We all have a story inside us waiting to be told. Each of us has a unique message to share with the world. Perhaps it’s something you’ve been through that nearly destroyed you, but you chose to rise above it. Perhaps it’s something you experienced that completely changed your life, but not everybody knows about it. Perhaps it is something beautiful, something amazing, some knowledge you gained, or some wisdom you want to share.
Not everybody is wired to stand up on stage and speak or entertain, and not everybody is wired to write a book. But we all have experiences and life lessons to share. Your published story might inspire someone to take a giant leap of faith. It might help another to heal. It could be that written legacy that so many of us wish our parents, our grandparents, and our great-grandparents (and beyond) had left behind for us to better understand them or remember them by. It could be to celebrate a significant milestone in your business’s life, or an inspirational or self-help book that you’d like to gift to attendees at speaking engagements, conferences or workshops. Or perhaps its something completely different. Our stories are more powerful than we can imagine, and every single one of them deserves to see the light of day.
I published my own story, a memoir, in 2015 after eight years of hiding it at the back of a cupboard, too terrified to share it with the world, afraid of what the world might think, that nobody would ever read it, and that I would be persecuted for writing it. But none of that mattered. It was begging to be released from its prison of silence. So I set a goal, and I stuck to it. A year of Sundays, I said. And that’s what I did. Every Sunday, without fail, I, like Ernest Hemingway once so eloquently said, sat down at the keyboard and bled until it was done. And now my story is out there. I have never looked back. It was one of the scariest but most liberating things I have ever done. Perhaps it’s time for you to do the same, and perhaps I’m the person to help you do it.
I am a South African ghostwriter, editor and publisher who works with authors all over the world to turn their innovative, ground-breaking ideas or personal or professional stories into published works. Whether you are looking for someone to help you write your book from scratch, polish a manuscript you’ve already written, or work with you to self-publish your book on local and international book retailing platforms (like Amazon.com), I’m here to take you all the way to the finish line.
Most people who come to me have never written a book. They're experts in other things, and writing just isn't one of them. What brings them to me is one of three things: a message worth sharing, an idea too important to remain unwritten, or a story about their lives that they hope their loved ones will one day be able to read.
Writing a book is something we do together. It starts with a conversation, and from there, I take care of the rest. By the time we're finished, you'll have a book with your name on the cover and your story between the pages.
I specialise in working with authors who require the services of an English-language book editor. My job is to turn your manuscript into a masterpiece.
Whether your manuscript needs a light polish or a thorough overhaul, I'll work through it with you at whatever level it requires. From a substantive edit that looks at the bigger picture of your story, to a copy-edit that tightens everything up from a technical perspective, to a final proofread before your book goes to print, I have you covered at every stage.
Self-publishing your book is easier than you might think, and far more rewarding than waiting years for a traditional publisher to come knocking. If you're ready to take control of your publishing journey, self-publishing is the fastest and most direct route to getting your book into readers' hands.
As an indie author, you have complete control over your book, from the cover design right through to pricing and distribution. I'll guide you through every step of the process, from obtaining your ISBN to getting your book listed on book retailing platforms all over the world.
Before becoming a professional ghostwriter, editor and publisher, I spent almost three decades working on both sides of the book industry, in bookselling and in publishing. That experience gives me a perspective that very few people in this industry have, and I use it to help authors understand what their best options are.
Whether you're weighing up traditional publishing, self-publishing, or something in between, I can help you figure out the right path for your book in a one-on-one online publishing consultation.
How to reach meI am based in the Western Cape, South Africa, and take on projects all over the world. I have worked with clients in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the USA, Rwanda, Zambia, Malta and the United Kingdom as a ghostwriter, book editor, and independent publishing consultant, and I can do the same for you.
If you’ve got a book in you, I will find a way to get to you, work with you, create (or polish) your masterpiece, and get it out there. Please send me an email at phillipa@phillipamitchell.com detailing your requirements, and I will respond to you within forty-eight hours (or sooner if I am able to). As I am generally booked up for months in advance, please let me know if you have a deadline in mind so that I can ascertain whether I will be able to accommodate you. Self-publishing is less time-consuming for me than a ghostwriting or editing project, so I am usually able to begin work on such projects at short notice.
If you would prefer to chat with me by telephone, please include your contact number when you email me, and we can arrange to set up a call. I am, however, always more responsive over email due to the fact that I am generally working on a client’s masterpiece during office hours.
You’re also more than welcome to complete the form below. It will come straight to my email inbox as soon as you hit the submit button.
I’m passionate about the rights of all animals and spent some time at Asher’s Farm Animal Sanctuary just outside Pretoria, South Africa, in 2019, learning about how the animals who call Asher’s home came to find their way there. I decided to write their stories.
These are my two favourites, as published on the Asher’s Farm Animal Sanctuary website:
“Why did you do this for me? I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.”
These were the words of Babe the pig in E.B. White’s celebrated children’s novel, Charlotte’s Web.
Charlotte, the barn spider who made it her mission to save Babe from certain death replied, “You have been my friend … that in itself it a tremendous thing.”
There was no Charlotte involved in Babe’s journey to Asher’s, but there was most certainly a web of people who made sure that this little piggy, like Babe in the book, was not going to be sent to market.
Babe either fell or jumped off of a truck in KwaZulu-Natal. At Asher’s Farm Animal Sanctuary, they like to believe that she jumped. It is presumed that she was on her way to an auction when she decided that there was far more to her life than the one for which she was destined. An activist was driving behind the truck when it all happened, and he stopped his car in the middle of the highway and gave chase on foot. Babe was terrified and running all over the place, narrowly missing being hit by other vehicles that were on the road at the time. He doesn’t know where he found the strength to catch her, but he did, and he quickly placed her in the back of his car. With the noblest of intentions, our hero drove Babe to the SPCA, but, much to his disappointment, he discovered that farm animals are not freely welcomed by the SPCA because there isn’t really anywhere for them to go once they arrive. With no other options available, he had no choice but to leave her there and hope for the best.
Read the full story here…
“Humans take the beautiful things about these animals and use them against them.”
Grace was no more than five months old when she arrived at Asher’s Farm Sanctuary. On the road—probably on her way to an auction—she fell off the production truck that she was being transported on and was hit by a car. A passer-by who witnessed the terrifying ordeal contacted the Boksburg SPCA who took the young calf in immediately, giving her a warm place to spend a few nights. Her hip was dislocated, and she was in a great deal of pain. The SPCA, unable to offer long-term care—and with their only option to euthanise her—took a chance and called Asher’s to ask if they could provide her with a forever home—for as long as “forever” might be. The Asher’s team left immediately to collect her.
Poor Grace was not in a good way, but there was hope. As she was being loaded into the horse trailer, she vocalised for the first time, and the Asher’s team knew without a doubt that she deserved a second chance. While euthanasia was the last conceivable option for this gentle but courageous survivor with the big brown eyes and eyelashes that went on for days, the team realised that in time, with her body too large and heavy to be supported by her dislocated hip, euthanasia would be inevitable. There was, however, another option—and it was going to require a serious amount of fundraising—and that was surgery.
Many surgeons and many opinions later—and the funding in place—it was decided that Grace would be operated on at Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute. An implant, designed by a team of specialists specifically for her, was flown out to South Africa from abroad. Despite her trauma, youth was on her side and, barring the fact that she would always walk with a slight limp, the prognosis for a full recovery was good. The operation was long and complicated with many bone fragments requiring removal, but, after over four hours in surgery, her operation was declared a success. A week later, she was given the all-clear, and she was transported back to the sanctuary. Upon her arrival, she vocalised loudly, almost as if she was expressing her gratitude to all the angels who had gathered around her from the beginning of her ordeal to that very moment, carrying her gently to her new family and her forever home.
Read the full story here…
