Some Lives Should Be Recorded
Those who build organisations, shape industries or take on real responsibility rarely leave a full account behind. Wikipedia and LinkedIn fragments are not enough.
I help turn your life's work into the book that should exist, but doesn’t.
“I spoke to a few writers before Mark, but once we started talking I knew I had the right guy. He understood business and didn’t just write the story, he worked through it with me and made sense of it.”
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​David Giles
CEO, Entertainment Brands Group
The Private Record
Why Work With Me
​I'm a writer based in the UK, specializing in founder stories and memoirs of business builders and cultural leaders.
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I didn't arrive at this work from journalism or publishing. I came through business, leading, funding, negotiating, and sitting on both sides of risk for long enough that I stopped having to imagine what those decisions felt like.
I know what it means when a call affects payroll, reputation or survival. I understand the trade-offs and the calculations that never make it into the official account and I'm not here to smooth any of that into sentiment or easy lessons. You ever come across a simple, straightforward life, business or otherwise, that was truly interesting?
Earlier in my career, I wrote Crystal Mapping, a book on visual thinking and big picture communication. I've always had a thing for making sure the story you're telling hits the mark. The same discipline applies here. The goal is simple enough: stand far enough back to see the whole thing, breathe in life and structure, then make it make sense.
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Whether you have a part written document that needs editing or finishing, or whether you're starting from scratch, the process is the same. I listen carefully and ask the questions that matter to help you produce something clear and dangerously human. Something others will want to read - not just another machine-driven business book.​
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If you've built something, led something, or made decisions that shaped outcomes beyond yourself, and you want that documented as a compelling story, give me a shout.
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The Record
Most people who’ve built something significant have never sat down and properly worked through what actually happened. Not just the sequence of events, but the decisions, pressures, and turning points that only make sense in hindsight. At some point, that starts to matter.
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Not necessarily because you want to write a book, but because there’s value in having a clear account of how it all unfolded. Something that explains how you think, your principles and character.
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That's useful in ways a resumé or 'personal brand statement' never can be. In conversations around board roles, advisory work or new ventures, people are trying to understand judgement rather than just track record. This gives you a way of setting that out properly, in your own words with more gravitas and honesty than the usual PR.
People notice that.
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Through a number of focused conversations, we'll work through the shape of it. What and who mattered, how key decisions were made, and what the through-line of your career looks like when you stand back from it.
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The result is a structured account, typically 7,000 to 12,000 words, roughly the length of a New Yorker long-read, that stands on its own as a record or forms the foundation for a full Private or Public memoir if you decide to go further.
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It’s a useful thing to have and a process most find worthwhile.
The Private Record
For:
For people who have lived consequential lives but whose story is intended first for family, colleagues and future generations.
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What it delivers:​
A compelling account of a life, or of a defining period within it, written to explain how things actually happened and why they mattered.
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Built together through extended conversations, research and drafting, the Private Record creates an accurate and lasting account of your life. Written for family, close associates and future generations, it sets down what happened, why it mattered, and how decisions were made at the time.
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It is not simply a trip down memory lane. The aim is to capture the context of a life while the details are still clear, and before hindsight simplifies the story.
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​​Outcome:
Typically 40,000 to 60,000 words (can be shorter depending on requirement). Private by default although publication remains an option.
The Public Story
For:
Those who have led visible careers and want the full story of what happened set down properly for a public audience. ​For some it is about legacy. For others it is about setting the record straight.
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What it delivers:
A complete, structured memoir built for publication.
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The work sets out what happened, why decisions were made, what was at stake at the time, and what the consequences turned out to be. Written with clarity and narrative drive, it is shaped so that general readers can follow the story without losing the substance behind it.
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Built through extensive interviews, research and careful drafting, the aim is not reputation management but a durable account turned into a compelling, well-paced story.
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Outcome:
Typically 60,000 to 80,000 words. A finished manuscript ready for submission to agents and publishers, or for independent publication.
Process & Engagement
Every project begins with a confidential consultation to clarify intent, audience and scope. From there:
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• We start with a series of structured, recorded interviews, to find the patterns, turning points and detail to make your story breath.
• I'll then start to draft the narrative and shape each chapter into a professional manuscript through iterative review and refinement.
• Once you're happy with the shape and architecture, I'll deliver a full manuscript for final review and acceptance.
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Timelines vary depending on scope, but most projects run between three and nine months.
Throughout the process absolute discretion is guaranteed.
Because of the depth of work involved, I take on only a small number of commissions each year.
Fees & Scope
Every project is different. The subject, depth and the intended audience shape the work and determine the cost.
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The Record:
A shorter, focused piece of work capturing how a life and career have actually unfolded, the key decisions, turning points and underlying patterns.
It stands on its own as a clear, coherent account, and can become the foundation for a full Private Record or Public Story.
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Private Records:
A deeper commission, built through structured interviews and careful drafting. The result is a complete, accurate account of a life, written for family, close associates and future generations. Private by default, though publication remains an option.
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Public Stories:
Built for publication. Beyond the narrative, I shape the work for a general readership in terms of structure, pacing, and the things that make a literary agent want to pick it up rather than put it down.
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Costs:
The Record is typically completed over a couple of months and starts at £5,000.
Full private or public memoir projects typically run six to nine months and start at £12,000.
Final cost depends on the depth of research, length of manuscript and what you're trying to achieve. We start with a conversation before anything is agreed, and payments can be spread monthly or by stage.
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