Comic examines great female speakers

Stand-up and author Viv Groskop has signed a book deal for a guide to help women with public speaking.

Transworld will publish How Women Own the Room: The Art of Brilliant Speaking on November 1.

The book, is billed  as ‘part self-help, part manifesto, championing female speakers in the spotlight’, analysing the oratory skills of women including political leaders such as Hillary Clinton, comedians like Joan Rivers and writers including  Virginia Woolf.

Groskop said she would draw on her own experiences, including those in the world of comedy. 

She said: ‘There are now so many different ways for women to own the room and command an audience, whether it’s at work or on social media. 

‘And yet still the stereotype persists that public performance is scary and intimidating, especially for women. 

‘I’m passionate about overturning that for others in the same way I did for myself. Also, I wanted an excuse to gawp at another few thousand hours of footage of Michelle Obama.’

Transworld editorial director, Andrea Henry said that as a stand-up, critic, and ‘executive performance coach’, Groskop is ‘perfectly placed to write an engaging deep dive into the physicality and mindset of some of the best orators we’ve ever had the privilege to hear.’

Groskop previously detailed her experiences on the comedy circuit in the 2014 book I Laughed, I Cried.

Published: 9 Apr 2018