TB has two writing deadlines before her trip to London in a handful of weeks. It’s becoming clear, she’s a slow learner and makes her life harder than it needs to be. On the plus side, she was part of a panel discussing why queer representation is important in fiction. The audience was fab, but TB forgot to get a photo and she called herself annoying to a group of strangers.

Clare’s life is centered around 3 things at the moment: work, desk chairs, and Ikea. An expert has informed Clare that her work environment is a disaster and she needs to make corrections in order to keep writing for years to come.

On the writing front, Clare is prepping Before You Say I Do for launch. Woot! She’s planning to release it on March 10, which is during TB’s visit with Clare. TB will do her best to keep Clare calm during the first few days of publication because that’s what writing friends are for.

On March 8, there’s the LWW meetup in London at The Somers Town Coffee House. Please let them know if you’re planning on attending. Either email them ([email protected]) or message them on the socials. They need to reserve enough space.

The duo turns to this week’s topic: why authors need a mailing list. The simple answer is if you want a writing career, having a mailing list is an absolute must. They breakdown all of the reasons why mailing lists are essential, but it all comes back to one key fact: they give authors a direct line of communication to readers. They outline when they started their lists and how they grew them. The key part about mailing lists is it takes time to add subscribers, but it’s one of the best investments you can make for your career.

Resources and links:

The Somers Town Coffee House: www.yummypubs.co.uk/the-somers-town-coffee-house-home

Read the first chapter of Before You Say I Do: www.clarelydon.co.uk/2020/02/before-you-say-i-do-first-chapter-preview/

Join Clare’s Mailing List: www.clarelydon.co.uk/books/free-stuff/

Join TB’s Mailing List: lesbianromancesbytbm.com/join-tbms-mailing-list/

South Coast Lesfic Hang-Out: www.facebook.com/events/360533681474017/

Please let them know if you have a mailing list or enjoy receiving emails from authors. Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for part two of mailing lists: how to set one up and autoresponders.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

Welcome to the golden anniversary episode!

TB is amazed Clare had the foresight to schedule a sex talk during the week of Valentine’s Day. For some inexplicable reason, TB has Thanksgiving on her mind.

On the work front, TB is twenty-five percent done with the cowrite with Miranda MacLeod, and fittingly, she had to stop a sex scene to talk about sex. She’s that dedicated. For those in the Massachusetts’s area, TB will be on a panel, with Miranda MacLeod and Jane C. Esther, at the Peabody library on March 13th. In non-writing news, TB wishes TV shows wouldn’t mess with her. There’s been a lot of sobbing on the couch.

Clare claims she hasn’t had a productive week, but after listing what she has accomplished, including getting through twenty percent of the edits for her upcoming release, writing 10k in her Xmas romance, and visiting family, all while being bogged down with a cold, TB thinks Clare should call the week a win.  Oh, TB also thinks Clare is brilliant and wonders why people don’t like Clare.

The duo turns to this week’s topic: where their characters have sex. This is a topic that causes TB to blush repeatedly and giggle. When she uses a certain phase, it tips TB over the edge. Before they get to that point, they discuss all the exciting places their characters have gotten their groove on and why the scenes are necessary for the romance genre. As Clare says, they’re the action scenes of romance, and they help move a story forward. Furthermore, they’re important to add drama and all the feels readers crave. Like all aspects of writing, it’s important to mix them up and to keep them fresh.

Resources and links:

I Heart Lesfic Valentine’s Sale Page: iheartlesfic.com/love-is-in-the-air-sale/

How Do You Write Podcast: rachaelherron.com/category/podcast/

Why Queer Romance Matters Panel deets: www.facebook.com/events/591982348319759/

Please share your thoughts about sex in books. Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for the much-requested discussion about mailing lists.

Happy listening, and thanks for all of your support. Here’s to the next 50 episodes!

Clare and TB

Clare calls TB the Emperor of Doom. Is she right, LWW listeners?

TB has started a new book, and she’s wondering why she keeps doing this to herself. Last week, she enjoyed outlining a book and all the shiny-new possibilities. Now, putting it into motion, TB can’t help but wonder why she has a career built around constantly needing words? Words are hard. Is this why Clare calls TB the Emperor of Doom? TB’s highlight of the week involved a day of pampering, including getting her hair done to hide her grays.

Clare’s week has revolved around addressing physical ailments, including a bad shoulder, angry forearm, and hinky hip. She also learned the hard way not to upset a mammogram technician before putting a boob in the torture device. To top off her week, Clare learned she has eyelid dandruff. On the writing front, her Xmas story is half-written. She’s quite pleased with it and got her parent’s approval. A total win!

Also, Clare finally reveals the title of her upcoming book!

The duo turns to this week’s topic: writing books in a series. Even though both of them are known for their series, neither set out to write one. Clare didn’t cotton to the fact she was penning a series until after book 3. Wowzers!

TB was resistant at first but got pulled into the Lizzie series after receiving so many “What happens next?” emails and messages.

They share their journeys and offer advice for how to set up a series, especially in the lesbian romance genre. Basically, don’t do what they did. The good news is they’ve learned so much, and hopefully, their wisdom can help others avoid certain series traps and manage reader expectations from the start. They outline the upsides to writing a series, along with the negatives. Then they bring it home by listing their future dos for how they’d approach a new series.

Series mentioned:

Clare’s London series: www.clarelydon.co.uk/books/london-calling/

Clare’s All I Want series: www.clarelydon.co.uk/books/all-i-want-for-christmas/

TB’s Lizzie series: lesbianromancesbytbm.com/books/a-woman-lost-series/

Are you a series writer or reader? Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for an entertaining chat about strange places to set a sex scene. Yep, TB the prude will be squirming. You don’t want to miss it!

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

This week TB has good and bad news. The good: she sent off the Lizzie book to be proofread and started outlining her next two books, including one that’s a cowrite with Miranda MacLeod. The bad: she had a truly horrible, hellacious, hate-her-job day when one of her programs had a bug and she couldn’t complete a task she’s done hundreds of times.

Clare had a productive writing retreat that didn’t involve a lot of writing. Instead, she began relearning AMS ads (one of her year’s goals), sent off a book to the editor, plotted out every single week of 2020 (please no one sneeze or cough anywhere near Clare because she wants to publish four books this year), and outlined and started writing her Xmas book. All of this is great, but the high point may be eating custard creams. They make Clare extremely happy.

The duo turns to a popular question: how much does it cost to launch a book? This is a tricky one to answer because it can cost as much as you’re willing to spend. They breakdown what they typically pay for their books, including fees for editing, covers, advertising, typesetting (if you go that route), and formatting ebooks. That’s not all, though, since there are monthly expenses that many overlook. Those include: mailing lists, graphics, BookFunnel, and most importantly, your time. Basically, you can pay loads more or less, depending on what works for you and your budget.

Resources mentioned:

BookFunnel: bookfunnel.com

Vellum: vellum.pub

Bookbrush: bookbrush.com

PicMonkey: www.picmonkey.com

Have you launched a book? Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for a hilarious discussion about writing books in a series, something they both know a thing or two about.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

In a dramatic turn of events, TB has made major progress on the Lizzie book and the end is in sight. Hopefully this means she’ll stop whining about it.

Clare is still being cagey about telling anyone the title of her current work in progress. The anticipation is killing TB who isn’t known for being patient. As for Clare’s book, she’s unsure if it needs an epilogue. Will she or won’t she write one?

They turn to the topic: blogging. Being the nerdy historian, TB asks Clare if she remembers the first time she heard about blogging. Clare’s background in journalism helped her realize the power of blogging immediately, while TB didn’t see the point. TB has drastically changed her tune and now cherishes the connection blogging allows her to have with readers and she’s made friends all over the world. While both understand the importance of blogging, they have been somewhat scattershot when it comes to their author blogs and plan to do better in 2020. Because shocking news, readers like to read things. The question is, will the duo follow through on maintaining their blogs this year? Stay tuned!

Resource mentioned:

Clare’s London Blog Post: www.clarelydon.co.uk/2018/11/my-london-tourist-guide/

Do you blog or read blogs? Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for a chat about how much it costs to launch a book. TB might have a nervous breakdown discussing numbers.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

It’s a little over a week into the new year, and TB has suffered two writing disasters, which resulted with her losing 32,000 words. Not a great start. On the plus side, she’s been going for more walks (instead of punching a wall) and reading more for pleasure.

Clare is thrilled its Dry January, because the London pubs are empty, allowing her to drink in peace. Also, she’s discovered she’s pretty in pink, but she still won’t wear red. She loves January. TB hates it. They’re starting 2020 right where they left off in 2019: bickering.

Well, they do agree about work things. When it comes to their 2020 goals, they’re remarkably similar in setting lofty goals and not learning from the previous year. TB wants to publish 5 books, redo her author website, hire a virtual assistant, and set an author newsletter schedule. Clare is aiming for 4 books, getting more audio books out there, prioritizing health goals, investing more in her business, and recovering her All I Want series. Most importantly, the duo wants to be more disciplined to avoid chasing their tails.

Resource mentioned:

Bookfunnel: bookfunnel.com

What are your 2020 goals? Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for an entertaining chat about blogging.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

It’s the first week of the New Year, and the duo is reflecting on Christmas and 2019, tallying up how the past 365 days were for them. First, Clare can’t believe another Christmas has gone by and she’s still not Mariah Carey’s lover. She’s consoled herself by baking cookies and buying Ellen DeGeneres’s drying mats. They’re a thing. TB can’t wait for 2019 to be done, as emotionally, it’s been testing.

However, when it comes to their writing, book sales, and their businesses, the duo agrees that 2019 has been their best year yet. TB doubled her income, which is fantastic. She released four books, a ton of audio, and killed it with sales. Clare released three books, two audios, redid her website, and upped her income by ten percent. The duo can’t do math to save their lives, so it’s a good job their job is words, not numbers.

In its first year, the podcast is doing well, too. It’s been listened to in 78 different countries and has had thousands of downloads in year one. TB & Clare are looking forward to 2020. They both agree they need to get better at planning in the coming year, but other than that, they’re just going to keep on keeping on.

How was your 2019? Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for an insightful chat about the duo’s plans for 2020.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

TB prepared for the festive chat by rocking her Grumpy Cat T-shirt, staying true to her grinchyness. In shocking news, she’s not freaking out about Lizzie at the moment because she took Clare’s advice to pull back and not rush to the finish line. Once again, Clare has TB’s back. Also, the IHL mega sale page is almost ready for the December 26th start date.

Across the pond, Clare finished the first draft of her new novel. Woo-hoo! She discovered she’d written 1K of an epilogue but has no memory of doing so. To celebrate completing the first draft, Clare gave herself an afternoon off to do her taxes, and TB questions Clare’s idea of fun. However, Clare and the wife are spending a Christmassy day together, including going to a gingerbread architectural exhibit.

The duo moves on to their favorite festive books and films. TB, who writes more angsty books, prefers reading holiday rom-coms, two of her favorites being one by some chick named Clare Lydon, the other by Miranda MacLeod. TB realizes her friendship with Clare started after reading Clare’s All I Want for Christmas. If TB hadn’t read it, would this podcast even exist? Also, TB just released a holiday cowrite with Miranda. It seems Christmas stories have greatly impacted TB’s life, and her grinchy mind is blown.

In a surprising turn, Clare, the rom-com writer, favors angst-filled holiday stories. Is this the only example of Clare being the darkness and TB being the light? Stay tuned! Clare also takes a moment to dive into the recent Hallmark Channel controversy, where she quickly goes back to being the more hopeful of the two, wishing the company would become more inclusive after their social media dustup. Both of them agree Elf is one of, if not the best, Christmas films, but they can’t agree on the finest A Christmas Carol adaptation. It would be surreal if they agreed on too much even while recording a festive episode.

They’d love to hear about your favorite festive books and films. Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

They’re taking the rest of the year off. The duo wishes the listeners happy holidays, and they’ll see you in 2020.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

The duo is back together after two weeks apart! TB had a fab research trip to New Orleans but is also in the midst of a meltdown about writing her final Lizzie book, ending an 8-book series. Will she make her editing deadline? Tune in next week! Clare’s writing is going well – she’s 10k from finishing a first-draft of her new book, although it’s getting longer and longer. She also enrolled in a craft course and saw a George Michael tribute act. She’s living her best life.

The duo tackles the topic in question: how do you research a book? Being a historian, TB goes deep on reading anything she can: books, articles, newsletters, documents. She also advocates visiting places she writes about so she can truly immerse herself in what it’s like to live there. Plus, she likes nothing more than stealing overheard diner conversations and including them in her books.

Being a former journalist, Clare favors interviewing people who’ve lived what she wants to write or who have jobs she wants to feature. If she can’t speak to them directly, she’ll read/watch interviews, and she also cites radio/TV/film/books as constant sources of inspiration. Plus, she loves to visit where she sets her books, too. She wishes she could visit more US diners. The lack of them in her life makes her sad.

They’d love to hear how you research your books as well as what you thought of their methods. Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for another insightful chat about the duo’s favorite festive movies and books.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB

It’s the run-up to the holiday season, which as everyone knows is the time where we all go bonkers buying presents and drinking too much eggnog. TB has been busy writing all the words for her final Lizzie book (sob!), as well as doing three weeks of work in seven days so she can take a vacation. She managed it. Go, TB! Meanwhile, Clare is back to writing every day, and her new book is coming on at pace. Expect a title reveal very soon. Yes, she finally has one. Whoop!

This week’s question is somewhat sidetracked when the duo talks about Christmas books they’ve written. TB has only started writing them in the past two years. Clare hasn’t written one since her successful 2015 novel, All I Want For Christmas and has no idea why that’s the case. She loves Christmas. Readers love her festive books. She asks if TB knows why she’s been resisting writing a new Christmas book. TB tells her the answer. Clare is speechless.

Fitting in your writing around the holiday season is a bitch, but it pays to do so, as well as remembering to enjoy this time of year, too. Planning is key, as it is all year round. The pair agree they must get better at planning Christmas books from now on. And also at planning in general. 2020 is the year of planning. Probably.

Links:

Holly & Ivy giveaway link: iheartlesfic.com/giveaway/holly-and-ivy-giveaway/

All I Want For Christmas by Clare Lydon: getbook.at/LydonChristmas

It Had To Be You by Clare Lydon (free when you sign up for Clare’s VIP Reader Club): www.clarelydon.co.uk/it-had-to-be-you

They’d love to hear how you work your schedule around busy times of the year! Head over to www.lesbianswhowrite.com, and leave a comment on the episode. Or you can email them at: [email protected].

Stop back next week for another insightful chat about how to research a book.

Happy listening!

Clare and TB