Because one day back in early May this stack of boxes was delivered to my door. And almost every day since then I’ve been sending their contents out into the world.

But on Wednesday of last week my stack of boxes had lightened and dwindled until there was nothing left.

I’d sent out the very last copy of The Storytelling Manual for Architects.

That’s 599 tangible, real-life copies out in the world (not 600, because the very first copy from the very first box was mine to keep).

I feel a strange and unexpected sense of achievement. And this feels like the end of a very particular era.

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PS Here’s something I didn’t expect: the ebook (that slippery, elusive thing which I reluctantly and belatedly adopted) has found a life and momentum of its own and will live on through Amazon, Apple or wherever you get your ebooks. So perhaps it’s not quite the end…

The post All gone! appeared first on Architypal.

It came out in May, and for the first couple of months it kept me very busy. Here’s a photo of my ‘packing station’. Each book deserved its own stripy bag and sticker.

Five months after publication, I’m still selling copies (two yesterday, and three today). I still give each one its own bag and sticker.

It’s a book that gets people talking.

It’s been described as ‘Juliette in a nutshell’. (I love that!)

It’s been shortlisted for the Best Written Content category in this year‘s Archiboo Awards.

It’s been called ‘effortless to read and enjoy’, ‘succinct and spirited’, ‘a resource that absolutely nails it’, ‘quietly radical’, and ‘light yet meaningful’.

I believe a book – in this age of short attention spans and competing priorities – is a force for good.

Let’s keep writing them, and let’s keep reading them.

The post A potted history of my book (so far) appeared first on Architypal.

It’s ready to pre-order.
It has a price: £16, plus shipping.
It has a publication date: 22nd May.

And you can pre-order it here.

Then, in about two weeks’ time, when I receive some very exciting boxes from the printer, there’ll be a book in there for you. I’ll carefully package it up and sent it on its way.

The post Our moment (yours and mine) appeared first on Architypal.

Back in the autumn I wrote a post to say I was wrapping up Architypal. But that wasn’t all. I also said I was going to put together a small but mighty book, as my way of taking stock, saying goodbye, and not just turning out the lights on these last eight years.

Well, it’s finished. It’s called The Storytelling Manual for Architects, and it’s my heartfelt manifesto for a better way to write and talk about what you do.

It’ll be a little while before it’s ready for the world because it’ll be a proper, printed thing.

If you’ve already told me you might be interested, you’re on my list. And if you haven’t told me and you think you might be, let me know (I’m not expecting any kind of commitment – especially as I haven’t done the maths yet and don’t know how much it will be . . .).

The post The small but mighty book appeared first on Architypal.

I’ll be taking a bit of time out – a sabbatical, I’ll call it – before diving into new ideas and new possibilities. So after spring 2025 I won’t be at my desk, won’t be running workshops**, and won’t be keeping this show on the road.

But before I do that, I have a mission to complete.

I’m gathering together all the good things that I’ve built up in my head, in my notes and files, and in my workshops. And I’ll be putting the best of these into a small but mighty book.

It’s my way of wrapping up, of taking stock, of saying goodbye, and of not just turning out the lights on these last eight years.

For me, turning ideas into paper and ink is nothing new, but this will be so much more than a little toolkit – or even three little toolkits. And it’ll have a price attached (£49 if I can get the costs to work…).

So, if you want to know more when the time comes, get in touch and I’ll add you to the list.

There’ll be no commitment, no pressure and no expectation, but the more of a resounding ‘yes’ I hear now, the more I’ll be reassured that my little book is heading for a warm welcome in the world.

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*This is a photo from when Architypal was brand new. My hair is longer now, but I don’t think I’ve changed so much…

** If you’ve been thinking I could help you, then get in touch and let’s make it happen before I go.

The post A life of reinventions appeared first on Architypal.

Here I am at the Archiboo Awards with my clients Sarah Broadstock and Nick Newman of Studio Bark, and with the very beautiful (and surprisingly heavy!) award for Best Written Content.

Studio Bark deserve double congratulations because they also won the Activism Award. That’s no surprise because they’re brilliant at what they do, and a real force for good in the world.

The post An Archiboo Win appeared first on Architypal.

At first glance you might think there’s a lot going on here – but look again and you’ll see it’s not that complicated.

Architects, this is your STORY STARTER PACK. It gives you the prompts you need to get your stories written.

The point is:

Storytelling isn’t an add-on. It’s the backbone.

You only need a beginning, a middle and an end – just three acts.

It all hangs on TRANSFORMATION. (You’re an architect, so you’re in the business of change!)

It’s about your clients, not about you. That takes the pressure off because the spotlight’s not on you.

Once you’ve put together your practice story, you’re most of the way there. Your other stories will all be versions of that.

So, there shouldn’t be anything too daunting about creating great content for your website.

Still daunted? I might be able to help, so get in touch.

The post Your Story Starter Pack appeared first on Architypal.

Can’t you just cross it out and start again?

Actually, it’s not that simple.

Because…

You’re starting in the wrong place (ego rather than empathy).

You’ve got the wrong perspective (yours rather than your client’s).

You don’t know where you’re going (you need a map).

I love helping you with this stuff, because…

The revelations come thick and fast.

Writing and speaking become so much easier.

Your practice story falls into place, and then your project stories do too.

In other words, you get much more than you bargained for. And, in the words of one of my clients, it’s ‘more fun than therapy’.

The post Getting your stories off to a better start appeared first on Architypal.

Gives your CLIENT the confidence to move forward (because emotion, not reason, often drives big decisions).

Allows them to imagine how you would solve THEIR problem.

Shows what’s possible for THEM.

This is the third instalment from my Storytelling Toolkit for Architects , and Act 3 in the (very meta) story of storytelling – the positive outcome.

*By storytelling, I don’t just mean kicking off with a quick anecdote and then resorting to a dry description of what you do. I mean using the ‘power of story’ to write about your practice, your projects, and yourself.

The post So many clever things… appeared first on Architypal.

Two things:

They’ve both been shortlisted for Best Written Content in the Archiboo Awards.

They’re both my clients.

Oh, and they’re both lovely practices too.

Thank you to Archiboo for carving out this space to celebrate great words and great ideas in the world of architecture. And fingers crossed for 22nd May at Shoreditch Arts Club!

The post Doubly good news appeared first on Architypal.

But in our professional lives we tend to forget how powerful stories can be – and how simple they are to tell.

So here’s the very simple, very straightforward HOW TO TELL A STORY page from my Storytelling Toolkit for Architects.

If you’re wondering how this little diagram relates to practice profiles, project stories and bios, that’ll be for another day.

And if you’ve got one of my toolkits, and you’re now looking at this and thinking yours is different, you’re not imagining it. Someone pointed out that I’d used an expression which had another meaning – something I had no idea about – so to save further embarrassment I made a change for the reprint. (But I’m still a bit embarrassed. )

The post The most natural thing in the world appeared first on Architypal.

But I’m only going to touch the surface here.

This is about that little phrase and nothing more.

This is about whether we can ever hope to change the conversation if we don’t change the way we talk.

Because what do those two words even mean beyond our professional circles?

And do other people even use those words?

I’d wager they don’t.

Because outside of my work with architects, I’ve never strung those two words together.

For me, it would be like calling my home a dwelling. Or like opening the fenestration, not the windows.

So let me step back a moment and side with the rest of my fellow (non-architect) humans.

You’re leaving us out of the conversation.

Yet this is the background of our lives you’re talking about, and the spaces through which we move.

We might talk about our city, our town, our village, our street… But never our BUILT ENVIRONMENT. (I’m using capitals to show up these words for what they are – slightly odd, slightly jargony, slightly last century.)

For you, that phrase trips off the tongue without a further thought. But it’ll never ripple out into the world, because the meaning stops long before it gets that far.

Is it time, then, for a rethink?

Ever since I’ve worked with architects, I’ve returned again and again to this question, and I know I’m not the only one.

But I’ve never come up with an answer.

And now something else has got me thinking.

Yes, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty – or AONBs – have got a brand-new name.

The old one has always struck me as slightly odd. Are they something to admire from afar? Or can I visit? And what’s the relevance for the likes of me?

But if you hadn’t heard, that name’s been ditched and now they’re ‘national landscapes’ instead. And I reckon that’s a big step forward.

At last I can begin to grasp a little more of what these might mean to me:

a place to go
a place to admire the view
a place to feel welcomed (or perhaps not…)
a place to feel proud of

So is it time to shake up our own conversation? Of course the BUILT ENVIRONMENT has a wider remit. It isn’t just the very best bits of our towns and cities. But perhaps that makes it even more important.

Because we all have a stake in this, whether we’re in it professionally or not.

I still don’t have the answer. (Urbanscape? Builtscape? Cityscape? No, I’m still not there…)

So I’d love to kickstart the conversation and get everyone’s hands on deck.

Yes, we’re only talking about one small phrase, but these things matter.

The post Whose place is it anyway? appeared first on Architypal.

Or at least that’s what it feels like.

Because with planning permission for The Phoenix in the bag, Human Nature can really shout about what they’ve got in store for us here in Lewes.

But a town-changing announcement like this doesn’t come out of nowhere, and the work they’ve done to get us to this point has been phenomenal.

So, lest we forget, here are a few things to appreciate about the journey so far:

Enough ambition right from the start to inspire and excite us. No half-measures here just to fit the mould and play it safe.

A three-day design festival which was so much more than just a few panels with dry information. There was plenty to see, hear, do, eat and drink.

Yes, there were panels with information – but these were a cut above. ‘Youthfulness’! ‘Elegance, wit and imperfection’!

Great workshops (including this one led by Mellis Haward of Archio – I’m there in the middle with short hair and glasses, looking very serious).

As much honesty about the lowlights as about the highlights, and regular, always welcome, despatches from the front-line.

A willingness to engage with people who don’t agree, along with an understanding that this is all part of the process.

A masterpiece of a Design & Access Statement. Yes, even a DAS can be a pleasure to read.

A campaign that got people protesting FOR a planning application. In Human Nature’s words: ‘Can we propose with the same enthusiasm and energy we find to oppose? Will Phoenix Rise? It must.’

I’m sure I don’t know the half of it, because I’ve just been a bystander on the sidelines (though perhaps a particularly engaged bystander with a fair amount of professional interest).

Hats off, then, to the whole Human Nature team. I’ve been with them on the journey from the start, and I’ll be with them all the way.

The post The centre of the universe appeared first on Architypal.

Why tell a story?
How to tell a story
The impact of a story
Your story starter pack
A behind-the-scenes look into your client’s mind

This is another collaboration with the amazingly creative Anne-Marie Miller of Carbon Orange and it’s the third in my toolkit trilogy. So now we have orange, blue … and green.

And though I know I shouldn’t have favourites, this one’s definitely it!

The post The best of the three appeared first on Architypal.

Well, of course there is, but it’s still something most people would do almost anything to avoid.

And yet a team page with great photos but no words is always a let-down.

And a team page where every bio sounds exactly the same is almost as bad.

A team page that gets across all the difference perspectives, different enthusiasms and different voices, on the other hand, is a joy to behold – and never a disappointment.

Yes, I know good bios don’t write themselves. But there is a way.

To prove it, here are some photos by the brilliant Edward Bishop of my ‘pen portrait’ writing workshop with the Prior + Partners team. They’re hard at work, and at the same time they look as if they’re actually enjoying themselves.

Go to the Prior + Partners website and read a few at random. They’re great.

The post Not everyone’s cup of tea appeared first on Architypal.

I know this because I used to be an editor at Penguin.

And I know this again now because the man I’m married to, James Power, has just written a 480-page book called The Bees of Sussex.

It’s a serious, quite technical book about the hundreds of species of wild bee in our county. (NB It’s not about the honey bee, which has had quite enough attention already.)

James is a nature conservationist by trade, and by inclination, but this has been much more than a day job for him. It’s been an all-hours passion project that’s consumed him for the last three and a half years.

It’s also consumed me quite a bit, because it turns out that being married to someone who’s writing a book is rather a big deal too. And if words are your thing, you can’t help but get involved.

So last Thursday, when the first copies arrived fresh off the press, was a good day in our household.

The post A big deal appeared first on Architypal.

But – and this is a big one – to a lot of architects it sounds like a slightly empty marketing exercise rather than the energetic heart of your business.

So I rarely use the word ‘brand’ , and I find other ways of talking about this stuff. Here are a few of them.

Brand is…

How you come across

How you stand out

How you want people to see you

What makes people notice you

Your story and how you tell it

How you connect with people

How you become memorable

Your reputation

Your personality

A reflection of your values, mission and purpose

The opposite of AI (it’s what AI, by its very nature, doesn’t have)

So, let’s work on your brand – but let’s not talk about it.

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PS I used to work for Penguin, and I loved being part of an instantly recognisable, memorable brand – hence the logo above as a reminder of the power of a strong identity!

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Two of these are just for Mac users, so apologies in advance for that (I can’t help but live in my own ecosystem). Oh, and one’s actually to do with presenting, but I felt that one deserved a mention too.

Tinker
1/ First up, a Chrome extension called Tinker. If you want to test out how a new bit of text looks and sounds on your existing website (or on someone else’s), this is the way to do it. I’ve been doing quite a few live-editing sessions on Zoom recently, and, for my clients, it’s like magic when they see their homepage morph right before their eyes.

AuthoredUP
2/ If you regularly post on LinkedIn, you should know about AuthoredUp. It had bothered me for a while that when you write a post in the ‘Start a post’ box, you can’t see how the published post will look. But – wow! – when you write a post in ‘AuthoredUp’, you can. Again, it comes as an extension to Chrome (and also as a web app).

Spotlight search
3/ If you’re on a Mac, ‘Spotlight search’ is worth making good use of. Just press command and spacebar, and immediately you get a selection of things you might – or might not – be looking for. I’m always searching back through my files for things I’ve done earlier, and this makes it so much quicker.

Preview in Finder
4/ ‘Preview in Finder’ is another one for Mac users (and it’s one I’ve rediscovered after forgetting all about it). You just press the spacebar when you’ve got the file name highlighted in Finder. If you’re not sure it’s the right file and just want to have a quick look, it’s so much easier than opening up the file in the usual way.

DeepL
5/ Anyone who has to write in an unfamiliar language – and has come up against the limitations of Google Translate – should know about DeepL. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty good. A personal note here: my mother’s French and I occasionally have to engage in official communication with France, so DeepL comes to the rescue when circumstances demand a bit of officialese (not the kind of language we used around the home when I was growing up…).

‘B’ and ‘W’ in PowerPoint
6/ Now for a PowerPoint trick that you might not know of: if you’re in slideshow mode, press ‘B’ on your keyboard and the screen turns black. It’s great if you want to dip out of your slides and don’t want the audience’s eyes still focused on the screen behind you (to return to your slides, just press ‘B’ again). ‘W’ turns the screen white in just the same way.

The dodgy, mysterious one
7/ And, finally, someone recently introduced me to a website that can jump over almost any paywall. I’m not sure whether I approve of this one because there’s something slightly dodgy about going through the back door on paying websites, but I’ve made my peace with it… I just use it when I’m doing research and wouldn’t be able to look at something without going through the rigmarole of signing up for a free trial etc. Now I can hop over the wall and have a quick look (so, a bit like popping into a library rather than actually buying the book). But, yes, I know I’m on slightly dodgy moral ground, and I’m being slightly more circumspect about this one. So if – like me – you might find it useful for websites you only visit very occasionally, send me an email and I’ll share the link. Or if you feel strongly that I shouldn’t even be mentioning it, send me an email too. I’ll gladly listen and think twice before using it again.

And that’s it. I hope at least one of the above proves useful.

[Photo is of the overhead screens at Outernet in London, the venue of last year’s Archiboo Awards.]

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But there’s one more podcaster who now deserves a place on that list and who brings a slightly different angle to the conversation, and that’s Madalena Nalepa.

Magdalena is on a mission to explore architecture’s fourth dimension. She shows that designing in three dimensions is simply not enough – there’s always a fourth dimension.

My conversation with her, focusing on the importance of STORY in architecture, has just hit the airwaves. Have a listen – and enjoy!

The post A different angle and a 4th dimension? appeared first on Architypal.

Because it’s the first step in purposefully getting more of those clients.

And if your ideal client sees themselves reflected in the clarity of what you put out there, they’ll be drawn to you.

It’s a win for you, and a win for them.

So, who are my own ideal clients?

They’re architects who are often – but not always – the founders and directors of a small practice.
They might be looking to grow, but equally they might simply want to get better at charting a steady and enjoyable course – doing work they enjoy for clients they respect.

But the size of their practice is much less important than their qualities and their attitude.

They know they need to get better at stepping into the shoes of their clients and communicating their value.
They’re ready to trust me to help get them where they want to be.
They’re hungry for something to change and wide open to seeing things differently.

If you haven’t yet worked out who your ideal clients are, start by thinking about a favourite client and then make a list of their qualities and values, worries and frustrations, aspirations and goals.

That’ll give you the best possible starting point – a much better starting point, I think, than thinking only about sector or demographics. After all, great projects are built on great relationships.

Oh, and if my ideal client sounds just like you, get in touch. I’d love to hear from you.

The post In an ideal world appeared first on Architypal.