Kobo Writing Life Podcast

In this episode, we spoke to Holly Cassidy, also known as Hannah Mary McKinnon, author of holiday romance novels as Holly and thrillers as Hannah! Holly’s latest, The Christmas Countdown, is a “charming holiday rom com about a young, recently heartbroken woman who is tasked by her sister to complete Advent calendar challenges in the lead up to Christmas to reignite her belief in herself, the holidays, and love again.” The Christmas Countdown is Hannah’s second holiday novel writing as Holly Cassidy, the first being The Christmas Wager.

We discussed Hannah’s writing career (and, as she says, how it was borne of failure), writing ten novels, moving from rom-coms to thrillers and back again, writing in two very different genres, how she creates her characters, her pen name, details about The Christmas Countdown and how it relates to her own holiday traditions, and much more! Hannah has had such a wonderful career and it was great to hear from such a prolific author with unique perspectives on both romantic comedies and thrillers. Don’t miss this episode if you’re a write (or reader) of either… or both, just like Hannah!

To learn more, visit Hannah’s website and follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Threads and X/Twitter.

In this episode, we are joined by New York Times and USA Today best-selling author and prolific writer Michelle M. Pillow, author of dozens of novels across several series. Michelle writes in the genres of fantasy romance, paranormal romance, science fiction, cozy mysteries, and more.  Michelle has sold over a million copies of her books and has written over 100 titles! Her prolific catalogue and years of experience mean she has a wealth of advice to author for indie authors, those both established and entirely new to the world of indie publishing.

Her latest release is Mostly Shattered, the second book in the urban fantasy romance series Merely Mortal. Be sure to check out the rest of the series.

We spoke to Michelle about her start as a writer, how she plots her books and what her writing process entails, her world-building process, her experiences in the early days of indie publishing, marketing her backlist and balancing new writing projects, writing (or not writing) to the changing reader market, and much more!

Learn more on Michelle’s website, and follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X/Twitter, and TikTok.

In this episode, we spoke to Golden Angel, USA Today best-selling author of “heart-and bottom-warming romance,” whose series include Masters of Marquis, Desire and Discipline, the Bridal Discipline series, and more! Golden’s publishing journey began back in 2012 (but she’s been writing even longer), and she became a full-time indie author in 2020. As the author of dozens of books across several series, her successful career spans over a decade, and she has so much great advice and insights to offer!

Golden has also presented her marketing advice and shared her expertise at InkersCon, Romance Author Mastermind, and more. She hosts a marketing and publishing advice series on her TikTok – aptly titled “Just the Tip.” We had a great time discussing all things indie publishing, writing kinky romance, marketing tips and tricks, the importance of your newsletter and so much more.

Follow Golden on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X/Twitter and be sure to check out her website for more.

In this episode, we spoke to Vancouver-based author and former ghostwriter, Katrina Kwan! Her romance novel debut, the rom-com Knives, Seasoning, and a Dash of Love is “a spicy romance between the talented and hotheaded chef Alexander Chen and his new hire Eden Monroe. When her bubbly attitude collides with his sharp edges, can they handle the heat between them or will their love be a recipe for disaster?”

Katrina is also the author of two fantasy novels, The Last Dragon of the East, available October 7th 2024, and the forthcoming The Legend of the Nine-tailed Fox. We had a wonderful time talking about all things contemporary romance, writing inspirations, her transition from ghostwriting to writing under her own name, all about Knives, Seasoning, and a Dash of Love, what’s next for Katrina, and much more! We had a lovely time speaking with Katrina and learning all about her writing career and can't wait to read her upcoming releases.

Learn more on Katrina’s website and follow Katrina on Instagram.

In this episode, we spoke to award-winning women’s fiction and romance author Anna Gomez, whose publications (and accolades) are many! She has written numerous romance novels under the pen name Christine Brae, and is one half of the best-selling series co-authored with Kristoffer Poloha, From Kona with Love. This swoon-worthy series is in development for film and television and has been mentioned in People Magazine, Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Home & Family, and Publishers Weekly.

We spoke to Anna about her new release with Kobo Originals, Somewhere Along the Way, her writing career, her experience working in finance as well as authoring her many books, how travelling inspires her writing, her personal connections to her main characters, writing under a pen name, and more! We had a wonderful time talking to Anna and can’t wait to share Somewhere Along the Way with long-time fans and new readers alike.

Learn more on Anna’s website, and follow Anna on Facebook, Instagram, and X/Twitter.

In this episode of the KWL Podcast, we were joined by Hanna Wheeler, translator and copywriter who has worked on translating several Kobo Originals titles (check out Iris Visser’s books)! Hanna grew up in a bilingual family and is fluent in both English and Dutch, and has translated a variety of titles, from biographies to children’s pictures and more! Her work is expansive; some of her previous clients include MTV, Greenpeace, Sony Pictures, and more.  

Hanna had a lot to tell us about her experience as a translator, her reading habits, her foray into freelancing, how she got started as a translator for Kobo Originals, freelancing advice, her thoughts on AI and translation, and much more! If you’re interested in learning more about the life of a translator, listen in!

Learn more on Hanna’s website, and be sure to follow Hanna on Instagram and LinkedIn.

In this episode, we spoke with science fiction, fantasy, and young adult fiction author Nicki Pau Preto! Nicki is a Sunday Times best-selling author of six books across these genres in both the middle grade and young adult fiction categories. Her latest YA fantasy release is Ghostsmith, the sequel to Bonesmith! These two books make up the House of the Dead duology, a “dark young adult fantasy about a disgraced ghost-fighting warrior who must journey into a haunted wasteland to rescue a kidnapped prince.”

We spoke to Nicki about her publishing journey, her writing inspirations, writing YA and middle grade titles, the House of the Dead duology, fantasy world-building, developing the history of a fantasy world, and much more! This interview was full of great advice and inspiration for fantasy writers of all genres and age groups – be sure to listen if you’re looking for an illuminating look into the mind and writing process of an amazing fantasy author.

To learn more, visit Nicki’s website and find her on Instagram.

In this episode, we are joined by Renee Rose and Lee Savino, best-selling authors who have written over 20 titles together! The best-selling Bad Boy Alpha series is the result of their collaborative effort to write spicy wolf-shifter books. Their collaboration goes all the way back to 2015, when they first met at a writing conference and became fast friends. Lee and Renee had so much great advice regarding indie publishing, collaborative writing and thinking abundantly that we could have recorded for twice as long!

We also discussed Lee and Renee’s writing careers, how they got into indie publishing, their views on marketing books, advice for writing and rewriting, what makes a great co-writing relationship, how having an abundance and exponential growth mindset can help your writing career, trends in the indie publishing industry, and much more!

To learn more, visit Lee’s website and Renee’s website.

In this episode, we are joined by Clayton Noblit, senior book marketing manager at Written Word Media. Clayton has been a voracious reader his whole life and, after working in financial start-ups, moved to Written Word Media and has been there ever since. Clayton loves working with indie books and indie authors and has a lot of great advice to offer the community! As an expert in digital marketing, he had a lot to share with us.

We talked about Clayton’s start in the indie author community, learned more about Written Word Media’s services, discussed strategies around promo stacking, and got lots of great marketing advice for authors. If you’re curious about improving your promo strategies and skills, don’t miss this great episode.

Learn more about Written Word Media, check out Written Word Media on TikTok, and be sure to sign up for Written Word Media’s newsletter!

In this episode, we are joined by Nora Decter, writing instructor and author of How Far We Go and How Fast, her debut YA novel that won the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize in 2019. Nora’s latest book, What’s Not Mine, is described as an "absorbing, darkly funny story of family, addiction, and survival."

We spoke to Nora about her writing career, writing YA before transitioning to writing adult fiction, what it was like winning the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize, what books and authors inspired her, reading and writing "voice-y" novels, balancing humour with difficult subject matter, and more! Nora had many great insights into writing (and thinking about writing), especially when it comes to first drafts. Emerging writers, take note!

Learn more about Nora on her website.

Content note: This episode contains discussions of the impact of the fentanyl crisis in North America. Please listen with caution and care if you are sensitive to this subject matter.