Memories) are backed by individual contracts which denote exactly what is included along with your rights, terms and conditions.

At present, all courses and packages are delivered by AnnMarie Reynolds who is a successful self-published author. She has been writing for around fifteen years and has five completed manuscripts, two of which she has self-published. In addition she has one short story book available as an eBook. In terms of training, AnnMarie has completed a Creative Writing Course with The Writers Bureau plus several further education courses in all aspects of writing including editing, marketing and cover design. She has been published in magazines and has successfully mentored several writers in both a fiction and non-fiction capacity. As well as all of this, AnnMarie has planned and executed an overwhelmingly triumphant book launch which benefitted the Wiltshire Bobby Van charity. She is an accomplished speaker and has delivered lectures to Women's Lunches and WI groups as well as smaller book groups and library audiences. The most important thing that AnnMarie gives is her passion. She loves her work and to bring this to others is what drives her day in and day out. She cried when she got her first box of books in print. She will help you to find the book hidden inside so that you can cry too.

Don't be! Not only will your tutor be on hand to gently guide and advise, we will also use several simple tools that you will be able to continue to use at home. These will greatly assist you when it comes to grammar and spelling. (And by the way, most famous authors have their own editors for a very good reason!)

This is a difficult question to answer because so much depends on your idea, how much time you have available to write, the length of book you are aiming for as well as genre and audience. That being said, the average fiction novel should come in at around 80 - 100,000 words and a fiction novella at around 50,000 words. Generally non-fiction tends to be shorter. On a typical 'good' writing day you can expect to compose between 1 - 3,000 words, so if you were to write every day and were aiming for an 80,000 word novel, the actual writing would take between 1 and 3 months.

This really is down to personal preference and what your end goal is for your book and writing career. It is different for every writer which is why we always spend time discussing publishing options to some degree on all of our courses. For those authors wishing to see their book out there but are not keen on doing it themselves, we are able to publish through begin a book Independent Publishers, for which a separate publishing contract applies. We can also discuss Traditional Publishing (and Agents) though we do not take our authors on this journey.

Firstly, would you be entertained by them? If you would then that's a really positive start. When you are going through the writing process, especially with us at begin a book, there will be plenty of opportunity to review your ideas - whether that's via the e-learning platform or working with us on a 1:1 basis. Ultimately, once your book is almost complete, you can access our crew of 'beta readers' who will give you independent, constructive feedback - or you can build your own crew. (Our beta reader service is available to authors choosing the Co-Source or Outsource packages, at an additional cost. It is not available to our DIY course authors).

The benefits are numerous but we would say that the most important part of our courses and the way we work, is the support and encouragement you will receive. Not only that, if you have selected some 1:1 support, you will be guided every step of the way which means you can spend your time writing rather than worrying about what to do next. In those one on one sessions we will be able to answer any questions and advise you on the next step of the process. We also work and collaborate with other professionals in areas such as illustration, printing, cover design, audiobook narration, screenplay writing etc... which means you don't need to go searching for answers to those additional services - unless you would like to, of course. It's your dream, your book, your way.

An element of editing is included in our Co-Source and Outsource packages based on word count. We will undertake the edit for you, but we are also able to access other professional editors if required. Additional word count edits are available at a cost which is commensurate to the current going rate.

Absolutely! The audiobook market has really taken off over the last couple of years and having your book in audio is a great sales tool. At begin a book we have access to professional narrators who will be able to provide a quote for this service at specially secured rates.

Simple. Just drop us a line at info@beginabook.com and we will be happy to assist you in any way we can.

Our Terms and Conditions are attached to your individual contract which is agreed before commencement of any work - if you are on a Co-Source or Outsource Package. Terms and Conditions for our DIY package will be available on our website shortly, but can be requested by contacting us at info@beginabook.com. If you would like to see all of our Terms and Conditions prior to purchasing a course, please email us at info@beginabook.com and we will be happy to forward a sample contract by return.