Smart Author

Publishing in the classroom.  When high school students are given the chance to publish their writing as an ebook, it helps them gain a new appreciation for the written word.  Mark Coker shares details of an innovative writing project in Los Gatos, California where each  year high school students collaborate to write and publish a poetry anthology that is sold in all the major ebook stores. 

Learn how you, as a writer, reader, educator or concerned citizen, can launch similar ebook publishing programs in your community.

How to earn free press coverage to elevate your author brand and drive demand for your books. You'll also learn how to write a press release and how to promote your news to mainstream media. This is part six in Mark Coker's six-part serialization of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide.  This six-part marketing series began with episode 10 of the Smart Author Podcast.  Full transcript of this and all other episodes available at https://smashwords.com/podcast

Social media for authors.  Learn how to get more from Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.  This is part five in the Smart Author podcast’s six-part audio serialization of the 2018 edition of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide, a free ebook coming out at the end of January, 2018.  This serialization began with Episode 10 of the Smart Author podcast.  Full transcript available at https://smashwords.com/podcast

Learn 25 book promotion tips. The tips are grouped in logical order to roughly correspond to the different stages of a book's marketing, from pre-launch to launch to post-launch. These tips can be implemented in any order at any stage of an author's publishing journey.   This is part four of Mark Coker's six-part serialization of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide.  Show notes at https://smashwords.com/podcast

17 tips to leverage your book to sell more books, build your social media platform and catalyze word of mouth. Part 3 of 6 in Mark Coker's six-part serialization of the new 2018 edition of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide.

Learn ebook marketing.  Part 2 of 6.  This episode explores author brand-building, knowledge-building, platform-building and distribution.  17 book marketing tips are presented, all of which help the author build a solid marketing foundation. Mark Coker reads from chapter 2 of the new 2018 edition of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide which comes out in late January, 2018. 

Full transcript at https://smashwords.com/podcast

This six-part series on book marketing is best listened to serial from Episode 10 (Part 1 of 6) onward.

Learn ebook marketing, Part 1. Introduces listeners to this special six-part series on book marketing, which guides writers step-by-step from the basics of book marketing to more advanced topics.  In this SMART AUTHOR podcast exclusive, Mark reads the new 2018 edition of the Smashwords Book Marketing Guide.  This episode covers an introduction to book marketing and then concludes by describing 23 free book marketing tools available to Smashwords authors and publishers.  This six-part book marketing series is best listened to serially from Episode 10 onward.   Full transcript at https://smashwords.com/podcast

The indie author revolution and the struggle for free expression.  Learn the fascinating history behind the centuries-old struggle for free expression. Mark shares how the roots of today's indie author movement reach back to the introduction of Gutenberg's printing press. Gutenberg's printing press enabled mass communication of the written word, but also led to enormous social, cultural and political upheaval as those in power sought to control free expression by controlling the printing press. Mark carries the story forward to the present where he explains how ebooks helped democratize book publishing by putting the printing press in the hands of all writers. He reads his Indie Author Manifesto, first published in 2014, which describes the ethos, attitudes and desires of indie authors.

Show notes and full transcript at https://smashwords.com/podcast/9

All writers can face dark days when the reasons to quit feel more sensible than the reasons to power on. In this episode, Mark teaches writers how to find the strength to persevere during the inevitable ups and downs of the writer’s life. He concludes by sharing twenty tips for publishing success, and shares how to find joy and strength in the journey of self-publishing.  Show notes at https://smashwords.com/podcast

Learn what makes readers respond to your books.  The annual Smashwords Survey takes a quantitative, unconventional approach to identifying best practices that make books more desirable and more enjoyable to readers. Mark Coker discusses the results of this sixth annual survey, and provides new data never before released prior to this podcast.  Supplemental show notes at https://smashwords.com/podcast