Avsnitt
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As a hybrid author with a long history of both self-publishing and traditional contracts, I’m often asked about this choice. How I decided to self-publish, and is it still a good idea?
This is question for the ages! Or, well, since 2007.
The answer is that it’s complicated. My own feelings about self-pub have surely evolved over the years. This March I celebrated my ten-year anniversary as a self published author. I had a great return on my efforts right out of the gate, so I’ve always been a fan. Unfortunately, though, self-publishing ate my life. It’s a lot of work, so I’m not quite as gung-ho as I used to be. But that doesn’t mean it’s a terrible idea.
To help you decide, I’ve identified several questions you can ask yourself to help figure out if self-publishing is for you.
#1 Does this book have an easily defined “shelf” in publishing land?
* Self publishing is not for every book. It works well when the genre has a built-in readership who already knows what it wants. For example, mystery lovers know how to shop for a mystery. They know how to spot one, and they usually don’t need an NPR interview with the author to entice them.
* If your book can fit comfortably and familiarly beside its cousins in the genre, give yourself ten points in favor of self publishing.
#2 Do I have a built-in readership I can reach via email or social media?
* If your book does not have an obvious, built-in readership, but you have a built-in following, then self-publishing might make sense for you.
* For example, if agents and publishers are telling you that your topic is too niche for them, but you already know how to reach the exact reader you need, then maybe you should trust your gut. Perhaps you’re the leading expert in crafting origami holiday decorations, with an instagram following of a hundred thousand people. Or maybe you travel the nation speaking on a particular topic. Or you’re part of a well-defined group—like education influencers, or architecture nerds. There are certainly some instances of an author knowing better than the publisher whether a book will sell.
#3 Do I have the patience to learn how publishing platforms fit together?
* I’m convinced that anyone can learn the ropes of self publishing. But you have to want to learn them. I enjoyed learning how to self publish. Then again, I also used to enjoy doing my own taxes. So maybe I’m a special breed of nerd.
* Before you start, figure out which bank account you’re going to provide for payment information, and get ready to provide your tax ID number. You’ll need to set up at least one platform, like KDP or D2D (Draft 2 Digital.)
* If you hate business, math and admin work, make sure to be honest with yourself about all the red tape you’re going to have to cut as a self-published author. And to those who say “I can just hire this stuff out,” I’m not sure that’s a great idea. Yes, there are hybrid-style publishers who will take your money and fill out the forms on your behalf. But many of them overcharge and overpromise. Self publishing is, by its very nature, a DIY effort.
#4 Can I source the editorial and design help that I need to get this right?
* Hiring freelancers is often a fun part of this job, but it’s great to have a plan.
* Editorial work can vary vastly in quality, and the problem is that you won’t be able to tell who’s competent just from a website or an email exchange. That’s why the first question I ask editors is: are you willing to do a two page sample edit? And I don’t hire anyone who says no. It’s not that I expect anyone to work for free, but two pages is just a few minutes time. And finding an editor who jives with your style is hard.
* Furthermore, you need to be very clear about what you expect the editor to do. Is this a developmental edit? Will she be advising you on pacing and plot holes? Or is this a copyedit—meant to find errors, awkward phrasings and repetitions, and basic inconsistencies? Or is this a final proofread? Each of these services will be priced differently.
* Cover design, unlike editorial work, is easier to evaluate from a portfolio online. Note that cover designers tend to be very genre specific. So you need to find someone who has designed covers close in nature to the one you need. Before you even get started, make a Pinterest board of covers in your genre that you admire.
* It’s also worth noting that not all competent writers are born with the right vocabulary for discussing cover design. If you feel this is a weakness of yours, try to find a designer who seems willing to give you the time and attention you need.
#5 Am I ready to bear the full responsibility for launching my book into the world?
* The best thing about self-publishing is that the author has complete control. But that’s also the worst thing about it! If you fall in love with a cover, but it’s not a good fit for the genre, there’s no one to play devil’s advocate. Or, rather, you will have to work hard to find collaborators you trust to help you make the big decisions. And you’ll have to course-correct all by yourself when you realize you’ve gone astray.
Conclusion: with great power comes great responsibility. So be ready! Self-publishing can be life-changing, but it’s best if you go in with open eyes and an open heart.
~Sarina
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
He’s back! He’s back! One of my favorite writers, an early and generous mentor, the fantabulous A.J. Jacobs. We interviewed him last when his book, The Puzzler, came out, and he’s back to talk about his new book, The Year of Living Constitutionally: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Constitution’s Original Meaning.
Links from the Pod:
A.J.’s website
My Outsourced Life article
Party like it’s 1789! My weird enlightening month living strictly by the U.S. Constitution in The Guardian
Thanks for listening to this week’s episode! If you enjoy what we’re doing here at the #AmWriting Podcast, make sure you’re subscribed to get our episodes straight to your inbox (and hey - maybe forward it to someone else who may enjoy).
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Saknas det avsnitt?
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We’ve been talking a lot lately about the how hard it is to finish a project and how different that energy is from the wonderful, euphoric, sometimes manic starting energy. Here’s some advice from Jess, Sarina, and Jennie on how authors manage their lives and relationships and work amid the ups and downs of writing projects.
AmReading:
Sarina: She’s been loving the Orphan X series by Greg Hurwitz
Jennie: Her fave read this week is Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano
Jess: Finally got around to listening to Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt and KJ convinced her to download The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray. She also started The Sicilian Inheritance by return guest Jo Piazza.
Hey, it's Jennie Nash, founder and CEO of Author Accelerator. I hear so many people tell me that book coaching sounds like their dream job, and they wish they could do it, but they can't because ___________. Fill in the blank, whatever it is: They don't have an agent, they haven't written a bestseller, they don't have a Ph.D., they weren't an English major, they don't know enough about the publishing industry--whatever the thing is. And I can tell you that I see people overcome these things every single day. I have a presentation on this, on imposter syndrome. It's the single biggest barrier keeping most people from saying YES to their dream job. Come check it out at bookcoaches.com/imposter. That's bookcoaches.com/imposter.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
If you do not already know Rachael Herron, host of the Ink In Your Veins Podcast (formerly known as How Do You Write) and author of 13-ish novels (including 2 thrillers under the not-exactly pseudonym RH Herron), soon-to-be two memoirs and a few assorted books as well as many many blog posts and essays about writing… well you’re lucky because now you do.
The thing to know about Rachael Herron for today’s purposes is that she’s published her books both independently and with traditional publishers. She’s even retrieved the rights to traditionally published books from over a decade ago and re-published them herself—even while enthusiastically traditionally publishing her thrillers. Even with all that experience and knowledge under her belt, she still decided she just HAD to go out and publish something new. She’s independently publishing her newest book, Unstuck: An Audacious Hunt for Home and Happiness—but first, she decided to run a Kickstarter to help her do it.
Did Rachael have any idea how to run a Kickstarter? She did not. Did she know if she’d meet her goals? Nope—although, as you’ll hear in the episode, she had a bunch of good reasons to think she just might.
If you’ve ever toyed with the idea of using Kickstarter to fund a book yourself, this is the episode for you. We talk about why Rachael decided not to seek a traditional publisher, how she decided to try Kickstarter and what it took to get it done, as well as what I call “mistakes we made so you don’t have to”. We talk about the highs—hitting her goal in a matter of hours and getting to create “stretch goals” so raise even more, being chosen as one of Kickstarter’s “Projects We Love”—and the lows, like almost setting goals in the wrong currency, which would have meant she’d essentially be paying people to take her book and overpromising speed and needing to tell people things were not actually live… yet.
And we get way into the weeds on who this might work for and who might want to look for another way to get what they want. If you’re thinking oh, her platform is big, no wonder this worked for her—we talk numbers, and I bet you’ll be surprised. And her final piece of advice is so important that I’m going to lay it right down here:
Write the book first.
Links from the pod
Find Rachael’s Kickstarter, which runs through April 22, 2024, HERE.
Follow Rachael on Instagram HERE and subscribe to her EXCELLENT email about writing HERE. Support her on Patreon HERE.
Get Your Book Selling on Kickstarter, Monica Leonelle & Russell P. Nohelty
Joanna Penn episodes on Kickstarters
How to Be Old, Lyn Slater
Lulu.com
Bookfunnel
Hey, it's Jennie Nash, founder and CEO of Author Accelerator. I hear so many people tell me that book coaching sounds like their dream job, and they wish they could do it, but they can't because ___________. Fill in the blank, whatever it is: They don't have an agent, they haven't written a bestseller, they don't have a Ph.D., they weren't an English major, they don't know enough about the publishing industry--whatever the thing is. And I can tell you that I see people overcome these things every single day. I have a presentation on this, on imposter syndrome. It's the single biggest barrier keeping most people from saying YES to their dream job. Come check it out at bookcoaches.com/imposter. That's bookcoaches.com/imposter.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
The idea for Sarina Bowen’s thriller, The Five Year Lie, is an incredible and suspenseful hook for a story – and she first heard it from a writer friend. In this episode, Jennie Nash interviews Sarina about the concept of who owns an idea and how this particular idea made its way through Sarina’s brain and onto the flap copy of her forthcoming book.
Things Mentioned in This Episode
Lauren Blakely
The Best Men by Sarina Bowen and Lauren Blakely
The Five Year Lie by Sarina Bowen – preorder it wherever books are sold
Sarinabowen.com
Hey, it's Jennie Nash, founder and CEO of Author Accelerator. I hear so many people tell me that book coaching sounds like their dream job, and they wish they could do it, but they can't because ___________. Fill in the blank, whatever it is: They don't have an agent, they haven't written a bestseller, they don't have a Ph.D., they weren't an English major, they don't know enough about the publishing industry--whatever the thing is. And I can tell you that I see people overcome these things every single day. I have a presentation on this, on imposter syndrome. It's the single biggest barrier keeping most people from saying YES to their dream job. Come check it out at bookcoaches.com/imposter. That's bookcoaches.com/imposter.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Hey #AmWriters! It’s been almost three years since our interview with Jenny Lawson first aired, but we know the struggle is REAL - so we thought this is the perfect time to bring this episode back out for a listen. Whether you’re struggling with getting the work done or feeling like maybe you’re not really a writer, this episode may be just what you need to remind you why you’re here. Happy listening!
Writing is hard. In this episode, we talk imposter syndrome, editing, the right headspace for reading your own stuff, why you might need a “nice” agent, reading your work aloud to friends, recording audiobooks in the closet, being years late on a deadline, sending your editor proof of life and the deep inner conviction that people only buy your book because they feel sorry for you. #ohyeah.
#AmReading
Jess: Win by Harlan Coben
Jenny: Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian
Note: Bookriot Podcast
KJ: The Fifth Petal by Brunonia Barry
Jenny’s Bookshop: The Nowhere Bookshop, San Antonio, TX
The Fantastic Strangelings Book Club books:
Professional Troublemaker by Luvvie Ajayi Jones
Swallowed Man by Edward Carey
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas
The Did Bad Things by Lauren A. Forry
Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
Find Jenny at The Bloggess!
Hey, it's Jennie Nash, founder and CEO of Author Accelerator. I hear so many people tell me that book coaching sounds like their dream job, and they wish they could do it, but they can't because ___________. Fill in the blank, whatever it is: They don't have an agent, they haven't written a bestseller, they don't have a Ph.D., they weren't an English major, they don't know enough about the publishing industry--whatever the thing is. And I can tell you that I see people overcome these things every single day. I have a presentation on this, on imposter syndrome. It's the single biggest barrier keeping most people from saying YES to their dream job. Come check it out at bookcoaches.com/imposter. That's bookcoaches.com/imposter.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Hey hey Jess here!
I had a couple of great learning opportunities this month, so in the interest of flattening learning curves, I took notes for all of you!
First up, I took a call from a company interested in working with me to boost my platform, and I was curious about what they do and how they do it. While I won’t reveal what company I talked to, I will tell you about all the things I learned on that call. Companies that promise to boost platform are proliferating, and I was curious about how it all works.
Second, I was on a panel about monetizing platform at the Institute for Independent Journalists conference on freelancing and learned SO much from my co-presenters. I have subscribed to all of their newsletters because they are very cool writers, all.
Frankie de la Cretaz, Out of Your League: Dispatches from the intersection of queer sports and pop culture.
Tim Herrera, Freelancing With Tim: Demystifying the world of freelance journalism.
Morgan Sung, Rat.House: an exploration of social platforms and how they shape our real world culture, from dissecting the creator economy to unpacking chronically online discourse.
Sa’iyda Shabazz at Autostraddle.com
Jaeah Lee: independent journalist and a contributing writer at The New York Times MagazineAmReading
James, Percival Everett
The Other Bennet Sister, Janice Hadlow
I hope this week’s episode provides some useful information, and at the very least, leads to some of your new favorite writers!
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
You KIDS. If you’re not already following Jo Piazza, queen of the highly suspicious influencer side-eye, what even are you DOING on Substack and Instagram? Go follow her now. We’ll wait.
Okay, now listen while we talk about Jo’s many-booked career that includes freelancing, narrative non-fiction, journalistic memoir (the kind where a reporter manages to get paid to interview people to try to help her with her problem), writing novels with co-authors and novels alone. Just LOOK at the list below and tell me you don’t think you’ll get something out of listening to this woman (who has also made multiple podcasts and we’ll list those below too.) Press play now.
BUT BEFORE YOU DO: Pre-order The Sicilian Inheritance and get all things Jo on Substack free forever. You’ll love the book (or if the dual narrative historical feminist fiction is not your vibe I guarantee you’ll find someone who will)—BUT ALSO this is actually a great offer, bc as you can see Jo’s likely to be filling the place with entertaining and informative content for a long time to come. I already have the book and I still pre-ordered because that’s a deal.Jo’s Website: jopiazza.com
Jo’s Books
The Knockoff (with Lucy Sykes)
Fitness Junkie (with Lucy Sykes)
How to Be Married
If Nuns Ruled the World
Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win
We’re Not Like Them (with Christine Pride)
You Were Always Mine (with Christine Pride)
Celebrity, Inc
Love Rehab
AND The Sicilian Inheritance
Jo’s Podcasts
Committed
Under the Influence
She Wants More
Fierce
The Pod Club
Also mentioned
Pam Jenoff
Fiona Davis
The Secret Book of Flora Lea, Patti Callahan Henry
Kristin Harmel
#AmReading (or #AmEnthusing bc you can’t stop Jo once she gets going)
Virginia Sole Smith’s Burnt Toast Substack
Sara Petersen’s In Pursuit of Clean Countertops Substack
Momfluenced, Sara Petersen
Ghost Story (narrative Podcast)
Roy Kent’s standup show
The Women, Kristin Hannah
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Whenever I see a writer on social media incessantly talking about their own work, their own book, and their own launch, the thing that comes to mind is this: “They’re not being a good literary citizen.” Being a good literary citizen is, among other things, showing up for the community you are a part of, uplifting other writers, and doing what you can to make sure that all voices are heard. We often think that the time to help others is after you’ve made it, but in this episode I’m talking to a writer who is doing this in a big way before she herself has made it into the spotlight. For years she has volunteered at the Thrillerfest conference – and this year, she was asked to become a paid co-director of the event. I think you’ll find her story inspiring.
Links from the Pod:
Thrillerfest
Samantha Skal, Book Coach
Tessa Wegert’s Shana Merchant series starts with Death in the Family
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Hey #AmWriters, Jess here! There's a very specific reason I wanted to re-up this coaching call with Emily Edlynn. I did an interview with AJ Jacobs day before yesterday, but it's not going to drop until May. I love AJ Jacobs, I know you love AJ Jacobs, and I’m really excited for you to hear our interview - but in that interview we talked about writing nonfiction books in less than a year. It is possible to do! We had a coaching call with Emily Edlynn 100 episodes ago and I wanted to re-up it because her book is out. She did it! She completed the task. She knew the assignment. Her book, Autonomy-Supportive Parenting, came out at the end of 2023. So I'm very proud to replay this episode and let you know that the P.S. on that episode was success! I hope you enjoy it.
And WAY TO GO, Emily!
Our guest on this episode has a problem—a good problem, yes. An enviable problem even. One that she herself is delighted to have: she’s sold a non-fiction book on proposal.
And now she has to write it. 60,000 words, researched, organized and ready for the editor while also fitting in her day job, raising 3 kids with her partner and all of the other curveballs life likes to throw you.
In this “coaching call” episode, Jess and I (it’s KJ writing, as it often is) help long-time listener Emily Edlynn figure out how much time to spend in what areas: book structure, research, interviewing, drafting, editing—and then how to set yourself up to allow for getting a major project like this completed on time. (We all know how KJ loves a good burn chart - check out episode 175: #HowtoUseaBurnChart). We talk about motivating yourself, strategies for staying on track or picking back up after the unexpected happens. (You can read Emily’s email to us at the bottom of the shownotes.)
Most of us spend more time working on short term projects than longer ones, and when we do get involved with something that stretches out for months or years, it’s usually with other people and external deadlines, whether it’s a major work endeavor, a house remodel or a Ph.D. dissertation. Books—even books with agents and editors—require major solo mojo to get from start to The End—and then revise the result of that. It’s yet another of the many many things that aren’t easy about writing.
But it can be learned, and it can be done.
Emily doesn’t have any trouble using the time she has to write—but if you do, here are some ideas based on Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies, which are all about knowing how you best meet inner and outer obligations (of which writing a book is weirdly both). Obligors need outer accountability. Set yourself up with a friend or your agent, give them your goals and arrange weekly check-ins. Questioners need reasons, so make that burn chart and put up a full calendar where you can see it and always have an answer for “but do I really need to do this now?” Upholders probably need nothing more than a plan—but make sure your inner upholder understands that this is a priority. Rebels benefit from regular reminders that this is hard, that most people can’t do it and that achieving this goal is a rebellion against everything that stands in its way—and many also like a plan that involves beating the clock. Anything that lets a rebel say “I’ll show you!” is rebel jet fuel.
Gretchen appeared on Episode 107 of the podcast, and you can take her “Four Tendencies” quiz here.
Emily’s email: I am a psychologist by training who started writing for an audience in 2017 when my career hit a crossroads with a move for my husband's job. My parenting blog led to writing freelance when possible, including a weekly parenting column for Parents since 2019. In April, I signed a contract with a small, independent publisher, Familius, to write a parenting book.The full manuscript is due May 1. I have never felt so lost! I thought there would be more editor interaction over the year, but she basically said "See you in a year unless you need me!" (I have asked more from her, but have realized she is going to give me broad strokes and not much else.) I have scoured all the places for resources on "how to write a nonfiction book" but besides some of your episodes, what I find is either about self-publishing or marketing, not the process of writing a nonfiction book (that's not a memoir).I'm trying to narrow this down to one question, which probably can't be "how do I write a nonfiction book in a year with no structure, in the time I have?" For context, I spend half my working week doing therapy in a private practice and supervising graduate students. I'm also writing a new blog post once a month to keep my newsletter subscribers engaged, and my weekly column. Oh, and did I mention attempting to raise 3 children in the process? I currently clock about 8 hours a week of writing time . . . and then I read relevant books when I can almost daily. I did find a virtual writing group with two other psychologist authors, which has been helpful. Since you probably aren't aiming to answer "how do I write a book in a year?" maybe narrowing it down to, "How do I manage my time with a professional job that pays the bills, little interaction with an editor (this seems different in the fiction world or even the nonfiction Big 5 world), to complete a 60,000-word nonfiction, researched manuscript in a year?"
Do you think you can help me??
Links from the Pod
How to Get an Agent Episode
Emily’s website, www.emilyedlynnphd.com
#AmReading
Emily: The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Wow No Thank You by Samantha Irby
KJ: Becoming Duchess Goldblatt, Anonymous
Jess: The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Podcast: Lili Anolik’s Once Upon a Time at Bennington College
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
✍️ Writers: when you’re stuck on a plot, go outside and take a walk with a friend. You’ll still be stuck, but you will get your steps in for the day, and have someone to b***h to. Follow us for more plotting tips. Here all week.
Sometimes Sarina and I take an ordinary walk. Most times, actually. But sometimes, part way up the first hill, Sarina says, Ok, so I have this problem. And then we’re off, trying to figure out why a character would make a certain choice, or how to get someone from point A to point B.
And then I will say, ok, I have a problem. And occasionally it’s that simple, but for me, the problem is usually that I have made my plot so ludicrously over-complicated that it cannot even be explained, let alone reduced to a single problem. Which is a different problem.
And then we try to fix THAT. Either way, there’s a point here, which is: putting the problem, or the plot, into words in itself can help solve it—or reveal what’s really wrong—and also, it can really help to get a new perspective. In the episode, we talk about how and why to do this (it doesn’t have to involve a walk or a dog or a hill), who you can enlist (apparently Kristan Higgins does it with her husband, only he’s not actually allowed to talk) and most importantly, we discuss getting past the all the voices in your head telling you not to, and and note that the louder those voices are, the more likely it is that maybe you need to talk this over with someone before you go any further.
A few things we referenced: the summer planning series, Blueprint for a Book Challenge, which included a LOT of talk about why it’s a good idea to voice what you’re planning to do before you do it.
Links from the Pod:Becca Syme
Jennie’s book The Last Beach Bungalow
Sarina’s book Rookie Move
Otter (voice recording app)
#AmReading
KJ: The Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson
Wreck the Halls, Tessa Bailey
Sarina: The Intern, Michele Campbell
Jennie: Debbie Millman’s Design Matters (Podcast)
The Creative Act, Rick Rubin
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Jess here. I love love love coaching calls, and opt to talk rather than trade emails when someone needs a comprehensive education in speaking career building. I met Katie at a recent speaking event and she grabbed my attention on stage right away. She had that…something that speakers need on stage to hold the attention of a large audience.
Katie was generous enough to allow me to record our call so you all can learn along with her! Here’s to flattening learning curves!
Links from the Pod
Katie’s website
Katie’s book, Untold Teaching Truths
Katie at the Accutrain 50 in 50 panel, from my live Thread of the event:
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Wanna start—or fix—your email/Substack? We GOT YOU. Dan Blank is, truly, THE GUY when it comes to helping writers identify our audience, find ways to reach them and also feel great about the process. Before you do anything else, go subscribe to his Substack. I’ll wait.
Ok, those Substack links are BIG. But brace yourself, there’s more of them. In this episode, which you must go listen to, Dan, Jennie and KJ talk about the three ways to approach a Substack, why you should have an email list no matter what, finding your role (inspiring, entertaining, teaching) and—most importantly—not heading out there with something that’s half baked.
Our message today is: BAKE THE THING.
What do you believe above all? What do you want to explore? What do you want to share? Who do you want to come hang? Answer those questions, and Substack—some version of it, which may or may not involve $$ and trust me we get into that—is YOURS.
Today instead of books, we have Substack follow recommendations! (and you DO NOT have to use Substack to get these emails. If you don’t, they’re just emails. Subscribe!)
KJ’s REC’s
Free and gonna stay that way:
Welcomes $$, plenty that is free and lovely
Worth every $$
Jennie’s RECS
Dan’s RECS
During the pandemic, there was an explosion of people who wanted to write memoir, and many of those writers are now struggling to make sense of their drafts and figure out how to approach the marketplace. It's a great time to be a book coach who specializes in memoir, and in March 2024, Author Accelerator is launching a certification course to give memoir coaches the skills, tools, and experience to meet writers where they are.Our year-long program is robust and intense. I'm inviting any listeners of this show who are interested in our coaching program to sign up for a one-on-one session with me to strategize about whether or not this course is right for you. Just go to bookcoaches.com/amwriting to sign up for a time that works for you.
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Deciding what to leave in and what to take out is something every writer has to face; from the moment they start conceiving of an idea to the moment when it goes to press. What strategy do you bring to those decisions?
In this episode, I (Jennie Nash) chat with book coach and author Suzette Mullen about the scenes she left out of her forthcoming memoir, The Only Way Through is Out.
She has an ebook you can download and read along with five cut scenes, plus see her reasons for cutting them. You can find it at: https://www.yourstoryfinder.com/behindthescenes
Links from the Pod:
Suzette’s website
Books we mention on this episode include:
Save the Cat! Writes a Novel, Jessica Brody
Blueprint for a Memoir: How to Write a Memoir for the Marketplace, Jennie Nash
You've heard us talk about Author Accelerator's book coach training program, and now they're offering a unique chance to peek inside a successful book coaching business and see what it really looks like. Grab the FREE 52-page mini magazine, From Lost Lawyer and Empty Nest Mom to Thriving Author and Book Coach -- How I Built My Book Coaching Business, HERE. You don't even have to hand over your email! You can read about book coach Suzette Mullen's journey as a writer, a book coach, and a human -- and on February 6 at 9am PST / 12 EST, you can join Author Accelerator CEO Jennie Nash and Suzette for a conversation about Suzette's journey. The sign-up for the February event is on the same page where you download the magazine.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
I think of myself an analytical person. Fine, a cynical one. So when my friends began talking about manifesting as a way to improve one's writing career, I struggled to wrap my head around it. Even if I was privately fascinated.
First, let’s define our terms.
Manifesting, in this context, refers to the practice of thinking aspirational thoughts with the intention of encouraging them to become reality. It's based on the belief that our thoughts, energy, and focus can directly influence the physical world and attract specific outcomes or experiences. This concept often aligns with the Law of Attraction (See: Atkinson, Wattles, Byrne, etc), which suggests that positive thoughts bring positive results and negative thoughts bring negative ones.
In other words, by visualizing our desires, affirming them through positive statements, and believing in their eventual realization, we can 'manifest' these desires into our lives. It's not just wishing; proponents argue it's about aligning ourselves mentally and emotionally with the desired outcome, thereby making ourselves open and prepared for the opportunities and resources needed to achieve success.
Appealing, right?
I thought so, too. Who doesn’t want to write a letter to the Universe, name her desires, and watch them come true?
But first I had to overthink it. I was raised to believe that hard work was the secret sauce, and if I haven’t achieved my goals then I probably haven’t been working hard enough, or writing well enough. Right?
Besides—if happy thoughts can bring success directly to my doorstep—like fruit flies to an overripe banana—does this mean that failure is always my fault, too? If I tell the universe I deserve to hit the New York Times bestsellers list in 2024, and then the universe doesn’t deliver this shiny bauble… does that imply that I’ve failed myself with my own negativity?
Furthermore, if that’s true, then isn’t manifesting the ultimate in privileged thinking? Some of us face hardcore challenges that make getting through the day awfully difficult. It feels disingenuous to those who are struggling to assume that any obstacle can be cleared by positive energy.
My inner critic pounced, and my exploration of manifesting almost ended there. Almost. But then I had one more uncomfortable thought, and came to realize that this part of the struggle is actually the whole point, because it gets to the heart of writers’ fears.
After all, show me a writer who has never wondered whether writing is not the most self-centered job in the world. Show me a writer who believes that writing is always the most valuable and useful thing she can do with her time. That’s just not how writers are made. Self-criticism is actually crucial to the work. You can’t edit your work if you’re not willing to second guess your own decisions. In fact, balancing the impulse to create with the impulse to delete is, psychologically , the guts of this job.
Furthermore, when I sit down at my keyboard every day, it’s with the understanding that making up stories for a living is already a privilege. Previous success doesn’t exempt me from the knowledge that writing always serves the writer first, before it ever serves the reader. The act of composing a story (or a screenplay or a poem or an essay) is always self-indulgent before it gets the chance to be an indulgence for someone else.
I struggle with this. Not daily, perhaps. But often enough to make asking the universe for more success into a fraught endeavor. Does the universe really care if I hit the USA Today bestseller list for a twenty-fifth time?
And yet…
Here I sit at the keyboard, giving my precious time and attention to this career, whether the universe cares or not. So don’t I owe it to myself to do the best job I possibly can? If there’s anything more self-indulgent than a career in authorship, it’s squandering that career in authorship.
Next, I invite you to consider the conditions under which great writing gets done. Do we do our best work when we’re A) sitting here convinced that nobody cares, and nobody will ever read our work or when B) we bathe in the warmth of great possibility, open to the joy of discovery and ideation?
Yeah, it’s that second one, isn’t it?
It turns out, for me anyway, that manifesting and writing have a whole lot in common. They both share the Rumpelstiltskin-like quality of making something out of nothing. They both require unwavering belief in the possibilities, whether the current reality reflects a blank page, or an empty checking account.
In other words, even if I’m not quite ready to believe that a few hours’ work on a vision board will cause money to cling to me with the static electricity of socks right out of the dryer, a writer already understands that ideas prefer an open mind and a receptive heart. I also know that ideas are critical for excellent and prolific writing. And excellent and prolific writing is a crucial step toward earning royalties.
It is, in short, a positive feedback loop that I already understand on a gut level.
Meanwhile, as I toil at my desk, there are over a hundred spots on the New York Times bestsellers list every week. Someone has got to fill them. There’s almost no point to working fifty hours a week as an author unless I believe that one of those slots can be mine.
Ergo, the only way of catching one of them in my greedy little hand is to manifest that reality out of blank pages and sunshine and the unwavering belief that I’m allowed to ask the universe for all the marbles. A halfway dream is a waste of time and notebook paper.
Dear Universe, let’s call it like it is. My life is already an exercise in literary optimism. I can acknowledge the privilege of this job while still reaching for that next tier. I can open my vulnerable soul wide enough to speak my most ambitious desires out loud. I can let those yearnings see the light of day in much the same way that I give fictional people their own hopes and dreams. It’s not even as hard as I feared.
Yours in gratitude,
—Sarina.
P.S. Universe: if you could also deliver me a first class plot twist for this proposal I’m writing, I’m all ears.
You've heard us talk about Author Accelerator's book coach training program, and now they're offering a unique chance to peek inside a successful book coaching business and see what it really looks like. Grab the FREE 52-page mini magazine, From Lost Lawyer and Empty Nest Mom to Thriving Author and Book Coach -- How I Built My Book Coaching Business, HERE. You don't even have to hand over your email! You can read about book coach Suzette Mullen's journey as a writer, a book coach, and a human -- and on February 6 at 9am PST / 12 EST, you can join Author Accelerator CEO Jennie Nash and Suzette for a conversation about Suzette's journey. The sign-up for the February event is on the same page where you download the magazine.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
“It doesn’t have to be good, it just has to happen” - Seth Godin, The Practice
“F*ck it, I feel like sh*t” - Jess Lahey
Hi everyone! Jess here. We actually managed to get Sarina, Jennie, KJ and Jess together for an episode even though Jess and KJ have been under the weather. All December and January, the group text thread has been moaning and groaning about feeling awful and needing to work but feeling awful. So what do you do when you are not at your physical or mental peak and working becomes more difficult? Do you push on through and grind it out? Sometimes. Do you close the computer and recline in your bed with your hot tea and tissues? Sometimes.
Here are our thoughts on working when under the weather.
#AmReading
Jennie
* Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb documentary
* Avid Reader: A Life by Robert Gottlieb
Jess
* Also a Poet: Frank O’Hara, My Father, and Me by Ada Calhoun
* Why We Can’t Sleep: Women’s New Midlife Crisis by Ada Calhoun
While we have your attention, we’d love our listeners and readers to help out the Institute for Independent Journalists Foundation in their work, “…to track the demographics of the nearly 3,000 journalists laid off in 2023, and to understand the implications for our field” by taking this census. From the IIJF:
The project aims to take a census of the journalists laid off or bought out in the last year-plus, uncover any trends, and assess the impact on newsroom demographics headed into a pivotal election year. Results will be published in Nieman Reports and shared through IIJ Foundation channels, including conference presentations and webinars. We’re aiming to collect data through mid-February and release results in March.
As you know, the IIJ is a one-year old organization whose mission is the financial and emotional sustainability of freelance journalists of color, entirely led by BIPOC women. The IIJ Foundation is our nonprofit arm.
You've heard us talk about Author Accelerator's book coach training program, and now they're offering a unique chance to peek inside a successful book coaching business and see what it really looks like. Grab the FREE 52-page mini magazine, From Lost Lawyer and Empty Nest Mom to Thriving Author and Book Coach -- How I Built My Book Coaching Business, HERE. You don't even have to hand over your email! You can read about book coach Suzette Mullen's journey as a writer, a book coach, and a human -- and on February 6 at 9am PST / 12 EST, you can join Author Accelerator CEO Jennie Nash and Suzette for a conversation about Suzette's journey. The sign-up for the February event is on the same page where you download the magazine.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Jess here. We have talked about the lure of shiny objects, those glowing opportunities on the horizon that may (or may not) be worth the potential downsides. We have all fallen victim to the hypnotic glare and some of us have even been blinded and temporarily lost our way. So how do you decide whether a job offer is a shiny object, a worthy endeavor, or both? How do you decide if it’s the right time, right boss, right idea, right direction? And once you have done that, what else do you have to be aware of before you sign on the dotted line?
Well, it so happens I’ve been weighing all of these factors over the past month, and I wanted to share my thought process with you in case it’s helpful.
Mentioned in the Podcast:
The Author’s Guild
American Society of Journalists and Authors
PS: Find Special Care Instructions here
You've heard us talk about Author Accelerator's book coach training program, and now they're offering a unique chance to peek inside a successful book coaching business and see what it really looks like. Grab the FREE 52-page mini magazine, From Lost Lawyer and Empty Nest Mom to Thriving Author and Book Coach -- How I Built My Book Coaching Business, HERE. You don't even have to hand over your email! You can read about book coach Suzette Mullen's journey as a writer, a book coach, and a human -- and on February 6 at 9am PST / 12 EST, you can join Author Accelerator CEO Jennie Nash and Suzette for a conversation about Suzette's journey. The sign-up for the February event is on the same page where you download the magazine.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Writers, some thoughts: first off, I HATE the word of the year I declared in this episode. I chose… poorly. It’s such a weak work, so unadventurous, so poky. So I have already reframed, and searched long and hard for a word that basically means, I am never ever making another TikTok again no matter what anyone says, and the result is unapologetic. For the moment. I’m not superthrilled, bc I would rather have a positive active word that one that starts with a negation, but that’s where I am for the moment. (Got a better idea? Reply to this email, I haven’t inked this into the old bujo yet!) I considered NotSorry, in honor of Sarah Knight’s glorious anti-self-help books, which I reference in the episode, but I think I’ll rock unapologetic better.
Well, that was very important. TO ME. #notsorry
This is our annual goal setting episode. We focused mostly on WOTYs (word of the year), possibly because it was mid-December when we recorded and I for one have STILL not figured out exactly wtf I’m trying to do with myself next year other than write another book and attempt to sell it. Jennie gives some brilliant advice about thinking quarterly, which I am totally taking. Sarah dials it back (which is still a lot) and Jess reminds us all to stick with goals that make us happy not just to achieve, but while we’re doing them.
While we’re at it, we re-visit our yearly advice to distinguish between goals we can control (write the book, query the book) and goals we cannot (sell the book to a trad publisher). The first get milestones, steps and our full attention. The second… we recognize may need to shift with the sands. I once wrote a little mini workbook about that with a worksheet—both attached below.
And now, on to the links!
Jennie’s new substack—get ON that.
Pre-order The Five Year Lie RIGHT NOW.
Our WOTYS
RESERVE UNAPOLOGETIC (and know how I feel about changing it? You guessed it baby.)
ABUNDANCE
RECREATE
ZONE OF GENIUS
Links!
The One Thing, Gary Keller with Jay Papasan
I MEANT to mention I Would Do That Differently, Emily Grosvenor’s new substack and seriously, my new motto, but it never came up. Still, she was a guest on episode 342 and I suggest you check it out!
Writers, KJ here. I’m sitting with my new Muse Machine, a deck of 150 open-ended, creative prompt cards designed to spark inspiration across various tasks, from writing to painting from one of my very favorite idea-sparkers and kick-in-the-pantsers, Gretchen Rubin. I don’t like writing prompts (because I hate the idea of intentionally writing stuff I know I won’t use) but these are different. They’re meant to get you thinking in a different way, which means you might get “take a nap” or “can it be bigger on the inside than it is on the outside?” Whatever it is will set your mind spinning. (And they would make a fun gift for the other creatives in your life, too!) Get 10% off until 12/31 with code MUSEPARTNER10. Learn more here.
Are you looking to kick your 9-to-5, and work for yourself? How about if you could set your own rates and read books all day? Author Accelerator might just be able to help you out!
By now, you’ve probably heard us talk about book coaching, an exciting career where you can help writers bring their dreams to life through support, feedback, project management, and accountability at each step of the writing and publishing process. It’s like being a literary personal trainer for writers! Through Author Accelerator’s Book Coach Certification program, you’ll learn the key editorial, project management, organizational, and people skills needed to launch your own thriving book coaching business.
To find out if book coaching is the right career for you, Author Accelerator is offering a 5-day challenge to help you envision your new chapter. In their $99 One-Page Book Coaching Business Plan, you’ll narrow down your business idea, ideal client, ideal service, and more. Interested? Visit bookcoaches.com/podcast to learn more.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Crew, we love us some Becca Syme over here. We will listen to any podcast she’s on, sometimes twice. We (okay, me) watch her YouTube channel while we work out. We read her email newsletter religiously. Because she gets writers and writers. She gets that while we may all be trying to do what looks like the same thing, we all do that thing differently and what works for one of us doesn’t work for all of us.
So obviously we were super-excited to get to talk to her, and we’re delighted to re-share this very very inspirational interview with you as we head to the end of 2023.
Who wouldn’t want to write better and faster? I can’t even imagine. Our guest this week is Becca Syme, creator of the Better Faster Academy, author of Dear Writer You Need to Quit as well as other books in the Quit series and the author of the MatchBaker series of cozy mysteries (with such glorious titles as “Vangie Vale and the Murdered Macaron”). Her superpower is helping writers find what they do best—their strengths—and do more of that instead of worrying about trying to “fix” the things we aren’t naturally good at.
Links from the pod
The Clifton Strengths Test
The Ted Lasso blog post
Better Faster Academy
The Quitcast on YouTube
#AmReading
Becca:
Mandy M. Roth
Yasmine Galenorn
Rajani LaRocca
DEVS (TV show)
Sarina: Unguarded by Jay Hogan (part of Sarina’s World of True North)
KJ: The S**t No One Tells You About Writing (podcast)
Writers, KJ here. I’m sitting with my new Muse Machine, a deck of 150 open-ended, creative prompt cards designed to spark inspiration across various tasks, from writing to painting from one of my very favorite idea-sparkers and kick-in-the-pantsers, Gretchen Rubin. I don’t like writing prompts (because I hate the idea of intentionally writing stuff I know I won’t use) but these are different. They’re meant to get you thinking in a different way, which means you might get “take a nap” or “can it be bigger on the inside than it is on the outside?” Whatever it is will set your mind spinning. (And they would make a fun gift for the other creatives in your life, too!) Get 10% off until 12/31 with code MUSEPARTNER10. Learn more here.
Are you looking to kick your 9-to-5, and work for yourself? How about if you could set your own rates and read books all day? Author Accelerator might just be able to help you out!
By now, you’ve probably heard us talk about book coaching, an exciting career where you can help writers bring their dreams to life through support, feedback, project management, and accountability at each step of the writing and publishing process. It’s like being a literary personal trainer for writers! Through Author Accelerator’s Book Coach Certification program, you’ll learn the key editorial, project management, organizational, and people skills needed to launch your own thriving book coaching business.
To find out if book coaching is the right career for you, Author Accelerator is offering a 5-day challenge to help you envision your new chapter. In their $99 One-Page Book Coaching Business Plan, you’ll narrow down your business idea, ideal client, ideal service, and more. Interested? Visit bookcoaches.com/podcast to learn more.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe -
Writers, if you're paying attention at all, you've heard from Zibby Owens in the past 2 years. She's the host of the Moms Don't Have Time to Read Podcast and the creator of Zibby Media, which at this point includes a magazine, a publishing house that's having a great month with, among other books, The Last Love Note, which KJ highly recommends and an LA-based bookstore. In 2022, Jess talked with Zibby about how she launched her literary life--and as that life gets bigger and bigger, we thought it was time to share her story again.
Ever want to know “how she did it”? This episode is our little version of How I Built This, in which we ask Zibby Owens—whose name you surely know by now—about how she turned a desire to be part of the world of books into a one-woman mini book empire.
Zibby Owens is the host of Moms Don’t Have Time to Read, a daily podcast featuring interviews with authors that has over 900 episodes. She’s also a Bookstagrammer with 16K followers, the host of a second podcast—Moms Don’t Have Time to Have Sex—the editor of two anthologies, Moms Don’t Have Time To and Moms Don’t Have Time to Have Kids—KJ contributed to that last one—and now the CEO of Zibby Books, a new publishing home for fiction and memoir. She’s a regular contributor to Good Morning America, she’s been called “America’s Top Bookfluencer” and she has two books coming soon: Princess Charming, a picture book, and Booked, a memoir. She’s also got four kids, and they’re kids—elementary and middle school age, not a bunch of independent high schoolers wandering around
But.
Five years ago Zibby was none of those things (except a mother of four). And that’s what I want to talk about. She’s built a massive literary life, a community, a reputation in just a few years, and—after totally owning the fact that she has help with her kids (heck, not just help, they’re completely gone every other weekend because, divorce sometimes works like that) and also that this isn’t how Zibby earns a living— we go back to the beginning and talk about what it took to get there.
Because no matter who you are, you can’t wake up and say, I think I’d like to be America’s Biggest Bookfluencer, and whip out your Amex card and make it happen. You can’t even take your Kardashian self and decide this is what you want and ask your assistant to set it up. This takes work and desire and passion, and we dig into how Zibby started, and how she made things take off.
Links from the pod:
Lee Carpenter: Red, White, Blue and Eleven
Andre Agassi: Open
Zibby Books
Zibby Books Ambassadors (at bottom of Zibby Books page)
#AmReading
Zibby: Going There by Katie Couric
Hungry Hill by Eileen Patricia Curran
The Husbands by Chandler Baker
The Last Season by Jenny Judson & Danielle Mahfood
KJ: A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow
Jess: Speaking of Race by Celeste Headlee
It's that time again! Every year Jennie Nash and the Author Accelerator team put together a holiday bundle worth hundreds of dollars for folks who enroll in the Book Coach Certification Program ahead of the new year. Enroll this month to receive a $150 gift card to Better World Books, access to their $99 course the One-Page Book Coaching Business Plan Challenge, a copy of Jennie’s Blueprint book in your genre, and MORE.
And did we mention you can now pre-enroll in Author Accelerator’s Memoir Certification Program? The course opens in March 2024, but if you enroll this month, you’ll get $600 off the cost of enrollment – which is certainly something to be jolly for!
When you enroll in the Book Coach Certification program, you’ll gain access to a thriving community of friends and colleagues, more than 100 hours of training, videos, case studies, and worksheets to teach you the key editorial skills, client-management strategies, and the tools needed to help writers reach their goals and to help you start a thriving book coaching business. So, whether you’re looking to expand your writing skills or start your new year with a new career, there is no better time to start your journey. Visit bookcoaches.com/podcast to get your special offer.
This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe - Visa fler
