How Authors Work: Learn the process from professional authors and become a more productive writer

By Andrew Burleson and Paul Kilpatrick - Founders of BetaBooks.co

Arts Technology Literature Business Management & Marketing Software How-To

What's How Authors Work: Learn the process from professional authors and become a more productive writer about?

Every week we interview an author or publishing pro and dig into how they work. We get as detailed as possible, exploring their tools, techniques, and workflow secrets, and share their tips and tricks so you can use them too.

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How Authors Work: Learn the process from professional authors and become a more productive writer episodes:

05.30.2019
Co-writing, Ghostwriting, Writing for Hire, and Writing for Himself the interesting journey of Chris Tebbetts
Join us as Chris Tebbetts explains his fascinating authorial journey and experience working in some of the intriguing but less discussed sections of the publishing world.
09.24.2018
Season 2 Finale with Andrew and Paul - the Cost of the Author's Dream
In which Andrew and Paul talk about how much fun they had talking to authors in the last few months. Where they are taking the podcast next and what it means to be an author.
09.02.2018
Mini-Episode with just Paul and his Oreos
A brief few words from one of our hosts(me) ahead of next weeks Andrew and Paul talk
08.27.2018
Using Your Beta to go from 30 to 30,000 readers with KT Strange
We depart from our normal format because of how excited Andrew and I are. KT tells us how she launched her first book to 30 orders then restrategized and used her beta to build her audience and now sells...
08.20.2018
You need persistence probably more than anything else. - Elizabeth Chatsworth
We talk with writer, improviser, and voice actor Elizabeth Chatsworth, who sounds so much cooler than us, about her book The Brass Queen. We hear how she uses improv to write her books and how she creates a chapter in...
08.06.2018
Maxine Kaplan - "You can't fix what you don't write"
We talk with Maxine about how she got organized, the value of todo lists and delve into the misconceptions people have about sensitivity readers and why we all like the term expertise reader better.
07.23.2018
Diana Pinguicha - Playing video games, learning English, and writing.
We talk about how her passion for video games led her both to learn English and to start writing and we explore the importance of time in her writing process, both sleeping on her next days scenes and letting her...
07.16.2018
K.D. Edwards - The day his debut novel launched!
I talk to K.D. Edwards about all the normal writer process stuff we love so much only this interview is the day his debut hit stores so we also talk about launches the times between launches and the fact that...
07.09.2018
CB Lee: We talk about ploting a series, writing YA LGBTA superhero stories, comics, webcomics, and Ikea.
I, yes just Paul this week, talk with CB Lee about superheroes, comics, using multiple whiteboards, and constructing a book out of pieces written out of order. We also talk a little about the challenge of labeling works that a...
07.02.2018
Rich Leder - We talk about screenwriting and novel writing and how doing both has influenced his process.
Our conversation with Rich covers a ton of ground, including the open door policy he established with his family. Moving from New Jersey to New York to California to Willmington and how he uses his screenwriting paradigm to write his...
06.25.2018
Cherish Smith - Being Ready when an Opportunity Arrives
Cherish shares her journey to getting an agent, teaches us about being a turtle writer, and we talk about doowop music and Tin Pan Alley.
06.18.2018
Deborah Maroulis
Today we talk about how Deborah uses her experience as a teacher in her writing process for inspiration and feedback, how you don't even want to know what the new slang is and how people who don't like the movie...
06.11.2018
Montiese McKenzie
In this episode, we talk about how one scene appeared in Montiese McKenzie's head one day and it led her to be an urban fantasy writer. Her "rear window" writing process and diversifying her cast.
06.04.2018
M.D. Neu
We talk with sci-fi author M.D. Neu about how his characters talk to him. Working through his dyslexia. The challenges of finding a professional community as a writer and how writing LGBTQ characters interacts with genre choices.
05.28.2018
Kevin Jackson
Kevin E. Jackson talks to us about how and where he writes, how he went from 90 rejections to having an agent he loves and how he found his writer tribe.
04.10.2018
Andy Reagan of the Hedonometer talks about the shapes of stories and how they learned what words are "happy".
A conversation with Andy Reagan about the Hedonometer and his work using computers to discern and understand the shapes of plots, the general happiness of twitter, and who swears most on the internet.
04.02.2018
Fictionary
We talk with Kristina Stanley about her writing, sailing around the world, creating Fictionary and how she found success selling her books to non-bookstores.
03.11.2018
Dabble's Jacob Wright talks about his passion for writing tools
Jacob Wright the creator of Dabble talks about how he created the online word processor and his hopes for its future.
02.27.2018
Noel Fudge, Organizer of The Novel Exchange talks about the power of names.
We talked with Noel Fudge about how she helps authors build community with other authors through The Novel Exchange, how she hides to write, and why she chose a gender neutral pen name.
02.16.2018
Motorcycling around the world with Carla King
We talk with Carla King about her motorcycle related travel writing. We met when she used BetaBooks to get feedback for her Consumer Guide to Writing & Publishing Tools & Service.
02.11.2018
Planning for your bad days — with John Hartness
We had an amazing talk with John at the end of 2017. He covered a lot of ground talking about everything from mental health to starting a publishing company to finding the writing rhythm that works for your brain.
01.25.2018
Writing By Hand – with Cayla Keenan
Andrew and I have referenced Cayla Keenan’s process in just about every podcast since this one was recorded. She's a college student and author, and her debut novel, "Catching Stars" is coming out in June of 2018. Learn how she...
01.15.2018
Writing a Thesaurus of Emotions — with Becca Puglisi
Becca Puglisi talks to Andrew and Paul about the process of co-writing The Emotional Wound Thesaurus and how she and her co-author Angela Ackerman work to find one voice as two writers. We also spent time talking about emotional self-care...
01.13.2018
From Fan Fiction to Original Work — with J.S. Dewes
Jenny discusses how she uses Pinterest as part of her workflow, what her self-editing and beta processes look like, and how her experience on indie film sets influences her work as a novelist.
01.04.2018
[Bonus] Reading long books and walking around airports – with Andrew and Paul
Unlucky episode 13 is a bonus conversation between Andrew and Paul. They cover what they've been up to on BetaBooks, How Authors Work, and have an in-depth conversation about the books they've enjoyed reading lately and how they buy them.
11.27.2017
Ruminating on Ideas – with Jay Posey
Jay joined us for an awesome discussion, but Paul kept the show notes to himself! He'll be adding those in the morning, and when he does this temporary episode summary will be rendered moot.
11.14.2017
Growing from freelance to full-time – with C. Hope Clark
Hope is a mystery author and the editor of Funds For Writers. She joined us for a wide ranging conversation on how she learned to write, and how she organizes her work, and how her career as a writer evolved...
10.17.2017
A realistic look at the slush pile and your chances of making it out – with Gray Rinehart
Gray Rinehart joins us to talk about his writing process and his work as a Contributing Editor at Baen Books. Gray oversees the infamous "slush pile," where unsolicited manuscripts go when they're sent to Baen. He gives us some great...
10.09.2017
Building your audience by replying to email – with Carlos Cooper
Carlos joined us to talk about his writing process, including dictating instead of typing and writing novels live with an audience of fans following along.
10.02.2017
I could write a comedy if I had to – with Kelli Fitzpatrick
Kelli joined us to talk about her officially licensed Star Trek story and how it's launched her career, took us on tour of her writing process, and encouraged aspiring authors to write whenever (and whatever!) they can.
09.18.2017
Adding a Russian Submarine is never a bad idea – with Mike Kraus
Mike Kraus joined us to talk about his success in self-publishing, his writing process in-depth, and how he publishes an incredible word count every month.
09.11.2017
Working with schools, authentic representation, and not judging one font over another – with Scott Reintgen
Scott joined us to talk about the launch of his upcoming book, Nixia. He shared tons of great insight including how he works with schools (huge for a YA author), how he thinks about representation and the importance of authenticity,...
09.05.2017
Hiring an editor for your term paper may be cheating – with Mollie Tuberville
Mollie walks us through the editorial process, including how she defines different services, how she figures out pricing, how authors find her, and more.
08.30.2017
Building community with your readers (and why Rome fell) – with Dr. Markus McDowell
Dr. Markus McDowell joins us to discuss his writing workflow. Markus has tested just about every writing app out there, and has some great recommendations for everything from outlining to publishing. We also talked a lot about his success in...

What's How Authors Work: Learn the process from professional authors and become a more productive writer about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

How Authors Work: Learn the process from professional authors and become a more productive writer episodes:

Co-writing, Ghostwriting, Writing for Hire, and Writing for Himself the interesting journey of Chris Tebbetts

Season 2 Finale with Andrew and Paul - the Cost of the Author's Dream

Mini-Episode with just Paul and his Oreos

Using Your Beta to go from 30 to 30,000 readers with KT Strange

You need persistence probably more than anything else. - Elizabeth Chatsworth

Maxine Kaplan - "You can't fix what you don't write"

Diana Pinguicha - Playing video games, learning English, and writing.

K.D. Edwards - The day his debut novel launched!

CB Lee: We talk about ploting a series, writing YA LGBTA superhero stories, comics, webcomics, and Ikea.

Rich Leder - We talk about screenwriting and novel writing and how doing both has influenced his process.

Cherish Smith - Being Ready when an Opportunity Arrives

Deborah Maroulis

Montiese McKenzie

M.D. Neu

Kevin Jackson

Andy Reagan of the Hedonometer talks about the shapes of stories and how they learned what words are "happy".

Fictionary

Dabble's Jacob Wright talks about his passion for writing tools

Noel Fudge, Organizer of The Novel Exchange talks about the power of names.

Motorcycling around the world with Carla King

Planning for your bad days — with John Hartness

Writing By Hand – with Cayla Keenan

Writing a Thesaurus of Emotions — with Becca Puglisi

From Fan Fiction to Original Work — with J.S. Dewes

[Bonus] Reading long books and walking around airports – with Andrew and Paul

Ruminating on Ideas – with Jay Posey

Growing from freelance to full-time – with C. Hope Clark

A realistic look at the slush pile and your chances of making it out – with Gray Rinehart

Building your audience by replying to email – with Carlos Cooper

I could write a comedy if I had to – with Kelli Fitzpatrick

Adding a Russian Submarine is never a bad idea – with Mike Kraus

Working with schools, authentic representation, and not judging one font over another – with Scott Reintgen

Hiring an editor for your term paper may be cheating – with Mollie Tuberville

Building community with your readers (and why Rome fell) – with Dr. Markus McDowell