Course Overview

The Grounded Chaos Virtual Author Assistant Course Overview

First and foremost, we believe presenting cost details upfront is important.

  • The total cost of training with the Grounded Chaos team for six months is $750 if you pay in full with one payment. We also have a monthly payment option which is $130 a month for six months. There is a slight increase in total cost with the monthly payment option to offset the fees required to process the additional payments.

Now, how about a simple overview of the full three month syllabus? Let’s outline what our students can expect to learn.

*Please note, this is a simple overview intended to give a general scope of a course in active development. Expect updates in the future. The course in action will also provide real time training on adjacent topics that are not included below.

Class One

Strong foundations for building your Virtual Author Assistant business: Strengths / Expectations / Boundaries

  • In this class we will begin from the ground level, making sure a virtual assistant’s career is built on strong foundations.
  • We will also focus on knowing where a virtual assistant’s boundaries are, being upfront about specific skills they offer as well those that are not for them.
  • We will include review of key topics when providing virtual support such as security, privacy, reliability, and maintaining professionalism.

Class Two

Supporting authors through creating and maintaining series bibles and book formatting

  • Creating and maintaining series bibles and various applications that are used by authors for their books. Demonstrations of the following applications will be included: Plottr, Notion, Scrivener, Google Suite, Basecamp. Trello
  • A focus on back matter updates will also be included via demonstrations of Vellum and Atticus

Class Three

Learning the ins and outs of the various retailers and platforms independent authors may offer their books through

  • In this class we talk about the various retailers authors can offer books through, doing a walk thru on those and talking about which ones offer the ability to add mangers for various parts.
  • Ebooks / Print / Audiobooks
  • Subscription platforms and early access management
  • Serial retailers
  • Uploading translations

Class Four

Social media management

  • In this month, we will deep dive into the various social media platforms and the various ways that virtual assistants can support independent authors on each platform through group moderation, scheduling posts and so on.

Class Five

Newsletter Management

  • In this section, we will walk through the various email marketing platforms, talking about pros and cons for each of them. We will demonstrate how to work on them as a manager of an author’s account.
  • We will also discuss the logistics of implementing newsletter swaps and promotional groups on places like Book Funnel.

Class Six

Website Management / Course Review & Wrap up

  • At the beginning of this final month of the course, we will discuss managing websites for authors: adding to blogs, creating pages for books, and so on.
  • We will then wrap up the course with a review of course topics as needed by the students.
  • Upon successfully completing the course, our students will move into the community alumni space for ongoing support, connection, and updates going forward in our virtual author assistant community.

FAQ:

Will there be certificates?

  • Yes! Students who successfully complete all six months of training will receive a certificate. This includes active participation in each class and the follow up class discussions in the community.

Will there be class recordings?

  • Yes! Our students will get recordings of the class within a day or two following each class.

Will there be a place where students can ask questions and communicate with us and each other?

  • Yes! The classes all take place within a community subgroup within the Wide for the Win’s Circle group.

Will there be an alumni space for public recognition of Virtual Assistants who have completed our training?

  • Absolutely! We want to celebrate our students and see them succeed. Our students will get to share a photo, blurb, and their website on a page dedicated to our alumni. We can’t wait to showcase them.