In this milestone tenth episode of the Coach Write Podcast, Helen ONeill sits down with Helen Hopper, co-founder of leadership consulting firm H Cubed and co-author of ‘The Art and Psychology of Board Relationships: The Secret Life of Boards.’
Helen Hopper tells the fascinating story of how a chance conversation around a campfire in Rajasthan led to a four-year journey of researching, writing, and publishing her first book with co-author Joy Harcup. From interviewing 50 board members to navigating the traditional publishing process with Routledge, Helen shares her insights into what it really takes to bring a book to life.
In this episode, you'll discover:
- How to find and work successfully with a co-author, including simple but effective collaboration techniques
- What to expect when working with a traditional academic publisher
- The ‘ART’ framework developed for the book
- Why sometimes the simplest solutions are the most powerful
- How writing a book can deepen your coaching practice and reconnect you with foundational theory
People and resources mentioned:
Coach Write 90 https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/coachwrite90
People Who Pivot by Helen ONeill: https://amzn.to/4oONVvW
EMCC UK https://www.emccuk.org
Coach Write Blog https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/blog
The Power to Choose by Robbie Swale https://amzn.to/4991Rwc
Leaders quest https://www.leadersquest.org/
Helen’s co-author: Joy Harcup
Routledge https://www.routledge.com/
The Work Revolution by Jonathan Males https://amzn.to/4pCpGm2
The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami https://amzn.to/3MXei5u
World of books https://www.worldofbooks.com/
Connect with Helen Hopper
Website: https://www.hcubed.co.uk/
Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-hopper-h3/
Book: The Art and Psychology of Board Relationships:The Secret Life of Boards https://amzn.to/4acIFyB
Connect with Helen ONeill
Website: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oneillhelen
Join the January 2026 cohort of Coach Write 90: https://www.coachwrite.co.uk/coachwrite90
*some of the links above are affiliate links
