The blog for anyone that works from home

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About the Author

Who is Nexus Publishing? Originally from a small town called Darlaston – about ten miles north of Birmingham – I moved to West Sussex about ten years ago to help develop one of the first online retailers. Having recently moved to Shropshire I am now enjoying the working from home life in a semi rural location. I have been a freelance writer and journalist for about fifteen years. Eight of them were spent doing various other jobs such as bookshop assistant, print finisher and returns clerk for a large library supplier, with the writing taking up evenings and any of my spare time. As you can see, much of my life so far has been spent working with books and publishing of one kind or another. My time as an employee came to a conclusion some six years ago with redundancy, so I took the opportunity – and the money – to see if I could survive as a full-time freelance writer. That was five years ago. There have been some lean times – just ask my wife, Joanne. But after tasting the freelance life, there’s no going back.

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Book Review: Spare Room Start Up

Wednesday, April 16th, 2008 • Related • Filed Under

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Emma Jones is the undisputed queen of homeworking. Her website Enterprise Nation has become the hub around which thousands of home-based businesses have congregated over the last few years. In her book Emma looks closely at the key components of starting and running a business from home, but it’s the personal feel to the book that I wasn’t prepared for.

Call me an old hack, but I’ve read and reviewed hundreds of start-your-own-business books over the years, but few if any, convey the drive and enthusiasm that is contained within the page of Spare Room Start Up. If you’re thinking of taking the plunge and starting a business from your home, but are having problems taking that last final step towards making your enterprise a reality, this book will not only arm you with the practical knowledge you need, but more importantly, will show you that you’re not alone.

The design of the book was also a surprise. Many small business books tend to be textual affairs that do contain masses of information in some cases, but leave you cold after you’ve turned the last page. Emma’s book by comparison left me with the feeling that the decision I took to start my own home business was the right one. Photography is used throughout the book of Emma’s own home and the colleagues that she has gathered over the last few years. These reinforce the homeworking drive that has clearly worked for her, and could work for you as well.

The book itself divides into three main sections that cover business, lifestyle and technology. Within each section case studies and a plethora of web links are presented with bold graphics that makes the content easy to digest. This isn’t a business book to sit and study, but one that will remain a friend as you build your new home business. Keep the book handy when you need information, but more importantly when you need a boost on the days when things aren’t going according to plan.

Business books come and go, but the ones that go on to become bestsellers and remain leading texts in their field are those that provide timely information, but more importantly, inspire their readers. Spare Room Start Up has a pedigree that is hard to fault. This is clearly because the author is living the life that she is writing about.

If you just got home after spending another day in office cubicle hell, and are dreading the commute tomorrow, start reading Emma’s book now. After even a few pages you’ll realise that that niggling dream of starting and running a business from home that won’t go away shouldn’t be ignored. If you thought you didn’t have the skills to run a home-based business, or the confidence to take the very first steps, Spare Room Start Up will be your trusted companion on the adventure ahead.

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