Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition and health who has appeared as a nutrition expert on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, ABC-TV, NBC-TV, CBS-TV, Martha Stewart Living and Oprah and Friends. A board-certified nutritionist with a doctorate in holistic nutrition and a masters degree in psychology, his work has been featured in over 50 magazines and newspapers ranging from the New York Times to US Weekly. A member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Men’s Health, he’s also a regular contributor to Pilates Style, America Online, Better Nutrition and the Huffington Post. He’s the best-selling author of eight books, including the best-sellers The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth (now in its 14th printing), Living Low Carb, The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth, and The 150 Most Effective Ways to Boost Your Energy, His latest book is The Most Effective Ways to Live Longer.
Thank you for this interview, Jonny. Can you tell us a little about yourself and how long you’ve been writing?
Jonny: I’ve been writing since second grade. I had trouble behaving myself in class so they took me out of the class and gave me special writing projects. It turned out I was much better at writing than I was at behaving!
Do you write full-time?
Jonny: Only when I’m not playing tennis! Actually, writing is my main job, aside from speaking, teaching and running my website (www.jonnybowden.com). I do four columns every month (including America Online and Better Nutrition), a weekly newsletter, and about one book a year.
You’ve met an old friend from high school and you want to pitch your book to him/her in five minutes or less. What would you say?
Jonny: Luckily I have an agent to do that for me! And I’m a pretty terrible salesman, so I’d probably just give him/her a copy and offer to sign it!
Who is your intended audience? Have you been able to crossover into other audiences as well?
Jonny: Every writer likes to believe their audience is the world, but we’ve done some market research and the truth is that the majority of my readers and website visitors are women, 35-65, interested in health, weight loss and living longer. Women make most of the health decisions for their families anyway, so this really isn’t a great surprise. I do have some following with men as well, probably because I do a nutrition column for a bodybuilding website and I’m on the editorial advisory board of Men’s Health.
Why did you choose your particular genre?
Jonny: It’s the only one I know anything about! Believe me, if I could be a great novelist, I would!
Do you ever experience self-doubts with your work?
Jonny: Always. But it goes with the territory. I’m not the kind of expert who says “follow me, I have the answers”. I’m the kind of expert who says “let me help you find the way that’s best for you!”
Where do you write? Do you have a favorite place?
Jonny: Always in my little studio above my house. It’s a short commute from where I live- one spiral staircase. I tell the three dogs, “It’s time to go to work!” and they get all excited and bound up the steps and we stay there together most of the day!
What kind of research did you have to do during the writing process?
Jonny: I am a Google Master. Seriously. I’ve somehow figured out the algorhythms, and am able to find almost anything really quickly. But the best part is I’m pretty good at immediately finding which sources are worth pursuing and which are not. I subscribe to a zillion medical and nutritional newsletters, I go to conferences, I read obsessively, and I’m a member of several professional societies- like the American Society of Nutrition and the American College of Nutrition. And I’ve managed to assemble a “rollerdex” of some of the most innovative thinkers in America and I’m fortunate enough to be able to get most of them on the phone!
Who is your publisher and how did you get accepted by them? Did you pitch your book yourself or go through an agent?
Jonny: I’ve always had an agent. My present agent- - Coleen O’Shea of Allen O’Shea- and I have been together for the last 8 books and I have no intention of leaving her!
How are you promoting your book thus far?
Jonny: We’re doing this one with viral marketing, blog tours, a book blog (http://mosteffectivewaystolivelonger.com) and the usual radio interviews. At this point I’m on the radar of most of the national magazines, so I get called for interviews pretty regularly, which helps get the book name out there. And about 20,000 people subscribe to my newsletter, so I count on them to help get the word out as well!
If you could give one book promotion tip to new authors, what would that be?
Jonny: Write a great book and get a great agent!
What’s next for you?
Jonny: I start my next semester teaching my course on “Weight Loss Coaching” in January, and we’re already at work on the cookbook follow-up to “The Most Effective Ways to Live Longer”. I’ll keep writing my columns, of course. And I plan a big new e-Book on Inflammation: The Hidden Cause of Disease for the new year. Plus my annual “Diet Boot Camp Challenge” begins in January, not to mention my tennis league!
Thank you for this interview, Jonny. Can you tell us where we can find you on the web?
Jonny: Thanks for asking! People can visit me at www.jonnybowden.com. I’ve got a bunch of free stuff, a newsletter, some CDs and DVDs and- I’m proud to say- a very fine, high-quality vitamin store with doctor brands that you can’t get at stores, all selected and approved by me! And thanks to my partner, Anja Christy, we are known for our customer service! And we answer all our e mails!
Dr. Jonny Bowden will be on virtual book tour in January 2012 with Pump Up Your Book. If you'd like to follow his tour, visit his tour page here!
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