You get access to the full course as soon as you sign up. Just remember that Year 4 and year 5 are still in version 1. We plan to update them to version 2 in 2026.

ayy ydubbers for the winn

I think grid view is a premium feature. You have to have the paid version of MyBookTable to unlock it.

I came here to ask the same question. What I can’t seem to figure out with My Book Table is how to have the home (book) page only show the covers.

That would be a great idea once the technology catches up.

(The problem is they won’t let you downgrade from an existing plan to a starter plan. So I had to create a whole new account, export and import all my products, and redo all my settings.)

The other note I would add is that most states have a tax nexus threshold, typically 200 transactions or several thousand dollars a year. Meaning, if you’re only selling a handful of books on your store to buyers in any given state, you probably don’t have to legally remit and report sales tax for those sales. (You DO have nexus for any state you have a physical presence in. So you’ll need to pay sales tax on any sales to customers in your own state, no matter how paltry.)

Otherwise, everything that Thomas says here is spot-on. While I’m not selling much volume through my Shopify site, it makes sense as part of my business plan because (1) I’m trying to build an email list of super-fans who have bought my book, (2) I sell other products through my website not available on Amazon, (3) I want super-fans to have a way to buy an autographed copy (which you can’t do with Amazon) (4) I’m small-scale enough that I only need to track and report sales tax for my home state, and (5) I’m not afraid of the valley of the shadow of technical death.

And even with all those reasons, I’m only able to make it work due to finding that $5/month plan.

Thomas, thanks for the great episode!

Shopify was no help at all with resolving this. And since the cc’s were stolen, and the emails fraudulent, there was no way to notify the owners. So I deleted my store (changed my debit card to stop more chargebacks) and ran back to Squarespace. My books are now only on Amazon (although you can see them in my Squarespace shop). And I’m okay with that. I might hook up Payhip to sell some audiobooks or ebooks as well, but good grief, it was an insanely expensive and time-sucking hassle.

While I love the superior quality of BookVault books, until they have a Squarespace integration, I’m sticking with Amazon only.

Caveat scriptor.
Laurie

P.S. If you are on Shopify, do not have any digital product less than $5 in your store. Apparently, criminals know this is something they can exploit.

In the meantime, I’ll try the 10% that applies to my situation.

The blackout curtains cover the window. This keeps the lighting the same regardless of when I record. It also helps reduce sound reflections.

The math works both ways. But I think 1000 all time makes more sense for more authors.

I just purchased MyBookTable upgrade and haven’t been able to fiddle too much with it yet, but is it easy to edit the page once I add the books? Is it easy to add all the book resources you mentioned in this blog/podcast?

Also, are the links universal like the Booklinker ones? I asked Google and AI said I could use the Booklinker links in MYBookTable but soon found out those don’t work in MyBookTable. I had already created book pages before learning about MyBookTable. Will those remain after I create new pages? I will delete them after I get the new ones created, but had some info on there I don’t want to lose before copying it.

I just created my new website 2 weeks ago after having a free one for over 10 years. I listened to many of your podcasts and have changed my ways (spent a lot), but hoping to give my rebranded series the best chance to succeed when it’s released in November.

Thanks for all your information. My brain is full of so much new information!

I just relistened to it today XP the parts that I love most (the end song with Telemachussss) still make me cry, and sometimes I cry just because he becomes so broken and it makes me sad…

I agree with Allie. EPIC is certainly a tragedy (at least from a Christian perspective.). Odysseus’ outlook on life starts with optimism and mercy towards everyone, and shrinks until he can only care about himself and his family.
I also think that it’s interesting from a religious perspective, since if the gods themselves are telling you to do these things, is it really immoral since they would ultimately make up the context of reality? In that way it’s also about a man shrinking into the mold of his reality and finally getting what he wants, but paying a price so high that he’s not sure he deserves it any more.

I agree with you, and it’s complete nonsense to say never do this never do that.

Also, on reading, I’d recommend reading classics OUTSIDE your genre too

I waste more time correcting AI and Grammarly than I do writing the blog post sometimes.

In terms of editorial, I do run it through–particularly looking for overuse of words using a Word Census my husband for me. (It’s in Word). That’s more helpful in enabling me to see overuse of forms of the verb “to be.”

After professionally writing for 15 years (11 published books), I know my weaknesses. I review those carefully before submitting my manuscript.

As a result, I’m known as a “clean” writer and haven’t a problem finding an editor willing to work on my self-published work.

Personally, editing is my favorite part of the job–I love the givew and take with the editor in Track Changes.

Any Suggestions?

Macs have built in transcription tools that are as good (if not better) than Dragon. So there is no need to run Dragon Dictation on a mac.

You should check out the Novel Marketing Conference (www.NovelMarketingConference.com).

Now I’m interested in a Mac Air though I’ve been against Macs for years. I need a voice-to-text dictation feature for my Samsung and also am curious if Mac Air accepts Dragon Dictation software.

Are you affiliated with any writing conferences as a speaker? Writers need speakers like you who are skilled in the newest tech and can help them make wise choices to advance their publishing goals.

Thank you for your very detailed piece. It was extremely helpful.

Could I send you my last email newsletter to see what you think? I have a small list- 276 people, a 38-40% average open rate and a 1.5-2-7 click rate.

This was a very helpful post/podcast. I am almost done with your “How to get Booked as a Podcast Guest” course. It takes a lot of time to sift through possible podcasts, but I feel that is one thing that might help me the most.

Blessed,
Bonnie Lacy

I believe if reading book 2 isn’t completely dependant on reading book 1, that would be considered standalone books in a shared universe. Like Mr. Umatattd said.

Really?

On the plus side, it did recommend I sign up for my newsletter to get a copy of a free bonus ebook related to the title.

AI optimized. Goody

With the money I have saved *not* buying AppleCare over the last 15 years I could buy a whole computer.

The most comfortable distance the key travels with each depression, seems to be between 1.2 and 1.5 mm. My current (ancient) HP laptop has a beautiful 1.5mm key travel and a full size backlit keyboard. Now that I’m looking to upgrade, and considering switching from Windows to Mac, a serious consideration is the puny 1mm key travel the MacBooks seem to have. Shaving off that extra 0.5mm might seem like nothing, but I’d rather add a little extra weight to the overall device than lose the comfort that extra half mil adds.

I wonder if key travel is also part of the consideration when choosing/recommending a ‘writer’s laptop?

Yes. Using MyBookTable will cause you to do many of the things I talk about in this episode. But it is still up to you to add all the reader resources.

Here is the link: https://author-media.kit.com/3ec997c78f

This is the first podcast I have ever listened to. What a great way to start learning the right way! I am so grateful and excited to be excited again about my first book!
Great inspiration for me.

Thank you, Thomas!!!!

You register your copyright with the US Copyright Office here: https://copyright.gov/registration/.

Only use .gov addresses.

Steve,
That’s great to hear!

I’d like to know the same thing.

I’m hoping to hire her sister who lives with her at college to help with driving her this summer until Emma gets her prosthetic leg and until her arms get cleared for driving. I’ll likely take her to some and perhaps most of her outpatient rehab appointments that will continue twice a week for a long while.

I’ve weighed the book questions, and the cost is so incredibly worth the prize. Of course, I can only really speculate on the prize. And I’m sure I will take it hard if I sell fewer than hundreds of copies given the thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours I’ve poured in. Even so, if just twelve lives are changed for eternity, I will one day deem the cost as worthwhile.

I’ll make another sci-fi prediction myself and claim that we can look forward to more winsome yet frank episodes like this in the future.

The one time I needed repair, I sent it in. It was returned within 24 hours. Yes, I managed without my computer for about 24 hours. My husband gets my hand-me-downs, so I can easily keep working using my online storage. 😀

But I see with Straico there’s “coins” you pay per word, even with uploaded files, or conversation generation. Which tier should I go with to make sure I don’t run out of words?

Or would I be better off subscribing to ChatGPT’s $20 a month tier?

Straico helping you with prompts is also attractive–I normally ask the Brave “Leo” AI chatbot random questions so I dont consider myself a prompt whiz, but my Google Fu is historically solid so I’d be comfortable asking AI to make prompts for me. *meta magic*

I’m also an illustrator, so I dont think I’ll use it for image generation, if that’s helpful.

Thank you in advance for heloing me make my indie budget to go far!

I do have a question: I am doing a giveaway of an exclusive paperback version of my lead magnet. Originally I just thought of having them sign up on my email list so that they are already automatically subscribed and sorting them out by the set dates I’ve created. I’ve already designed all my graphics for that. Should I backpedal, redo my graphics, and use Kingsumo? I don’t have a social-media based platform– the closest thing I have to social media is the Realmmakers platform. I don’t want to give my street team more work by redoing everything this late in the game (the launch is on the 7th)…

Sorry that probably didn’t make a lot of sense…

Interesting! I think I agree actually. Deming’s exile from America always fascinated. me in business school. “If no one will listen to me here, I’ll find people who will listen” then he goes on to help turn Japan from a devastated wasteland into an industrial powerhouse. My dad remembers times when “Made in Japan” meant cheap and low quality. Now Japan has the same cache as Switzerland.

Deming’s ideas are slowly seeping back. I helped a company go through an agile transformation. They went from Waterfall project management (Frederick W. Taylor style) into using Kanban. Agile and Kanban are inspired from TPS which if you go back far enough goes back to Deming.

The effect of Frederick W. Taylor’s ideas on efficiency and management from around 1900–which are still taught in universities. He turned human beings into social and economic cogs in machines. He institutionalized micromanagement and turned many human endeavors into assembly lines. Western education was built on his ideas. In many ways, his ideas shaped the 20th century.

W. Edwards Deming’s ideas are the cure. Unfortunately, most western coverage of Deming’s ideas is poor, missing the paradigm shift he advocated.

Love this review of websites! It’s so helpful and I’m going to be changing my website first thing. Thank you for all the amazing teaching!

I’ll need to go back and reread Frankenstein and look for this structure. It does feel like there was a chiastic structure to it, with the first half in Frankenstein’s voice and the second half in the “monster’s” voice, but I’m not sure that really is the chiasm.

Thanks for writing this. I am inspired.

Again, so appreciate this, friend. You’ve prompted me to get things going! AFTER I get this next book turned in.

Second, I realize romance is a massive market, but I trust you will analyze the covers other genres. (Or have you already?) I had to fight through my aversion to romance to glean the translatable information.

I was glued to the page and am now going back to take detailed notes and make changes to my website.

Thank you very much!

You are right! Your website does present a mobile version on phone, although it does not respond to window resizing. This likely means there is a second mobile version of the website that is seperate from the main site. This was a common way to accommodate mobile phones in the late 2000s and early 2010s.

The current approach is something called “mobile responsive” where the website adapts to whatever size the screen is. This works better on tablets and phones of various shapes and sizes.

In the video, I only checked for mobile responsiveness. I didn’t check for a mobile version. I haven’t seen a true mobile version in years. But when I pull up your website on my phone it presents a great looking mobile version.

THANK YOU, though, for sharing your recommended fixes. I’m NOT a website person, to state the obvious, but will work to get these things corrected. All best and hope our paths cross soon, my friend.

Oh, one last thing… My website designer (DidDat, John Olson) did make my site mobile friendly years back. So when I pull it up on my phone, I don’t have to “pinch” it. Is there something else here that I need to be aware of? Do you have to “pinch it” on your phone? (I’m on an iPhone.)

Thanks for this great post!

Nathan,
That’s great to hear!

Helen,
I’m interested in hearing your thoughts after you Indie publish after traditionally publishing so many times.

Asher,
I met an author at a Christian home school conference who had published with a large publisher, but felt the smaller, medium-size publisher she was using worked harder for her.

But I don’t understand why you recommended a reputable small publisher. That publisher won’t be able to do anything you wouldn’t be able to do on your own: cover, editing, typesetting. They won’t market the book for you.

Adam,
You’re welcome. I’m blessed the episode helped you!

I’ve always agreed with the marketing principles of series often being easier to promote, but no one before has ever – so well done, Thomas! – seemed to consider the risk of spending time and effort on a duff series idea! Yes, maybe some amount of pivoting is possible for books 2 and 3 etc, but for me writing standalones allows you to embark on a series if and only if the book is successful. Thank you Thomas for confirming my preferred strategy.

There’s also the question of writing something that your heart is truly into. I’ve always felt slightly pressured (actually a tad resentful) into having to write in series, but after this excellent article, no more! I’ll write a sequel if I’m fortunate enough to have a hit, but not before unless I really feel I need to get a book 2 out there. Standalone authors stand firm!

If you don’t have time or want to deal with learning the publishing business, then seek out a very good, reputable small publisher. Do a ton of research before signing with anyone. But if you love writing, learning, and are willing to give this business your time and effort, then go indie. It will link you to other authors and readers better than you could anticipate, making real connections that will benefit you even more than the extra money that you’ll receive by keeping control of your own work.

I disagree that you can get two to three books in then pivot if it is not working is a useful strategy for a beginning author. A big part of any set of interconnected novels, however they relate to each other, is the foundational premise. Let’s say you write fantasy and you choose for your premise a cheese based magic system. Book one deals with cheddar magic, book two deals with gouda magic, book three with brie. All unrelated and can be read separately so not technically a “series”.
However, would you rather not want to know that cheese magic does not sell after one book and rather pivot to vegetable magic that goes gangbusters and you have begging readers to write more?

Thank for this informative and educative article.

My book Appy the Appaloosa Cow Pony is published book . I was on Crawford 7 months ago. I am on Amazon and AR Press but have no sales, Looking to find help with no extra money. I have spent thousands. Can you help?

My book Appy the Appaloosa Cow Pony is published book . I have had call after call wanting me to put my book on different book fairs for thousands of dollars and calls asking for money to make animated movies or republish again. Do you have any suggestions how to sell my book? I am 79 years old and on a very limited amount monthly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

My book Appy the Appaloosa Cow Pony is published book . I have had call after call wanting me to put my book on different book fairs for thousands of dollars and calls asking for money to make animated movies or republish again. Do you have any suggestions how to sell my book? I am 79 years old and on a very limited amount monthly. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Jessie A Craker jacraker1@gmail.com

Thanks!

I have an episode to help with that very question: https://www.authormedia.com/pros-and-cons-of-pre-orders/

One of the most common reviewer comments is that they’d like another book based in this world, with the same characters.

Based on this, I’ve started working on a sequel.

However, is it worth putting a pre-order up on Amazon? Or only announce that there’s going to be a second book when it’s nearly ready to publish? I estimate it’ll take about 6 months to get this written, beta-read and edited. (And that’s a fairly optimistic estimation.)

Can having a far-off pre-order hurt sales?

Good points, actually. That makes sense.

Great question! There is a difference between having characters in a shared literary universe and a series. The biggest difference is plot. In a series, the plot continues from one book to another. In a shared literary universe the setting and characters connect otherwise standalone books.

Technically Narnia is more of a shared literary universe than a true series. Each book works as a stand alone story. No major plot threads connect the different books. This is why it is possible to have multiple book orders.

And I think that is the test. If the books must be read in a certain order, its a series. If the books can be read in multiple orders its a shared literary universe.

Brandon Sanderson has standalone books in his shared literary universe. He also has series in that universe.

For more see: https://www.authormedia.com/literary-universe-marketing/

1. First, you need to specify what you mean when you say “series.” If you’re talking about a story that leaves major plot points unresolved, then I agree. I do understand that that’s where most (but not all) fantasy series fall. Sci-fi is often written in series that are episodic—readers love the situation and the characters (think Firefly). Mystery series with the same detective are still considered “series,” and often have character arcs that take far longer than one book. (I read Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series as much for the Three Pines characters as for the main mystery.) A romance series with a family of siblings has an HEA for each book, but there are often overarching plot threads that carry through the entire series. If you want the romantic ending, you get it with each book. If you want the family saga, you’ll read the whole series to get it.

Any of these types of series can be started at the beginning of a writer’s career and, if not successful 2-3 books in, the author can pivot to a new series with better characters/plot and skill set.

2. Your stats of read-through from Book 1 to Book 2 being 50% sound fine, and often typical. But you didn’t consider that read-through from Book 2 to Book 3 is usually more like 80-90%. Because a reader liked Book 1 enough to buy Book 2, they are much more likely to go on to Books 3, 4 and 5. At no cost to the author thanks to newsletters and back-of-the-book links.

3. I agree with your stats of $5.00 to gain a reader for a $3.50 return. However, if you don’t write a series, you’re going to spend that same five dollars to gain a $3.50 reader for your second book and *every* stand-alone book after that. If every book is going to cost the author $1.50 to sell, why try to write for money? You wouldn’t even be able to write for love at that rate! Also, saying that Book 2 will only sell to your newsletter followers is disingenuous. Ever hear of social media, Amazon “also-boughts” (even if they’re going away), and general book recommendations?

4. Why do you say that an author is forever judged on his/her Book 1 if they begin their writing career with a series? Why do you think that an author only ever writes one series? Or that readers only ever begin with the first series? If an author sees that a series isn’t working, they can stop and start a new one, as mentioned above. If an author finishes a series, they hopefully have learned a lot and the next series will be better. And *that* would be the one they advertise for $5.00 a reader and earn $20.00 in read-through from that reader, some of which would go on to read the earlier, not-so-well-written first books.

Just for reference, I am not a magnificently-successful outlier. My income ranges from the low 3-figures (esp if I haven’t released in a year) to the low/mid four figures a month. I expect it will go up if I ever truly figure out advertising. I have two clean/Christian romance series of six books each, the second of which does MUCH better than the first. (I probably should have stopped the first series earlier, but at the time I thought it was doing great.) I am now starting a spin-off of the second series, which will give my readers two entry points to my more successful books.

My belief is that a new writer *should* begin with a series as long as Book 2 isn’t completely dependent on reading Book 1. I’ll echo your closing thoughts-seriously connected stand-alones make a great series! But a new writer would do well to plan the series part of it from the beginning.

Just to be clear, I’m not saying the south is still full of racists. I’m just saying not having riots is not an indicator that there’s less racism.

I love to sell at craft fairs, but the vendor fees are $75-$300, and I have to sell a LOT of books to cover the fee and other expenses. I usually walk away with only a small profit and the hope that people will go online to buy more of my books.

I’ve also learned to stock MOSTLY book #1 and #2 in the series and not invest so much in the rest of it.

I ask those same questions – Are you a reader? What do you like to read?

I use table risers to bring my whole table up to countertop height, and I give away bookmarks and also stickers.

My current banner has my face on it, which is very effective because people say, “Oh, that’s you! Are you the author?” I’ve used other banners in the past, and I’ve found that it’s not as personal. But it’s good to experiment and see which works for you. It’s possible that it varies by genre. I write Christian romance and mystery, and I think people like that connection. It might be different for something like fantasy. 🙂

Good points, Thomas!

I agree. Part of me wonders if hybrid publishers use the word to intentionally borrow credibility from traditionally published authors who also publish independently.

Another ambiguous term is “indie.” Indie bookstores are independent form entirely different institutions than Indie Authors. In fact, their economic incentives are at cross purposes. For Indie authors, Amazon is a primary source of income while for indie bookstores, Amazon is the chief threat.

Thus indie bookstores often refuse to stock indie authors. The word “indie” is not a uniter in any meaningful sense.

Thanks for the rundown. Been seeing most of this myself.

Thanks for writing about it Thomas!

Love this – and also, what if there is joy in the interactions that happen on social media too? I also love it for the cross pollination, the connections you wouldn’t make otherwise, and if I’m honest, as welcome relief from the solo time of writing . (Once you have engagement).

Thanks for your quick response Jonathan. I’ll contact you at that address.

Hey, Chris, this is Jonathan. I’m not sure what broke in the chain there, but you can reach me at jjshuerger@gmail.com.

I’m in total agreement with your sister – I love stories where the hero saves the girl. Life requires most of us to do a lot of “saving” ourselves already; the fantasy of some hero swinging in like Tarzan rescuing Jane sounds pretty good.

I also wonder if any of this could be, in part, a generational thing: ie, would younger people be more like to resonate more with fourth turning stories because they feel more like this is all they have known? I’m curious since I’m in my early 20s, and I’ve pretty much never known a time when I didn’t want more straightforwardly heroic characters and stories.

Can’t edit that “vastly shorten.” 😆 It will be interesting to see how quickly we move through each cycle with the technology we have today.

Do you think technology has vastly shortened cycle length?

But between this article and a BookBub* column I read on direct sales tactics, I decided to feature “Buy from Me” buttons in a newsletter featuring my latest release. (I also included a plain text “Buy everywhere else” link below the first buy button). I explained in the newsletter that more money would go to me over Big Tech if they used the “Buy Direct” link.

I also featured direct buy links over on the other sites I post announcements at. In some cases, I just listed it first in a list.

I was pleasantly surprised–I sold 2 ebooks from my own shop in a day. So I think it really is a mindset shift! Thank you for all you do, Joanna!

*Note: I have never run a BookBub ad before.

Right now, part of me almost wants to yell “nuu I love my complex stories and bad girl charries!!!”…

But honestly deep down I know you’re right. We’re so sick of all this postmodernism. Yes we still need characters who aren’t flat, but antiheroes have had their turn.

I’m so glad to be a teenage writer right now….I want so much to encourage people with my stories through this season. We need stories to bring light to all the darkness around us.

Vail Glory – https://www.amazon.com/Vain-Glory-Contemporary-Romantic-Drama-ebook/dp/B0BX8PDP5J

What would you sacrifice to save your marriage? Your hopes… Your dreams… Your pride?

Sophia is desperate for love. Her dedication to family and her focus on the care of her special-needs daughter have strained her marriage to the breaking point.

Daniel, driven by a strong work ethic and a powerful desire to provide for his family’s needs, is frustrated by his inability to resolve the relationship issues with his wife.

Family bonds begin to crack as the circumstances of life drive them closer toward the edge. Grappling to meet their own personal needs, they each pour fuel on the fire.

Where can they find hope when all else seems to fail? Trusted friends challenge them to confront their deepest doubts and darkest fears. But can they overcome emotional scars they’ve hidden even from themselves?

This heart-wrenching saga will take you on a roller-coaster ride of bitter-sweet emotions, tears, and joy in a military family drama that will have you rooting for the couple to the very end.

“I read the entire book in one weekend…just couldn’t put it down.” – Janet F.

Can genuine love overcome the relentless storms of everyday life? Join Daniel and Sophia on their journey of rediscovery and be swept away by their tale of sacrifice, forgiveness, and second chances.

Oops, I meant “for men” not “by men”.

However, none of those movies or games would have been able to make money. The common factor with them (except Joker 2) is that they were massively delayed. Concord apparently took 8 years to make.

Massive delay = massive overrun on budget.

It is possible to make some money on a massively overbudget thing. However it will still disappoint investors.

Then if we look at the entertainment items that *do* make money even though they’re over budget, we find that they are generally “feel-good”, pretty standard stuff.
Subversive, rug-pull, deconstructing items only work on a small scale, and a small budget that doesn’t go over. They have to be scrappy underdogs, or they are seen as being the establishment items they are supposedly working against.

You can post your books on my Facebook any time, I had good luck posting my Toddler books on my Facebook and got good royalties.
And I posted on Facebook Reel has help also.

I feel like the types of stories described here are all featured in different ways with the young writers I meet. Look out world— you’re about to be hit with light-conquers-darkness fiction like never before.

Awwww Allie *hugs*
This article was like a lightbulb for me too. I see myself and my writing in the fourth turning as well!!! I can’t wait to study this further and learn more!!!

(I STILL want to read your book…)

Allie, I feel much better knowing I’m not the only person nearly crying at this post because it describes so precisely what I want to write. 😅 Yes, I know it’s an episode about history and philosophy and sociology and whatnot, but it hit really deep for me. I am so READY for more straightforward good vs. evil stories again. I am so happy to be writing one. And the fact that you and I might not just reflect but also contribute to the story of our culture in this era is just…WOW. I’ll be thinking on this article for a long time!

But your article today… I’m actually on the brink of tears because I’m staring at this going “THAT’S MY STORY! THOSE ARE MY STORIES!” in all the topics you are explaining. My heart story is literally a dystopian that explores the hidden dystopia of a utopian society. I thought it couldn’t count as dystopia because the people (except for a very select few) didn’t feel oppressed. I thought my villains were useless because they were completely evil, not relatable. I thought that people would think my female character was a doormat because she wasn’t the “girl boss” most of my other female characters are. I thought people would get mad at me for having so many male characters and trying to explore strong male character tropes in my story– label me as sexist. I thought I was crazy for writing such a tough series that no one would want to publish.

When I saw your title photo for this blog I laughed because the same quote is in the collage for that story. I love writing stories with these elements– some are light, escapist novels where two kids are just trying to figure out how to keep one of them from moving away. Others are about a group of teens and two adults trying to take down a secret tyrant emperor. And one is about a young women chasing fame and fortune for her little sister in a world that has literally cut off technology trying to pursue the “truth”.

All in all… you’ve described the stories I am writing. You’ve made me feel seen. And I finally realize why I was born for such a time as this.
Thank you, Thomas. This article made my day.

Here is an episode that will help: https://www.authormedia.com/the-starving-author-how-to-market-books-without-money/

What would be your advice on marketing a lead magnet novella on a low budget? I’m currently writing one with the specific idea of my Timothy and drafting a marketing plan, but as I’m still in school I am short on funds and not exactly in a place to be begging media influencers for reviews. How would you apply this lesson to a low-budget income?

Thanks! The image is from Wikipedia. I’ve added a image source link to the post.

Masterful. That the biblical authors knew exactly what they were doing, the editors refining sometimes wildly different sources into one narrative, that is something that is lost on most today. There is a reason that the book tops all others in sales, year after year.

So thankful that you share your insights. Looking forward to meeting you at the conference.

Second of all, I think many Bible readers have the rhythm of chiasmus in their heads after reading especially the poetry of the Old Testament. I gained a real appreciation for it when I decided to write a section of my historical fiction with a chiasmus in the middle. I’ve marked it here, if you are okay with me demonstrating here. The scene is first century, as a woman carrying a lithopedion (Cordelia) attends her friend Priska through the labor and delivery of twins, one of whom does not survive.

Cordelia’s eyes watching me were full of tears.
A“I will tell you one thing that helped me,” she said. Then she looked at her own still-ripe abdomen and nearly swallowed a sob. “Who am I to tell you anything.”
My body was for the moment placid, and I reached for her arm.
“Stay with me. Tell me what helped you.”
B She gathered herself and nodded. “I thought of the times that you and I, young girls, sat on the seashore.”
“Yes.”
“And as the waves came, we could see that the sea was drawing in things, treasures from the deep, we thought, bringing them in the foam to us, and we strained our eyes to see them from afar.”
“Yes.”
“But whatever came in, had to stay atop the waves. If it didn’t, it sank to the bottom of the sea.”
B2 My womb seemed at once to try to wring itself out. I could not speak, could not listen. It was as if I were in the middle of the crackle of a pitch-filled fire, explosions of stars riding on the crests of flaming waves.
Somewhere beyond the heat of that fire I heard voices and knew there were other women in the room. I shaded my eyes and saw tunics and legs and feet.
CBut I was at sea, again and again. I began to crave for the imposition of a beat that would make the rowing regular but a thousand oars slapped all around me. Then I could hear only my own breath and began to feel a hoarseness far deeper than my lungs. I gasped, long deep breaths that seemed as if my body were beginning a cough and then changed its mind.
I could hear Cordelia’s voice. She was commanding me, and I wanted to listen.
“Priska, each wave will end. The waves will each break on the shore. All of them. Every one. They do not stay out to sea once they have begun. You understand this? You must remember this.”
I nodded.
“You must stay on top of each wave, let it bring you as a treasure to the shore.”
My lips were too dry to speak, my tongue useless. She brought me wine, dribbling into my mouth. I found some voice there in the moist places of my throat.
“I can do it if you read John’s scroll to me.”
I heard a rustling, a rearranging of people around me. I saw Aquila’s face in front of mine, his black hair hanging straight out from his temples, and I realized he was on all fours beside me on the mat.
“Sit up for the surges, sit up for the surges,” the women’s voices whispered. I stumbled forward and he caught me as he helped me squat onto the birthing stool. Then Aquila’s face receded into the shadows.
Cordelia began to read, but I only heard parts.
A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while
D The reading stopped – or I could not listen. I thought of Cordelia’s birth phalanxes in tight rows, determined and faceless and implacable. Again they came. And again.
But mine were the bright-eyed assaulting ones of Habakkuk: Their horde of faces move forward.
Cordelia’s voice would rout them, but I asked in her voice:
What is this he says to us, A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while?
E Sometime late that night I passed a threshold into a world that was only air. I could hear my breathing more clearly than anything else I had ever heard. Each breath shuddered at its own exhalation.
What is this which he says
What is this which he says
What is this which he says of the little while?
We do not know of what he speaks.
A rooster crowed, and I wondered where Peter was. Would I ever see him again? And did a rooster crow in his heart every day?
But then everything in the world contracted itself into the exact size of my abdomen. There were women’s hands beneath the stool.
Cordelia read.
Jesus knew therefore that they desired to demand of him, and said to them, Do ye inquire of this among yourselves that I said, A little while and ye do not behold me; and again a little while and ye shall see me?
Verily, verily, I say to you, that ye shall weep and lament, ye, but the world shall rejoice; and ye will be grieved, but your grief shall be turned to joy.
The world was splitting and ripping. It was dawn.
I heard the voices.
“A son! Aquila has a son!”
I was being lowered onto the mat. There was slipperiness everywhere: on me, sweat-soaked. The hands holding me nearly lost their grip. And then the slipperiness I had felt inside me was on my chest, writhing and crying.
Cordelia was reading, weeping.
A woman, when she gives birth to a child, has grief because her hour has come; but when the child is born, she no longer remembers the trouble, on account of the joy that a man has been born into the world.
Middle For a moment of charged clarity, I felt a joining of eternity to me, stretching in both directions from the first intentions of God to the eschatologies of all things. I sought the haven of these heavenlies, the faraways, under my eyelids.
But my arms lost their strength and I felt my hands sagging over the child.
I could not hold the child, for the sea was back, and the armies, and the breath as coarse as sackcloth, ripped from my lungs.
I was back on the stool. Women knelt on each side of me, my arms held over their shoulders, their faces next to mine like a line of siege shields. This time the world did not rip.
“Aquila has a daughter, too!”
F I was back on the mat and another child was there on my chest, holding herself up on her forearms and looking directly into my eyes, and I knew her name.
“Tikveh,” I said. Hope. She seemed to look behind me then, as if summoned by another voice, and she sighed deeply.
And then she was gone.
The room was thick and still again. I held the limpness, still warm. Cordelia was crying. Outside, someone else was crying too.
“Read what John saw to me, Cordelia. Read me what else He said.”
And ye now therefore have grief; but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one takes from you.
E My breaths were like raw edges of fabric, now overlaying one another, searching for a seam.
For the Father himself has affection for you, because ye have had affection for me, and have believed that I came out from God. 28I came out from the Father and have come into the world; again, I leave the world and go to the Father.
D “The afterbirth, only the afterbirth,” one of the women was saying. The regiment of soldiers began to break rank, to wander off.
C My son and my daughter were in my arms. I could not talk as the shrinking pain hummed, vocalized in my outgoing breaths. I knew that I was being emptied out.
The sunlight was coming in slits through our walls. Aquila was crying, stroking both children.
I sat up with both children resting on the triangle of my crossed legs. I kissed Tikveh, again and again, and washed her with my tears. Aquila wrapped her with his strong hands in the strips of kidskin we used to make purses, and then he took her away.
B2 As I lay on the mat beside my son, I wondered at how an unknown universe had been inside me those months. If I could open myself up, I believed, the entire studded night sky would be there, I was sure.
BI turned onto my side and spat out sea water, and then I fell asleep.
It was evening when I awakened with a pulling on my breast, and saw the child in the circle of my arm. I looked up and knew Cordelia had put him there, and sure enough, she sat nearby on the bench. She came to me and put a pillow behind my head and pulled my matted hair onto it. She drew a comb from her pocket.
Wordless, she began to comb my hair: first the surface snags, working them out so as not to break a single hair, then combing deeper, drawing strands out onto the pillow and my shoulders like a shawl.
“I was thinking, Cordelia.”
“Yes.”
“About Mary, and the birth of Jesus.”
“Yes.”
“How she did not have to go through her labor in front of people.”
“Yes.”
“At the inn, I mean. Where there was no room. Where everyone was crowded in, the criminals and rough men who had nowhere else to stay.”
“Yes.”
“How gracious God was, to keep her from their eyes, to give her privacy, so far from her home and the women who would have helped her.”
“Yes.”
“I never thanked God for that.”
“Yes.”
I fell asleep after that.
A Once I awakened. It was just before nightfall, and I saw Cordelia rocking in silent grief, cradling my baby, holding my child atop her own.

Your email system is blocking emails from us. The Gallery ticket option is listed under ticket options here: https://training.authormedia.com/p/2025-novel-marketing-conference

I asked a question about whether a gallery ticket would be available for this as descried in your podcast for my publication/book marketing assistant. Please answer.

I think there is something noble in wanting to defend your family, do heroic deeds, and be a hero. The fact that many of your fellow citizens long to be heros should be comforting, not scary. Understanding the longing for heroism is key to writing heroic characters readers want to read about.

Like your wife, on the rare occasions that I go to a book store, few novels appeal to me. I do prefer books that emphasize relationships. But the newer fantasy books, even the independently published Christian ones, have more steam than what I am comfortable with.

Or the strong female protagonist is a modern day goddess: young, self-sufficient, intelligent, athletic, beautiful, and white. No matter how offensive, self-absorbed, rude, or cruel her false accusations toward the hunk might be, he stays faithful. I guess it’s the modern day female reader dream. But it’s not conservative, the term you used. I would add it’s not God-honoring.

So I say, “Here, here” to your encouragement for writers to follow their weirdness/nerdiness. Normal is boring. And what passes for great literature today seems to focus on messages of defeat. Or lies about morality.

Not a single one of those books were Big 5.
The only trad-pub books I read at all were published by Baen.

I read for entertainment mostly & to scratch my tech-nerd/engineering brain-itch; I’m not even vaguely interested in stories that feature anything to do with current politics and social movements.

Social media did help me sale some books sporadically but it also made me miserable so it wasn’t worth it.

Since publishing my book in 2019 I have also given away free copies often. This has led to most of my book sales.

I have a page at the end that shows were more copies can be purchased and after reading it people have gone and purchased a copy or copies either to support me or because they think of others they would like to to read it.

I have also received event opportunities after giving copies away and sold a lot of books. For example I gave a copy to a guy and he invited me to meet a large group he was affiliated with at an event and he told me to bring some copies of my books. I brought a large box of them and I almost took some out because I thought it was too many, but I didn’t. I sold every book that day and I wish I had brought more.

It won’t work for everyone but for me book giveaways have been very rewarding.

Your article brings up a lot of good points, pros and cons. One of the biggest pros for me is their online editor for creating a post. It’s the best I’ve used.

I’ve been enjoying my time there. There was a learning curve, but not too bad.

Thanks for the article.

consider, though, that people who search Lou Myers will thus discover you while searching for those older publications…it’s a thought…

Hey, I just want to point out that I ghost books for clients who then create “authors” for them and such. I’d further like to say that the woory if the “author” of a book is a person is still kind of silly right now, and here’s why. Say i ask an AI to give me an “example” of how the scene I describe might look. I’m not going to then just plaster what it cre3at3d as the scene because they don’t get them the way the writer exactly wants and they’ll get rewritten anyway. All this worry about AI is far too much. The other thing is, even if a writer uses AI that way, it was still told the scene the writer thought up before it changed it, so it still was the writer’s creation either way. So, I just want people to realize they don’t understand there is most definitely a human involved even if were just an editor or something. An AI is not yet going to sit around writing things they did not receive human guidance to create. So, for me, I don’t see why pen names should be an issue over the AI, it should remain the choice of the author as always.

Search engine optimization. My real name isn’t Joe Smith, but it might as well be. If I want people to be able to find me using google, I needed a name that would be at least somewhat closer to unusual.

Absolutely!

I have a full-time day job and strongly feel the pressure to work nights and weekends on marketing my book. When I shifted from a “sprint” mindset to a “marathon” mindset, it took a lot of that pressure off me.

Thank you for all of this!

The process is straight forward. Every time you use a password 1Password will ask to import it. Depending on how you handle passwords currently, it may also support a bulk import.

Once 1password has the password, you will have access to it everywhere.

That’s my question too. If I was to transition to a password manager, how hard would it be to set up and then collect all my information?

Game changing? Absolutely.

And now that I live in another country, everyone knows me by that name since they see it on WhatsApp or Telegram.

I write about modern social issues and sometimes tackle topics that aren’t politically correct on blogs and chats. However, I also intend to pursue a new professional activity in the field of content writing and editing. I have two LinkedIn profiles, one under my real name, and the other under my pen name. But since I’m nowhere to be found (except on LinkedIn, for the time being) under my real name, I don’t know which is the better option.

I’m perfectly comfortable mixing my “sultry” articles on modern feminism or whatever with my work for serious companies – my professional portfolio wouldn’t talk about the former. But I’ve yet to make a decision.

What do you think of my particular case?

I’ve never commented before, but as an author with a pen name, I wanted to chime in!

I used a pen name for two reasons:

1. My best friend and I coauthor books together. We didn’t want to be “two people” so we combined our names together to be one author name. We’ve seen other coauthors duos do something similar, and we felt like it would be easier logistically to be one person. Especially on the back end of Ingram and Amazon.
2. We are both teachers in our professional lives, but we write fantasy romance that is a bit steamy. We wanted to keep a layer of anonymity between us and our students and their parents.

Thanks!

Thanks for the article!

Thank you so much for this! I recently started out writing my debut novel and decided to begin posting content on social media, only to find out I’m spending too much of my time thinking of what to post instead of doing the actual writing. Plus I’m not even a social media person. It’s draining.

I appreciate your humor and detailed research.

I will be listening to the Patreon’s special episode too.

Same here! I’m a librarian and faculty member so required to publish and present professionally. I write sweet romance books and don’t want those audiences mingling too much. 😀

As a professional historian, I use a pen name to keep my fiction and non- fiction writing separate.

You’ve asked if there’s another good reason to add: If the author has a professional double life.

In my case, I work in finance and technology, and I’m writing children books as well. Those two have very little in common, so I can’t easily promote my books on LinkedIn without spamming my professional network. I also can’t setup another LinkedIn with the same name and number, because (a) that’s confusing for anyone searching when you get two profiles in search for the same name and photo and location, and (b) the LinkedIn network algorithm will end up mixing up recommended contacts and content.

In my case, I’ve accepted that publishing books – even when they peak in UK bestseller lists – is a hobby. I can see other authors stumbling here if they want to put more effort into promoting their book with another professional legacy and network/following.

They actually do offer this, but only in the UK right now.

Also, I don’t have Apple devices. Are there any high-powered dictation tools for Chromebooks or Windows that you would recommend?

A tip I have that has been a game changer for me is to remove your addictive apps from your home screen. I use my phone for posting to social media but having them off my home screen reminds me of my goal to not mindlessly scroll. Same for email. Removing it from my home screen reminds me to wait to check email until I’m at my computer where I can address an issue.

After 26 years of writing which I love to do, you’ve convinced me that I’m not going to make it as an author with a revenue stream. I think my books are terrific but spending thousands of dollars has not given me an audience. I believe it’s time to face reality. I’m 71 years old and it’s while it’s hard to stop, the world has gone so crazy. Now, facing a new world of more technology, I’ll stick with what I love and try some articles. Maybe podcasting too. Great to read all the comments!

Thank you

Good luck to everyone out there, though! 🙂 As we all know, there are literally MILLIONS of books, hundreds of thousands of writers and authors… and various levels of popularity, wealth, prestige, etc. Obviously, only the marketed will be seen, and that doesn’t even mean that the BEST will rise to the top. Cheers!

It is! Here is the link: https://training.authormedia.com/p/amazing-author-websites

I did this because the two sync together, I love that, but have had trouble with using Word. I have 365 and the app. The functionality still gives me grief after several months. The app works better to create a doc but I want them stored on Onedrive.

I also share docs with other 365 users who don’t use a Mac.

Love the computer, but I feel like I’m going to have a file nightmare.

This was a wonderful article, and I’m not trying to be divisive… but there are some good points raised by others in the comments.

I absolutely despise iPhone, which is why I’m hesitant to get a Mac.

There are versions of Microsoft Word for both iPad and Mac. There is even a version for iPhone.

I don’t recommend the iPad as a laptop replacement, but it can be a great laptop companion.

I have a not so great Lenovo PC and am looking to upgrade. The battery life is terrible. I thought I’d better go the Microsoft route because of Word, but this article is making me rethink. I also have an iPad. Would that work if I install Word on it?

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Thomas! The idea of not having Word was stressing me out. I’ll have to start saving for all these new techy gadgets. 🙂

If you are happy with that laptop, I suggest you keep using it.

Microsoft Word runs on a Mac. See https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/mac/microsoft-365-for-mac for more.

The Apple laptops are typically lighter than their PC counterparts. This is due to using energy-efficient ARM-based chips rather than the power-hungry x86-based chips used in PCs. With more efficient chips, Macs don’t need large batteries to get good battery life and are thus much more portable.

A lot depends on what software you are using. The M1 has plenty of GPU power for most tasks, especially for browser-based apps like Canva and Descript. For those browser-based apps, more RAM will definitely help. That 256GB hard drive will fill up fast if you create a lot of graphics.

If you are using Adobe products more GPU cores will make a big difference.

Yes, you can and should get Microsoft Word for Mac. Samsung phones can connect to Macs, but most Mac users end up getting iPhones.

Make sure you have the most recent copy of Office 365 *installed* on your mac. The browser version is not as good.

But if your author business requires you to create images, edit photos, create videos and other graphics related things for your book, for social media, for book launching, for handling streaming video, for looking good when being interviewed, etc. …

… then you’ll need to invest a little more in GPU / CPU / Memory / storage.

I did not know this… *makes note for future reference* Thank you for the insight!

I will say, sometimes when I’m working on Edge and I have a lot of tabs open, the browser screen goes black (nothing else, just the browser) and then turns back on. Is that just Edge’s problem? Or is it a computer problem?

Too often a proposal will be sent our way in Pages and since we are on a Windows platform we cannot open the file.

Email Bryan Cohen he’s the expert on Amazon Ads. I met him in person at a writer’s event in Vegas.
bryan@sellingforauthors.com

With a desktop, however, I can kind of go either way. You can get a solid $500-700 PC for writing, something like a basic i5, 512 GB SSD, and 16 GB RAM should work fine with Microsoft Word, Scrivener, etc. The iMacs starting with 8 GB of RAM are too slow to be feasible, so you need to really upgrade. It will be about triple the cost of a good PC with similar specs, but it will also last forever…and ever. I like the idea of Apple having it’s own hardware and software, too.

Nailed it.

I feel that we’ve been in a race with Death for every tech development from the first time someone used stirrups while riding a horse to today’s world wide instant news. AI, like you said, is the latest power tool.

I use and recommend Namecheap.com. But I have also heard good things about Hover.com.

https://a.co/d/0llChT0

Mark L. Redmond
http://www.marklredmond.com

If you’ve ever played World of Warcraft, you may agree that the druid is the most versatile character in the game—and also one of the hardest to play. A druid can fill almost any role, although at only about 80% of the level of one of the specialty classes. For instance, a good priest will heal better than a druid. A warrior will tank better than a druid. But a priest can’t tank and a warrior can’t heal.

Substack is a writer’s druid, and that makes such a difference. I’m not at a level where I need to be managing a “tank” AND a “healer” AND a “damage dealer.” Substack gives me the flexibility without overwhelming me. And that’s a win!

He said, “The basic rule is that we do not allow any exchange of contact information before you hire someone. Once you’ve hired someone, you can exchange anything you want. However, if you communicate off the platform, off Reedsy, then you forfeit your right to your project protection. If a dispute arises, you’re on your own. You deal with it with your client or freelancer, but we won’t mediate because we don’t have access to all the communication.”

Believe me, if this were the case, I’d be a lot more willing to stay available on the platform and pay Reedsy’s usual fee. But I’ve moved much more into book coaching, and Reedsy’s communication platform is not sufficient for me to run my business the way I want to and in the way that serves my clients best despite conversations about this with Reedsy. So I’ve paid very large “introduction fees” to take clients who’ve found me on Reedsy off the platform with me so that they can access my course platform, reminder automation emails about deadlines and such, and share links with them to further resources (which Reedsy’s platform redacts if it’s ANY link or email address that is not their domain or one of a few allowed domains). But after changes in their terms, which happened quite a while ago now, the fee to take clients off the platform is outrageously prohibitive. It used to be that I’d pay the 20% of the project cost to Reedsy, which they would normally get from me and the author combined. But now their terms state that I’d have to pay £4,000 or more simply to give up their “project protection,” in essence, which I’ve never used and never cared about personally. (Check out their “prohibited conduct,” “service contract conduct” and “introduction fees” in 1.1, 5.6, and 7.1 here: https://reedsy.com/about/tos )

I also used to be able to bring in one of my trusted copy editors from time to time as a subcontractor with the client’s consent. This was especially valuable with repeat clients so that I could oversee the edits since I was familiar with the story from the developmental side but too close to the story after that work to have fresh enough eyes to do the copy edit myself. But now editors are not allowed to subcontract anything even with the client’s consent. Yet designers and other professionals on Reedsy are allowed to subcontract to a team. Of course, this was not an issue touched on in the podcast episode. I only mention it because it’s yet another reason I cannot run this business as an editor/book coach efficiently from Reedsy’s platform.

However, Reedsy was helpful when I had left my in-house position and needed to find my way in the freelance world. I can’t deny the crucial role it played in making it all feasible for me before I had my own systems and contracts in place. I guess it just felt like the answers on the episode might be somewhat disingenuous and make Reedsy sound more flexible than it truly is. While I will still recommend Reedsy at times to authors or publishing professionals, I want them to be able to make a fully informed decision in light of its limitations.

As a business, Reedsy can certainly set whatever terms it likes. But to pass it off rather differently to potentially make it seem more appealing or easy doesn’t sit right with me. I want authors and editors (and other publishing professionals) to know what they’re getting into. Reedsy has some real benefits for helping authors find professionals to work with and bring those professionals work. But it creates a very manual, labor-intensive setting for collaboration with many restrictions.

Loved this interview!

We have several episodes about getting more reviews:

https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-get-more-5-star-reviews/
https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-get-more-book-reviews-derek/
https://www.authormedia.com/get-more-book-review-jim-kukral/

Hi! I am an indie author with four published books and counting. I’ve been speaking to book clubs, women’s groups, and a church fellowship dinner. My readers tell me how much they like my books with messages and phone calls, but I have trouble motivating them to write reviews. How can I get involved in this?

Our platform, which launched just three days ago, aims to support authors by facilitating reviews from sales across multiple stores. We’re currently seeking authors to participate for free as we are fine-tuning the platform. This is a fantastic opportunity for authors with no budgets to gain valuable exposure. I appreciate your work to support authors and if you believe your audience could benefit from this opportunity, please consider extending our invitation to them. Naturally it will be an encouragement for us too…:)
Best wishes,
Anette Christensen

1. Long-term my goal is to supplement my retirement income with my writing. Short term truth is that God is pushing me to write novels. When I want to quit, He stirs up my heart so that I can’t. It gives me a glimpse of what the prophet Jeremiah experienced, when he said he would quit, but God’s word was a fire in his heart, and he couldn’t hold it in.

2. Success will be my paying the bills with a combination of social security checks and writing income.

3. Ah, this is the hard question—how much to invest? But I have 12 years until I can retire with full benefits. So, my resources don’t have to take as big a chunk out of my financial investment. It’s priority time that’s the struggle.

4. Before I started writing, I invested much time and money into the beautification of my ten-acre property. But I realized that the efforts were all for my pleasure, not anyone else’s. So I gave up much of that time. I had already given up tv/movie time for prayer and Bible study. The only other things I possess to prune involve ministry and guardianship duties which I won’t give up unless the Lord makes it plain that I should.

5. My investment will be sufficient if I faint not.

Hi Kat

Thank you. I’m delighted you found it worthwhile. I’m with you on Thomas – a great selection.

Best wishes.

Hi Glenn,

Thank you. Your story sounds very interesting. You ask how do you tell the world that it is a fictional/true story. Sometimes, the simple ways are the best. Just say so.

If you look at the opening credits of movies, for example, they have a number of ways of saying this. For example, “This is a true story. Some of the characters and events have been invented/merged/changed.”

You can also use such words as “based on a true story”, “inspired by a true story”, “based on my own life”, “inspired by events that happened to me” – according to what you feel best represents it.

As for how to proceed in developing it as a movie, by chance Thomas and I have been talking about how to adapt your book for the screen and the podcast is out this week. You can find it at https://www.authormedia.com/from-page-to-screen-how-to-adapt-your-novel-into-a-screenplay/

That should give you some ideas as to where to start. Good luck.

C

Many an author find it uncomfortable to do, but it’s as much a part of things as the writing. And there are authentic ways to do it. Thanks again for this coverage.

Honor reigns supreme in my writing with the strong (whether men or dragons) feeling an obligation to protect those who are weaker (usually children or women). Not a popular theme in novel or short story contests, whether secular or religious.

Your podcast also explains my frustration with the many newer fantasy books that push equality. I usually fail to identify or empathize with the female protagonists who refuse to respect those who are protecting them (usually a parent, ex-boyfriend, or destined boyfriend). Yep, I was raised in the South.

Thank you greatly. I have ordered the book through interlibrary loan from the “you must support everyone’s rights” city to my quiet “leave us alone” rural town.

Can I have totally separate substack accounts or pages for my different writings?
Thank you. Peter Aronson

While the goal was clear before, this goes a long way to actually shed light on the concept, at least for me.

Thank you for what you do to help us as authors.

WP Rocket should be on the safe list. It’s more expensive but also more compatible.

Images linking to social networks are fine. From a technical perspective, those are no different from any other kind of link.

Also not sure of the definition of social media integration. Sharing a website blog on Facebook, I get that can be bad, but what about icons that just point you to the author’s social media profile, eg, just follow requests. Are they bad too?

It’s a beautiful piece of article ever I have read. Informative and helpful. Nicely penned. Thanks

The first one I am going to implement before the day is out is taking off the social links. This is what convinced me.

“And here is the worst part: no one ever clicks those buttons.”

Next I’m going to check out BLOOM – never heard of that one.

Will need a second read after doing those two things.

Very, very good post all round.

Great question! Only the premium version of YOAST handles redirects. Since most authors don’t need the premium version of Yoast, they can save money using the Redirection plugin.

So, I did some research on SubS support, Zendesk, a s/w that SubS uses for support. It is AI oriented, and it appeared to me that my support person was using the AI component to respond to my essentially simple question. He/she never addressed my question about posting directly. Instead sending sometimes contradictory answers. So, after exchanging about 12 emails with this person, I gave up.

Check out the Trustpilot comments on SubS support.

Wasn’t 15th-century Italy in the same point of the Secular Cycle that we are in right now? Secular Cycles might be worth researching as you research 15th-century Italy.

Great post. Thank you!

http://erickaclay.substack.com

Recommended Book Club Selection
Former high school US History teacher, Chuck Spinner, published his third book that is being recommended as a Book Club selection. The author just recently published Look What Sports Did To This Little Kid! A Baby Boomer’s Journey Through the Golden Age of Sports (https://www.chuckspinner.com).
This new book is an autobiography that presents a nostalgic look at how the author’s life has been influenced by sports. It is the perfect read for a baby boomer, a sports fan, or just anyone who likes fun, interesting stories. Be among the first book clubs to review this fun, nostalgic book! Book Club discussion questions are provided at the end of this email.
This is one case where a book can indeed can be judged by its cover! Chuck’s nephew, J.D. Spinner, designed a very creative cover with QR codes whereby readers can hear both a young and older author talking about the book. The back cover contains glowing testimonials of the book by the following major sports celebrities.
“Chuck Spinner’s recollections of the part sports has played in his life are sure to resonate not only with baby boomers like Chuck (and me), but with anyone who appreciates the fond memories and lasting personal connections sports have provided so many of us”. – Bob Costas

“….Chuck Spinner and his view of the golden age of sports enables us to reflect on our view of history as we saw life and the talented athletes we idolized. ….His wholesome view of faith as well as athletics makes us yearn for the ‘good ‘ol days.’….Please enjoy this marvelous work. It will bring a smile to your face.” – Bill Raftery

“Growing up in Beacon, NY (now West Point) watching the high school teams in baseball, football, and basketball was a big influence on my life. Chuck makes you reflect on those moments, in his book Look What Sports Did To This Little Kid! Life’s journey is only reinforced by the people in sports, who were a part of your life”. – Digger Phelps
Area sports fans will be interested to read several sections in the book that deal with Spinner’s days watching Jamestown Jammers games.
Many of today’s baby boomers will be entertained by the experiences Chuck describes. Readers will be intrigued with stories about:
– How the author’s uncle became a pro wrestler to pay his way through law school.
– Meeting a boyhood sports idol 40 years later.
– Two grandsons ride in pace car with their Papa.
– Meeting the only major league ambidextrous pitcher.
– The first T-ball game played on artificial turf.
– Author plays international basketball game in Senegal.
– Author beats future Supreme Court justice in basketball.
– Larry Bird ruins local TV sports broadcast.
– Author participates in prison basketball game.
– The Lions before Detroit.
– Running with the “Vaulting Vicar”, Reverend Bob Richards.
– Author’s wife meets Michael Jordan….almost!
– The Detective Wrestling Dentist.
– Golfing on the Moon!
##########
Chuck’s first book, A Book of Prayers to the Heavens from the Stars, was written in 2008. It is the compilation of 118 beautiful prayers from 118 wonderful celebrities. In 2012 the author penned his second book, The Tragedy at the Loomis Street Crossing. The interest created by this book prompted Paul Kuhn’s awesome sculpture that was dedicated in 2014 at site of the 1946 tragic Naperville, Illinois rail crash that took the lives of 45 people.
You can check details on all of Chuck’s books by going to his website, http://www.chuckspinner.com. His books can be ordered you’re your local bookstore, Amazon or very simply from the aforementioned website.
Chuck is excited to have a book signing from 3:30 to 5:30 pm on October 27th at the Hammes Bookstore on the campus of Notre Dame University, the weekend of the ND – University of Pittsburgh football game.
###################
Look What Sports Did To This Little Kid!
A Baby Boomer’s Journey Through the Golden Age of Sports
Book Club Discussion Questions
(Hand out these questions to your group. Have them first examine all of the questions. Then the facilitator can ask if someone would like to offer their insights on one of the questions. The discussion should then flow to as many questions as time and interest will allow)
1. What affect did television have on the baby boomer generation and their viewing of sports broadcasts?
2. How did sports help the author deal with a family tragedy?
3. Have you had good or bad experiences with your children’s coaches? What are the characteristics of a good coach?
4. Why does the title of the autobiography center on the word “Kid” even though the author is now 77 years old?
5. The author at one point had the decision to either complete a race involving Reverend Bob Richards or take a bus. Would you have made the same decision and would have immediately admitted your decision to your young athletes?
6. Telstar introduced American sports to other countries and made the US acquainted with soccer and hockey. Do you think one day there will be a true WORLD series with countries from throughout the world participating….like the Little League World Series?
7. Should sports events be suspended during national tragedies?
8. Should gambling be advertised during televised sporting events?
9. Do you feel that the protest that athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos took on the medals stand at the 1968 Olympics was a courageous or foolish act? Would you, like the author, like to stand on Peter Norman’s place on the San Jose University medal stand sculpture? Are there any modern-day comparisons to their protest?
10. Do you feel that the US should ever keep their country out of the Olympics?
11. Many people frown upon bull fighting in Spain. How do you feel about some sports in the US (mixed marital arts) that have people questioning their merit?
12. From all the quotes contained in the book, what are a couple of your favorites?
13. Do you have a favorite sports team? How was this choice determined? Location, parent’s favorite team, winning percentage, favorite player, stylish uniforms, etc.
14. How did sports affect the author’s relationship with his son and grandsons?
15. What sports story in the book did you enjoy the most?
16. Did the author give a fair appraisal of both the benefits and drawbacks involved in sports?
17. What is your favorite current athlete and favorite athlete of all time?
18. Which sport do you feel takes the most skill?
19. Is Pickleball going to be, or already is, the favorite sport of baby boomers?
20. Is sports participation an encouragement or a drawback to participation in the Arts?
21. Have you ever written a letter of gratitude to a teacher?
22. What do you feel is the best benefit of sports participation?
23. What is your own personal greatest sports story?
24. Explain how sports have influenced your life in either a positive or negative way.
25. How have cable TV and streaming services diluted the prominence of what was just baseball, basketball, and football in the U.S.

Check out Chuck’s other two books by going to https://www.chuckspinner.com.

Great episode Thomas! Has to be a strange feeling to look back through ten years of change and growth!

You guys have been a great help to so many authors – so grateful for you!

(Renewing website so won’t add it to info at present.)

Please do NOT put me on a mailing list.

Being a debut, traditionally published author, I prioritized reader events like these over writer-focused events this year. The attendees are amazing humans who are also avid readers. They care about story and about authors. They appreciate the opportunity to share insights and perspectives that are invaluable to authors, and they often have book clubs back home and/or active spaces on BookTok, BookTube, Bookstagram, etc. A few attendees I met were booksellers.

The retreats also afford quality time to get to know fellow authors. Organizers are typically intentional about choosing featured authors who are at various career stages, from seasoned veteran to debut. It was during these conversations that I was introduced to resources, ideas, lessons-learned, collaboration opportunities, and informal mentors.

I plan to continue to prioritize reader retreats, on balance with the writer events you list here.

That should read “1 and 2”

Hi MJ

Good ideas. I’d definitely lean more towards 3, as 1 and 1 reference movies that were made over twenty years ago (am I really that old!) In the case of WSMH, getting on for thirty-four years.

Much as I love that film, and Nora Ephron’s crackling dialogue, some readers will have doubts as to whether referring to the movie dates Rhonda’s book.

Worse, horrific as this may sound, they may not even have heard of it.

Your book could be pitched in “Jaws in Space” fashion as

1. “When Harry Met Sally, but its about several real couples” (1989)

2. “The Story of Us, with real couples” (1999)

3. “This Is Us, with real couples” (2016-2022)

Or expanding it like Tom and Charles did in the episode, “It’s a nonfiction “This is Us” with real couples who have huge problems. By the end of each chapter, they have come through hell stronger for it”

Happy pitching and selling!

https://reinacruzwrites.substack.com/

The goal is credibility and relatability. So, what would make you relatable to your target audience? What would make you credible? I don’t think the books need to match. Their not matching might make you more relatable.

And we simply LOVE the photo of you reading aloud to your brood of the next generation. You and your wonderful wife are now sowing seeds from which the future will greatly benefit. We often hear someone say to a military vet, “Thank you for your service,” and we say the same to you both: “Thank you so much for your service to our nation and to our future!”

https://substack.com/profile/141256863-nichole-fogleman?r=2c3mhr&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=profile

You do such an amazing job laying things out in detail. You always do. Thanks for taking the time to prepare and deliver such great content. I’m looking forward to setting up my plan as you have described.

In AUTHOR UNLEASHED by Robert J. Ryan, he teaches a strategy of a “Rapid Release” schedule that is 1 every 2 weeks. Robert goes into this strategy in depth in Chapter 9, scenario 3 (although I advise reading the whole chapter – or better yet, the whole book. Not only is it extremely well written in plain english for everyone to understand, it gives background for the strategy.)
This strategy leans on the Amazon algorithm in a logical way.

I don’t recall that he suggests this would need to be an ongoing effort. Boy oh boy! Could you imagine? Ooof! Burnout for sure! LOL
But – for an author starting out, or a mid-list author trying to get their authorial career to ‘catch’ – with a solid, edited, beta tested short series… This strategy makes so much sense.

All this to say – I LOVE the Tortoise Strategy you laid out. It’s brilliant. I’ve shared this episode with a few author friends who need to hear this method.

I especially enjoyed what you said about Benjamin Franklin and his approach to “doing it all.”

Thanks for the wonderful and insightful episode. Like Gordon said, this was perfect timing for me as well.

P.S. Thank you.

I think 50 pages is a long time. I like to create circumstances that sparks interest in the first line and makes people fall in love with my characters before they turn to page two. But I can relate to building the relationship in the first 50 pages and building tension and action in the next 200 pages and create a ‘soft landing’ with a hook to the next book in the last few pages.

Thank you, Thomas, about needing the first 50 pages to be like a short story. I’ve been working on short stories — 5-year plan stuff, you know —but my novel’s “short story” has the wrong protagonist.

Excellent episode. Thank you both.

And they will never be able to raise the dead…just sayin😆

Scott,

You make some good points. It is true that more more plugins can slow down a site and jetpack can still slow down some sites. It also has some speed boosting features so some sites will run faster in jetpack. I recommend running speed tests on your site and determining what is more important, a better view on your stats (and the other features Jetpack has) or site performance .

Also, I have been under the impression that Jetpack is a bloated plug-in. Here’s something I even found that you wrote in 2016: “Jetpack can be a heavy plugin, especially if you use it for only one thing.” I think I would largely be using it for one thing (stats), because most of the other things it offers, such as caching, security, etc. I already have.

I know you said that Jetpack is much better now. Are you convinced that it won’t slow down our sites? If I’m using it just for stats, is it really worth it?

One more question. I think you use Bluehost, so you might not know the answer to this. I use SiteGround and I think the SiteGround Optimizer is similar to Jetpack boost. Do you know which ones better by chance? I cannot find anything on your site about it or really on the Internet.

If you don’t want to use Google, just use Jetpack. It will give you 80% of the info as you would get using both. Avoiding Google Analytics shouldn’t impact your Google rankings.

If the output you get is disappointing, then it’s a question of “Garbage In, Garbage Out” concept that is used for databases. As writers, we should understand that it’s our prompting for Chat GPT that needs to improve.

Chat GPT is already producing quality web and marketing copy. And yes, it does that through imitation of quality web copy that works on human emotions. We shouldn’t knock that I feel, since most writers begin by copying the style of writing that they love, and then write and write until they find their own voice.

You can even take your own writing and feed it to Chat GPT as preparation before prompting it to write something specific and it will do it’s best to imitate your voice and style.

You can also ask Chat GPT to play the role of an editor and it can give you some great feedback that you can apply in rewrites.

Sure, I’ve had loads of really disappointing output over the last 4 months, but as my prompting has improved and as I’ve given Chat GPT the role of editor, I have gotten back some writing that has just blown my mind with it’s subtlety and nuance.

Of course everything I get back is something that I still want to tweak and to personalize. But I wouldn’t dismiss it outright.

Great article, though. Thanks!

Thank you for your kind words. Well done on your last book.

I like the idea for “Real Life Romance”. and I can also see the problem with the pitch. Mash-ups of titles for pitches can work well, but the key principle is that they have to be both recent and successful. I can testify about that from personal, painful experience!

‘Chicken Soup’ was successful but not that recent. You’d do better to pitch a more recent success and a specific romance novel rather than just referencing the genre.

I feel your title could be stronger and more specific. Joanna Penn tells how changing the title on one of her first non-fiction books had a massive positive effect on sales. The final sentence could also do with more of an emotional punch. I find the word “unpacks” is a bit corporate. I want to know how the book will make me feel. I hope this helps – tell me how it goes.

Or is the point here that having an *actual* Timothy in our lives means we’ll have someone who can actually point out our blind spots and that we can have real conversations with (helping us to get out of the limitations of our own heads)?

Excellent points! We have over a dozen articles with a more positive view of media interviews here: https://www.authormedia.com/category/promotion/pr/.

You can also ask the journalist to give you some of their questions ahead of time. They may not, but they may. It happens. If they won’t, there’s a better chance they’re angling for a “gotcha” piece.

Also.
Sorry you’ve had bad experiences, but there are LOTS of us who have no interest in dragging anyone through the mud. And LOTS of us who have done an about-face on a story after realizing the facts don’t agree with the angle we had in mind. I completely bailed on a freelance piece for that reason, and I desperately needed that money.

And any outlet worth its salt acknowledges that their journalists are biased and has strict ethics policies to attempt to counter that. The lack of trust for journalists with integrity is a huge part of why there’s so much fake news rampant right now.

Shame on that Wired editor for doing that, for sure. But I bet a little of Googling around the editor’s work would have made his M.O. obvious.

And of course they’re not going to be rude with someone simply because they disagree with the interviewee. Not only will the person you’re interviewing clam up, but also maybe you’re simply extending common courtesy.

I understand this episode was about hostile journalists, but I would have been encouraged by a little more acknowledgement of the many, many above-board journalists out there, including those who literally risk their lives to make sure the truth gets out.

AI – This is an insightful podcast. I would also mention that we need to be creating a brand revolving around the author and not just the books. People buy things from people they know, like, and trust.

Any phone (iPhone or Android) can scan a QR code regardless where it is made. So an Android phone could scan a QR code made on your mac computer.

There are some good iPhone and iPad teleprompter setups out there. The challenge is getting live information on the screen. To read a teleprompter you have to horizontally flip the screen which involves using special software.

There is no way, that I know of, to flip an entire screen so that you could read the comments on a webinar chat, for instance. Teleprompter software is designed around the idea of a talking head reading what has been pre-written for them to say.