Mark interviews J.D. Barker about his writing and publishing journey and his many collaborations over the years, including with James Patterson, and the unique publishing and distribution collaboration with Simon & Schuster that combines the best of the self-publishing and the traditional publishing worlds.

Prior to the interview, Mark shares comments from recent episodes, a personal update and a word about this episode's sponsor.

This episode is sponsored by an affiliate link to Manuscript Report. Use code MARK10 at checkout and save 10% off your own personalized report.

In their interview, Mark and J.D. talk about:

• How JD was always interested in writing including a little business endeavor he had when he was youngBeing told by his mother that writing is a fantastic hobby, but you have to get a "real job" - and following her advice
• The main day job he had, which he hated, and coming home at night to write
• How the first two decades he'd been writing he did ghost writing and did book-doctor sort of work
• Having written six different books that hit the New York Times bestseller list but had other people's names on the cover
• JD's wife coming up with a plan to get him to writing for himself
• How putting his feet to the coals was what JD really needed
• What it was like writing on his own
• The value that JD recognizes in the 20 years of writing other peoples' books
• Having Asperger's which often involves mimicking other people (which JD could do on paper, continuing to write in another person's voice)
• How ghostwriting for celebrities/NYT Bestselling authors can be very lucrative
• What it was like co-authoring with James Patterson
• Being the only guy who has ever gotten James Patterson to "pants" a novel, but how Patterson convinced him to outline, which he now does for certain projects
• What a typical work-day looks like for JD
• Making a change in terms of what time of day JD does interviews
• Working with a virtual assistant and the various PR agencies JD works with
• Switching over to paying for PR a la carte rather than a monthly retainer
• Selling more than half a million copies of his first self-published book, which caught the attention of agents
• That "taste" of being an indie author which mean a loss of freedom
• Creating his own unique path within publishing that's a blend of self-publishing and traditional publishing models
• The imprint JD has with Simon & Schuster - Hampton Creek Press
• How JD has done a number of recent co-authored titles under his imprint by paying the co-authors up front in a work-for-hire manner, which removes the complexity of paying royalties
• The way JD can pay it forward by helping the mentor the co-authors that he is working on
• Why JD gave away a skid of hardcover books at Reader Nation in Vegas
• Advice JD has about authors who are constantly "chasing each other"
• The unique marketing JD created for his book SOMETHING I KEEP UPSTAIRS that involved an overnight stay in a real haunted house
• What James Patterson did to get his book ALONG CAME A SPIDER onto the New York Times bestseller list
• And more...

After the interview Mark reflects on a few of the things from the conversation that have inspired him in different ways.

Links of Interest:

• J.D. Barker's Website
• EP 445 - Overcoming The Self Sabotage From Buried Trauma with Andrea Torrey Balsara
• Manuscript Report (Mark's affiliate link - use MARK10 to save 10%)
• Buy Mark a Coffee
• Patreon for Stark Reflections
• Mark's YouTube channel
• ElevenLabs (AI Voice Generation - Affiliate link)
• Mark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)
• An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and Libraries
• The Relaxed Author
  • Buy eBook Direct
  • Buy Audiobook Direct
• Publishing Pitfalls for Authors
• An Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & Bookstores
• Wide for the Win
• Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books
  • This Time Around (Short Story)
  • A Canadian Werewolf in New York
  • Stowe Away (Novella)
  • Fear and Longing in Los Angeles
  • Fright Nights, Big City
  • Lover's Moon
  • Hex and the City
  • Only Monsters in the Building
• The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and Automobiles
• Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die Hard
• Merry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
• I Think It's A Sign That The Pun Also Rises

J.D. Barker (Jonathan Dylan Barker) is an international bestselling American author whose work has been broadly described as suspense thrillers, often incorporating elements of horror, crime, mystery, science fiction, and the supernatural.

The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0