Bluebird wins behavioural change expert Izadi after five-way auction

Pan Macmillan has won two books by Shahroo Izadi following a "hotly contested" five-publisher auction, with the first title, The Kindness Method, set to be the imprint's lead title in May 2018. 

Carole Tonkinson, publisher of Bluebird, acquired world rights from Sarah Williams of the Sophie Hicks Agency.   

Izadi is a behavioural change specialist in private practice, whose profile was raised following a series of personal articles written by Marisa Bate in The Pool, after she was able to reform her drinking habits with Izadi’s help. 

Her work with clients, helping them to overcome self-destructive patterns, whether overeating or drinking too much, provided the inspiration for writing her first book The Kindness Method: Changing Habits for Good. The book will draw on Izadi’s personal experiences of struggling with overeating, a journey which resulted in her losing eight stone, and present her mapping method for managing other issues like alcohol use, giving up smoking, procrastination, tidiness and social anxiety.

The second book in the deal will build on the brand of The Kindness Method and target weight loss specifically.

Izadi started her career treating those with drug and alcohol addictions as a Criminal Justice Lead in the addiction treatment field. In addition to her current private practice, Izadi is also a support group facilitator and therapist at Amy’s Place, the recovery house for women set up by The Amy Winehouse Foundation. She is also senior consultant for Emerging Horizons, and delivers professional development training for the NHS and CGL.