In this episode, we spoke to Robert L. Slater, author and creator of the Deserted Lands series and extended Deserted Lands Universe, a sci-fi and dystopian coming-of-age series of books that follow Lizzie, the sixteen-year-old survivor of a devastating pandemic, as she navigates this dangerous new world. Robert is also the author of several short stories and novellas in the Deserted Lands universe and has plans to continue the series in a multitude of ways!

We spoke to Robert about his start as a writer, his inspirations, the eerie similarities to real-world events he wrote into his novels years prior, his experiences attending conferences and conventions and connecting with other indie authors, using marketing swag to your advantage as an author, and much more.

Learn more on Robert’s website and the Deserted Lands website, and be sure to follow Robert on Facebook and X/Twitter.