How to Write for a Living

409: "I've been blessed by Madonna!" (with Karen Salmansohn)


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Season 4, episode 9 is here!

Karen Salmansohn has sold two million books, been blessed by Madonna, and built a career entirely on the principle of doing something a little extra every single time. This one was a lot of fun!

What we covered:

- Why Karen left a senior VP creative director role in her twenties and what she told her parents when they said she was crazy to do it.

- The story of how she got her first novel in front of publishers in a way that got an offer within days of sending it out.

- How she walked up to Madonna in a hotel restaurant, got her to read a book title, and turned the whole encounter into a press story.

- What her bucket list from hell period actually was and how she turned the worst year of her life into one of her most successful books.

- The writing mistake she sees constantly on Substack that she thinks most people assume they’re getting away with.

- Why she believes memoir-style headlines consistently outperform advice-style headlines, and how she tested that on her own publication.

- The new business she’s just launched and what the top regrets of the dying had to do with building it.

You can find Karen at The Stand Up Philosopher: Weighty Musings, Lightly Served on Substack.



This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedavidmcilroy.substack.com/subscribe
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How to Write for a LivingBy David McIlroy

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