A curated collection of the latest and most interesting podcast episodes about the author life.
Hiya! JP Rindfleisch here again, the curator for all things dark, strange, and queer. I want to talk to you about theme. I believe theme can be an excellent tool for writers. It answers to the question “what is the point?” of your story. Knowing your theme as if it were a statement you intend to argue in a debate strengthens character choices and plot development. Let’s say this is your theme:
“We cannot protect the ones we love unless we stand up against our captures and fight for the freedom we deserve.”
What does that look like when we don’t stand up? What will the characters lose? What will they win when they stand up? A thematic statement allows the author to see the extremes of their point, and develop a story around said theme. Shameless plug to the Write Away Podcast, where we have been delving this very topic, but I just wanted to give you a sneak peek into my thoughts on theme.
Top 3 Must-Listen Episodes
The Creative Penn Podcast // Episode 605 – Tips For Indie Author Success And 20 Books To 50K With Craig Martelle
In this episode, Craig brings up a key point about the author life that is important for all authors to hear, “As soon as you’re blaming the readers, you’re done. Because the readers, they pay your paycheck.” Everyone is entitled to their perception of your work, and it is key for you to take those criticisms and grow from the ones that matter. Your job is not to please everyone, but to get your work into the right readers’ hands. Two things will help you find that audience, marketing to the right genre and writing a series.
You must know what genre you are writing. Genre is how you can market your book and get it into the right hands.
Having a series makes it significantly easier for your readers to keep reading. Putting the first book on sale or free is even better.
Craig brings up another good point about having balance and not succumbing to burnout. You can have a book every few months, but stay engaged with your readers through newsletters or blogs. Managing their expectations will keep them interested and ready to purchase when your next book comes out.
The Rebel Author Podcast // Episode 126 – Mailing Lists for Indie Authors with Tammi Labrecque
Sacha Black discusses mailing lists and Tammi Labrecque’s recent release of Newsletter Ninja 2.
They discuss how important it is to have a direct line of communication to your readers on a platform you control, either via a mailing list or a blog. They also discuss the importance of reader magnets and the idealized “convertible cookie” that entices current fans and brings in new fans with no expectation or knowledge of your stories.
Be it a prequel, prologue, parent prequel, 1st chance romance, journals, text messages, phone calls, other points of view, epilogues, side stories, spin offs, maps, family trees, dossiers, guidebooks, crossovers, Easter eggs, side quests, or slices of life. The key is, start now, so when you launch, you can launch to 30+ readers already following you and prepared to buy.
Creator Dad // Episode 16 – The Journey to Better Health and Wellness with Roland Denzel
In this episode, Zach and Roland discuss how we creatives should rethink how we work by including more movement throughout the day.
One of the key takeaways for me was that we shouldn’t focus all of our movement into a small window of time, but we should take breaks, shift position, and incorporate movement more.
I also loved that his answer to “the perfect chair” or the debate on a standing desk was less focused on one product, and more focused on ways you can change up your position with adjustable desks, stools, and other tools to add variety into the day.
We are not sedentary creatures, but I know I’ve been looking for the one thing that will fix it, when the answer is variety.
This talk was a great reminder that the key to a healthy life is movement.
The Latest from The Author Success Mastermind Podcast
OUR LATEST EPISODE // 51: How do you keep up to date on publishing news?
This week authors J. Thorn and Crys Cain talk about the different channels they use to stay up to date on publishing news.
The Wildcard: Interesting Episode from a Non-Writing Related Show
The Atlas Obscura Podcast // Episode 201 – Lake Karachay
What better fodder for writers than a podcast all about the strange and unique places all around the world? These podcast episodes range from 10 to 20 minutes and cover a single place of interest from all around the world.
Lake Karachay is the site of a former secret Soviet Union nuclear facility that dumped nuclear waste into the lake. It didn’t take long for the lake to become the most polluted place on the entire planet. The lake is now covered by nearly 10,000 hollow concrete blocks to prevent any further spread of contamination. However, it is said that if you were to stand on its wasteland shores today for a single hour, the radiation exposure would kill you. Songs and novels have been written, inspired by the lake, despite all the many secrets still surrounding the site.
Inside The Author Life
When I come back to a draft months later and remember nothing.
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