To Write and Have Written: A Writer's Guide To The Business Side: Recent Episodes
Laura VanArendonk Baugh
Writing is only part of a writing career -- no one warned us that we would need business acumen and entrepreneurship to be an author. Whether you're traditionally published or an independent self-publisher, it's good to have a leg up on accounting, marketing, time management, and other key skills.
These recordings of live discussion on craft and development, on business best practices, on explorations of fascinating and inspiring real life cool stuff, and more will help you along your writing journey and career development. Join Laura VanArendonk Baugh as she shares what she's learned and what she's learning. (Or join the weekly live discussion with your own questions!)
It's really easy to get caught up in the emotional streams of creating, and that can be great -- or destructive. Let's talk through some common and predictable moods so we know they're coming and know what to do with them.
What I gained and what I learned from my first author table at Gen Con, and then preparing for NaNoWriMo.
Live brainstorming! Well, more chatting. Some brainstorming. Lots of chatting. XD Laura answers questions as she tries to work.
After Apple's less-altruistic-than-advertised "privacy changes" change open rate reports for emails, what are we to do to measure engagement? Well, we can measure actual engagement, beyond open rates. Let's talk about newsletters!
An overview of how pacing affects a story and how you can pace to your advantage. A requested topic!
This may be more beneficial with visuals: https://youtu.be/1wsgrXMTxXU
Evernote link: https://www.evernote.com/referral/Registration.action?sig=15ea3d209d4cdfccdcc05ed7d2f0efb0361042af2853ace23f4e62445f670542&uid=5993871
Or, "how equine influenza made your newfangled electric sewing machine run."Did you know the United States had a complex and efficient, electric train system that serviced most of the population? Did you know this train system brought electric power to rural communities? Let's talk about the interurban, and about how transportation affects your worldbuilding. With guest Alena Van Arendonk.
Patreon: http://patreon.com/lauravab
The Poet's Eye on Vella: https://amzn.to/3i6F9ZV
Mentioned links:
Atticus
Free online writers conference
SableAradia's Kickstarter
Publisher Rocket
Catch Laura speaking and mentoring at: https://writersconduit.com/
Catch Alena speaking at http://casacon.nardio.net/
You can find Rhonda Parrish doing ALL THE THINGS at her website, http://RhondaParrish.com
Find Jacklyn and Tyler (Ademal and Barron) with their world Ethnis at https://www.worldanvil.com/w/ethnis
Find Julie's art and comics at https://www.patreon.com/zjbickel/posts
Find Ben's music, drama, poetry, and more at http://patreon.com/benasaykwee
If you would like my spreadsheet to calculate potential Kindle Vella revenue compared to traditional ebooks, you can get it free with my infrequent newsletter, or pick it up at my website.
Find Margaret at mmcgriff.com and margaretmcgriff.com.
Vote for Crown & Creed at https://www.realmmakers.com/vote-for-readers-choice/
AppSumo deal on Soundwise http://fbuy.me/v/laura_10643 (includes $10 off AppSumo for new users)
Soundwise standard pricing https://mysoundwise.com?lmref=dLrVgQ
Bookfunnel http://bookfunnel.com/
Bookfunnel and WooCommerce https://authors.bookfunnel.com/help/setup-woocommerce/
Findaway Voices https://findawayvoices.com/
Vote for Crown & Creed! https://www.realmmakers.com/realm-award-readers-choice-alliance-award/
Gamify your to-do list: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/todolistadventures/
Water: Selkies, Sirens, and Sea Monsters https://amzn.to/3eiqMQi
Sensation and riddle giveaway! https://amzn.to/3xk6NJU and https://lauravanarendonkbaugh.com/sensational-havok-season-four/
How did a war for natural resources in Korea lead to a ubiquitous American college food? Let's talk about how in real life everything is connected, and how we can use that to make our fictional worlds more robust, cohesive, and fascinating.This is an episode from my weekly show on the business of creativity, from craft and development to marketing and entrepreneurship. Join us for live discussion on Twitch, or catch the replays here on YouTube. Find the schedule of topics and guests here: https://go.lauravab.com/1rsV
Let's talk about Procrastination! (Spoiler: You're probably not just lazy.) Speaking generally, writers procrastinate. A lot. But why, and what can we do about it? Here are five primary reasons why creative people procrastinate on their projects, and what to do about it. Plus a lot of fun chat.
Women's Work: The First 20,000 Years Women, Cloth, and Society in Early Times (Elizabeth Wayland Barber)
Warp-weighted Loom image
Morgan Donner, medieval hem video
Get Sendy, self-hosted mailing software.
(After the show, I got my monthly email bill, and it was—are you ready?—$0.31 USD. Not the $80 I would have spent at Mailchimp. That was for January's mailings.
For December, when I sent more to promote holiday sales and a new release, plus a newsletter for my day job (no need to split accounts!), I spent all of $0.65. So I just wanted to say that yes, Sendy really is cheaper.)
Links mentioned in the stream:
World Anvil: http://worldanvil.com
Tutorials for a free account: http://www.twitch.tv/davinaandrawyn
Follow Amy Winters-Voss: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/liminal-chronicles-shyredfox/
Follow Diane Morrison: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/toysoldiersaga
Follow Laura’s Shard of Elan world: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/shard-of-elan
Zapier: http://zapier.com
Shard of Elan map: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/shard-of-elan/map/ce8e4469-ddcb-4ea3-bf91-23f899255480
Hacks & Help: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/hacks-and-help-shyredfox
Hurstwic Viking iron smelting:Â http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/manufacturing/text/bog_iron.htm
Haunted scrambled eggs:Â https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHkMSHbdSJU
Emi on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ivorivet
Emi on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/ivorivet
Emi on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxr98SjSqK7pxkSf2MYZhxA
It's hard to get negative feedback! Let's talk about how to handle it -- and it's more than "just grow a thicker skin" -- and how to filter criticism and negative feedback for useful aid.
LastPass | Authy | Dropbox | Onedrive | MS Sculpt ergonomic keyboard |
cheap vertical mouse | Trello
For today's field trip, we travel to Isla Floreana to explore the murders which may or may not have taken place.
We've talked so much about the business side of things -- now let's review how we keep creating and business separate. It's critical, even when looking at writing as a career, that we separate these mindsets and be able to switch modes. Let's talk about why and how.
(Note: Jon's audio is unbalanced for most of this episode, and I apologize. We did get it fixed at the end but that's late.)I get it: We're writers. Spreadsheets are from the other side of the office suite, and they're scary.That's why I'm bringing in a freakin' spreadsheet wizard to help you tame and embrace them, to simplify and organize your writing career.All sales from all countries on one page, rendered to your home currency and prettified for quick reference? Done. Know at a glance what you spent on production of your last release and how near it is to paying for itself? Done. Know how your mailing list is growing compared to your social media? Done. Keep all your ad copy organized for quick repeats or changes? Done.And this is a great chance to get set up before we meet with the fabulous Chris Morris, a CPA who specializes with creative entrepreneurs, on Dec 1 to talk about accounting for writers.
Let's talk about rewards versus reinforcement -- what is the difference, and how can you leverage better science to keep yourself going?
After years of hearing uneducated opinions about National Novel Writing Month from people who have never tried it, I'm making NaNoWriMo the topic for this week's stream. Wear good boots, because I may step on a few toes as we walk through all the reasons you SHOULD try NaNoWriMo, even if -- especially if -- you think you can't, and then all the things we SHOULD NOT expect of our favorite month of frenzy.
In this episode we tackle the little-discussed but not uncommon phenomenon of the fear of success. Let's go over several ways we see this happen, what might be behind it, and what we can do about it.
It's so easy to get into a creative rut -- let's talk about trying something new as a method to stay fresh and productive.
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Susan Spann joins me to talk about moving beyond a life of fear as she climbs 100 Japanese mountains in a year while beating cancer and writing a book about it all.
See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.