The Juggling Author Podcast

By Jim Heskett

Arts Education Business

What's The Juggling Author Podcast about?

Time management, craft, and marketing tips for busy authors

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The Juggling Author Podcast episodes:

08.06.2019
Nuts and Bolts of a Scene
Plotting and pantsing by studying a deep dive into a scene I’m working on. —– UPDATE: I’ve turned off my Patreon page and am suspending the podcast for the foreseeable future. Will they come back? I think so, revamped and ready...
07.30.2019
Sex and Violence!
Let’s talk about sex, baby. That, and violence and dirty words. How much is enough in your book? *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
07.23.2019
Schedule Your Break
When you need to take a break, schedule it. And schedule your return. Let’s chat about it. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being...
07.16.2019
Outlining For The Win
Plotters vs. Pansters. Let’s settle this debate once and for all, and which one will help you be more productive. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing...
07.09.2019
Read in Your Genre
Why it’s important to read in your genre and know the tropes. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
07.02.2019
Procrastination Sucks
All the things we do to avoid doing the work we know we need to do. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
06.25.2019
Email List Hygiene
No, not the kind of hygiene like brushing your teeth and washing your butt. Keeping your list clean. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
06.18.2019
How to Differentiate Dialogue
If all your characters sound the same, you’re not doing it right. Let’s talk about how to do it right. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing...
06.14.2019
Scrivener Vs. Google Docs
Use whatever you like. Or, try something that might make you a better writer. Let’s discuss. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
06.11.2019
Writing Better Dialogue
Your dialogue sucks. Let’s talk about how to make it better. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
06.07.2019
What to Outsource
You can do it all yourself, or you can outsource. Let’s talk about what goes in which box. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
06.04.2019
Your Muse is Useless
Do you need your muse to be creative? You don’t. Here’s why. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
05.31.2019
Make the Villain Kick the Puppy
Your hero saves the cat, and your villain needs to kick the puppy. Wait. It’s worse than it sounds… *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft,...
05.28.2019
Facebook Groups vs. Pages
How to know when to use one or the other! *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
05.21.2019
Automation! (The 50th episode spectacular)
Hooray! Fifty freaking episodes. Let’s talk about automation and how you can use it to save time in your author career. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management,...
05.17.2019
Setting Genre Expectations
let’s talk about how George RR Martin made sure readers of Game of Thrones didn’t get the wrong idea about the genre of the book. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling...
05.14.2019
How to Use Subplots
let’s talk about subplots, and how to make sure they don’t detract from your main story. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
05.10.2019
When Is Done Done?
How do you know when a book is done? How do you decide? *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
05.07.2019
The Easy Way to Write Book Descriptions
Check out the big announcement as I talk about book descriptions and my easy way to write them! *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
05.03.2019
Try Fail Cycles
Let’s puzzle through try/fail cycles, scene and sequel, and yes-but, no-and. Confused? I’ll break it down. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
04.30.2019
How To Work With a Cover Artist
What do you tell your cover artist when you’re ready to make your book? I’ve got the answers on today’s show. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management,...
04.26.2019
Should You Create Paperbacks?
Let’s talk about ebooks and paperbacks, and discuss the pros and cons of adding paperbacks. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
04.23.2019
Ask Your Readers What They Want
How to talk to readers to find out what they like. Hint: it’s not talking about writing craft. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
04.19.2019
What Would I Do Differently?
Let’s talk about my mistakes, and what I wish I could do differently if I could go back in time. Let’s do some learning! *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author...
04.16.2019
Using Cookies in Your Books
What is a cookie, and how can you use it to snag more people to your mailing list? *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
04.12.2019
Should You Produce Audiobooks?
Is it worthwhile to turn your finished ebook into an audiobook? Maybe. let’s talk about all the mistakes I made with audiobooks, so you’ll know what not to do. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive...
04.09.2019
The Mistake of Like for Like
Should you like/follow other authors in exchange for them liking you back? Here’s why it’s a terrible idea. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing,...
04.05.2019
Can You Self Edit?
Perhaps controversial, here are some opinions and experience about the art (or mistake) of self-editing. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
04.02.2019
Ugh. Ten more Rules For Writing
Everyone and their cat has ten rules for writing. Here are mine, since you didn’t ask for them
03.29.2019
Elmore Leonard’s Rules, part 2
Let’s finish the rules: * Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose. * Never use the words “suddenly” or “all hell broke loose.” * Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly. * Avoid...
03.26.2019
Elmore Leonard’s Rules, part 1
Today, we discuss the rules: * Never open a book with weather. * Avoid prologues. * Never use a verb other than “said” to carry dialogue. * Never use an adverb to modify the verb “said”…he admonished gravely. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes...
03.22.2019
Don’t Break The Chain
How to get the consistency you need in your author career. *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
03.19.2019
Should You Join a Critique Group?
Let’s weigh the pros and cons of joining a critique group! *** Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to get bonus episodes and access the full archive of past episodes. *** The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome.
03.15.2019
Don’t Blow Your Foreshadowing
I’m about to ruin two TV shows for you. But, there are some very valuable storytelling lessons here. Don’t be scared, I’ll tell you when to stop listening in the episode if you don’t want any spoilers. The Juggling Author Podcast!...
03.12.2019
How To Avoid Burnout
Look. You can’t work all the time. Here’s how to take a break without letting it become a dark period in your author career. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
03.08.2019
Should You Blog?
if you want to get rich blogging, look elsewhere. In this episode, I take a hard look at blogging, youtube, etc, and discuss if it’s right for a fiction author. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check...
03.05.2019
Breaking News: Don’t Sh*t Where You Eat
We now interrupt your regularly scheduled podcast to bring you this hot take, special report. There has been a ton of drama, conflict, and hoopla out there lately among authors. Let’s talk about being a good citizen in the author community,...
03.01.2019
Curate Content Like a Boss
Want to be a bawss when it comes to content curation? Don’t know what that is? Tune in to find out all them super-secret industry secrets, and let’s make them not so secret anymore. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing...
02.26.2019
What to Email Between Releases
If you’re not releasing every week, you need to have a strategy about what to email your list during the off times. Let’s talk through it. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support...
02.22.2019
Backup Like a Winner
Don’t fall victim to lost data. It’s the worst feeling in the world. I have a paranoid backup strategy, and I want to share it with you. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to...
02.19.2019
The Best Productivity App
Out of all the productivity apps out there in the world, I compare every single one and tell you which one is the absolute best! No, just kidding. Let’s talk about which one is the best FOR YOU. The Juggling Author...
02.15.2019
How To Get Book Reviews
There are several ways you can get reviews on your book. Here is the method I think is the best one. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
02.12.2019
You Are Not Your Audience
Today on the show, I drop some tough love on ya. You may not want to hear this. Also, I’m not responsible for brain damage due to blowing your mind. Listen at your own risk, mere mortals. The Juggling Author Podcast!...
02.08.2019
Naming Your Characters
Check it out as I bag on one of the most famous books of all time. Seriously, I trash it! No, not really. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
02.05.2019
Learning About Your Readers
Come along with me as I unpack the results of a big reader survey, and how it applies to changes I can make. Yes, come along. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support...
02.01.2019
One Fan At a Time
You want to build a lasting author career? You can’t constantly sell. You have to build fans one at a time. The Juggling Author Podcast! Time management, writing craft, marketing, being awesome. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
01.29.2019
Dealing With Sketchy Subscribers
EDITOR’S NOTE: I get a little mixed up when talking about warm leads vs cold leads. It’s just proof this show is off-the-cuff, straight from my brain, unedited. I think you can figure out what I mean, though. How do you...
01.25.2019
Using Placeholders to Save Time
How you can use brackets to make sure you’re not wasting time in first draft. Don’t be a victim to divided focus. Learn my trick to super-speed your writing! Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
01.22.2019
Effective Calls to Action
What is a CTA, and what does it have to do with Pirates of the Caribbean? Tune into today’s episode to find out. Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.
01.18.2019
Should You Use Dictation?
What are the benefits of dictation? Let’s discuss! Check out www.patreon.com/thejugglingauthor to support the show.

What's The Juggling Author Podcast about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

The Juggling Author Podcast episodes:

Nuts and Bolts of a Scene

Sex and Violence!

Schedule Your Break

Outlining For The Win

Read in Your Genre

Procrastination Sucks

Email List Hygiene

How to Differentiate Dialogue

Scrivener Vs. Google Docs

Writing Better Dialogue

What to Outsource

Your Muse is Useless

Make the Villain Kick the Puppy

Facebook Groups vs. Pages

Automation! (The 50th episode spectacular)

Setting Genre Expectations

How to Use Subplots

When Is Done Done?

The Easy Way to Write Book Descriptions

Try Fail Cycles

How To Work With a Cover Artist

Should You Create Paperbacks?

Ask Your Readers What They Want

What Would I Do Differently?

Using Cookies in Your Books

Should You Produce Audiobooks?

The Mistake of Like for Like

Can You Self Edit?

Ugh. Ten more Rules For Writing

Elmore Leonard’s Rules, part 2

Elmore Leonard’s Rules, part 1

Don’t Break The Chain

Should You Join a Critique Group?

Don’t Blow Your Foreshadowing

How To Avoid Burnout

Should You Blog?

Breaking News: Don’t Sh*t Where You Eat

Curate Content Like a Boss

What to Email Between Releases

Backup Like a Winner

The Best Productivity App

How To Get Book Reviews

You Are Not Your Audience

Naming Your Characters

Learning About Your Readers

One Fan At a Time

Dealing With Sketchy Subscribers

Using Placeholders to Save Time

Effective Calls to Action

Should You Use Dictation?