Become a Writer Today

NFTs are a topic that has been in the news a lot lately. I recently went down the NFT rabbit hole by reading up on the subject, joining Discord channels, watching videos on YouTube, and reading articles.

One person who knows more than me is this week’s guest, Shane Neeley. He wrote a fantastic article about how writers and authors can use NFTs to sell some of their books and increase their income.
 
The other thing we got into in this week’s interview is using AI writing software. I was fascinated to hear how Shane has tested AI writing software like jarvis.ai, Writesonic, and Wordtune. These apps are great for writing headlines or an introduction to a blog post, but if you want to rely on AI to write an entire article, it’s just not possible yet.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How a writer could use AI
• Where writing technology will go over the next few years
• Using AI tools when you have no knowledge or experience
• How Shane used an NFT based on his book
• How easy is it to create an NFT?

Resources:

• OpenSea
• Shane Neeley
• Stoneage Code
• Chimpsarehungry
• What are NFTs?

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

• Writing for children
• How long it took Maria to set up a publishing company
• Focusing on characters with disabilities
• The process of working with a small press
• A typical working day for Maria
• Deciding which books to publish each year

• Cardinal Rules Press
• Maria Dismondy
• Kindness is a Kite String

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

Amy S. Peele is a successful indie author who’s written across several genres, including medical mysteries and, more recently, rom-com.

Amy says that when you start writing in a new genre, it’s natural to feel a sense of imposter syndrome. After all, this is something that you haven’t written in before. But, with a little bit of practice and some know-how about the genre, you can easily overcome this natural part of the creative process.

Amy proves that it is possible to build a writing career on the side of a busy job. Amy is a registered nurse and a retired organ transplant expert, and she uses many of her insights and anecdotes from when she worked in that field for her medical mystery books.

Maybe stories from your career could be fodder for a future book?

In this episode, we discuss:

• The key to switching genres
• The conventions of a good rom-com
• Taking improv classes to improve your writing
• Outlining stories vs. freewriting
• Breaking down mental blocks
• Having a tribe that you can share with

Resources:

• Amy S. Peele
• Amy's Books

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

 Katja Kaine is the founder of The Novel Factory, a piece of software that makes it easier to write compelling stories.

Katja developed the software and now uses real-world feedback from readers to improve the product.

Katja talks about how she balances creative work and writing with running a business. She told me she writes for between two and three hours in the morning before she starts work on her business.
 
The remainder of her day involves working in her Novel Factory business. She handles all of the support messages from customers, plans the latest features, and manages her team of developers.

It's great to hear from a creative who balances working on their craft and telling compelling stories with working on their business and doing something to help other writers and other authors get their published works out into the world.

To get  20% off The Novel Factory, use the discount code: BECOMEAWRITERTODAY

In this episode, we discuss.

• Why Katja designed The Novel Factory
• The evolution of The Novel factory
• Who is Katja's ideal customer?
• How The Novel Factory works
• Switching from creative work to running a business
• Traditional publishing vs. self-publishing 

Resources.

• The Novel Factory
• Katja Kaine

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

If you've never tried affiliate marketing before, it can be an excellent way to earn some passive income.

I've been using affiliate marketing for some time, and I've also promoted some courses directly as an affiliate. How it works is, when there's a big course launch, you get invited to recommend it to your audience by an affiliate manager.

Matt McWilliams is one of the most well-known affiliate managers online today.

I met Matt several years ago online when he invited me into the affiliate program for Michael Hyatt's Five Days to Your Best Year Ever course. Since then, I've taken part in other affiliate launches with Matt, like Self-Publishing School.

In this episode, I want to help you understand how affiliate marketing can help you earn more money as a writer and build an ecosystem of products and services that you can promote.

I finally had the chance to catch up with Matt for this podcast episode. I asked him about his journey into affiliate marketing and how writers and creators can use affiliate marketing to promote goods and services.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Strategies to learn as a beginner
• How to get into affiliate marketing
• How to make affiliate marketing serve your audience
• What do successful affiliates do that others don't?
• How to increase conversions
• Should you use Facebook advertising?

Resources:

• Matt McWilliams
• Michael Hyatt
• Self-Publishing School

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

Julie Broad is the author of Self-Publish & Succeed and she is an expert when it comes to book launches.

If you've written a book and have been thinking about its launch, there are several strategies that you can try.

On her YouTube channel, Book Launchers, Julie offers practical advice about how to launch your book on Amazon, get reviews, and sell more books.

I caught up with Julie to get some first-hand advice on launching a book.

In this episode, we discuss.

• Why are there so many boring self-published, non-fiction books
• What it takes for a book to succeed on Amazon
• Good strategies for launching a book
• Where should you sell your book other than Amazon
• Other tactics for selling a book
• How to find a good editor
• Hiring a developmental editor
• Using YouTube as a promotion tool

Resources.

• Book Launcher 
• More than Cashflow
• The New Brand You
• Self Publish and Succeed
• Booklaunchers.com

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

Many of you who listen to Become a Writer Today want to write a book and take action and do it. 

Others say they want to write a book or have a book inside of them, but somehow, that goal or that intention never actually happens.

The best way to start writing your book is to think about your intention. 

Do you want to be more creative, build a business, make an impact or share your stories? 

Or is it simply something that you want to tick off your bucket list? 

Travis Bell is known as The Bucket List Guy, and he has built a popular business around public speaking and teaching other people how to tick items off their bucket list. He’s also the author of the Bucketlist Blueprint.

Travis describes how his focus has helped him become an author, build a profitable public speaking business, travel the world, and serve his audience.

In this episode, we discuss.

• Where the name The Bucket List Guy came from.
• How to get started writing your book
• Using a book to build a business
• Motivational books to read
• How Travis structures his day
• How Travis built his business

Resources.

• The Bucket List Guy
• The Bucketlist Blueprint 
• Bucket List Life Podcast
• Bucket List Guy Coaching
• Travis on Instagram
• Travis TEDx

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

As the founder of Filthy Rich Writer, Nicki Krawczyk teaches other people how to become profitable copywriters.

In our chat, Nicki talks about how you can become a copywriter, the skills you need to land clients, how to pitch your first client, and how to set your rates so you can get paid well for doing it. 

I also asked Nicki what courses copywriters should take and which books they should read. 

Nicki has her own courses, and she details some of the lessons and how she helps her students.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How Nicki got into copywriting
• How a good copywriter understands their target market
• Copywriting is half creativity and half strategy
• What you should include in a copywriting pitch
• Who to pitch to and what should you charge?
• How to change your writing to that of a copywriter
• How much can a copywriter earn?

Resources:

• Filthy Rich Writer
• Build Your Copywriting Business Podcast
• Free Video Training
• Filthy Rich Writer on Facebook
• Filthy Rich Writer on Instagram

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

My guest in this podcast episode is Geoffrey Bunting, a book cover designer based in the UK.

He’s worked for publications like HarperCollins and National Geographic. In this episode of the podcast, we get into how you can get ready to work with your book cover designer, how much you should expect to pay, and how to figure out the types of book covers that will work in your niche.

In the second half of the interview, we also talked about Geoffrey’s other type of work, designing and laying out books.

I asked Geoffrey what he thinks about the layout software Vellum, and he has some interesting insights on software versus working with a professional book designer.

In this episode we discuss:

• Is there more work for book designers due to self-publishing
• How to market yourself as a book designer
• Why non-fiction is easier to design for
• Deciding on the type of cover
• Should you have different covers for different countries
• How much you should expect to pay for a professional book cover
• The process for designing a book
• Designing for print vs Kindle

Resources:

• Vellum
• InDesign
• Geoffrey Bunting

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!

Frank Scalise is a crime writer who also writes under the pen name Frank Zafiro.

His books include the River City series and he has also written several fantasy books.

Frank has been writing since he was 13 years old. After entering the police force, he wrote before or after shift work. In 2013, Frank did what many writers dream of: he retired from the police force to write full time.

During our chat, Frank told me that if you collaborate with somebody else, you can accomplish a lot more, and to prove it, Frank has written over 30 books.

If you’re interested in collaborating with other writers, listen to the middle of the interview when Frank explains how he finds collaborators. He talks about what to expect from the collaborative process and how it’s helped him write more books.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How Frank balanced work with writing
• Writing what you know
• The secret to writing over 30 books
• Outlining a plot vs writing as you go 
• A typical day's writing
• Working with editors
• Finding collaborators
• The collaboration process
• Publication plans

Resources:

• BookFunnel
• Frank Zafiro Website 
• Wrong Place, Write Crime
• Frank Zafiro's Books

Support the show

If you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollins

Thanks for listening!