Last year I was invited to warble about my career at my old home-away-from-home, Birmingham University. The talk was called ‘Being a Cosmo Columnist and other stories’ and was about how I started in journalism, how I got the writing gigs I did and how I got my book deal. The good people who organised the shindig recorded theContinue reading “My Birmingham University talk (video)”
Author Archives: Jo Usmar
This is what happened when I went to a rave (sober) at 6.30am on a Wednesday…
…and you can read all about what happened here in my article for MSN. (Yes, it was a proper rave with a live DJ and everything and yes, I was just high on life and nothing else.) There are some more pictures below that weren’t included in the article.
Cosmo blog: What you’re doing wrong on dates/in relationships/in life in general
Below is a blog post I wrote for Cosmopolitan during my stint as the magazine’s Sex and the Not So Single Girl columnist. It’s one of my faves so I thought I’d re-post it here. Hope you like. A succinct run-down on why any burgeoning romances (or friendships) are fizzling to nothing So you’ve met someoneContinue reading “Cosmo blog: What you’re doing wrong on dates/in relationships/in life in general”
Simple mood booster: don’t ignore or dismiss the good things!
When you feel low or stressed everything is rubbish. It’s a fact. You’ll twist everything to suit your bad mood even if it’s genuinely good: “Andy only said he liked my speech because he felt sorry for me”/ “Claire only invited me to her hen party to make up the numbers”. When you feel you’re careering up Shit’sContinue reading “Simple mood booster: don’t ignore or dismiss the good things!”
Read all my Heat interviews! (Or don’t. Whatever.)
Whoop! I have finally uploaded all my Heat interviews (it only took four years). Just click on the images below and you’ll be redirected to the PDFs. I’ve also uploaded them onto my designated Heat page which can be accessed by clicking the link or via the homepage. Below are my interviews with Miranda, Heston Blumenthal, Nick Hewer,Continue reading “Read all my Heat interviews! (Or don’t. Whatever.)”
HELP! How to ask for help when you’re freaking out
Boss: “How’s that 55 page thesis on Chinese economic policy coming on, Nat?” You: “Oh, splendidly, thanks. It’s a real page turner.” Sound familiar? Bet it does. Perhaps not the Chinese economic policy bit, but definitely lying through your teeth when you’re so far out of your depth the Jaws soundtrack is playing on loopContinue reading “HELP! How to ask for help when you’re freaking out”
This Book Will Save Your Life!
Great to see Foyles have featured our books as part of their ‘This Book Will Save Your Life’ campaign!
Download your own Mind Map: a simple way to understand your mood
It’s all too easy to forget that how you feel emotionally is actually important. That might sound ridiculous, but when was the last time you thought, ‘Why do I feel down/angry/anxious/worried and how can I stop it?’ Often it’s easier to just accept those feelings as inevitable byproducts of a busy life without digger deeper.Continue reading “Download your own Mind Map: a simple way to understand your mood”
Read features on the books in YOU, Stylist, Look, Cosmo, MSN and Huff Post
I’ve updated the books’ press page so now you can read all the features, articles and extracts that have been published on the series in the last month. Here I’ve selected some of my favourites that you might like to peruse – just click on the image and you’ll be redirected to a PDF or theContinue reading “Read features on the books in YOU, Stylist, Look, Cosmo, MSN and Huff Post”
How to make genuinely achievable goals in 2014
Jess and I (the wondrous Dr Jessamy Hibberd with whom I have written This Book Will) penned a blog together about New Year resolutions and how to keep them (which you can read on our site jessamyandjo.com). I was going to re-post it here, but then realised it’s probably too late as pretty much everyoneContinue reading “How to make genuinely achievable goals in 2014”
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