Strategic Authorpreneur: Recent Episodes
Strategic Authorpreneur
Turning your book(s) into a business can be challenging. Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani every Monday as we discuss—with brutal honesty and a liberal dash of humor—ways to level up your writing career and author business while saving time, energy and money.
Show notes, bonuses, and transcripts available at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/
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Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we are reflecting on the past year of publishing, the past two years of the Strategic Authorpreneur Podcast, and what 2022 will bring for both of us.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Our 'creator' goals and what we achieved in 2021
- Challenges we faced as marketers and how we were able to manage our authorpreneur lives
- Things we wished we did best
- How going wide changed the way we publish books
- Things that surprised us
- Our objectives for 2022
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/067-reflecting-on-our-2021-progress/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we're chatting with special guest Ben Galley about how to write successful series and the pros and cons of wide publishing vs. exclusivity. We're also going to talk about how authors can leverage their IPs and create multiple revenue streams and some pitfalls of self-publishing you should be aware of.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Tips for writing a successful, long series
- Comparing going Wide with using KDP exclusivity
- Common pitfall of self-publishing
- How new releases help sell your catalog
- Multiple stream of revenues for authors
- Your story is not just an ebook: How to leverage you IP
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/066-kdp-select-vs-wide-with-ben-galley/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we're digging into the topic of Challenging Ourselves—what it means and how our experience can benefit you. We've each done some major experiments in this area and we're going to try to distill down what worked, what didn't - what we learned about ourselves in the process.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What was our yearly challenge
- Why pushing your limits can help you become a better writer
- What were the challenges/rewards attached to the project we set out to accomplish
- How to deal with feedbacks when they are not what you expect
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/065-challenging-yourself/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In today's episode we're digging into the topic of writing faster as this episode goes live halfway through this year's NaNoWriMo and you may be feeling the need for speed. Even if you're not doing NaNo, there are plenty of times when writing in faster will come in handy for you.
We will also talk about staying motivated in the long run and ways to establish internal and external motivators to help you tackle your writing project.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Why internal and external motivators can help you tackle your writing project
- Why keeping motivated it's important to enter into a better flow of writing
- What does it mean to write faster, and why it's important to adapt the word 'fast' to your personal situation
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/064-writing-faster/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a great way to start that writing project that has been taking hours of your sleeping time for the past year. In the end, it doesn’t really matter if you have successfully written a 50,000-word manuscript, or a couple of novellas, or half a dozen short stories. If you sit down and write words that might be the beginning of a great idea, you are already ahead of the game. Remember, you can’t fix what doesn’t exist, so you might as well start writing!
In this episode, we list the many things you can do to set yourself up for success when NaNoWriMo comes, what tips and tricks will help you power through your project and how to avoid distractions and burnouts that might stop your momentum. We also share our own experience writing stories on a deadline and how we dealt with difficulties and setbacks when they happened.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What is NaNoWriMo and what does it mean for writers all over the world?
- How to make the most out of your NaNoWriMo by preparing everything you need before starting typing the first word
- How writer groups and accountability buddies might be the best thing ever happened to writers
- How to turn a bad writing day into an awesome opportunity to level up your writing game
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/063-preparing-to-rock-nanowrimo/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Join us as we reflect on Months 6+7 of Going Wide and look at the progress made, the challenges encountered along the way, and discuss solutions to the obstacles we faced this past month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketing hat updates and goals
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/062-going-wide-progress-report-6-augustseptember-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we're chatting with special guest Bella Mahaya Carter about how you can rethink your ambitions and trust in your heartfelt purpose and values in the journey to becoming, or continuing on, as an author.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Bella Mayaha Carter
- How the three Principles of Mind, Consciousness, and Thought can influence an author’s journey
- Ways of kindling your love for writing
- Why it is better to embrace our story, rather than fight it
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/061-balanced-writing-life-with-bella-mahaya-carter/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we're talking with special guest Clay Stafford—the founder of Killer Nashville conference and magazine that deals with all things Thriller, Mystery and Suspense. In this interview Clay talks about the importance of adding mystery and suspense elements to any story to turn it into an engaging novel readers won't be able to put down. He also discusses the number one difficulty writers face and how the Killer Nashville conference has helped some attendees establish a long-lasting author career.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Clay Stafford
- How are mystery and thriller writers different from others?
- Clay’s thriller recommendations
- About Killer Nashville
- What is Clay working on right now?
- About Book packaging
- Awards at Killer Nashville
- Killer Nashville magazine
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/058-going-wide-progress-report-5-junejuly-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
While some people love the structure and order of plotting and can't start writing until they know every twist and turn of the story, for Discover Writers (aka Pantsers) that takes all the fun right out of the process. But there are ways that you can implement a little plotting and planning without totally taking the fun out of discovering the story as you go.
In this episode, we'll discuss some tips, tricks and strategies to help you shape your story while retaining the freedom to follow where inspiration leads.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What is a ‘pantser’?
- Are you always a pantser?
- Ways to plot as a pantser
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/058-going-wide-progress-report-5-junejuly-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Join us as we reflect on Months 6+7 of Going Wide and look at the progress made, the challenges encountered along the way, and discuss solutions to the obstacles we faced this past month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketing hat updates and goals
- Biggest wins and challenges
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/058-going-wide-progress-report-5-junejuly-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we're talking with special guest Mark Leslie about two topics all three of us are particularly passionate about—writing short, and publishing wide. Mark explains what options writers have when it comes to write successful short stories that sell, and how to use the power of 'WIDE publishing' to earn many stream of revenues that will last for a very long time.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Mark Leslie Lefebvre
- Figuring yourself out as a writer
- What got you into writing short stories?
- Is Mark a plotter or a pantser?
- Using short fiction in your writing career
- Releasing schedule with short stories
- Methods to market your short fiction
- Biggest mistakes people make when going wide
- New opportunities for indie authors
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/057-writing-short-and-publishing-wide-with-mark-leslie-lefebvre/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
As authors we have known this from day one: writing is not easy.
There are many moving pieces when it comes to crafting the best story we can write. But is there a way to up our chances of writing a great story? Enter the flow.
Today, we're going to talk about getting into a flow state with your writing and publishing activities in particular, what is it that takes you out of flow and how can you avoid that?
And then on the flip side, what facilitates flow and how can you add some more of that into your writing life?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What does flow feel like?
- Getting into flow state and what can stop you from getting there
- Removing distractions that take you out of flow
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/056-getting-into-the-flow-of-writing/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
We all heard about writer's 'voice'. Voice is the lens through which the reader sees the story, and speaks of the author's style as We all heard about writer's 'voice'. Voice is the lens through which the reader sees the story, and speaks of the author's style as nothing else can. Getting comfortable with your writer 'voice' means becoming less self-conscious about your writing. But what really is this ethereal concept? Is it something we consciously develop? How long does it take to settle into your voice? In this episode we answer these questions while providing actionable advices on how to experiment with yours.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What is an author’s ‘voice’?
- Can your ‘voice’ change?
- Finding your ‘voice’
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/055-finding-your-voice-as-a-writer/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Join us as we reflect on Months 4+5 of Going Wide and look at the progress made, the challenges encountered along the way, and discuss solutions to the obstacles we faced this past month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketing hat updates and goals
- Biggest challenges and wins
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/054-going-wide-progress-report-4-aprilmay-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Join us as we reflect on Month 3 of Going Wide and look at the progress made, the challenges encountered along the way, and discuss solutions to the obstacles we faced this past month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketer hat updates and goals
- Biggest challenges this month
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/053-going-wide-progress-report-3-march-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
'Going wide' is a mindset few authors fully understand. Often seen merely as a 'strategy' that can benefit some authors, going wide is not only about reaching people in hundreds of markets. It's about diversifying, not settling for what is easy, and maximizing your income streams.
Join us today as we interview Erin Wright, founder of the Wide for the Win Facebook group who will walk us through the many reasons why you are missing out on something big if you have never considered publishing your books in all storefronts.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Erin Wright interview
- What does Erin write?
- Mindset of a wide author
- Timeframe or timeline to give yourself when going wide
- Approaching going wide
- Tools to use
- Consulting with Erin Wright and Mark Leslie Lefebvre
- What does the future of going wide look like?
- Going from KU to wide
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/052-tips-on-publishing-wide-for-the-win-with-erin-wright/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
One of the most critical skillsets an authorpreneur needs to develop to achieve success and maintain sanity is the ability to prioritize.
A great story and good marketing can bring you far, but they are not enough. You can't measure your progress against yesterday's tasks if you do not have a system in place that lets you do just that.
In this episode, we're going to chat about what to do when your to-do list gets bigger than the hours available to you and how to choose what's going to get your time, money, and attention—and what isn't.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What does overwhelm feel like to you?
- Tools and strategies to help prioritize
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/051-how-to-prioritize-your-writing-and-publishing-tasks/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
There are few things as necessary as reading in the life of a writer. Reading shapes the way we see the world; it also informs how we write, inspires us to create stories, and motivates us when we hit a roadblock or want to throw in the towel. However, this apparently simple activity can also be a challenge; it can get disrupted, and easing back into it might not be as simple as one thinks. Join us as we talk about how you can tackle a reading roadblock or hit the reset button when your reading gets off track.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Do you read the same kind of books that you write?
- Have you ever had difficulties with reading?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/050-the-role-of-reading-in-writing/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Join us as we reflect on Month 2 of Going Wide and look at the progress made, the challenges encountered along the way, and discuss solutions to the obstacles we faced this past month.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketer hat updates and goals
- Biggest challenges from the past month
- Biggest win this month
- Your homework
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/049-going-wide-progress-report-2-february-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
"Please review my book" are the most important four words when it comes to launching your book. But this is so much more than a simple request, especially when it comes to being strategic about it.
This week we're going to tackle ARC teams—what they are, why they are useful, how you get people to join one, and what you do with them once you have them.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What is an ARC team and why do you need one?
- How do you create an ARC team?
- Where do you look to find members for your ARC team?
- Maintaining an ARC crew
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/048-how-to-recruit-manage-and-mobilize-your-arc-team/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
People really do judge a book by its cover—and you want your book to look professional and attract the right readers. Your cover is one of the main determinants of how well your book will sell. But we understand that budgets don't always stretch as far as we might like.
In this episode we're talking about what makes a cover look professional, tips and tricks to help you level up your cover game if you're thinking about designing your own, and some great places to look for cover designers to suit every budget so you don't have to do your own.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- How to commission a cover
- Make your own cover or hire someone else?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/047-professional-book-covers-on-a-budget/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Data management is the Achilles' heel for a lot of authors. But if you don't understand your numbers—where to get them, what they mean and how to use them to inform your strategy—then you're missing a huge opportunity to help your business grow.
In today's episode we're tackling data for wide authors, and sharing some resources that will help you to better understand your data without getting overwhelmed by it.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Backgrounds with data
- What do you want your data to tell you?
- What kind of tools you need to get started and what to look for
- When to change things up/update your systems
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/046-making-sense-of-data-from-a-variety-of-wide-platforms/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
'Progress' is a power word that makes the journey worth taking. In this episode we share our first ever monthly progress report, and underline the three areas where we focused our efforts: creation of content, managing of resources and the marketing of books.
There were wins and setbacks along the way, and a lot of lessons learned. We also share what our objectives for the next month are and how we're planning to achieve them.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Creator hat updates and goals
- Manager hat updates and goals
- Marketer hat updates and goals
- Progress report
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/045-going-wide-progress-report-1-january-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
One of the most important decisions you will make when setting up your author business is how to reach your readers: will you sell your ebooks directly, set up distribution accounts through each online store, or use an aggregator as a centralized hub for distribution? In today's episode we talk about some of the elements you might consider when making this decision, such as market access, money, ease, time, platform specific promotions, metadata choices, direct advertising and much more.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Direct publishing vs aggregator
- Making the decision between direct vs aggregator
- Market access
- 4 main areas the decision affects you
- Hybrid approach
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/044-going-direct-vs-using-an-aggregator-for-wide-ebook-distribution/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Not sure if you should publish your eBooks wide or exclusive to Amazon? There is no one right answer to this question. In today's episode we are talking about advantages and disadvantages of both routes while providing our experience on both sides of the fence. We also explain the differences between selling books directly through individual retailers like Kobo, Apple and the GooglePlay store vs using an aggregator to do the distribution to a variety of places from one dashboard.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Wide vs Exclusive
- Advantages of exclusivity
- Disadvantages of exclusivity
- Advantages of going wide
- Disadvantages of going wide
- Resources
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/043-wide-or-exclusive-for-ebook-publishing-in-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Welcome back to the Strategic Authorpreneur Podcast. In the first episode of the second season we reflect upon what happened in our writing lives in 2020, and give you a clear view of what our objectives are for 2021. Last year was a challenging year in many ways, but also one ripe with opportunities. Michele talks about his 12X20 challenge and how it influenced his long term publication schedule, while Crystal reports data from on both her fiction and non-fiction. We get some hints about her future writing and business plans and we get a sneak peek into what 2021 has in store for her.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Looking back on 2020 and creative goals
- Manager goals
- Marketing goals
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/042-tales-from-2020-data-going-wide-and-targets-for-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
It’s good-bye time for 2020. This was a year filled with events. Good and bad and unexpected. Everything was thrown into the mix.
In this episode we reflect on what happened in our author lives in 2020 and on the many exciting things to come for the Strategic Authorpreneur Podcast in 2021. We talk about the podcast’s updated format, the plan for the new website, the brand new monthly report and much, much more!
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Wins from 2020
- Changes that are coming in the new season
- What is a historical time you would want to spend a day in? And how about a year?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/season-1-wrap-up-whats-coming-in-2021/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a great way to tackle that writing project that has been nagging at you for the past year, or ten! It doesn’t really matter if you have successfully written a 50,000 word manuscript before or are brand new to writing and have a few hundred words that might be the beginning of a great idea; in the end, working towards something is always better than staring at a blank page.
In this episode we list the many things you can do with your finished (or half-finished) manuscript. We share ideas of how to keep the NaNoWriMo energy going, and debate when to push further and aim for a polished product or when to simply recharge your batteries. Sometimes it’s best to sit on your manuscript and let it rest for a bit, at least until you know it’s the best you can make it and you’re ready to send it out into the world for feedback.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Our experience with NaNoWriMo
- Regrouping after a huge project like NaNoWriMo
- What to take away from NaNoWriMo
- What is the most words you've ever written at one time?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/041-what-to-do-with-your-nanowrimo-manuscript/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Who doesn’t want to get paid to spend their work days lost in magical worlds with a bunch of imaginary friends? Yes, you’ve guessed it, today we’re going to talk about making your full-time author dream come true by examining what it really takes to step up and become a business owner who day-dreams for a living.
Unfortunately, there is no magic bullet. The road to authorly independence requires a lot of working hours, a system put in place to avoid things like writer’s burnout. Not to mention balancing finances and staying sane while figuring out how to slay dragons, give an emotional wound to a talking tree your readers can relate to, and craft the perfect happily ever after.
In this episode Eileen Cook—co-author of Full Time Author: provides tips and tricks to get you to the point you want to be by explaining why a body of work is so important for your writing career, highlighting the top skills you need to master if you want a shot as a full-time author, and sharing how you can create a system that keeps you accountable and lets you do the most important thing there is: write down words, sell your stories and start the next phase of your writing adventures.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Being a full time author
- When are you ready to be a full time author?
- Going from hobby to having to pay your bills
- Post interview discussion
- Are there words you like so much, you just want to jam them into your stories? Are there any words you try to avoid?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/040-full-time-author-with-eileen-cook/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Managing a business is never easy. Savvy authorpreneurs know that their job is to produce great content, adapt quickly to the ever changing world of self-publishing and weather the occasional storms by keeping their eyes on the long term plan.
There are things authors can do to disaster proof their online business and ensure as much as possible that they remain in control of their writing career. In this episode we’ll dive deep into the strategies that can ensure you don’t keep all of your eggs in one basket, manage your royalties and keep track of expenses, own the digital land you’re building your platform on and keep up to date on new technologies and opportunities to repurpose content.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Going wide
- Being flexible
- Collaborating with other authors
- Creating a cushion for your business
- What is one story that made you want to write?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/039-disaster-proofing-your-author-business/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Writing collaboratively can be a great opportunity for indie, hybrid and traditionally published authors. Whether you’re good at working with others or see the potential benefits that a collaboration could bring to your business, joining forces with another writer could help you level up many of your writing projects.
This is what happened to Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi, the authors of the well-loved series of thesaurus guides that sit on many writers’ desks.
In this episode Angela and Becca tell us about the opportunities and the challenges of working collaboratively, how they compensate for each other's weaknesses by dividing up the work based on their strengths, and why looking at readers’ needs is the best thing an author can do to level up their writing career.
(Bonus! In the past episode we officially reached our first big milestone for downloads of the podcast! If you want to see how we celebrated this event, don’t miss out the first ten minutes of the episode. Thanks to all the listeners and viewers out there that helped us achieve this. You’re awesome! :D)
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman
- Managing a co-author working relationship virtually
- What was the timeline like before you saw some traction in your careers?
- Building relationships and a marketing plan
- Post interview discussion
- Have you ever met an author who's on your favourites shelf and what was it like?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/038-coauthoring-with-angela-ackerman-and-becca-puglisi/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Virtual conferences are a great way to connect with other authors, to level up your writing craft and to learn the ins and outs of the business of being an authorpreneur.
In this episode we dive into what makes virtual conferences so valuable for writers—especially in this day and age. We explore why it’s a good idea to participate in at least one of these virtual gatherings, how can you make the most out of the experience and how you can contribute as a part of the worldwide community of writers. We also look at some of the challenges of engaging in this virtual format, and how you can keep yourself energized and healthy to avoid zoom fatigue and screen burnout.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- In person conferences vs virtual
- The social side of the virtual
- Recording the seminars
- How do you visualize characters and keep all the details straight?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/037-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-a-virtual-conference/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Crafting a well-written, fast-paced book is not easy. Reading a lot in your genre and attending courses and conferences can get you far, but there is nothing as powerful as starting a book and finishing it; going through the process of actually putting together the first scene and then writing an ending is the single most important thing you can do to level up your writing.
In this episode of the Strategic Authorpreneur Podcast Vancouver based author Sam Wiebe explains what makes a book worth reading, why it’s so difficult to translate our experiences into dramatic terms and what strategies we can use to level up our writing craft. Sam also mentions a number of useful books that can help writers at different stages of their author career and shares a number of experiences that defined his writing journey.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Sam Wiebe
- Best tool investment
- Great examples of the crime genre
- Post interview discussion
- If you could learn to speak one language overnight, what language would it be?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/036-writing-crime-fiction-with-sam-wiebe/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
There is no one way to write a novel, and no matter what your approach is when you set off to craft a story, the best way is the one that gets you to finish what you started.
Join us as we talk about the joy of writing from the seat of your pants and about the many advantages of plotting your novel strategically before you even start writing the first sentence.
With NaNoWriMo fast approaching, there is no better time to talk about what it means to be a discovery writer or a plotter, and the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Plotters vs pantsers
- Excluding your home country, what is the most fascinating place you ever visited?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/035-nanowrimo-prep-for-plotters-and-pantser/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Book marketing is a source of frustration for many indie authors. BUT it’s also one of the most important things writers can do to expose their stories to a wider audience. We’ve heard this thousands of times, and yet nowadays it is increasingly more difficult to put our books in front of our readers. Is there a simple, straightforward way to share our books with the right audience? Or are we destined to wander in an increasingly noisy world where everything seems important, and yet nothing seems to work?
Join us as we chat with book marketing expert Fauzia Burke and she shares her unique formula: ‘design + engagement + visibility = marketing success’, a simple and yet powerful approach that helped her kickstart many authors’ careers and that can help you single out what you need to do now, what you can delay, and what you can delegate or simply ignore.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Fauzia Burke
- Differences between marketing, publicity and advertising
- Platform building with fiction and non-fiction
- New tools and software
- Post interview discussion
- What is your favourite day in the week?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/034-effective-book-marketing-with-fauzia-burke/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In today’s episode we chat with Jose Sotelo, Co-Founder of Lyrebird and an expert in speech synthesis technology. Serious authorpreneurs are always on the lookout for new tools that can help them share their books to a broader audience. In today’s episode Jose unveils what possibilities lie ahead in the interesting field of speech synthesis technology, why progress in this field is important for authors and how they can benefit from software like Descript, a tool that has the potential to give the concept of ‘audiobook’ a whole new meaning.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Jose Sotelo
- How does Descript work?
- Accessibility
- How the voice interacts with Descript
- How much does it cost?
- Post interview discussion
- Have you ever been haunted by one of your characters?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/033-ai-voice-technology-with-jose-sotelo/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Today we’re going to talk about how to organize a book promo, and why it’s a good idea to learn the best practices of book launching. What is a book promo push? When does it make sense to start one? What can it do for you languishing sales? How do you take advantage of your backlist and re-energize your catalogue? These are just a few of the questions we are going to tackle in today’s episode.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Organizing a promo push
- Things to check when scheduling a promo
- Choosing dates for the push
- How to find sites and which ones are good?
- How many sites should you enter for a promo?
- Do you believe in writer's block?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/032-promo-planning-for-your-book-or-series/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In today’s episode we’re tackling what did NOT work for us when it comes to the process of actually publishing your books. We look at some of the most common things that go wrong, and how you can avoid them so your publishing process goes as smoothly as possible!
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Challenges during the publishing process
- What was the tipping point that made you go all in on your writing?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/031-what-not-to-do-the-publishing-process/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In today’s episode we’re tackling what did NOT work for us when it comes to keywords and categories, blurbs, and reviews. We look at some of the most common mistakes authors make in these areas, and how you can avoid them as well as sharing the best tips and tools to help you get it right.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Things to avoid with categories and keywords
- About blurbs and what to avoid
- So you need to tell us a story with the words, ‘fire’ and ‘silver’ in it. The story must contain two characters who have never met. You have 20 seconds to think, and then go.
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/030-what-not-to-do-keywords-blurbs-and-reviews/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re talking about what NOT to do when it comes to the interior layouts for your books. What tools do we recommend? What mistakes have we made? How to make sure to avoid looking like a rookie, and more!
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Interior layout software
- What does your family think about you being a writer?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/029-what-not-to-do-interior-layouts/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we take a good hard look what NOT to do when tackling cover design as an indie author, and share some of our biggest mistakes so you can learn from our experiences—both good and bad. We're going to share a few pro tips that can help you, regardless of whether you're hiring somebody or not.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- How to approach a book cover
- DIY or hire someone else to make your covers?
- Working with a designer
- Last few pieces of advice
- Have you ever quit writing or wanted to?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/028-what-not-to-do-cover-design/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re focused on reflection and evolution. We’re celebrating six months of weekly podcast recording, talking about how doing this podcast has impacted out author careers, and reflecting on our indie publishing careers as a whole.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Why we started this podcast
- How doing the podcast has changed our approaches
- Anything you would do differently?
- Why do you write the kinds of stories that you write?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/027-the-power-of-reflection-and-evolution/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re digging into translation and how you can convert your stories into multiple languages. We talk about what’s involved in translating yourself, hiring a translator, and what opportunities exist for you to sell foreign translation rights to a 3rd party.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Translating your own stories
- The cost of hiring someone to translate vs doing it yourself
- Translating fiction vs non-fiction
- The process and challenges of translating your books
- If you could have lunch with one writer living or dead, who would it be?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/026-translating-your-stories/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re talking about how and when to spend money to help you level up your writing career. How do you decide how much you’re going to spend on promotion? When should you buy a tool and go the DIY route instead of paying someone to do a job for you? What questions do you need to ask yourself when you’re analyzing any new “opportunity”? When and how do you know which tasks in the publication and promotion process you should hire out?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Personal approaches to finances
- When to hire someone else
- Time, money and energy
- Do you sometimes wake up with whole story reels in your head? How do you capture that before it fades away?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/025-when-to-spend-money-vs-d-i-y/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re chatting with USA Today bestselling author Angela Pepper about magic, romance, new adult, cozy mysteries, making money as a writer, burnout, and the “fire hose” approach to success in your author career. We talk about different ways to change up your process and approach to story, how to trick yourself into being productive and what the stages of building an author career can look like. We look at what’s involved in launching a trilogy / new series, and what kind of strategies work for that.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Angela Pepper
- Different writing processes
- Fire Hose Approach
- Post interview discussion
- So who is your writing mentor, officially or not?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/024-the-firehose-approach-to-author-success-with-angela-pepper/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we take a deep dive into ways you can put your VOICE to work for you as an author. We’ll tackle some of the biggest fears people have around public speaking, how we get past those, and the various ways to put your voice to work for you. We discuss podcasts, presenting, teaching, book launches and using AI voices to generate audio versions of podcast articles. Oh yeah, and what it’s like to have a robot voice double! (hint: it’s cool, and freaky and fun)
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Relationship with public speaking
- Places you can use your voice to help your author career
- Things we have learned about public speaking by watching ourselves
- If you could give a name to the first habitable planet outside the solar system, what name would you pick?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/023-harnessing-the-power-of-your-voice/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re talking with Young Adult author Pam Withers about writing with a co-author, and how that can enhance the writing process and help you ‘get it right’ when writing characters who have a different culture and background than the author does. We touch on different methods of working with co-authors, and what it’s like getting started in indie publishing after being traditionally published through most of a writing career.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Pam Withers
- What does co-authoring look like to you?
- Book trailers
- Post interview discussion
- How do you get yourself to do the things that scare you?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/022-writing-collaboratively-with-pam-withers/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re digging into the data and the numbers that we as authors can use to help us make decisions as we level up our writing careers. There is an overwhelming flood of numbers that come at you in the publishing world, so it’s important to figure out which numbers matter to you. What you want to track, how you’re going to track it, and what kinds of numbers will you pay attention to that will help make better decisions along your writing and publishing journey.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- How to use data
- How to understand data
- How to make decisions based on the data
- Sources you can collect data from
- What is your mission statement for your life?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/021-data-driven-decision-making-for-authors/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re chatting with non-fiction, poetry and children’s book author Bonni Goldberg about the process of getting rights back to a traditionally published book and re-publishing it as an indie author. We dig into what it means to get the rights back for a book. How do you go about that? And then what steps had to be taken to republish the book? How do you get around not considering yourself a technical person? What would you do differently if you could go back and start all over again? What can you do to help launch your book strategically? And if you’ve ever wondered how to organize your files to help your future self out, we’ve got some tips for you!
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Bonni Goldberg
- The process of re-publishing your book after getting the rights back
- Advice to your past self
- Plans for a soft launch
- Bonni’s final thoughts
- Post interview discussion
- Would you call yourself a plotter or a pantser?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/020-re-publishing-your-traditionally-published-book-as-an-indie-with-bonni-goldberg/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
It’s time to step through the looking glass and into the wonderful (and often overwhelming) world of newsletter / mailing list managment tools. What are the tools out there? How do you choose the right one for you? What are some of the benefits of the different main players in the mailing list world? What are the specific details you have to look at for each platform you’re considering to make sure you get the right tool for YOU and your budget?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Tools we use often
- Figuring out which tools work for you
- If you found out you had one month left to live, how would you spend it?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/019-mailing-list-tool-options-for-authors/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In today’s episode we are talking about Deep Story Design and the role of story in our lives with story coach April Bosshard. What does it mean to piece together the puzzle of your own writing life? What IS story? Story is the common element between film and fiction—how will knowing the rules for telling a story on the screen help you write a better novel? We dig into how telling stories helps us grow up as both people and writers, and the courage it takes to send your story off into world. How do you rise to the challenge of staying “up” in an industry that is designed to shoot you down.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About April Bosshard
- Similarities across genres
- Writing for different mediums and how it helps your craft
- April’s book
- Post interview discussion
- What is the most powerful thing someone ever said to you?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/018-deep-story-design-with-april-bosshard/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Writing short(er) stories is a great way to get established with a number of products, and get some momentum going while you feed “the algorithm”. In this episode we dig into what exactly constitutes a short story, why you might want to get into writing short. What are the opportunities with shorter fiction? How can that benefit your budget and your bottom line? What are some advantages available for multiple formats? What length of story gets you into the Kindle short reads categories? We’ll tackle all these questions and more.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Defining short fiction types
- What made you start writing shorter stories?
- Shorter Fiction and its perks
- Shorter fiction and its challenges
- What is the kindest or most surprising thing a reader has ever said to you?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/017-challenges-and-opportunities-of-writing-shorter-fiction/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re digging into the topic of accountability with Accountability and Life Coach Claire O’Connor. We talk about habit stacking, developing the habit of writing, and how to support yourself in the formation of your creative habits. The power of layering in habits one at a time, some challenges that come up as we try to do motivate ourselves to write, and how to keep that motivation going over longer stretches of time. How does our language impact our feeling about what we’re doing and our motivation? The power of… BUT and how to flip your thoughts. Plus, the ever important whiskey-bacon donuts.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Claire O’Connor
- Claire’s 5%
- Switching habits
- Post interview discussion
- What are some of the jobs you've had while you were building your writing career and how did they help you become the writer you are today?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/016-accountability-to-yourself-and-your-writing-with-claire-oconnor/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we look at what it means to do a book sales makeover and what is involved. What elements do we look at? Titles, content, marketing materials, covers, calls to action and more. Where do you start first so that you don’t get overwhelmed? What does it mean to start at the end and then work your way back? What is the most challenging part of this process, and how do you tackle this?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- What is a book sales make-over?
- Some challenges when tweaking and changing things
- What is the part of the writing or publishing process that you find the most unpleasant and what are your strategies to conquer it?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/015-how-to-do-a-book-sales-makeover/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
IJoin indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we are digging into the experience of switching writing genres with special guest bestselling author Elizabeth Boyle. We talk about what prompts authors to make a shift to a new genre, how to navigate that as a traditionally published authors, and how to approach finding a new community of writers to go along with your new genre, who are a good fit for you. Building a good team for yourself is key, and there are lots of things to be learned from writers in different genres than what you are focused on.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Elizabeth Boyle
- What made you switch genres?
- How do you prepare your readers for the switch?
- Some challenges and lessons learned
- Post interview discussion
- Would you write different stories or write your stories differently if you knew that nobody would ever know it was you who wrote it?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/014-switching-genres-with-elizabeth-boyle/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we talk about challenges and opportunities of writing of a series. What is a KAREful author and why should you be one? What to do when you just aren’t getting the results you hoped for when it comes to sales and reviews? What are the different kinds of series and what approach might suit your personality? What if you write standalones—can you as the author be the connecting thread in a series? We dive into some answers to those questions and even reveal what we wish we’d done differently if we could go back and do it all again.
HIGHLIGHTS
- The KAREFUL approach
- Adapting your series with the times
- Different ways to do a series
- What do you think is the best adaptation of a book to film or book to TV and why do you love it?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/013-strategies-and-options-for-series-authors/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re talking with special guest Constance Mears—writer, artist and mystic—about developing your creative business in alignment with your values. We talk about fans, and how to lead them to you. Getting to know your own personality, and constructing a business style that works for you. We dig into the challenges of sharing yourself through your writing, the comparison of ourselves to other creatives and their accomplishments, and the ways we define success and wealth. Living within your means, and choosing a life of meaning and depth. And how we learn from our “mistakes” as we go.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Constance Mears
- Challenges Constance found with marketing her books
- Writing and publishing for YOU
- Post interview discussion
- How old were you when you first met someone who had written a book?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/012-aligning-your-values-and-your-business-with-constance-mears/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we’re sharing our best strategies for how to stay sane while working from home. How to organize your time, health and wellness tips, some tricks to help signal others in your house when you’re in work mode and some great resources to help you stay focused and on track.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Our experiences with working from home
- How to organize your schedule when working from home
- Transitioning from working outside to inside the house
- Hashtag your ideal writer's life
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/011-staying-sane-while-working-from-home/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we get started with a conversation about resistance, and how that operates in our creative process. And then we tackle building complex characters, and increasing conflict in our stories with special guest—bestselling author Eileen Cook.
Counselling psychology has a lot to offer writers when it comes to getting to know your characters really well, and helping ensure they are well developed and consistent. Conflict is a key piece of good stories, and we discuss many ways to develop and increase it. Internal vs external conflict, environment, beliefs, roles and the “hole in their soul”, how to be mean enough to our characters, how to smooth out conflict once you’ve built it up, and how your characters can solve their problems in new ways. And always, always put your reader first.
We wrap things up with a discussion of indie vs traditional publishing, and what similarities there are between the two routes.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Eileen Cook
- Making better characters with conflict
- How to make conflict for your characters
- Post interview discussion
- What do you think is the hardest part about writing a novel?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/010-conflict-and-character-building-with-eileen-cook/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we define generation and transformation in the context of creativity, and our writing businesses. How do you make time for both? How do you set yourself up for daily success? Everyone’s process is different, and we explore which kind is more challenging. What are some of the manifestations of transformational creativity in the writing world, and how do you work on that? How do you collect baseline data to see if your transformations are working, and what questions do you ask yourself to help drive that process?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- Transformation vs generation
- Fiction vs nonfiction writing differences
- Generation and muses
- Transformation
- The one thing I'd like to change about my writing is:
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/009-generation-vs-transformation-in-your-writing-business/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re talking with special guest Liza Palmer about social media for authors. Liza’s exerience working for Buzzfeed gives her a unique inside look at what’s hot online and she shares her insights into which strategies might work for authors. We dig into going where your audience is, not trying to “boil the ocean”, what the heck TikTok is, and how to be ourselves in a way that our uniqueness is an asset.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What has happened since the last episode?
- About Liza Palmer
- What’s going on in social media right now?
- Figuring out where you want to hang out on socials
- Advice for your past self
- Post interview discussion
- What is one important thing you learned about yourself this past year?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/008-social-media-strategy-for-writers-with-liza-palmer/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
We’re talking about how to connect with readers online. Social media, mailing lists, events (virtual and in real life), special interest groups, and way to connect with YOUR specific audience. How to narrow down your approach, and where to best invest your energy. We dig into how to be truthful and authentic about who you are in making those connections. Tools are shared—what they are and how they work to help you deliver content.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Figuring out your audience
- Newsletters
- Sites and resources we use to connect with our readers
- You can pick just one book to take with you on a colonizing expedition to Mars. What book do you take?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/007-connecting-with-readers/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
There are many different ways to launch a book, and in this episode we talk about some different kinds of launches you can have, some tools you can use, how to mobilize your Advance Readers / Review Crew. We discuss places to connect with readers, and options for how you can set yourself up for future success on the technical side of things by attracting the right readers. We also talk about how you decide which elements to include in your launch strategy.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Our experiences with book launching
- Starting out
- Attracting an audience and the Amazon algorithm
- If you could change the ending of any story, what would it be?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/006-strategic-book-launches/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re talking about indie publishing and tackling the following questions: How and why did we choose to go the indie route? What did we try that didn’t work? What software/tools do we use in the publishing process to give ourselves more time for writing? Should you go wide or Amazon exclusive? What would we change if we could go back in time?
HIGHLIGHTS
- What made you decide to self publish?
- Formats and tools for indie publishing
- Wide or KDP Select?
- What is your secret writing dream?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/005-inside-the-indie-publishing-process/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we talk about what’s involved in editing your book. What are the steps involved, whether or not you should hire an editor, different types of editing, how to find and hire a professional editor, and how to save some money and energy in the polishing phase for your books.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Finding an editor
- How much to spend on an editor
- Where to find an editor
- Steps to take with your first manuscript
- What author or story made you want to be a writer?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/004-a-deep-dive-into-the-editing-process/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode, we’re going down the rabbit hole of stories. We’re talking about where ideas come from, how you capture those ideas, and how you can turn them into a story or series of stories. And as a bonus, we talk about what inspires us, and what scares the heck out of us. Oh, and for those of you who stick it out to the very end, there’s a true tale of a wizard and a magic ring too…
HIGHLIGHTS
- Our writing processes
- Writing craft and where to get ideas
- How to capture ideas when they come
- What hasn’t worked for us
- What is one story that scared the living heck out of you?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/003-inside-story-inspirations-and-the-writing-process/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
In this episode we take a deep dive into the business of being an author. Budgeting, business structures, what are the essential tools you can't live without, balance between work and play, and plenty more juicy tidbits. Want to know what mistakes we've made so you don't make them? Yeah, thought so :)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Our general approach to writing as a business
- Experiences and expectations
- Best tools to help you get started
- What we are doing this year to scale up our businesses
- Finding balance
- How long from the time you wrote your first book until the time your first book was published and was it the same book?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and resources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/002-the-business-of-being-an-authorpreneur/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST
Join indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani as we share ways to save time, money and energy as you level up your writing and publishing career.
Meet your hosts—indie authors Crystal Hunt and Michele Amitrani—as we talk about what you can expect from our weekly show, debate what our writing and publishing superpowers are, and get into the nitty gritty of what we have to offer you to help you save time, money and energy as you level up your writing career.
HIGHLIGHTS
- What is a strategic authorpreneur?
- About your co-hosts
- Where are we in our authorpreneur journey?
- What to look forward to in this podcast
- More about us
- What would your 30 year old self tell your 15 year old self?
SHOW NOTES + RESOURCES
Complete show notes, transcripts and links to the tools and esources mentioned in this episode from our website at https://strategicauthorpreneur.com/podcast/001-welcome-to-the-strategic-authorpreneur-podcast/
SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you find this show helpful—and like our independent, ads-free format—you can buy us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SAPPODCAST