SPA Girls Podcast

This week is episode number 36 and we decided to talk a little more indepth about the kind of content you might provide in your newsletter for your subscribers.

They've signed up to your list, now what? It's all very well being told that you need to write to your email subscribers regularly - but what on Earth do you write to them about? Your latest doctor's appointment? Which politicians you hate most? NO! That'll just get you a nice high UNSUBSCRIBE rate.

This week we give you a whole bunch of ideas on the best way to connect with your readers, how to keep them engaged and interested in you and your books, and how to figure out what they will be most interested in reading about. Enjoy!

This week we're up to episode number 35, and we talked about brainstorming your next novel. We each talked about how we do it, the kind of methods we use and what we recommend for people wanting to create a solid book idea. At the end we decided to do an impromptu session where we actually brainstorm a brand new novel together. It was a huge laugh, and we hope it's both entertaining and helpful to you when you start planning your next novel.... :)

This week we're up to episode number 35, and we talked about brainstorming your next novel. We each talked about how we do it, the kind of methods we use and what we recommend for people wanting to create a solid book idea. At the end we decided to do an impromptu session where we actually brainstorm a brand new novel together. It was a huge laugh, and we hope it's both entertaining and helpful to you when you start planning your next novel.... :)

This week - episode 34 - we talked about reviews - what they are, why you need them, and how you might go about getting some more!

The best thing about Amazon is the ability to leave reviews and to gather momentum for your books through word of mouth, and we love them for it. Even better, they're pretty good at trying to make sure those reviews are legitimate reviews, rather than people trying to game the system (and okay, there will always be peeps trying to game the system, but at least they're trying).

Welcome to another episode of the infamous SPA Girls Podcast, where we break down the journey to self publishing one step at a time. This week we talked about newsletters - what they are, why you should have one, and how to go about getting one sorted. Setting up an email newsletter is often quoted as being the number one top priority for a self published author - it gives a direct line between you and your readers, which can be invaluable.

In this week's episode we tackle the always-changing topic of pricing in self publishing. It's a biggie, and it's sometimes hard to distill this one down, especially because most people who are new to self publishing just want those who are older and wiser (haha) to just say - "You must do it this way!" Unfortunately there is no "one true path" for pricing, especially given the vast array of differing goals and aims of authors, and the constantly changing nature of the industry. What worked two years ago won't necessarily work now.

We suggest that you research the price of other books similar to your own (in genre, length etc), and then determine what your overall strategy is for the launch (eg discoverability vs sales), before you decide what to price your book at. The main thing to remember is that you can always change it later if you decide you've done it wrong. That's the best thing about self publishing, you can test and experiment to find out what works best for you!

This week, in lucky number 31, we talk about self editing - what we all do, the kind of techniques and strategies that we use to make sure we don't make mistakes in our work, and how we work in with professional editors to make sure we catch as many of the mistakes in our work that we can. And that's a very valid point - no matter how good you think you are, you will ALWAYS miss something in your own work, which is why it's vital to get outside people looking at your work as well as editing it yourself. Don't miss another fascinating episode of the SPA Girls!

This week we talk about our favourite self publishing resources to help make your writing life just a bit easier. From writing tools like Scrivener and writeordie.com to editing support with grammarly.com or the best courses on Udemy and CreativeLive.com, we've packed this episode full of information for self publishers!

This week we went with a baking theme, and talked about the ingredients that we think are most important when 'cooking' a novel. This wasn't an exhaustive list, just a few of the things we think you should work on first, to make sure your novel is going to be the best it can be. We know most about, and are most focused on, the romance genre, so it's a multi-layered Black Forest chocolate gateau cake. Just saying. But for anyone who's interested in a little bit of help with writing craft, listen in to our discussion of the most important ingredients...

This week we thought we'd take a quick detour into ideas-land to answer the most common question that writers get - where do your ideas come from? If you're feeling lost or lacking in inspiration, just pinch a few of our ideas for gathering new stories and get going!