Lindsay, Jo, and Andrea pop in early in October to record a new show. They talk about some of their latest self-publishing and marketing news (Kindle Unlimited page read rates staying down, shrinking margins, delays…
SFA 131 – Tips for Success and Updates from the Hosts
It’s been about a quarter since our last episode, and we wanted to talk a bit about what’s been going on with updates on Amazon and in our publishing careers, so that’s in the news…
SFA 130 – 2022 Lessons, 2023 Marketing and Publishing Plans, and Thoughts on AI for Authors
Greetings, all! It’s been a while since we released an episode, but we wanted to recap how last year went for us when it comes to our author careers, including talking about some of our…
SFA 129 – Why Book Sales Are Down and What to Do About It
Jo, Lindsay, and Andrea have returned to record a one-off episode discussing the current global situation and how it’s affecting book sales. We also talk about some things authors can do during tougher economic times…
SFA 128 – Final Advice for Authors and Our Plans Going Forward
It’s our final show (at least for now) of Six Figure Authors. We hope you’ve gotten something out of the podcast over the years, and also that you like this last episode. In it, we,…
SFA 127 – How to Be a Successful Author Without Networking
There’s nothing wrong with networking, and it can provide opportunities for those willing to get out there, but lots of authors are introverts or just don’t have the time for conferences and Facebook groups. Can…
SFA 126 – More Tips for Selling Direct with Katie Cross
We had fantasy and romance author Katie Cross on the show back in January and asked her all about selling direct from her website, since she’s been making six figures doing so. This week, we…
SFA 125 – How to Launch a Successful Book Series
For this week’s show, we’re going back to the basics to talk about how to launch a successful book series. We’re assuming you didn’t read Write to Market and try to design your series for…
SFA 124 – Scheduling vs Winging It: Which Is More Sane for Your Author Career?
On this week’s show, we cover the scintillating topic of scheduling. What are the pros and cons of planning everything well in advance? What if you prefer to wing it and not set deadlines you…
SFA 123 – Dealing with Criticism as an Author
Our topic for today’s show is criticism. From feedback early on from beta readers and workshops and editors, to reviews and blogs and social media posts once your book is published, it’s a big part…
SFA 122 – When Pen Names Make Sense and How to Rock Them
On this week’s show, we discussed all things pen names. When does it make sense to start a pen name? When is it better to keep everything under one author name? Are there any pitfalls…
SFA 121 – Tips for Selling Books Outside of Amazon + Draft2Digital/Smashwords Updates
We were joined this week by thriller author and Draft2Digital marketing director Kevin Tumlinson. He updated us on the merger between the ebook distributors Draft2Digital and Smashwords and what it’ll mean for authors and readers…
SFA 120 – How to Rock Your Sample Pages (and get more sales) + Advertising Rules
For this week’s show, we divided it into two topics. In the first half, we talked about the importance of the sample pages (the first 10% of your book) in these e-reading digital times, and…
SFA 119 – Myths About Success in Self-Publishing
This week, we discussed some of the myths that continue to go around about what it takes to have success in self-publishing. Some of these may be of interest to traditionally published authors too. After…
SFA 118 – Leaning on Your Strengths for Greater Productivity in Writing and Marketing
We’ve got a great interview for you this week! Our guest is Becca Syme, a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach with a master’s degree in Transformational Leadership and fourteen years of experience in success coaching with writers,…
SFA 117 – Launches, Advertising, and Making Money on One Book a Year
Two out of our three hosts have been sick this past week, so we’ve got a shorter than usual episode for you, but we hope you’ll still get some value out of it. We decided…
SFA 116 – Dealing with Burnout and Writer’s Block as an Author
We’re talking about writer’s block and burnout this week on the show. What are the differences, and, if you’re suffering from lower productivity or being stuck, how do you know which you have? As authors…
SFA 115 – Making More Money Selling Your Books Direct
If you’re self-publishing, and you have the rights to sell your books/ebooks/audiobooks directly from your site, and you’re not doing so, you could be leaving a lot of money on the table. For this week’s…
SFA 114 – Self-Publishing, Traditional Publishing, or Hybrid – Which Is Right for You?
Happy New Year, everyone! This week, we’re discussing the pros and cons of self-publishing and traditional publishing and who might want to consider which, as well as when it makes sense to look at a…
SFA 113 – The 1,000 True Fans Concept Through 2022 Eyes
For this week’s show, the hosts discuss the 1,000 True Fans concept that Kevin Kelly first wrote about in 2008. You can find his original essay here, as well as a more recent update that…
SFA 112 – How to Smartly Invest back into Your Book Business
On this week’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay talk about how much they spent and on what when they launched their self-publishing careers, and they talk about what they invest money into today as well.…
SFF 111 – What Book Marketing We’re Going to Focus on in 2022
For the week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay talked about some of their challenges when it comes to book marketing and where they’re going to focus their efforts in 2022. After more than ten years…
SFA 110 – Tips to Get Your Backlist Selling Again
As the year comes to an end, we’re doing a few episodes focused on helping you get your author business off to a good (and profitable) start in the new year. On this week’s show,…
SFA 109 – 10 Ways to Make Sure Your Novel Bombs
It’s Thanksgiving week here in the US, so Lindsay, Andrea, and Jo just did a short “for fun” show this week. We give some tongue-in-cheek advice on how to make sure your novel bombs (that’s…
SFA 108 – Are Your Craft Choices Hurting Your Book Sales?
For this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay discuss characters, book openings, pacing, and other writing craft choices that can help or hurt your book sales. Are you turning off potential readers in your opening…
SFA 107 – Learning from the Past and Strategizing for Future Success
For this week’s show, Lindsay and Jo talked about the successes and failures they’ve had over the last ten-plus years of indie publishing. After that, they discussed some of the challenges they’re facing in the…
SFA 106 – Is It Time to Raise Prices, KU All-Star Bonuses, and Advertising Q&A
On this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay talk about book and ebook pricing and whether it might be time for prices to go up. Before that, Lindsay shares what it takes to get one…
SFA 105 – How We Would Start from Scratch Writing/Publishing Books Today
On this week’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay shared what each of them would do if they were new authors starting from scratch today with the knowledge and experience they’ve gained over their ten-plus-year publishing…
SFA 104 – Appealing to “Universal Fantasy” and Succeeding Across Genres
For this week’s show, Jo and Andrea took the reins while Lindsay scowled at her broken internet. They interviewed six-figure romance novelist Theodora Taylor and talked about finding success through appealing to “universal fantasy,” Facebook…
SFA 103 – Struggles We Deal with as Full-time Authors
For today’s show, Jo, Lindsay, and Andrea shared some of the struggles they’re dealing with ten+ years into their author careers. They also answered struggles you’re dealing with (as submitted by listeners in the Six…
SFA 102 – How to Keep from Stressing out as an Author While Still Achieving Your Goals
For this week’s show, we were joined by Mark Leslie Lefebvre, author, podcaster, and Director of Business Development at Draft2Digital. He and Joanna Penn from The Creative Penn recently published The Relaxed Author, a book…
SFA 101 – Answering Your Book Advertising Questions
As a follow-up to Episode 98 (Do Authors Need to Advertise and Where and How Much Should They Spend?), we did our best to answer some of the questions on advertising that our listeners asked…
SFA 100 – Improving Organic Book Sales, Book Launch Tips, and How to Use A-Plus Content on Amazon
For this week’s show, Dave Chesson from Kindlepreneur joined us to discuss the new A-plus Amazon content now available to authors publishing through the KDP dashboard, as well as keywords and categories and how they…
SFA 099 – Succeeding in a Competitive Genre with Cami Checketts
For this week’s show, successful romantic suspense author Cami Checketts joins the guys. A USA Today bestseller and award winner, Cami has published over one hundred books. She was not an overnight success but wrote…
SFA 098 – Do Authors Need to Advertise and Where and How Much Should They Spend?
On this week’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay talk a bit about whether authors need to pay to advertise in 2021, how much they spend on ads, where they advertise, and what to do if…
SFA 097 – How to Take Your Writing from Hobby Money to Earning a Full-time Income
Jo, Lindsay, and Andrea are back from their summer hiatus! On this week’s show, they discuss what to do if you’re an author with a few (or more) books or series out, but you’re not…
SFA 096 – YouTube Live: Questions on Publishing and Book Marketing
A Youtube live question and answer session in which Lindsay, Jo, and Andrea answer questions about publishing, marketing, and more. Original livestream Aug 12, 2021 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dkq5oDMGtts
SFA 095 – Can You Really Make “Passive Income” as an Author?
On this week’s show, we tackle the question of what passive income is and how it can relate to authors. Specifically, as authors with more than ten years of publishing experience each, we talk about…
SFA 094 – Breaking Six Figures Without Advertising and Reducing the Time It Takes to Revise and Publish
On this week’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay are joined by full-time author and regular poster in the Six Figure Authors Facebook group, Shawn Inmon. Writer of time travel and portal fantasy, Shawn first broke…
SFA 093 – Mistakes That Newer Authors Make
On this week’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay went over some common mistakes that newer authors often make. And plenty of experienced authors get wrapped up in some of these too. If you’re struggling to…
SFA 092 – Selling More Audiobooks, Audiobook Trends, and Marketing Tips
For all of you with audiobooks, or thinking about creating audiobooks, you’ll enjoy hearing from this week’s guest: Victoria Gerken, Publisher and Head of Acquisitions at Podium Audio. We asked her about trends in audiobooks,…
SFA 091 – Book Marketing for Introverts
Your two hardcore introvert authors, Jo Lallo and Lindsay Buroker, discuss ways to market that won’t force you too far from your introvert tendencies but that can also sell books. (Note: this is not a…
SFA 090 – Going Wide with Audiobooks, Reader Magnets, and Improving Boxed Set Sales
For this week’s show, Jo and Lindsay talk a bit about Lindsay’s recent epic fantasy launch, Jo’s plans for his upcoming launch, and then jump into a big pile of listener questions from the Six…
SFA 089 – Book Marketing Tips and Shooting for Bestseller Lists
Our guest this week is successful romance author Victorine Lieske. She self-published her first book, Not What She Seems, in April of 2010. In March of 2011, Not What She Seems began its 6 week…
SFA 088 – How to Grow Your Audience as an Author
We’re going back to the basics this week and talking about how to grow your audience as an author. Whether you’re new to the biz, or have been publishing for twenty years, chances are you…
SFA 087 – Our Top Tips After Ten Years of Publishing
Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay have all been publishing for more than ten years and have been full-time authors for much of that time. In this week’s show, they start out sharing their paths and how…
SFA 086 – How to Use Bonus Material to Sell More Books
For this week’s show, we’re talking all about bonus content, the extra short things you can write that can lead to more book sales — if you do it right. We’ve written a lot of…
SFA 085 – Staying Motivated, Productivity, Flow State, and Writing to Market in 2021
Our guest this week is the prolific science fiction, fantasy, and non-fiction author Chris Fox. He’s known in the author community for his Write Faster, Write Smarter series, and has spoken all over the country…
SFA 084 – Book Launch Check List
This week, the hosts discuss their book launch checklists, such as download bonuses, book covers, editing, newsletter and social media announcements, and other things that help them stay focused and get the ball rolling for…
SFA 083 – Your Questions Answered on Kindle Unlimited / Amazon KDP Select vs Wide
In Episode 80, we went over some of the pros and cons of going exclusive with Amazon for ebook publishing versus opting out of that program and making your ebooks available in all stores. For…
SFA 082 – Selling Direct, Audiobooks, and Author Business Tips
On this week’s show, the hosts talk to Damon Courtney from Bookfunnel about making more money while giving readers a better deal. How? By selling ebooks and audiobooks direct from your site/newsletter. We also asked…
SFA 081 – Selling Foreign Rights and Pitching at Book Fairs with Judith Anderle
If you’ve ever wanted to see your book translated into a foreign language and to make a little extra money by selling the foreign language rights to overseas publishers, you’ll appreciate this week’s guest. Judith…
SFA 080 – Kindle Unlimited vs Wide (i.e. Amazon Exclusivity vs. Not)
For this week’s show, we talked about going exclusive with Amazon to be in Kindle Unlimited and get their other promotional perks versus choosing to make your work available in all the bookstores. We talked…
SFA 079 – Marketing Paperbacks, Republishing Books, Driving Traffic to a New Series, and Other Questions Answered
For this week’s show, we answered some of the questions you’ve given us in the Six Figure Authors Facebook group. These ranged from how to handle forced breaks, things we can offer newsletter subscribers other…
SFA 078 – Keys to Long-term Success as an Author
This week, we talked about several things that are important for long-term success as an author/publisher. As indie authors, having a marathon mindset is vital if we plan to be successful at this in five,…
SFA 077 – Book Marketing Tactics We’ve Tried and That Didn’t Work for Us
For this week’s show, the three of us picked some of the book marketing tactics we’ve tried over the years and that ended up being duds for us. We thought this might be useful for…
SFA 075 – How to Write a Novel in a Month
For this week’s show, we delved into how to write (and ideally edit) a novel in a month. We talked about the first time we did it, at what point in your writing career it…
SFA 074 – Tax Savings, Business Structure, Retirement, and Cumulative Advantage for Authors with Joe Solari
Our guest for this week’s show is Joe Solari, an author, entrepreneur, and business consultant for authors. He’s written the books Should I Incorporate? Author Edition: How and when to set up your publishing company,…
SFA 073 – What to Do if You’re Not Making a Profit from Your Books
For this week’s show, we started out discussing some of the predications that Mark Coker of Smashwords made in his beginning-of-the-year post: 2021 Publishing Predictions – Pandemic Reshapes Publishing, Accelerates Consolidation. After that, we moved…
SFA 072 – What Worked and Didn’t in 2020 and Our Writing, Marketing, and Publishing Plans for 2021
For this week’s show, which we recorded right before the end of the year, we took a look at what worked and what didn’t for authors and publishers in 2020. We also discussed some of…
SFA 071 – Selling Hard-to-Categorize Books That Aren’t Written to Market/Trope Pt 2
We had a lot of listener questions that we didn’t get to in the first Selling Hard-to-Categorize Books That Aren’t Written to Market show, so we’re back for part 2, and it’s all about answering…
SFA 070 – Subscriptions, Audiobooks, and Viability of Traditional Publishing Today
Our guest this week is publishing consultant and author Jane Friedman. With twenty years of experience in the publishing industry, she has expertise in digital media strategies for authors and publishers. She’s the co-founder and…
SFA 069 – Selling Hard-to-Categorize Books That Aren’t Written to Market/Trope
Very few authors think of writing “to market” or “to trope” with their first book/series. They’re just writing what they love! Sometimes, that ends up being popular with readers, but sometimes you end up with…
SFA 068 – Hype Cycle + Have Audiobooks Reached a Tipping Point?
On this week’s show, we talked about the Gartner Hype Cycle as a framework to think about where we are with ebooks, audiobooks, and the up-and-coming technologies that may become useful (or even necessary) for…
SFA 067 – Audio Reader Magnets, Amazon Ads, and Are Newsletters and Social Media Really Worth It?
It’s a “just-us” episode today, with Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay answering listener questions. We ran out of time and didn’t get to the leftover protagonist-craft questions that we teased in the intro (whoops), but we…
SFA 066 – A Book in 15 Minutes a Day, Author Mindset, and Marketing Non-Fiction
Our guest this week is Honoree Corder, an executive and strategic book and publishing coach, TEDx speaker, and the author of dozens of books including You Must Write a Book and The Prosperous Writer series.…
SFA 065 – Marketing as an Introvert, and Successful Urban Fantasy Outside of Kindle Unlimited
For this week’s show, we’ve got an interview with contemporary/urban fantasy author Sarah Painter. She publishes wide (in all the stores) and has had good luck with her books, even without signing up for Amazon’s…
SFA 064 – Creating a Protagonist that Readers Will Love
We return to the craft of writing for this week’s show, because good craft makes it a lot easier to sell books! The topic for the show is protagonists. How do you create the kind…
SFA 063 – Getting Movie Deals and Amish Romance with Serena Miller
We had a guest on this week’s Six Figure Authors, USA Today bestselling romance writer Serena Miller. She’s both traditionally and indie published, and she’s had one of her books (Love Finds You in Sugar…
SFA 062 – Is It too Late to Break out in 2020?
If you frequent the various author forums and Facebook groups, you probably see people say it again and again: book publishing (especially ebook publishing for indie authors) has gotten too competitive, it’s pay to play…
SFA 061 – Our Top Writing, Marketing, and Publishing Tips
For this week’s show, we discuss some of our big-picture writing, publishing, and marketing tips, things we’ve learned over our ten years of publishing. Hopefully, you’ll find some of this advice helpful. We finished up…
SFA 060 – Writing Series That Sell with Sara Rosett
Welcome to Six Figure Authors, the show that helps you take your writing career to the next level. Our guest this week is Sara Rosett, USA Today Bestselling author of light-hearted mysteries, co-host of the…
SFA 059 – Writing Craft Tips and Listener Q&A
It’s a lot easier to sell books that grab the readers, don’t let them go, and leave a lasting impression on them. We talk marketing a lot on this podcast, but solid writing and good…
SFA 058 – Productivity Tips for Writers
On this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay share some of their favorite productivity tips for getting more books written and published, and only spending time on marketing that actually works. They’ve all had challenges…
SFA 057 – Using Your Newsletter to Sell More Books (Part 2)
This week, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay continue their discussion on newsletters. We open up talking about what types of bonuses we offer to readers who sign up and also share which ones have worked best…
SFA 056 – Using Your Newsletter to Sell More Books (Part 1)
This week and next week, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay talk advanced newsletter tactics for authors. We share the providers/hosts we use, how we recruit subscribers, what we email them about, and how we use those…
SFA 055 – Getting Reviews and Starting a Street Team/Review Crew
This week, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay discuss why book reviews are important, how to go about legitimately getting them, whether paid review services are worth it, and how to start your own review crew or…
SFA 054 – Social Media for Authors with Tee Morris and Pip Ballantine
For this week’s show, we welcome fantasy and non-fiction authors Tee Morris and Pip Ballantine. They’ve recently published the book Social Media for Writers: Marketing Strategies for Building Your Audience and Selling Books, so we…
SFA 053 – New Amazon Ads Data, When to Avoid Pre-Orders, and Listener Questions Answered
We’re fielding some of your questions from our Facebook group for this week’s show. There were quite a few related to pre-orders for ebooks, so if you haven’t already, make sure to check out our…
SFA 052 – Mistakes We’ve Made as Authors/Publishers/Marketers
For this week’s show, we decided to share some of the mistakes we’ve made as authors, publishers, and marketers (yes, when you are self-publishing, you are all of those things!). Our hope is that sharing…
SFA 051 – Increasing Your Income with Patreon
We’re doing a deep dive on Patreon for this week’s show. Jo and Lindsay are active users with a subscriber base, and Andrea has used the service in the past. We had a lot to…
SFA 050 – Leveling up: Going from 4/5 Figures a Year to 6 Figures a Year as an Author
For this week’s show, we discussed a common question in our Facebook group: how do you go from four or five figures a year as an author to making six or even seven figures? We…
SFA 049 – Subscription Service Strategies, Marketing Tips for 2020, and Listener Questions Answered
We’ve got a mix of topics for today’s show. We start out with some news from our hosts, then jump into discussing the expansion of Kobo Plus into Canada and why authors should consider having…
SFA 048 – Things You Can Do When You’re in a Writing Slump + Kickstarters for Authors
On this week’s show, your hosts Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay talk about some of the things they do to get out of writing slumps. At the end of the show, they also answer listener questions…
SFA 047 – Tech and Tools That We Find Useful as Full-time Authors
For today’s episode, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay talk about the various programs they use for writing, marketing, and productivity. We decided to do a later episode entirely on newsletters and mailing list tools, so we…
SFA 046 – Serials, Following up on Initial Success, and the Young Adult Fantasy Market with Sarah K.L. Wilson
On this week’s show, our guest is successful young adult fantasy author Sarah K.L. Wilson. Her career took off in early 2018 with her successful Dragon School serial. She’s been publishing books just about every…
SFA 045 – Increasing Sales in Bookstores Other Than Amazon (Google Play, Kobo, Apple, etc.)
In this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay talk about increasing sales in the major bookstores other than Amazon (i.e. Apple Books, Barnes & Noble Nook, Google Play, and Kobo Books). In the past, we’ve…
SFA 044 – Amazon Sales Ranking, Achieving More Visibility, and More Effective Launches and Book Promos with David Gaughran
Our guest for this week’s show is David Gaughran. He writes historical fiction and science fiction under another name, has helped thousands of authors publish their work through his workshops, blog, and writers’ books (Let’s…
SFA 043 – Book Advances, White-Listing Requests for Newsletters, and Pre-Orders Pt 2
On this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay finished answering listener questions on pre-orders after discussing some information on book advances from the #publishingpaidme hashtag on Twitter. They also shared a few tips on Amazon…
SFA 042 – Pre-Orders: How, When, and Why to Use Them to Increase Sales
On this week’s show, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay discussed the reasons you may want to use pre-orders on Amazon and the other stores. They mentioned some of the benefits as well as potential pitfalls and…
SFA 041 – Finding a Narrator, Cost, and DIY Tips for Audiobooks with Gary Bennett
On this week’s show, SAG-AFTRA audiobook narrator Gary Bennett joins us to talk about finding and choosing a narrator, how much you should expect to spend on audiobook production, royalty share options, and equipment in…
SFA 040 – Launches, Re-Launches, and Juggling Writing and Publishing with a Young Family with Andrea Pearson
On today’s show, we did the third of our three co-host interviews, this time with Andrea Pearson. We asked her questions about book launches, re-launches, dictation, and the ways she manages to do all she…
SFA 039 – Trends on Amazon, New Opportunities, and How CoVid-19 Is Affecting Ebook Sales with Alex Newton
Our guest this week is Alex Newton, the mastermind behind K-Lytics, a market intelligence service that monitors close to 100,000 Amazon titles each month to help publishers of fiction and non-fiction spot trends, identify opportunities,…
SFA 038 – Book Covers That Sell Books and Common Mistakes When Working with a Designer with Rebekah Haskell
We’re talking about cover design today—everything from common mistakes authors make to how to have a good relationship with and get what you need from a designer. The cover is the most important part of…
SFA 037 – Adapting as the Market Changes, Screenwriting, and Mixing Wide with Exclusive with Michaelbrent Collings
This week, we interviewed Michaelbrent Collings, an internationally bestselling novelist, produced screenwriter, and multiple Bram Stoker Award finalist. He’s written in numerous genres, including horror, thriller, fantasy, science fiction, mystery, humor, young adult, middle grade,…
SFA 036 – Revving up Backlist Book Sales, Writing and Selling Short Stories, Planning out a Series, and Jo Juggles
This is the second of our host interviews, with Jo Lallo in the hot seat today (except for the portion at the end where he leaves his seat to juggle). Before jumping into the interview…
SFA 035 – From Traditional Publishing to Indie, Clean Romance, and Book Covers and Editing on a Dime
This week, we’re joined by clean romance author Rachael Anderson who started out with a traditional publishing contract and later shifted to self-publishing. She’s a rarity in that she puts her books together inexpensively (DIY…
SFA 034 – Switching Genres, Do Novellas Sell, and Are There Marketing Differences from Genre to Genre?
We had a just-us show today and decided to break up the usual format of us all chiming in on listener questions. Instead we’re doing the first of three interviews with each other using a…
SFA 033 – Amazon Ads and Book Blurbs That Convert to Sales with Bryan Cohen
Our guest this week was fantasy and non-fiction author Bryan Cohen from the Sell More Books Show. Bryan also runs Best Page Forward, a book description service for people who don’t want to write their…
SFA 032 – Passive Advertising, Rapid Release, and Marketing Cross-Genre Fiction, and other Listener Questions
This week, Jo, Andrea, and Lindsay shared some of their news and updates before launching into answering listener questions. The questions covered such topics as forms of passive advertising for books, rapid release pricing and…
SFA 031 – Publishing Quickly, Long Series, Author Facebook Groups, and Starting Your Own Press with JN Chaney
Our guest this week is USA Today-bestselling science-fiction author JN Chaney. He has a master’s degree in fine arts and started indie publishing a few years ago, and he’s quickly built up a large backlist…
SFA 030 – Dealing with Burnout, Self-Doubt, and Comparisonitis
For this week’s show, the three of us talked a bit about the mental game of being an author. We went into how we deal with burnout, writers’ block, negative feedback, self-doubt, and the ever-present…
SFA Bonus – Ladies Who Launch: Lindsay, Andrea, and KM Shea talk about their recent series launches
An extra show this week! An informal one. Lindsay and previous guest on the show KM Shea (also known as Kitty) ended up launching new urban fantasy series on the same day. They were emailing…
SFA 029 – Earning 7 Figures, Foreign Translations, and the Thriller Market with Mark Dawson
This week’s guest is Mark Dawson, the brains and talent behind Ads for Authors and the Self-Publishing 101 course. Mark is an award-nominated, USA Today bestseller of thrillers, with more than 20 books published and…
SFA 028 – Marketing Tips, Getting Book Reviews, and Advertising and SEO with Ricardo Fayet
Ricardo Fayet, one of the co-founders of Reedsy, joined us this week to talk about book advertising, getting book reviews, search engine optimization (SEO) for authors, and other marketing tips. Reedsy is a website that…
SFA 027 – Successful Book Launches, Facebook Ads, and Marketing Funnels with Mal Cooper
Non-fiction author Mal Cooper (who is also science-fiction author MD Cooper) joined us on the podcast today to talk successful book launches, Facebook ads, marketing for authors, and lots more. She’s written Help! My Facebook…
SFA 026 – Launching a Pen Name, Co-Writing, and Organizing Author and Reader Events for Profit with Jasmine Walt
Our guest this week is New York Times bestselling fantasy author Jasmine Walt. She’s written under her own name, launched pen names, collaborated with other authors, and also runs writing retreats, author dinners, and festivals…
SFA 025 – Having a Series Take Off, Merchandising, and Co-Writing with Jason Anspach
This week, we interviewed successful science-fiction author Jason Anspach, who writes with Nick Cole in the popular Galaxy’s Edge universe that they created together. They’ve had fantastic success with the ebooks and are also doing…
SFA 024 – Ebook Pricing Strategies + Listener Questions
In this week’s “just us” show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay discussed ebook pricing, i.e. what they do for stories of various lengths, if they do something different for series starters, and when permafree can make…
SFA 023 – Publishing Nonfiction Along with Fiction, Audiobooks, and Preparing for an Audio-First Eco-System with Joanna Penn
This week, non-fiction and thriller author, creative entrepreneur, and podcaster Joanna Penn joined us on the show. Chances are, you’re already familiar with Joanna, but in case you’re not, she writes non-fiction for authors and…
SFA – 022 Discussing Mark Coker’s (Smashwords) 2020 Indie Author Predictions + Questions and Answers
On today’s show, Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay pick out some of the predictions that Mark Coker of Smashwords made in his January post 2020 Publishing Predictions: House of Indie on Fire. They agreed with some…
SFA 021 – Making a Full-Time Income on One Novel a Year with Romantic Comedy Author Jami Albright
This week, we’re joined by romantic comedy author Jami Albright. She is a born and raised Texas girl, former actress and comedian, and writes the multiple award-winning Brides on the Run series. She published the…
SFA 020 – Mistakes We’ve Learned from and Our Plans for 2020
It’s just Andrea, Jo, and Lindsay on this week’s show. They did a little masterminding with each other in regard to their book plans for 2020 and also shared some of the mistakes they’ve made…
SFA 019 – Killing it on Kickstarter with Loren L. Coleman
On this week’s show, we chat with science-fiction author and game developer Loren L. Coleman. Through his company, Catalyst Game Labs, he’s run several Kickstarters including campaigns that have funded for over $2.5 million. We…
SFA 018 – Why Revising Can Be Detrimental, Pantsing Like a Pro, and Moving from Traditional Publishing to Indie with Dean Wesley Smith
This week, we interviewed prolific New York Times and USA Today bestselling mystery and science fiction author Dean Wesley Smith. Some of the franchises he’s written novels for include Star Trek, X-Men, Smallville, Aliens, Men…
SFA 017 – Selling Ebooks Direct, Growing Your Newsletter with Bonus Content, and Benefits of In-Person Events with Damon Courtney from Bookfunnel
For this week’s show, we interviewed Damon Courtney, fantasy author and the founder of BookFunnel, an author service that delivers ebooks to readers. As an author/publisher, you can use them to give away free reader…
SFA 016 – Advertising During the Holidays, Reader Magnets, When to Do Audiobooks, and More Listener Questions Answered
Andrea, Lindsay, and Jo answer listener questions on this week’s show. We discuss everything from advertising during the holidays, whether group promos and giving away reader magnets still works, when it makes sense to invest…
SFA 015 – Using Free Books and Multi-Author Promos to Increase Readership with Evan Gow from StoryOrigin
Today, we interview Evan Gow, the founder of StoryOrigin, an author service that facilitates delivering ebooks, organizing group promotions and newsletter swaps, and managing ARC teams. StoryOrigin is growing quickly, and during the show, we…
SFA – 014 Goodreads, Google Play, and Tips from the 20Books 2019 Conference
This week, Lindsay shares some of her notes from the annual 20Books conference in Las Vegas. She had a chance to talk with reps from Google Play and Amazon, so she shared what she learned…
SFA – 013 How to Successfully Sell Wide (Beyond Amazon) with Mark Lefebvre
This week, we interviewed Mark Leslie Lefebvre, horror author, publishing consultant, former Director of Author Relations at Kobo and current Director of Business Development at the distributor Draft2Digital. Mark is also an audio fan and…
SFA – 012 Contract Negotiations, Licensing Your Work, Branding, Podcasting Fiction and more from the WGM Business Master Class 2019
This week, we did a second episode discussing what Andrea learned as an instructor and attendee of Kris Katheryn Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith’s annual business master class for authors. The topics discussed include licensing your…
SFA – 011 Thinking Like a Business, Marketing on a Budget, Hiring Help, and Tips from the WGM Business Master Class
Andrea Pearson has returned from the 2019 WMG Publishing Business Master Class put on each year by Kris Katheryn Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith. The class takes place over a week and covers a lot…
SFA – 010 Increasing Productivity Through Outlining, Efficient Editing, and Dictation
Today, your hosts continue their discussion on productivity, publishing more books without losing quality, pantsing versus outlining, and dictating to increase the words you produce per hour. Here’s their show notes for the episode: Pantsing…
SFA – 009 Improving Productivity, Myths of “Churning out Books,” and What It Takes to Make $100,000+
During today’s show, the hosts talk about productivity, attempt to dispel the myth that writing fast is equal to churning out drivel, and discuss ways they’ve gotten more efficient at writing and publishing. They also…
SFA – 008 Ebook Bundles and Boxed Sets (How, Why, What and Execution Tips)
Lindsay, Andrea, and Jo discuss ebook bundles and box sets of all types, why you would want to do them, and how to use them to bring in more readers and make more money by…
SFA – 007 Digging Deeper into Book Marketing (Bookbub Ads, Facebook Ads, Amazon Ads, and Amazon Category Trends) – NINC 2019
Today, our hosts are continuing to share what they learned at the NINC Conference The Reader Funnel And The Best of the Best in 2019 Book Advertising (Mark Dawson) Why advertise? Importance of knowing your…
SFA – 006 Author Marketing, Writing Craft, and Productivity Tips from NINC 2019
On today’s show, we got an update on the hosts’ projects and got a whole bunch of tips from Jo and Lindsay’s time at the NINC Conference 2019 in Florida. Here are some of the…
SFA – 005 How to Keep Selling Books Year After Year + Building a Loyal Fan Base and Community with K. M. Shea
Today our hosts interviewed popular fantasy fairy tale author K. M. Shea about how to consistently sell books and build a loyal fan base. K.M. Shea has been writing and publishing about four novels a year…
SFA – 004 Tips for Diversifying and Increasing Your Income as an Author + Digging Deeper with Jo Lallo
Today, Lindsay and Andrea interviewed fellow host, fantasy author Joseph R Lallo, discussing his background as an author and talking about ways to diversify your income. He’s jumped from fantasy to science fiction over the years…
SFA – 003 Book Launch Tactics for Wide, Kindle Unlimited, Pre-Orders and Rapid Release with Lindsay Buroker
Today, Jo and Andrea interviewed fellow co-host fantasy and science-fiction author Lindsay Buroker to find out more about her book launch tactics. She’s been self-publishing since December of 2010, earning a full-time income since 2012, and…
SFA – 002 How to Rock Your Mailing List, Get More Subscribers, and Sell More Books with Andrea Pearson
Today, Lindsay and Jo interviewed co-host and fantasy author Andrea Pearson about book marketing. Specifically, how she builds and engages her mailing list, gets subscribers, and sells books even when she’s a busy work-at-home mom.…
SFA – 001 What It Takes to Make Six Figures as an Author + Dispelling Myths
On our first show, learn more about our hosts, Lindsay Buroker, Andrea Pearson, and Jo Lallo, all of whom have made at least six figures a year from their book sales. They looked at the…