Activated Authors

By Activated AuthorsArts

Activated Authors episodes

July 02, 2020#042: Garrett Robinson – Serializing fantasy, making it through the hard times, and changing the world with fiction.
Garrett Robinson is the author of #1 bestselling Amazon fantasy series, “The Nightblade Epic”, a heroic fantasy saga with tens of thousands of avid readers. The epic is set in the land of Underrealm, alongside a second bestselling series, “The Academy Journals.” His imprint, Legacy Books, has published over 2 dozen fantasy titles, showcasing fresh writing talent in the genre. Garrett is also a filmmaker, and successful YouTube talent, with brand new vlogs hitting his channel every Friday.

In this episode we go deep into:
Garrett’s advice for anyone who hasn’t watched Hamilton yet
Garrett’s experience working in filmmaking, screenwriting, and directing, and how that segued into his writing career
The origins of his hit series “Underrealm"
Letting your story grow in your mind until you’re professionally ready to write it
Allowing yourself time to develop as an artist
The experience of writing and releasing serial fiction, and how that has changed over the years
How to come out of bouts of non-writing
Leveraging Patreon to create a sustainable career
Talking yourself through the tough stuff and coming out on the other side
Controlling your use of social media to avoid distraction and procrastination
The realities of living as a full-time creative
How global disruption affects your personal state
Putting yourself first before you reach out and start helping others
Generating real social change with your fiction
How to approach serialization as a writer
Keeping an eye on the long-term when creating your marketing strategies

Garrett answers questions from Patrons:
Yanni Jade: "You're currently releasing your novel in episodes like with the previous books, what are the pros and cons to publishing this way?"
H.B. Lyne: Do you have any tips for balancing writing with YouTubing. How does he fit it all in?
Jenn Mitchell: Do you approach the story telling process the same way when writing and making a film? Are there differences between the two for you?

Find out more about Garrett:
https://underrealm.net/

Links from the show:
Garrett’s Episode on “The Story Studio” https://open.spotify.com/episode/67ODq5qyQCZaS7jeUb3DvX?si=hrmrE3FKTUKy_Ej1SR2ciA
A Cloak of Red, Brenna Gawain: https://www.amazon.com/Cloak-Red-Underrealm-Tenth-Kingdom-ebook/dp/B083RLS7DK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=a+cloak+of+red&qid=1593612588&sr=8-1
Garrett’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/garrettbrobinson

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest
Yanni Jade
Meg Cowley
H.B. Lyne

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1 hr 13 min
June 25, 2020#041: Daniel Willcocks – “Collaboration for Authors."
Daniel Willcocks is an international bestselling author and podcaster of dark fiction. He is one fifth of digital story studio, Hawk & Cleaver, co-producer of iTunes-busting fiction podcast, 'The Other Stories,’ as well as the host of the 'Great Writers Share' podcast, in which he breaks down the strategies, tricks, and productivity habits of some of the best writers in the game today.

Residing in the UK, Dan's work explores the catastrophic and the strange. His stories span the genres of horror, post-apocalyptic, and sci-fi, and his work has seen him collaborating with some of the biggest names in the independent publishing community.

In this episode we go deep into:
Where did Dan’s collaboration journey began
Why Dan wrote a book on collaboration
How collaborations have impacted Dan’s career
The key mistakes authors make when they collaborate
What is the biggest takeaway from the book that authors need to understand
How to find a collaborator
How to deal with a collaboration gone wrong
Further resources for authors seeking collaboration

Dan answers questions from Patrons:
Yanni Jade: What are some things to look for in a collaborative partner?
Yanni Jade: What are the positives of having collaborative partners?
Jenn Mitchell: How can you tell when a collaboration isn’t a good fit?

Find out more about Dan:
www.danielwillcocks.com

Links from the show:
Collaboration for Authors https://books2read.com/u/3G2jLn

J Thorn’s "American Demon Hunters" https://books2read.com/u/4AKKVK
Craig Martelle "Collaborations: When the Whole Is Greater than the Sum of the Parts"
https://books2read.com/u/b5ZZ1k
J Thorn & Joanna Penn “Co-writing a Book” https://books2read.com/u/m2ZZNR

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest
Yanni Jade
Meg Cowley
H.B. Lyne

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
35 min
June 18, 2020#040: Julie Hiner – Growth through challenge, the welcoming arms of writers, and embracing your genre.
Julie Hiner is a writer of dark crime, horror, and non-fiction.

Julie has been fascinated with the complexity of the dark mind of the serial killer and obsessed with trying to understand how murder can occur. Finding inspiration at a talk given by a local homicide detective, Julie surged down her new path to writing a dark, serial killer novel.

Julie's favorite parts of her new found writing process are the detailed research, creating an in-depth character and digging deep into his, her or its mind, and unleashing her inner artist on photos to create the cover and marketing material.

In this episode we go deep into:
Julie’s journey into reading and writing
Dealing with anxiety around gaining weight
How “Just A Girl and a Bike” was born
How knowing less reduces the fear
Getting involved in writer’s groups and asking for help
The welcoming arms of other writers
How Julie first approached her publishing process
The differences between writing non-fiction and writing fiction
The reality behind the writing process
Finding yourself as a writer
The secret to creating the writing habit
Where the inspiration for horror and dark crime comes from
Embracing the visual side of horror to build a brand

Find out more about Julie:
Https://killersanddemons.com

Links from the show:
Collaboration for Authors https://books2read.com/u/3G2jLn
Just a Girl and a Bike: https://books2read.com/u/b6Zjnp
Final Track by Julie Hiner: https://books2read.com/u/31qPvn
Reading of “Twisted”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ezx67ExVdI&feature=emb_logo
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.

Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest
Yanni Jade
Meg Cowley
H.B. Lyne

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
44 min
June 11, 2020#039: Jenna Moreci – YouTube for writers, diversifying income streams, and cultivating superfans.
Jenna Moreci is a half-human, half-weaponized robot hellbent on overthrowing mankind. She’s also a best selling author specializing in so-cute-you-could-barf romance interspersed between extreme violence and bloodshed.

A Silicon Valley native, Jenna hosts a YouTube channel with over 210,000 subscribers (at the time of recording) where she uses her passion for storytelling and background in business to help other creators navigate their writing and publishing journey. When she’s not writing or ’tubing, Jenna enjoys listening to music, cuddling with her dog, and kissing her fiancé’s gorgeous face. Her other talents include prolific cursing, spilling/dropping things, accidentally making people cry, and cooking.

In this episode we go deep into:
How Jenna accidentally makes so many people cry
How Jenna first got started with writing
Choosing passion over smarts
Jenna’s introduction into YouTube and how she made it work
What it takes to make it on YouTube
Why ‘being yourself’ is so important online
The success of “The 9 weird habits of writers"
Why you don’t need to wait until you’re published to start a YouTube channel
The importance of honesty
What it means to be a writer on YouTube
The harsh reality of being a woman on YouTube
Why writers should consider YouTube
A platform for superfine and multiple streams of revenue
How long does it take to make film, edit, and upload videos to YouTube
What the conversion rate is from YouTube hits to actual book sales
Targeting the right audiences and sticking with your gut
Jenna’s writing process for her latest books
Preserving mental wellbeing while juggling writing and caregiving
How Jenna keeps the creative well filled
Jenna’s love for Greek mythology and the foreshadowing dream
Why Jenna writes

Jenna answers questions from Patrons:
Yanni Jade: How long did it take for you to write The Savior’s Sister and edit it to the point where you were happy with the end result?

This week’s question:
Based off the content of this week’s interview, I’m posing the question: How successfully do you engage with your readers and/or fans?

Find out more about Jenna:
https://www.jennamoreci.com/
https://www.youtube.com/jennamoreci
https://twitter.com/jennamoreci
https://www.instagram.com/jennamoreci/
https://www.facebook.com/authorjennamoreci
The Savior’s Champion: https://amzn.to/2MLqzYp
The Savior's Sister: https://amzn.to/2MHGPtu

Links from the show:
https://books2read.com/u/3G2jLn
The Nine Weird Habits of Writers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpmE_gtZChY
Jenna and Sacha Black, How to Become a Full-time Writer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ozs-VRE1mjI&t=361s

Special thanks...

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50 min
June 04, 2020#038: Drew Starling – The power of short stories, real-time feedback, and emotionally insulating yourself.
Drew Starling is an Amazon bestselling author of horror and dark fiction, a husband and dog dad who loves strong female leads, martial arts, and long walks in the woods with canine companions. He would like to think his plots are better than his prose, but strives to make his words sound both beautiful and terrifying at the same time. He listens to Beethoven, Megadeth, and Enya when he writes.
His only rule of writing: the dog never dies.

In this episode we go deep into:
Why the dog never dies
Drew’s writing journey and how he’s gotten to where he is
How beneficial author communities are online
Why short stories are a great way create emotional insulation
The incredible influence of Stephen King
Whether the TV series of “The Outsider” was better or worse than the book
The power of the short story submission loop
Why short stories are a great way to build an author reputation
How to maximize your chances of getting short stories submitted and published
The benefits of real-time feedback in author communities
Using StoryGrid to edit your novel
Why something must happen in a scene
Drew’s writing process
Why you shouldn’t measure success in words written
Finding a relationship that complements your writing career
Why Drew writes

Drew answers questions from Patrons:
Ian J Middleton: what Must Read books would you put on a horror writers reading list?

This week’s question:
What systems do you use to gain real-time feedback?

Find out more about Drew:
Get your free story https://www.drewstarling.com/dan

Links from the show:
Https://www.patreon.com/greatwritersshare
Https://books2read.com/anatomyofprose
https://www.doesthedogdie.com/
https://www.thenosleeppodcast.com/
https://www.cormacmccarthy.com/
https://www.amazon.com/N-K-Jemisin/e/B0028OIVC0/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8550800/
“Guts” by Chuck Palahniuk http://readfulltext.blogspot.com/2013/10/guts-by-chuck-palahniuk.html
https://storygrid.com/
The Shining https://www.amazon.com/Shining-Stephen-King/dp/0345806786/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+shining&qid=1591020355&s=books&sr=1-1
It https://www.amazon.com/Novel-Stephen-King/dp/1982127791/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=it&qid=1591020343&s=books&sr=1-1
The Stand
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50 min
May 28, 2020#037: Lindsay Weisner – Finding ‘happy,’ the Neurotic Nourishment podcast, and talking is healing.
Dr. Lindsay Weisner is the host of the Neurotic Nourishment Podcast – a show where she talks with smart, sweary women about s**t that matters – and her first book ‘Ten Steps To Finding Happy’ released on March 20th, 2020.

Dr Weisner graduated from Georgetown University in 1999 and was awarded a fellowship in child development at the NIH. She received her doctorate from C.W. Post, LIU and pursued post-doctorate training at the American Institute of Psychoanalysis

In this episode we go deep into:
How Lindsay defines ‘happy'
The effect of launching a book during the time of the coronavirus
The importance of choosing to find happy
Battling your own habits to improve yourself
Lindsay shares methods to maintain happiness during the coronavirus pandemic
How Lindsay got involved in publishing Ten Steps to Finding Happy
The effectiveness of plunging yourself in at the deep end
Finding your passion, and finding your purpose
Learning to keep going when things don’t go your way
The importance of transparency and understanding yourself
The motivation of being told you can't
How Lindsay approached collaboration for her book
The beginning of the Neurotic Nourishment Podcast and what the plans are
Tackling and talking about the difficult topics
Lindsay’s work with teen suicides
Historical peaks and troughs to suicide rates
Writing freehand to generate catharsis

This week’s question: How do you find your happy?
Comment over at https://patreon.com/greatwritersshare, or join the Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/greatwritersshare/

Find out more about Lindsay:
https://www.instagram.com/psychshrinkmom/
Neurotic Nourishment podcast: https://pod.link/1464366670
Ten Steps to Finding Happy: https://www.amazon.com/Ten-Steps-Finding-Happy-Satisfaction/dp/0996430660/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=ten+steps+to+finding+happy+weisner&qid=1590507483&sr=8-1

Links from the show:
Collaboration for Authors pre-order https://books2read.com/collaboration
Supercharge Your Scene with J Thorn https://theauthorsuccessmastermind.com?aff=willcocksauthor
Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/experts/lindsay-weisner-psyd

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Mark McClure
Yanni Jade

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
1 hr 1 min
May 14, 2020#035: Mag Dimond – Award-winning memoirs, documenting your life to leave a legacy, and mindfulness for writers.
Mag Dimond is the award-winning author of BOWING TO ELEPHANTS, Tales of a Travel Junkie (which hit #1 in 5 countries on the day it launched and just won Best Indie Biographies & Memoirs from Kirkus). Her book has been compared to EAT PRAY LOVE in professional reviews and has received accolades from many thought leaders in the mindfulness space, including Jack Kornfield.

Having written her first book in her 70s, Mag has also been honored in American Literary Review, Travelers Tales Solas Awards, the Tulip Tree Awards, and the William Faulkner Wisdom Awards.

Mag is a practicing Buddhist and dedicated member of Spirit Rock Meditation Center north of San Francisco. The loves of Mag’s life are: her family, playing Bach on her grandmother’s baby grand, meditating, traveling, knitting, watching the wild Pacific Ocean, writing, teaching, reading, and enjoying good food and wine with dear friends.

In this episode we go deep into:
Mag’s love for her grandmother’s baby grand piano
How Mag started documenting her life and forming her memoirs
When life gets in the way of writing a book
Overcoming lack of self-worth to put pen to paper
Discovering meditation and the benefits of mindfulness
Mindfulness for writers
Understanding the impermanence of life
Keeping perspective on what life truly is
Mag’s journalling habit through the years
How to select the right passages from life to form into a solid memoir
The elasticity of memory through the years
Submitting to the muse
The power of writing groups
Knowing when a book is ready to publish
Publishing through a small press with a political stance
Mag’s experience throughout the publication process
Reacting to initial reviews and critical acclaim
Why does Mag Dimond right?

Find out more about Mag:
Https://magdimond.com

Links from the show:
Collaboration for Authors pre-order https://books2read.com/u/mKDjYL
Supercharge Your Scene with J Thorn https://theauthorsuccessmastermind.com?aff=willcocksauthor
Bowing to Elephants: https://books2read.com/u/m0OQxY

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Jerry Evanoff
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest
Yanni Jade

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
53 min
May 07, 2020#034: Nick Cole – Innovating rapid release, guarding your brand, and giving readers what they want.
Nick Cole is a former soldier and working actor living in Southern California. When he is not auditioning for commercials, going out for sitcoms or being shot, kicked, stabbed or beaten by the students of various film schools for their projects, he can be found writing books.

Nick’s Book The Old Man and the Wasteland was an Amazon Bestseller and #1 in Science Fiction. In 2016 Nick’s book CTRL ALT Revolt won the Dragon Award for Best Apocalyptic novel.

The Galaxy’s Edge series is his new bestselling series and an Audible smash hit.

In this episode we go deep into:
Nick’s love for Stephen King and, specifically, the genius of The Dark Tower
Being financially successful or critically acclaimed
The demanding rapid release market
Maintaining quality while rapid releasing
Serving the readers with what they want
Nick’s publication process
Utilizing your fans to help with your process
The power of stacking books
Learning the power of restraint to maximize marketing impact
What metrics kicked off the journey into building a collaborative universe
Taking what you love and putting your own spin on it
It’s better to do nothing than hurt the brand
Investing money in the right things
Dividing responsibilities across collaborators
Handling the growth as you ‘Ride the Tiger'
Prioritizing and enjoying writing above all else
Nick’s writing daily writing
Growing your writing muscle by building the writing habit
Creating opportunities to star in your own intellectual properties
Why Nick Cole writes

Find out more about Nick:
https://nickcolebooks.com/
https://galaxysedge.us/

Links from the show:
Sacha Black ’10 Lessons from one year of full-time writing’ https://sachablack.co.uk/2020/05/02/028-10-lessons-from-one-year-of-writing-full-time/
Stephen King’s, “The Dark Tower” https://books2read.com/u/m2VWX6
Nick Cole’s “Wyrd” Series https://books2read.com/u/b55VOw
Nick Cole and Jason Anspach "Galaxy’s Edge” https://books2read.com/u/3LD1rN
Chris Fox’s "Six Figure Author” https://books2read.com/u/4Az8gA

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Jerry Evanoff
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
57 min
April 30, 2020#033: Michael David Wilson – ’The Girl in the Video,’ creating your own opportunities, and confronting your fears.
Michael David Wilson is the founder of the popular UK horror website, podcast, and small press, This Is Horror. He's a professional writer, editor, and podcaster, and has worked for such companies as 2000 AD, Terrorizer, and Broken River Books. His brand-new novella, The Girl in the Video will be published via Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing on 28 April 2020, with a second novella, House of Bad Memories, to be published by Grindhouse Press in 2021.

Michael's work has appeared in numerous other publications including The NoSleep Podcast, Dark Moon Digest, LitReactor, Hawk & Cleaver’s The Other Stories, and Scream. He is also a professional ESL Teacher and graduate of the University of Warwick’s English Literature and Creative Writing Programme.

In this episode we go deep into:
How Michael cut his teeth with writing
Putting your money where your mouth is as a writer
Using challenges to keep yourself motivated in writing
Sharing the gift of storytelling with those younger than you to pass the torch
The power of building the writing habit
The difference between writing, and writing-tangential activities
Tips for receiving free games, writing journalistic columns, and exercising entrepreneurship
How changing diet and exploring health laid foundations for building writing habits
Not having to wait for luck, taking ownership of your life, and creating your own opportunities
The journey that led to the inception of This Is Horror and its following success
Confronting your fears
The first few weeks of This Is Horror
Mental health and how that can affect your writing
The more you do things, the easier they become
Taking time to recharge when you need to, and prioritizing your health
Giving yourself permission to not be okay
How ’The Girl in the Video’ came to be born
Leaning towards hybrid and finding the rewards of both sides of publishing
Utilizing the bookstagram community to deliver a cover reveal
What impact Michael wants to have from his writing.

Michael answers questions from Patrons:
Ian J. Middleton: are there any common mistakes you see from first time horror writers when it comes to short stories and novels?
Find out more about Michael:
https://www.michaeldavidwilson.co.uk/
https://www.thisishorror.co.uk/

Links from the show:
https://books2read.com/u/3LD6nJ

Special thanks to:
Intro vocals: Persephone Rose
Show theme: Karl Hughes

Become a Patron of the show! Get exclusive bonus content, find your tribe, and get early access to all episodes.
Thank you to my patrons:
David Hines
Harley Christensen
Jon Cronshaw
Jenn Mitchell
Innes Richens
Ian J Middleton
PT Hylton
Michael Anderle
Jerry Evanoff
Mark McClure
Katie Forrest

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
1 hr 9 min
April 23, 2020#032: Joanna Penn – Staying ahead of the game, the realities of indie authorship, and prioritizing your health for the long-game.
Joanna Penn is an Award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author, as well as a writer of non-fiction for authors.

She's written over 30 books and sold over 500,000 books in 84 countries and 5 languages. She's an independent author and also runs a small press, Curl Up Press, with her husband and business partner.

Joanna is also an international professional speaker and award-winning creative entrepreneur. In 2018, she was awarded Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World. Her show, The Creative Penn Podcast, has been downloaded 3.7 million times in 219 countries.

Based now in Bath, Joanna is a travel junkie who also likes hiking, and relaxing with a book and a glass of pinot noir, or a gin & tonic (Hendricks & Fever Tree).

In this episode we go deep into:
How Joanna’s handling herself during the coronavirus lockdown
How Joanna’s writing process and approach to business has changed since she first started writing
Where does Joanna’s information come from to remain ahead of the indie game
Lessons learned from Joanna’s first book
What keeps Joanna accountable to keep delivering on her projects
The struggles of writing while in lockdown
The benefits of routine and creating positive associations in certain places for particular kinds of work
What a typical day looks like for Joanna
The reality of being a full time independent author
How to keep on top of all you need to do
Benefits of working episodically
Being able to learn to be organized
Prioritizing your health and looking after yourself as a writer
Why you should work with experts inside and outside of writing
How Joanna decides which non-fiction too prioritize next
Whether Joanna feels the pressure of being a high profile name in the independent author community
How accolades have affected Joanna’s career and the truth about lists and awards
Getting everything you want, but not at the same time
Genre awards vs bestseller lists
Why Joanna Penn writes

Joanna answers questions from Patrons:
Mark Mclure: How are sales for large-print books going (n/f and fiction)?

This week’s question
What are your highest aspirations with your writing career?

Find out more about Joanna:
https://www.thecreativepenn.com/
https://www.thecreativepenn.com/podcasts/
See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
57 min

About Activated Authors

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Activated Authors is an online author community centered around principles of healthy productivity, community, and shared knowledge. Founded by international bestselling author, award-winning…

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Activated Authors episodes

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