The conversation between Nancy Smay and USA Today bestselling rom-com author Marika Ray delves into the world of writing and publishing, exploring topics such as book production, genre selection, marketing strategies, and writing processes.

Marika shares insights into her journey as an author, her approach to writing, and the challenges she faces in the industry. The discussion also touches on the use of writing software, market research, and the evolving nature of the publishing landscape.

The conversation covers a wide range of topics including AI, book production, mindset, wellness, and community engagement. Marika Ray shares her views on AI, her book production process, mindset and wellness, and her approach to staying connected with the writing community.

Finally, the conversation also delves into the importance of fitness and the impact of personal experiences on self-image. The discussion is candid, insightful, and engaging, offering valuable insights for authors and creatives.

In this episode, Nancy and author Kelly Collins delve into Kelly's writing process, book series, and publishing experiences.

They also explore the concept of 'steaminess' in romance novels, the challenges of writing, and the importance of backups and market research.

The conversation covers a wide range of topics, including the creative process, book launches, pre-orders, mindset, physical health, and the influence of teachers. Kelly shares awesome insights on writing, marketing, and personal growth, providing valuable takeaways for authors and readers alike.

We're flipping the script a bit!

Listen in as Nancy interviews working authors who run the gamut of genre and renown. First up? A bit of a multiple personality situation - Delancey Stewart!

Hear how she gets ideas, plots her books, tools she uses, and how she approaches marketing.

Our new focus gives you a look behind the scenes at your favorite author's desks!

Tropes are a storytelling convention that help us let readers know what to expect from our books. Learn how to use them, combine them, and twist them to make your stories fresh!

Why do you need to understand comps as an author? Because you can't market a book without understanding the market. This episode of Story Strategy focuses on helping indie authors figure out how to market their books based on identifying where they fit with other books in the market.

The Story Strategy podcast is back, and in this episode, we explore Deep POV - a fiction writing technique that eliminates the narrator and pulls readers directly into the emotion and action of your story.

Want to learn how to do it?

Practical tips and examples are inside!

Join story coaches Dawn and Nancy as we talk with bestselling author Melanie Harlow about how she pulls readers into her characters and builds stories that make them care. Melanie is an expert at developing relatable heroines that we want as our best friends and heroes that are often called book boyfriends by her fans. 

*This episode was originally aired in 2020.

We're rebooting last year's popular blurb episode! Listen as Nancy and Dawn discuss what makes a blurb that sells books -- and how exactly to structure your blurb. Not sure what to include? This episode is for you. At the end, Nancy and Dawn take a listener blurb live and help make it better. 

Want more help with blurbs? We're launching our first ever blurb-building workshop, a four-week interactive course that will give you the tools you need to write great blurbs for your books. Get more information by signing up here! 

Learn more about how story coaching works and find out if it's right for you. 

In this episode, you'll hear story coaches Nancy and Dawn help author Daniela Romero recover her excitement about a story she'd felt stuck on. 

You'll learn about Daniela's unique writing process, and learn strategies to improve the way you work through your own story problems! 

Wonder what story coaches do? Hear Dawn and Nancy work through some story issues with new author Rae Fields as she plots out her first three books. We'll help her solidify her crisis, understand how internal conflicts drive her story forward, and how parallelism can pull story elements together.