Nev hopes for scary success
Nev Murray has a horribly good idea for a business.
Horror fiction fan Nev has turned his passion into a career, working with high-profile authors from across the globe to help publicise their work.
Confessions Publicity was launched to help horror authors drive awareness of their work and increase book sales.
Nev took the opportunity to go self-employed with support from the North East Business and Innovation Centre (BIC) after being made redundant, and he is delighted to be making a success out of something he loves: “I’ve been reading horror books since I was a kid and I started reviewing books seriously around 2012,” he said Nev.
“But when people started buying books on the back of my reviews and the authors themselves asked me to do some promotion work for them, I thought I could use my skills to open a publicity business and take advantage of a gap in the market.
“That’s why I started up and now I’m reading around 160 books a year. This gives me a sound base and knowledge about writing in general, so I can promote my client base better.
“My list of clients includes authors from all over the world so I need to keep up to date with worldwide trends.”
Having previously reviewed many books before starting Confessions Publicity, Nev had already built a large following on social media, which he now utilises to promote his clients.
“I offer various kinds of publicity services including dedicated book tours and Facebook launch parties,” he said.
Nev worked with BIC Business Adviser, Victoria Moodie, who helped him develop a business plan and supported him through the New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) scheme, a national government initiative.
Victoria’s support helped him make his business dream a reality and provided ideas on expanding the services he offers.
“The encouragement I received from Victoria gave me the confidence I needed to try and take my business to the next level and attract new clients,” he said.
“Now I want to expand on the services I offer.”