Author Diary Entries

This episode of Indie Author Weekly shares Sagan's author plans and writing projects for 2021, PLUS what you need to think about when you're planning ahead with your own writing projects for the upcoming year! 

In our previous episode of Indie Author Weekly, Episode 91, I shared about how my writing plans changed over the course of 2020… so I thought you might be interested in hearing about my upcoming author and writing plans for the new year! 

As you probably already know, I am very multipassionate. And that means I have a lot of moving pieces to my business. So I need to arrange all of that into my schedule, and it also means that I pivot often to refine my processes and ideas and plans.   

TUNE IN to this episode of Indie Author Weekly to get the inside scoop... 

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!
• Episode 91 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: when book plans change during a pandemic .
• Episode 41 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: 5 tips for how to plan book projects in the upcoming year .
• Business Planning Retreat Workshop: SaganMorrow.com/retreat .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

This episode of Indie Author Weekly shares how my author and writing plans changed this past year, PLUS how to handle things when YOUR writing plans change... 

After all, we’re heading into a brand new year in just a couple weeks! This is a good time for reflection and assessment of the previous year, and for planning ahead into the upcoming year. 

Back in Episode 41 of this Indie Author Weekly podcast, I shared a 5-step process for how to plan your book projects for the upcoming year. I also shared my own book plans. Of course, 2020 has been a Year, with a capital Y. If anyone’s plans actually stayed the same this year, that is impressive! But regardless, it’s easy to get off track or derailed or to simply change our plans any year, let alone a year like 2020. 

My initial plans for 2020 were to complete my entire Polyamorous Passions series—that is, Books 7 - 9, AKA Scarlett’s trilogy—and also to publish a spinoff poetry book that “Scarlett” writes in the Polyamorous Passions series. At the time of making these plans, I had already mapped out Book 7 and I believe I also had a working draft of the novel. 

Well! I ended up reworking those plans pretty early on, for two main reasons… #1, I wanted to build up the productivity teaching side of my business, so that I could have a strong, healthy financial foundation for working on the author side of my business. And #2, the pandemic meant that I, along with everyone else this year, had way lower energy and creativity levels than normal, which made book writing tricky. The other part of this is that it’s really, really challenging to write a romance novel specifically during a pandemic. 

TUNE IN to this episode to get the inside scoop on what to do when writing plans change, plus how author Sagan Morrow changed her book plans during the pandemic...  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!  
• Episode 41 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: how to plan your book projects for the upcoming year .
• Grab the Relationship Rebel t-shirt and other Polyamorous Passions merchandise at SaganMorrow.com/shop .
• Business Planning Retreat Workshop: SaganMorrow.com/retreat .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

This episode of Indie Author Weekly addresses how to find your voice or style as a storyteller and writer.  

Finding your voice as a storyteller is something that will take time. The best way to discover it and to cultivate it is to continue writing and telling stories on an ongoing (and, ideally consistent) basis, and to review your work as time passes.  

These tips will help you out:  

1. Keep writing and telling stories on an ongoing basis, as consistently as possible.
2. Have fun with it! Play with various genres and perspectives etc.
3. Expand your comfort zone by starting with what feels easy or natural, and stepping more and more into your strengths as you keep moving forward.
4. Reread your previously-published work so that you can see your voice and style grow over time, and to observe any patterns.
5. Pay attention to your storytelling voice and your writing style, and try to ensure that they work together, rather than against one another.

TUNE IN to this episode of Indie Author Weekly to learn more about how to find your voice and style as a storyteller and writer...  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!  
• Episode 76 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: nuances of writing humour .
• Episode 87 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: on writing short stories .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

In this episode of Indie Author Weekly, let's talk about beta readers. In fact, I am officially putting the call out to invite YOU to become a beta reader for my upcoming romcom, Small Town Stilettos! 

Here’s a teaser about the book: 

Big city fashion designer Margaret "Peggy" Malcolm never dreamed that she'd be stuck back in her tiny hometown. But when her aunt dies, Peggy needs to handle everything with her estate... and it turns out to have a rather unusual stipulation: Peggy needs to marry her childhood sweetheart, Logan Finley, in order to access her inheritance. 

Things get even more complicated when another old flame of hers comes strolling into town. 

Small Town Stilettos is a friends to lovers, modern marriage of convenience, second chance romantic comedy—with the only one bed trope. It features a body positive, fat heroine, and it’s snarky and sassy. 

If that sounds like a story you can’t wait to read, then I strongly encourage you to apply to be a beta reader at SaganMorrow.com/beta. 

Now, this is my first time officially getting beta readers for one of my novels. I’m pretty excited about it! I have no idea if my method of going about it will be effective, but I figured I’d share behind the scenes for what I’m going to do with my beta readers. 

My hope is to find three beta readers for Small Town Stilettos. Three beta readers feels like a manageable amount, and I think having three perspectives will be helpful for tightening up the story as needed. The application form doesn’t take long to fill out, but it will be very helpful!

TUNE IN to this episode to learn more about my plan for beta readers... 

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!  
• Become a beta reader for Small Town Stilettos: SaganMorrow.com/beta .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

In this episode of Indie Author Weekly, I want to share about my process for how I have chosen cover images and design for my books in the past. I’ll be doing an illustrated cover for my next romcom, which I’m pretty excited about, so that got me thinking about cover images and design in general. 

This is not something that comes naturally to me. I’m a writer, not a designer! I outsourced my design to Acepub for the Polyamorous Passions, and they’ve been pretty good. I chose them right from the start because they were recommended by Kobo Writing Life. 

I still don’t feel as though I’ve totally nailed the decision-making process of choosing cover images and design, but I’ve definitely learned a lot! So if you feel like you aren’t a design person, don’t worry. I’m right there with you. This episode is for you. 

A caveat here: this process is based on my experience with a) hiring out the cover design to someone else, and b) using stock photos for my covers. I’ll be getting a custom illustrated cover design for my next book, so that process will be a bit different! I’ll share about that experience in a future episode if you like. 

Okay! So, here’s how I’ve chosen cover images and designs for my books. Let’s break it down into an easy step by step process... TUNE IN to this episode to get the inside scoop!  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!  
• Acepub . 
• Kobo Writing Life . 
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

In this episode of Indie Author Weekly, I want to share about my recent experience with writing a short story… and why I’ll be doing that on a monthly basis from now on. 

I actually had plans to publish my next romcom, Small Town Stilettos, within the next few weeks. But about a month ago, I realized that I was putting unnecessary pressure on myself to hurry up and edit that book and then publish it. There are other aspects of my business that I also need to focus on, and if I prioritized Small Town Stilettos right now, I’d just be pulled in way too many directions all at once. So I decided that I needed to take a step back and slow down a bit. 

I don’t know about you, but impatience is definitely a weakness of mine. I’ve been able to channel and reframe it into a strength in a lot of ways, because I’m very action-oriented… but I need to remind myself in these situations that it’s not a race, and that I don’t need to hustle every single day to get things done in a rush. So with that in mind, I’ll be working on Small Town Stilettos at a slower pace over the next couple months, and I’ll likely publish it in February or March.  

In the meantime, you can learn more about that book and add it to your To Read list on Goodreads by searching “Small Town Stilettos”... I’ll also drop the link in the show notes of this episode.  

Anyway, when I made that decision, I knew that I still wanted to work on creative writing projects on an ongoing basis. I wanted something smaller that I can complete quickly, without it taking a huge amount of time and energy out of my week, the way that full-length novels do. And that’s where the idea of writing short stories comes in…

TUNE IN to this episode to find out why I'm writing short stories (and why you should, too). 

Resources & links mentioned in this episode: 

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Small Town Stilettos: add to your "To Read" list on Goodreads!
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode: 

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

In this episode of Indie Author Weekly, I want to provide you with some reassurance, if you feel like everyone else is writing a book, and you aren’t. 

We are currently in November, and every November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. It’s that time of year when people from all across the globe come together virtually to each write a 50,000 word novel in the space of just 30 days. It’s a super cool concept and it can be a very effective way to get that first draft on paper. I love the energy of NaNoWriMo—when you’re participating in it, you get to really be a part of a bigger community, with plenty of writing resources. It’s awesome.  

But… what about if you aren’t participating in National Novel Writing Month? What about those times when it feels like everyone else is writing a book, and you aren’t?  

I’ve taken part in NaNoWriMo probably about a half-dozen times, and every year when I don’t participate, I definitely feel some FOMO about it. That’s totally normal. It makes sense to maybe feel a little guilty that we aren’t writing a novel, when it seems like everyone else is doing it. It’s okay to wonder if maybe you should be doing it, too.  

Here’s the thing, though: sometimes, the timing isn’t quite right. And as important as it is to prioritize book writing, we also can’t necessarily just drop everything to do it. Right? Right.  

TUNE IN to this episode for 6 tips on how to deal with FOMO about (not) writing your book...  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode: 

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• National Novel Writing Month .
• Episode 83 of Indie Author Weekly: how to fit "writing a book" into your schedule .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode: 

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

This episode of Indie Author Weekly shares the vital importance of “thinking” time as part of the book writing process.  

What do I mean when I say “thinking” time?  

Basically, that’s any time you’re thinking about your book but not actively writing it. For me, this often happens when I’m out walking or kayaking, or lying awake at night unable to sleep, or just daydreaming at random. Many people find that any kind of mindless task, such as doing household chores or showering etc, is a good opportunity for this. This doesn’t happen when you are sitting at the computer or writing in your journal.  

“Thinking” time can be passive or active. The passive version is when something just springs to mind, unbidden, when you weren’t thinking about your book at all. The active version is when you are trying to focus your brainpower on your book, and working through ideas and such in your mind. 

Both are equally important! Even if you typically do most of your book’s “thinking” time in a passive fashion, I would still encourage you to deliberately carve out time to do the active version of it. It will enable you to channel your ideas, make decisions around plot, and resolve any issues you might be struggling with in your book.  

We often discount “thinking” time because we can’t quantify it, the way we can with a word count. This is a huge problem. If you are only concerned about getting the words on the page, and you don’t consider the underlying themes and tone and characters of your story, then you won’t be able to tease out the nuances of it, and you’ll have a “flatter” story. We don’t want that. We want our books to have depth, substance, a three-dimensional angle. The more that you understand the story, the better your book will be.  

TUNE IN to this episode to find out why "thinking" time is so important, plus a real-life example and how to make it work as part of your own book writing process...  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

Do you have a fear of success? What about a fear of failure? Is fear in general holding you back from writing your book? We address all of that and more in this episode of the Indie Author Weekly podcast! 

Today, we're responding to a listener comment about the fear of success... "When it comes to getting my writing out there, I’m more scared of success than failure."  

If that's you, too, please know that you are not alone! Fear of success is super common—but there are strategies to overcome it. We also address another listener comment in today's episode: "If I wrote as honestly as I fantasize being able to do, I would be afraid of success, too. I’ve thought about writing under a penname. My concern is about being 100% about my thoughts and experiences, and what people would think. I only want to write with brutal honesty or not at all."  

In this combination encouraging pep talk and practical strategies podcast episode, we'll get past your fear of failure, once and for all, so you can finally realize your dreams of becoming an author. TUNE IN to this episode to get that now...   

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Get podcast and book updates delivered to your inbox at SaganMorrow.com/behindthescenes .
• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Episode 83 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: how to fit "writing a book" into your schedule .
• Episode 81 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: 3 tips for how to finish writing your book .
• Episode 7 of the Indie Author Weekly podcast: whether or not to use a pen name as an author .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Subscribe, rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show

This episode of Indie Author Weekly shares a few tips for what you can do to fit writing a book into your busy schedule. I have a step-by-step guide, a 5-step process, for how to do just that. As a productivity strategist, I teach business owners all the time about how to improve time management and productivity… so let’s apply that to your author life.  

First of all, there are 2 key things you need to know about managing your time effectively:  

1. Good time management is rooted in good energy management. 
2. Effective time management and awesome productivity skills are not rocket science: anyone can do it! Yes, that includes you. 

I want you to keep these 2 things in mind when you’re trying to fit “writing a book” into your busy schedule.  

Also, remember this: *What* you choose to prioritize isn’t the issue here... it’s *that YOU make the active choice.* It is that you understand that you have the opportunity to prioritize the things that matter to you. If you are serious about writing and publishing a book, it needs to be a priority.  

We all have different backgrounds and things going on in our lives, of course. For myself, I postponed writing novels for YEARS, and I started writing and publishing the Polyamorous Passions series while I was going through a business partnership breakup, going through some of the worst anxiety of my life, and I also have chronic insomnia and nightmare disorder.  

We all have different things in life and business to deal with—it’s not as though you can necessarily drop everything to work on your book, but it does need to be a priority. No matter your background or personal circumstances, I want you to have hope and confidence that you, too, *can* fit a book into your schedule.  

TUNE IN to this episode for a step-by-step process for how to fit “writing a book” into your schedule...  

Resources & links mentioned in this episode:  

• Learn more about all of Sagan's books at SaganMorrow.com/books .
• Get more focused and disciplined with Productivity Powerhouse at SaganMorrow.com/powerhouse .
• Learn about business planning (and then apply that concept to creating your author plan) in the free Business Planning Retreat Workshop at SaganMorrow.com/retreat .
• Tune into Indie Author Weekly on your favourite podcast platform at SaganMorrow.com/podcast .
• Read sample chapters of the books at SaganMorrow.com/secretpodcast .
• Subscribe, rate & review this podcast on Apple Podcasts .

Let's chat about this episode:  

• @Saganlives on Twitter and Instagram .
• Hashtag: #IndieAuthorWeekly .
• Email [email protected] .
• Share your thoughts (or submit requests for future episode topics) in this survey at SaganMorrow.com/question 

Send fan mail! Click HERE to leave Sagan a voicemail & share your thoughts about this episode.

Support the show