The video of our chat is HERE.

What’s my number one goal? To sell IP to film and television.

You know who’s done it?

Johnny B. Truant

Imagine my delight when I was contacted by my favorite horror writer in Canada, Mark Leslie Lefebvre and asked if I was interested in interviewing Johnny B. Truant about his upcoming Kickstarter.

Ummm.

HELL YES.

Ps. Here is his Kickstarter if you want the fanciest edition of Fat Vampire (on it’s thirteenth birthday) EVER.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnnybtruant/fat-vampire-10th-anniversary-special-edition-2-volume-set

Here is his bio in his own voice:

I’m the author of Fat Vampire (which became SyFy’s Reginald the Vampire), plus 100+ books across most genres. My books are layered, intelligent, and often funny. I love what I do, never cut corners, and would rather earn 10 true fans than sell 10,000 copies.

AF: Let’s talk about Fat Vampire. You’ve had the book adapted into the TV series Reginald the Vampire. How did that actually happen?

J.B.T: People say, “How do you make that happen?” I say:

“I didn’t make that happen. I did nothing to make that happen.”

The book existed in the world, and a producer who worked for the BBC, of all places, was getting on a plane and needed something to read. He found it on Apple Books.

Then he told two of his friends, Jeremiah Chechik and Harley Peyton, “Hey, I think this is up your alley.” And then they read it and contacted me, and then they made the TV show.

(Authorial note: I didn’t know those two guys, so… here you go: Jeremiah S. Chechik is a Canadian film and television director and photographer. His feature work includes National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Benny & Joon, Diabolique and The Avengers. Harley Peyton is an American screenwriter and television producer.[1] He worked in both capacities on Twin Peaks and was nominated for the 1990 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series for his work on the series' third episode.)

But that circumstance could never have been engineered. Even if I had pitched Harley and Jeremiah—which I didn’t—they had to be between shows, not working on something right now, actively looking. There’s just—everything ends up being luck at some point.

But you can’t get lucky unless you have something to spawn that luck. Like having books in the world.

AF: Did Reginald the Vampire translate into a big increase in your book sales?

J.B.T: No. I would say that it’s good as cred. I got a good payday for the show and I got to go and be on it and everything.

But has it made a huge difference in book sales? Not directly. It gives me a reference. It gives me social proof to be able to say that it’s a TV show, and that sort of thing is useful.

It’s become kind of a keystone thing in that people do know it. It’s not like there was a big bump when it showed up. But maybe if the show had been bigger, then it would have been.

AF: What was your experience like working with the production?

J.B.T: The production was very gracious with me, and it’s no surprise. It’s Canadian production. Like, you’re just nicer up there.

(Authorial note: Thank you! Sorry, I think we are very nice.)

I was told that from end to end, the whole production was kind of a unicorn in that everybody was kind of nice. There wasn’t that kind of cutthroat culture that you hear about sometimes.

AF: You were also quite involved in the TV show, weren’t you?

J.B.T: I don’t think my experience was typical. I got to sit in the writers’ room a couple of times. I don’t think most authors get to do that, but I wasn’t precious.

They’d ask about things, and I basically said, “I don’t care what you do. It’s your IP now.”

It’s collaborative. It’s a different medium. It’s budget constrained.

There were a bunch of decisions that they made because they had to make them because of budget. And I don’t have to worry about budget when I’m writing.

I wish that more writers would understand that TV or movies and their books are a fundamentally different thing.

AF: What changed?

J.B.T: My Fat Vampire novels are third-person limited. So if Reginald, the main character, isn’t there and doesn’t hear it and see it, then you don’t know it.

That doesn’t really work on TV.

So they had to create all these other characters and all these POVs, and they needed to be able to shift from an A story to a B story. And that’s not the way books are written.

You can’t adapt them one-to-one. Just because the audiovisual version is not the same as the book does not mean that it is screwed up inherently.

They used the same premise to create something that worked for that medium.

AF: You were part of a companion podcast for the TV show, weren’t you?

https://johnnybtruant.substack.com/podcast

J.B.T: Yeah. When I pitched this originally, it was maybe a month, maybe even less, before the first season of the TV show came out.

I said, “I can do a companion podcast.”

And so if it’s coming out every week and you can release a companion podcast to go with it and then put a trailer at the beginning or the end—“Watch the companion podcast. Listen to the companion podcast”—then that’s a great promotional vehicle.

I was sending them articles about how companion podcasts are the thing and how they really help.

AF: So what happened?

J.B.T: The whole process took so incredibly long that I had gone to visit the set for season two before I even was able to line up interviews for season one.

So season two hadn’t aired, but I was like, “Okay, it’s okay, you guys. We’ll just drop all the season ones.”

They’ll be kind of weirdly homeless. Nobody’s going to know what to do with them. But then we can do it right for season two.

Of course, the show got canceled.

So I didn’t continue with season two.

I ended up with eight of ten episodes fully produced, fully ready to go. And then I was like, “Well, what am I supposed to do with these?”

So that’s what I’m doing now: putting them out.

The podcast is called Reginald the Vampire After Sunrise, because it’s like after dark, but they’re vampires, so it’s after sunrise.

It’s on all the podcast places.

It’s fun to go back and listen to my interviews with the cast and the producers and discuss the episodes, but also discuss what it was like to portray these characters and vampire lore and how it differs in different situations and stuff.

It was cool. And I’m kind of sad that they went unlistened to for so long.

AF: And now you’re bringing Fat Vampire back in a completely different form—a special 13th-anniversary edition. Why this particular project?

J.B.T: For Fat Vampire, it’s 13 years old now, and that’s a witchy number, 13.

It’s the 13th anniversary.

I want to do a special edition of a book that already exists, that people already know about, which is a different animal than I’ve done before.

I can’t just have it as a by-the-way. It needs to be like the main entrée. It needs to be the thing. I’ll offer audiobooks and ebooks and all that. They’ll be there for people who’ve never heard of the book.

But the core audience that I’m trying to serve are the people who already know about it and like it and want this big tome.

AF: And this is where Kickstarter comes in?

J.B.T: It’s a huge gut check because I can’t do print-on-demand. I’m doing an overseas print run.

This campaign has to bring in like, what, eight, nine, $10,000 before I can even do it.

And in the past, that hasn’t been a thing. Technically speaking, if I were to set the goal accordingly and somebody bought one book, okay, I can sell that one book. I can do that in a print-on-demand culture.

But this is a print run. I have to pull up the big-boy pants.

So we’ll see.

AF: You’ve done quite a few Kickstarters. What have you learned about them?

J.B.T: Maybe not everybody should do Kickstarter.

You have to ask: Do you have the right temperament? Do you have the right catalog? Are your books kind of optimized from a conversion and cover perspective? Are you good at talking to people? Do you have pitches?

So in no way am I saying that Kickstarter is, quote, a good idea, full stop. But for me, it is.

AF: You’ve said something similar about all the current “must-do” strategies in publishing—rapid release, Kindle Unlimited, live selling, social media. You seem pretty skeptical of the idea that there’s one formula.

Authorial note: Johnny B. Truant wrote a whole book about finding sanity in the current rapid release, burn out culture in the industry.

J.B.T: I refuse to give real definitive answers.

There’s no shortcut to learning. The mentality should be making your own path rather than, “I’m going to give you a path.”

I can retroactively draw you a map. This is what I did.

But unless you start in exactly the same place as I am, a map only works if you start in the exact same place, facing the same direction, and have the same supplies and the same everything.

That’s why I don’t give you the answers. Because it’s crap to do so.

It really annoys me to death when you see people who are like, “This is the answer.”

I’m not a fan of rapid release at all, but it works for some people. I’m also not a fan of Kindle Unlimited. But again, that’s for me.

Then I see somebody like Matt Dinniman, where KU is a huge part of his success. He really praises KU.

So that’s his genre. That’s him. And he’s a smart guy.

It really just depends.

AF: So what do you think is actually underneath all of this? What remains true regardless of the latest publishing trend?

J.B.T: Finding a reader who likes your work is really all it’s about.

It’s about finding the right reader in the right place at the right time.

And that’s really all there is to it.

AF: And that brings us back to luck, doesn’t it?

J.B.T: Absolutely.

The Reginald the Vampire thing didn’t make my books blow up, but it could have.

It certainly was a payday, and it led to connections and it led to social proof.

So that’s my piece of good fortune.

But you can’t plan on that.

You can’t engineer the guy getting on the plane, needing something to read, finding your book on Apple Books, telling the right people about it, and having those people be available and interested.

Everything is luck at some point.

Well… that was a thoroughly enjoyable conversation!

One last time, here are his links.

For the Artisan Author: https://buy.bookfunnel.com/ux3l6solvh

For the Fat Vampire special edition: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnnybtruant/fat-vampire-10th-anniversary-special-edition-2-volume-set

For all other things Johnny: https://johnnybtruantbooks.com/

And if you are in to Kickstarters? I’m running one myself!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/angeliquefawns/the-roxie-vega-chronicles-a-space-opera-adventure-romance

I came into William Bernhardt’s orbit when he invited me to his Writer Con, upcoming this September in Oklahoma City.

(Anyone here going? Let me know! We can meet up.)

We had an out-of-this-world talk about his new book, The Superman Wars.

Almost everyone knows about the man from Krypton who, disguised as mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent working with the fearless Lois Lane, fights for the vulnerable and the oppressed. But few know the truth about this indelible character’s creation. From mobster tactics to decades-long courtroom drama, a beloved American myth was born, betrayed, and eventually reclaimed—almost eighty years after the character first appeared.New witnesses, unpublished manuscripts, personal letters, and more reveal the complex and dramatic history of Superman and his creator, Jerry Siegel. This is a David and Goliath clash with twists, turns, and devastating upheavals. An underdog tale of a creator who fought for his rights and finally found redemption in his battle for truth, justice, and the American Way. A story that has never been fully told…

How did I not know about this? It’s fascinating to hear why William chose to tell this story. And we talk about way more than just this book.

* We get into the true kryptonite that plagues writers, aka: take care of your IP.

* The benefits of conferences

* Indie versus Trad

* Why I left my agent

* Finding time to write

* TV & Film optioning

* And so much more

Here is his bio:

William Bernhardt is the author of over sixty books, including the Daniel Pike legal thriller series (#1 best-selling novel The Last Chance Lawyer). His previous works include the bestselling Ben Kincaid series, the historical novels Challengers of the Dust and The Florentine Poet, three books of poetry, and the Red Sneaker books on fiction writing.

In addition, Bernhardt founded WriterCon Programs to mentor aspiring writers. WriterCon hosts an annual writers conference, an annual cruise, small-group writing retreats, a magazine, plus free bi-weekly e-newsletters and podcasts.

Hey, if you prefer talking heads and visuals, there is a YouTube version of our talk!

CLICK HERE

If you want to learn more about William Bernhardt, more places to click:

https://williambernhardt.com

https://writercon.com/

https://www.facebook.com/WriterConHQ

Angelique: Your newest book is The Superman Wars. What inspired you to write it?

William: I thought this was an important story. Everyone knows Superman, but more importantly, this is the most pivotal creator-rights battle of modern times. Jerry Siegel’s struggle benefited countless creative people, not just those in comics. I wanted this story to reach a wide audience, so I decided it deserved a traditional publisher and a chance to be in bookstores.

Angelique: I had no idea this drama existed in the background!

William: You’re not alone. A lot of people remember the publicity campaign for Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in 1975 and think they know the story. They don’t. There were another fifty years of legal battles after that. Even many people in the comic book industry don’t know what really happened, and some of the versions that have been told simply aren’t accurate. I wanted to tell the real story.

Angelique: I can’t believe this happened to the creator of the most iconic superhero of all time.

William: It’s a cautionary tale. Don’t let what happened to Jerry Siegel happen to you. The threats may look different today, but there are still people and companies that would love to take your intellectual property. Every year at WriterCon, I meet writers who have lost thousands of dollars to vanity presses or other scams. Today we also have AI scraping and copyright issues. The lesson is simple: protect yourself. Don’t assume someone else will do it for you.

Angelique: What’s the most shocking part of the story?

William: Jerry Siegel knew from childhood that he wanted to be a writer. Like me, he started submitting work when he was very young. During the Depression, he desperately wanted to break into newspaper comic strips because that was where the money was.

He and Joe Shuster spent years trying to sell Superman to newspaper syndicates, but no one understood the concept. Eventually they agreed to publish Superman through a comic book company. Unfortunately, just before Superman debuted, the company was taken over by Harry Donenfeld and Jack Liebowitz.

(Authorial note for us Canadians: Joe Shuster was born in Toronto.)

People often say Superman was sold for $130. That’s not exactly true. Jerry and Joe were paid $130 for the first thirteen-page story. Hidden in that agreement, though, was a clause transferring all rights to Superman to the company.

Jerry signed it.

I don’t think he fully understood what he was giving away. He was a young man without an agent, a lawyer, or anyone to advise him. Once Superman became an enormous success, he watched other people become millionaires while he received only a fraction of the profits.

Meanwhile, Harry Donenfeld was calling himself “Mr. Superman,” wearing Superman shirts, and appearing at Superman Day while Jerry, the creator, was left in the background.

Angelique: That is appalling. What did Jerry do and what happened next?

William: Jerry was drafted during World War II. While he was overseas serving his country, the company took another one of his creations—Superboy. Jerry had deliberately created Superboy as something new that he hoped to own himself. Instead, while he was away, they published it without him.

When Jerry returned home, he discovered they were making money from both Superman and Superboy, and he hadn’t been paid a single dollar for Superboy.

That became the breaking point.

In 1947, Jerry Siegel became the first American writer to sue his publisher.

The lawsuit didn’t go well. He recovered some money related to Superboy, but he didn’t regain Superman. Even worse, he and Joe Shuster were fired from their own creation.

Then something happened that I find morally reprehensible. DC removed Jerry and Joe’s names from Superman entirely. Even when older stories were reprinted, they’d paint over the creator credits. Legally, you can argue the contract, but erasing an artist’s name from their own work is simply wrong.

Angelique: Way wrong.

William: Exactly.

Jerry believed the creative community would rally behind him. Instead, many people turned against him. But he kept fighting.

After Jerry died, his family continued the legal battle. Together they established important legal precedents that have benefited creators ever since.

That’s really what The Superman Wars is about. It’s about writers. It’s about artists. It’s about anyone creating original work today. Whether you’re writing books, drawing comics, or creating content online, you have to protect your intellectual property.

Our interview went many more places, but I thought I would highlight the Superman story because it frankly blew me away.

For the entire enchilada, watch the YouTube interview here!

Or listen to the podcast, linked above.

Thanks for reading.

PS> You can still attend WriterCon.

Register here!

Addicted to Sora…

and then forced to go cold turkey.

Prefer the full video interview? Click here.

What a conversation this was! I just love chatting with Sylvie, a new friend I met at the Toronto Indie Author Conference this spring.

Do yourself a favour, and watch this VIDEO first, before you listen (or watch) the podcast. It’s a deep dive into Sophie’s Sora addiction.

Not only is it hugely entertaining. (The motherfu@#*r day video is worth it alone) but it sets up some very serious concerns with social media addiction, the role of AI in our lives, and the usage of copyrighted property.

Here is the link to all awesome things Sylvie Soul related.

https://sylviesoul.com

Love this stuff? It’s yours for free, but it takes a whack-a-doodle amount of time. Please help me keep sharing if you can!

AF: You’ve been busy since our last chat in April. Spill?!

SS: My first print sale! The Not Quite Write podcast ran a contest. I entered last fall, didn’t win -- but they reached out afterward and published my story anyway. A month later their first anthology was out, with me in it. It’s the first time I’ve had something you can actually hold. My husband took photos, and I posted them on LinkedIn and Instagram. I usually keep my writing separate from my day job, but coworkers saw it and wanted the link. And of everything I’ve written, this is the straight-up smut one. My pen name’s separate from my legal name, but there I am, downplaying it while everyone goes “share, share, share.” It’s hilarious.

AF: It’s interesting that we can be embarrassed by our spicier or darker works. I’ve been battling with that myself.

SS: I have even more respect for writers who are that candid. There’s a line from The Life of Chuck, the Tom Hiddleston film: “I contain multitudes.” You’re not just one thing. You can write flash fiction and speculative fiction and smut and historical and nonfiction. You don’t have to pigeonhole yourself for marketing. If you really want to follow your bliss, sometimes you have to explore and put yourself out there.

(Authorial note: As a subscriber pointed out after reading this interview, “I contain multitudes” was originally written by Walt Whitman. But it is also used in the movie, Life of Chuck. And it’s the name of a song by Bob Dylan.)

AF: I hid my horror writing for years, worried it would clash with my journalism -- turns out people are more intrigued than judgmental. Speaking of exploring: I watched your video on the Death of Sora. And loved it. How long did that take to make?

SS: It’s my longest video, and it took forever to edit. Most of my old videos were just talking-head pieces on craft, but I was so moved by the canceling of Sora that I had to create something on my foray into AI video. If I strung every clip together I created with the app, it’d be half an hour -- and nobody wants to watch a half hour of AI slop.

I had the foresight to save the clips as soon as I knew Sora was going down. Now the site’s just gone.

AF: I didn’t get a chance to explore it. Just as I discovered it, it was gone.

SS: It’s fascinating to watch the rise and fall. Sora came out in full form less than a year ago. I played with it, then went all in -- I thought, this is the future, you can conceptualize anything. But at some point you step back and go: why am I feeding all my beautiful ideas into a large language model for them to keep? You have to be protective of your creativity. I value AI as a tool, but it’s easy to lose yourself taking creative cues from it. Disclaimer: I never, ever ask AI for help with my actual writing. My writing is my writing -- 100% human. Pangram, come at me.

AF: The best thing in your video just might be the Motherf$@!* Day rap.

SS: That’s the kind of weird thing that lives in my head. There was a feature where you could remix other people’s videos, so I’d find something trending and go, “okay, but do it with “Motherf$#@! Day,” and sneak it online. I was trying to force a meme. I think I was the only one who found it funny.

AF: No -- it was funny. So, you did the deep dive and still came out preferring human-driven creativity?

SS: I don’t like the way AI writes -- the metaphors are off, the cadence is wrong. It just doesn’t connect. For me it’s the word “you.” There’s an overabundance of it, because the AI is trying to inhabit your emotions -- “you’ll feel this, you feel sadness, not joy, only chaos.” And -- tinfoil hat on -- it’s not just the AI videos flooding YouTube. Now people are doing talking-head videos from AI scripts. It’s really them on camera, no avatar, but everything they say is hollow: generic lines engineered for emotional resonance with none of their own experience behind them. It’s an AI using a human avatar to spout slop. Watch for it -- people talking at you instead of relating to you.

AF: “AI using human avatars” -- whoa. That’s very Matrix.

SS: We’ve reached the singularity. It’s come full circle -- human-in-the-loop to serve the AI. It’s a mess.

But what comes to mind for me is NFT art. Remember, two or three years ago, it was NFTs and crypto and blockchain consuming the whole culture? Then the crash came, and it turned out a lot of people didn’t know what they were doing, and the art was basically worthless. People spent fortunes on ugly monkeys that are worth pennies now.

AF: I missed that craze.

SS: I was briefly tempted, because they ram it at you: this is the future, you’ll need it for everything. And then it just... stopped.

That’s how I think AI goes -- not a pin popping the balloon, but the balloon slowly deflating.

This text is just a fraction of the stuff we dove into. Listen to the podcast, or watch the video for the full experience!

Prefer to video to audio? The full YouTube interview is here.

Meryl Klemow and I have worked together creating podcasts, and she might be the most fun human I have ever met.

Seriously.

And she is so sweet.

I know nothing about the stand-up comedy world, and Meryl is one of those brave souls who actually has a career doing that insane thing.

This chat takes us into some very real places. Like how envy can affect your mental health, the price of fame, and how to find balance in a chaotic industry.

I keep all this gold content free. Because some writers (and comedians!) are struggling. But this single post took six hours to create. Maybe throw a coffee or two my way each month?

Here is one of Meryl’s insights on LA:

“Everyone is in kindergarten here -- not everyone, but a lot of people, you know, are like, she has this and I don’t have this. I’ve really had to do some healing and adjust myself. Otherwise I was either going to become part of it or let it eat me alive.”

AF: You’ve built a podcast booking business alongside your comedy. How did that happen?

MK: That’s where I’ve been the most excited in a few years. I come from the production side -- show notes, project management, launching the show, all the nitty-gritty. My strong suit is both booking people onto shows and working with podcasts to book them guests. I decided to flip it around, use more of my PR background, and start booking people on shows -- and to be really intentional about it. Why is someone coming on a show, and what are they really trying to get out of it? With the boom of the past couple of years, it’s easy to spray and be on a million shows, but what’s the actual point?

So I take on only about five or six people every three months, so I can really focus on everyone. I’ll be watching a TV show and looking at it through the lens of a booking agent -- everywhere I go, I’m thinking, “This would be good for this.” I teamed up with some longtime PR people and I’m the podcast arm of it. I feel renewed and happy -- and it never would have happened if I hadn’t created the space for it.

Check out the agency here!

AF: How did it get off the ground?

MK: I approached one of my favorite longtime PR friends, Jordan at Julep Publicity. I told her, “This might be a weird idea, feel free to say no, but I envision doing the podcast side of things for you.” She was open to it, and we were off and running last October. That’s the lesson: sometimes you can just create things. It didn’t fully make sense at first, but now it makes sense for everyone.

AF: How do you balance the comedy grind, your podcast job, and having a social life?

MK: That balance has been ingrained in me since I was young -- one part trying to do the normal-life things, pay my bills, go through school, be serious, and another, more artistic and comedic side. I did radio in San Diego and was part of a local variety TV show called Tonight in San Diego. There was always something a little devilish and expressive on one side while I tried to be a human who could pay her bills on the other. Now they’re converging, and it really is synergistic.

I’m relentless about having a life where I can do both. I love comedy, but I don’t need to be out every night as a stand-up. I want to do this long-term, so I’ve chosen to go a little slower at my own pace -- hopefully so I don’t burn out and can be there longer. It’s important to me to actually go to dinner with my friends, or take a night off and watch The West Wing with my boyfriend. Even if it takes longer to hit my goals, I’m happy to have a calm life.

AF: Has that pace always been your approach?

MK: The writer side of me could be prone to a nervous breakdown -- I’ve had little mini ones over the years. Experiencing my goals, wins, and challenges in a calmer, slower state is so much better for me.

I’ve had frantic periods where I met some goals and wasn’t even happy; in fact, I wasn’t feeling well. Moving to Los Angeles, surrounded by so many insanely talented, driven, cutthroat people, I had to choose my own adventure and create my own stuff.

AF: You’ve talked about the jealousy in the comedy world. What’s that like?

MK: I could never fully communicate the jealousy that goes on among comedians. I’ve had to talk friends down from just staring at other people’s flyers.

AF: How do you keep it from getting to you?

MK: I always think, “we don’t know what we don’t know.” The reason I seek balance now is that in my younger years I really struggled with anxiety and panic attacks. And when we see people succeeding so much, they’re driven, but a lot of the time it’s from some deep pain, or they’re trying to make their parents love them. We never know why people are accomplishing things. People tell me, “You’re so lucky,” and I think, “If you only knew.” We’re all dealing with so much more than what we see in the above-ground hot tub.

(Authorial note: If you listen to the podcast or watch the video, I told Meryl all about my irrational envy of people with hot tubs. Until I got my own.)

AF: You mentioned comparison a lot. How do you counsel friends through it?

MK: One of my best friends just got into a comedy festival she’d been trying to get into for years and kept getting rejected from. This year she got in -- and it went straight from an excited wave to dread: “I’m intimidated by who else is on it.” I reminded her that she’s truly competing with just herself. I try to be a voice of counsel there. I don’t really struggle with comparison; I see clearly that we’re only ever in it with ourselves.

AF: Do you ever envy the comedians at the top?

MK: I see some of the top comedians and I wouldn’t trade my life for theirs for one second. Some don’t seem very grounded -- there are a lot of addiction issues, a lot of work addiction. You have to really like the life you’re in.

AF: You work with authors on the podcast side. What’s surprised you about publishing?

MK: I assumed publishers put together book signings and did tons of publicity for their authors. A lot of traditional publishers don’t -- which is exactly why authors come to us for help getting on podcasts and doing PR. I had this older, New-York version in my head, where they put you on a 50-city tour. Some still do, but it’s not the way it used to be. It’s almost like the music industry now: the record label doesn’t do everything for you the way it once did.

If you want to learn more about Meryl, check out her Insta!

https://www.instagram.com/merylklemow/

Watch 👀 this interview on Youtube.

If you’ve been following along with my writing adventures, you know I’ve been trying to figure out how to market my upcoming novels. I’ve been playing in the short story game since 2018, but now I want to make a little more money, and the only way to do that seems to be going all-in on series. Get readers hooked on what you create, and give them a reason to keep coming back.

How do I learn how to do this? Well, you take advice from experts.

That’s exactly why I felt so lucky to attend the Spring Writing Retreat in Collingwood with Write Way Escapes last month with Kelley Armstrong, Christine d’Abo, and today’s guest, Lilith Darville.

Lilith graciously agreed to join me for this episode, so let me tell you a bit about her. She’s a USA Today and internationally bestselling romance author with novels across dark, paranormal, and contemporary romance, publishing since 2015.

Before that, she built a career as a magazine columnist, a textbook writer, and a communications and marketing consultant.She also spent years as a college instructor in English and Communications, and these days she mentors emerging and established authors in craft, branding, and career development.

Sitting in Lilith’s classroom reminded me of school in the ‘80s. You behave, listen, and above all… learn.

I picked her brain about marketing, about how she’s found success writing in series, and why you need a plan if you want this to actually work.

Going back to school has never been more enjoyable than it has been with Lilith Darville.

One of the things Lilith was helping me with?

My Roxie Vega Kickstarter:

Check it out here!

If you enjoy this content, please consider joining the next tier! I keep most of my stuff free so every author can access it, but a few $$$ does help.

AF: What’s the secret to your success as a spicy author?

LD: Continuous hard work and passion for writing, learning my craft, and just write, write, write, and learn, learn, learn. I don’t think I have any big secrets. It’s a lot of hard work. Butt in chair, as we say. Head down, learning and practicing our craft.

AF: I know we’re not supposed to say we write for money, but I’d like to earn some money!

LD: I’ll disagree with the framing there. Genre authors definitely write for money. Literary folks are the ones who’ll say they don’t. We still have passion for the craft, and writing is in our blood, but so is the desire to make money as genre fiction authors.

AF: When you read, is it strictly romance, or do you range wider?

LD: If I’m learning craft, I’m not reading fiction--I’m reading things like K.M. Weiland’s books on story structure. All story has the same kind of structure: a beginning, a middle, an end, pinch points, turning points. For market information, I follow people like Jane Friedman, and I subscribe to K-lytics for data and analysis. For fiction, I read every day. If I don’t have my reading fix, I can’t survive. A lot of that’s romance, because I love it, that’s one of the reasons I write it. But I also read things like Lee Child’s Reacher series. For non-fiction, I read a lot of self-help, because I use things like IFS (Internal Family Systems) and Brené Brown’s work on shame in my writing.

AF: I’m about to launch my space opera Roxie Vega on Kickstarter, then Amazon. Advertising feels overwhelming. Where do I even start?

LD: There’s a checklist of things you want in place while you’re working toward putting five to ten books out. At least five are critical. One is a website, and the big one is your newsletter. We talk about things like BookFunnel and techniques to build your readership while you’re getting content out there, so you have something for readers to read through. Because if you only have one book, you have nothing to market. Once they’ve read that one book, if you don’t have something else for them to buy while they’re looking for the next thing, you’ve basically just lost that sale.

Having a Plan (Which I need. Focus? What’s focus? SQUIRREL!)

AF: Originally, I was planning to launch Roxy Vega as two novellas, one feeding into the next. But… after some research… I don’t think there’s much of a market for novellas. Am I wrong?

LD: There is a market for novellas, but readers look for a fast re-release with them. A lot of the people I know who do novellas do one a month at around 20,000 words. I know an author--I think this is Alyse Anders--who did a sci-fi romance series with twelve women who end up stranded on a planet with aliens. (Authorial note. Aluse Anders writes erotic fiction)

Twelve books, one a month for a year, each one a short story about one woman connecting with her alien.

One of the things I’d recommend, above everything, is having a plan. How many novels do you plan for your series?

(Another Authorial Note. I have no real plan for the series. Roxie keeps flying… ABACUS keeps helping her out. They both keep getting into trouble. I may need more of a plan, lol.)

AF: What’s the single best piece of marketing advice you’ve ever gotten?

LD: Early in my romance career, I had lunch with Donald Maass at a conference. He asked how many books I had published. One. He said, “You shouldn’t even be talking to me about marketing until you have five books out there.” Build your newsletter. That’s real estate you own, and focus on getting words out. Because if you don’t have a backlist to sell through, you really don’t have anything to sell. His opinion was to have ten books out there, or at least five, before I even thought about marketing.

AF: Where do you go for coaching as you’ve grown in your career?

LD: Right now, it’s Becca Syme. She’s helped me see where my strengths are and to focus on what works for me as a writer, not somebody else. Take word count: everybody wants to write faster, put out more words. But not everybody can write 3,000 words in an hour. It depends on how your brain works, what your process is. We compare ourselves to somebody who might be nothing like us in personality or skill, and expect to produce as they do.

AF: What’s the biggest shift you’re seeing in book marketing right now?

LD: Ads aren’t where readers are starting to look for books anymore. Readers are using AI to find books. You can put in “I want a dark romance with kidnapping and shifters in it,” and get a list of exactly the books you want.

AF: And you want to make sure Lilith Darville’s name, or Angelique Fawns’, is actually in that list.

LD: Exactly. So the question becomes: how do you get found by those readers? What you need to do is bring back the blog. If you don’t have one, start one. That’s on my list right now: publishing an article a week, fueled with the keywords readers are searching for.

Want to check out Lilith’s work?

https://lilithdarville.com

Thank you for joining us!

Sometimes strange, auspicious coincidences happen, and you wonder if it’s fate nudging you in the right direction.

Like, for example, when I was sitting down reading Confessions of the Dead, co-written by James Patterson and J.D. Barker, getting really into the dark and twisted tale… and an email popped up in my inbox the next day asking if I’d like to interview J.D. Barker.

I was like, hell yes. But of course, it also felt a little suspicious.

Hadn’t I just been telling my husband how much I loved this book? Was my phone spying on me, feeding information to some scammer? They’re so advanced these days, who knows?

I didn’t fully believe it. But I double-checked with my friend Mark Leslie Lefebvre , who confirmed J.D.’s publicist was real and that he was doing podcasts to help promote a prequel in his 4MK series.

And that, folks, is why we all get to enjoy this amazing interview with horror writer J.D. Barker. His career is enviable, I enjoyed every second of our chat, and I hope you will too.

You can watch the interview on YouTube here.

Or listen to the podcast up above.

Here is a recapped version of the interview below:

Enjoy!

AF: I have to say, when your publicist reached out to me, I thought it was a scam. And what was so surreal — I was reading Confessions of the Dead when the email came in.

JDB: She is fantastic. I’ve worked with a ton of publicists over the years, and my model has completely changed. Early on I hired a firm in New York — Dean Koontz recommended them — and I paid a $20,000 retainer. That first month, they got me two blog reviews, one website mention, and a blurb in a magazine. Nothing for $20,000, and there was no accountability.

Now I’ve got everyone on an à la carte basis. I give them a list of what they can go get and a price point for each — a podcast gets this much, a magazine gets this much. They can work as hard or as little as they want. I pay for actual results. My current publicist is out of the Philippines and she is phenomenal. Every time I’ve got a new release, everybody seems to know about it.

AF: I’m a huge fan. Your connection with Stephen King, your collaborations with James Patterson — you’ve somehow found the zeitgeist.

JDB: I tend to get in front of a lot of people and bug the hell out of them until they either agree to work with me or they issue a restraining order.

I heard a long time ago: if you don’t ask the question, you’re never going to know the answer. I’d rather hear someone say no than not ask at all.

I used to teach at ThrillerFest quite a bit. If you go, you’re eventually going to end up in an elevator with a famous author. You’ve got 15 seconds to either make an introduction or stand there staring at the numbers and watch that person walk away. I am not the kind of guy who ever watched somebody just walk away.

AF: I loved hearing about what you do at cons. You don’t sit behind the table selling books — you give them away for free.

JDB: I’m in a unique situation. I’ve got my own imprint at Simon & Schuster, so my production costs are very low. I can produce a hardcover for a fraction of what I was paying through IngramSpark. And I’ve got books sitting in a warehouse because we tend to overprint — 50, 60, 70,000 copies. Eventually the dust settles, and I’ve got to find something to do with them.

I looked at what indie authors do — they’ve always been ahead of the curve — and for years they’ve given away the first book in a series as an ebook.

You’re basically a glorified drug dealer. You’re hooking them with a taste, hoping they come back for more. I just took it to the next level and started giving away hardcovers.

Think about it from the reader’s perspective. They come to these events and it’s awkward. They’re walking past tables with authors staring at them with that please buy my book look. They’re afraid to approach because they don’t want to commit. So instead I put a book in everybody’s bag for free. They all come to the table, it keeps me busy, they walk away with that taste, and most of them end up buying another book after that.

At Author Nation, I gave away 2,000 or 2,200 books. A good chunk of those people went home and started buying my other titles. That’s how you move the needle. You’ve got to approach everything as a business — how are you going to get people to come back and buy your next widget?

AF: At what point do the cons stop being useful?

JDB: My first big one was the Writer’s Digest conference — the last one I went to before I got a publishing deal. I learned a lot. But everything tends to be geared toward the early author trying to get that first book out there. When I was on the board with ITW, I noticed everything was built for two groups: debut authors and the big names. Everybody else is stuck in the middle. You can only hear how to write a compelling first sentence so many times.

What actually attracted me to Author Nation is that it fills that void. It teaches authors: okay, your first book is out. This is how you get to book two, book three, book four, and steadily raise your profile over time. In the traditional world, they try to hit it out of the park with each book, and if you don’t, you’re kind of written off. The problem is that’s not sustainable. If you’re just slowly building, selling a few more copies with each book, you’re building a very solid base beneath you. That’s what sustains a career.

(Authorial note: If you are interested in learning more about Author Nation, I’ve interviewed Joe Solari . CLICK HERE)

AF: So I have to ask about the TV and film side, because that’s where my heart is. You’re there now with the 4MK series, aren’t you?

JDB: I’ve got eight different projects in what I call various stages of Hollywood hell. Every time my film agent calls, it’s a roller coaster — either really good news or really bad news, no in between. With 4MK specifically, this is actually option number four. The book came out almost ten years ago. Sylvester Stallone’s company, Balboa Productions, just picked it up. And they brought in Channing Powell, who was showrunner for The Walking Dead, as lead writer.

AF: What else do you have on the docket?

JDB: I’ve also got a feature film in the works for Behind a Closed Door — they’re already on the third or fourth draft of the script and talking to directors. A Caller’s Game is at another studio. Dracul keeps getting picked up by different companies. I wrote that one as a prequel to Dracula for Bram Stoker’s family.

AF: At least the option money keeps flowing while all that’s happening.

JDB: Any veteran author will tell you that. The option money — it doesn’t matter if it gets made or not. Those checks are real and they keep coming. And here’s something I’ve noticed: when something gets optioned once, the second it’s available again, everybody jumps on it. Producers see it as a hot commodity because someone else just had it. So if you keep making a little noise, they keep coming back. Sooner or later something is going to make it to the screen. It’s a numbers game at this point.

But as an author, all I do is put my head down and write the next book. That’s the only thing you can control. The written word, whatever ends up in that final book — that’s 100% you. Nobody can take that away from you.

AF: How did you start your career?

JDB: I was told at a very early age that you can’t make a living as a writer and I needed to get a real job. So I went off to college, got multiple degrees, and ended up working in finance. But when I was in school I worked for RCA Records and BMG Distribution. I chauffeured some very famous people around for a couple of days at a time.

And I realized I could interview these people and sell those interviews to offset the cost of college. That’s how I broke into writing. When you work for magazines, everybody around you has a half-finished novel in a desk drawer somewhere. I became the person they’d show those to because I was strong with grammar, punctuation, and developmental editing. That turned into a side hustle as a book doctor and ghostwriter. While I was in finance, I was helping other people rewrite their books and get them published. Over 23 years, I had six different books hit the New York Times list — with other people’s names on the cover. That gets old after a while, and that’s when my wife and I decided to pull the trigger on becoming a full-time author. That was eleven years ago.

AF: How does someone get to work with you?

JDB: Honestly, all you have to do is ask. Most people are too hesitant. Nobody asks the question. Typically if someone reaches out, I look at a writing sample, see if there’s something I can work with, figure out where they are career-wise. It has to be someone I genuinely feel I can take to another level. And they’ve got to come to me with a decent foundation, something that may or may not be working but can be fixed — and an idea I haven’t heard before. That’s the hard part.

AF: How does one break through in an increasingly fractured publishing industry?

JDB: Making your own path is the key. When I was in the music business, I drove Madonna around for about a week during the Vogue tour. She told me that whenever she had a new album coming out, she would make a list of everything everybody else was doing to sell their albums — and then come up with something brand new that wasn’t on that list. That’s what she would do. I’ve kept that in my head ever since.

My last book was Something I Keep Upstairs, a haunted house story. The house in the book is real — it’s right off the coast of the island where I live in New England. To promote it, I came up with a contest: I gave away an overnight stay in the haunted house to one reader, who could bring three friends. We put out a press release, and I got a ton of press — television, radio, podcasts, print. People were talking about it all over the internet. And all of that was essentially free buzz. It sold a ridiculous number of books.

Here’s the thing — somebody else could come along and give away an overnight stay in a haunted house, but it’s not going to hit as hard because I’ve already done it. You’ve got to come up with something nobody has done before. A lot of authors chase what other authors are already doing, buy the same Facebook and Amazon ads, run the same promotions. And if you’re doing the same thing as someone else, you’re never going to excel beyond them. You need a catalyst that takes you off into the stratosphere.

Learn more about J.D. Barker at jdbarker.com

How I Play Submission Jenga 🎲

It all starts with my monthly list.

Click here for the big list for May:

I hunt down every call for submissions that catches my eye, sticking mostly to the speculative genres. I have two firm rules when I’m scouting markets:

* They have to pay.

* No submission fees. Ever.

Then I look for the ones that genuinely intrigue me. The Apex Flash Fiction calls are a personal favorite — they’re always a little weird, a little off-kilter, exactly my flavor. When something hooks me, I sit down and bang out 1,000 words.

Fun side story: that’s actually how Roxy Vega was born. She started life as a flash fiction response to a prompt from Apparition Lit (RIP). The image was a man smoking a cigarette in this dank, vaguely alien-looking bar. Cool vibe — but I didn’t want to write about a man. I wanted to write about a really rough woman. What if she was a space trucker on break? What if she had a terrible gambling addiction? And just like that, Roxy Vega walked into the world. She’s now a serial on Substack.

https://angeliquemfawns.substack.com/s/the-chronicles-of-roxie-vega

My Submission Process

Here’s how a story moves through the system:

* Draft at 1,000 words and send it to a flash market.

* If it doesn’t find a home, expand it — maybe to 2,000 or 3,000 words.

* Send it to the next market on my chart.

* Keep meticulous notes on where each story has been so I don’t accidentally send Neil Clarke the same story 25 times. (He would notice.)

* Track rejection times so I know which markets are fast (looking at you, The Dark) and which ones will leave me waiting six months to a year.

* Eventually, string related stories together into a novella — that’s exactly how Roxy Vega came to life, and I’ve got a couple more brewing.

I do this old school with Excel charts.

I know everyone loves Submission Grinder, but I remember the day it went down and the mass panic that swept through my writing group. Charts are pablum for my brain — I genuinely love filling them in, ticking the little boxes, watching the data build.

The Rules I Live By (Mostly Heinlein’s)

* You must write.

* You must finish what you write.

* You must put it on the market.

* You must keep it on the market until it sells.

* You only revise to the needs of an editor. (Okay, this one I break. My craft keeps improving, and sometimes I reread an old piece and think “what was I thinking with that opening?” So I’ll go back in, tighten the try-fail cycles, and send it out again.)

The Real Secret

I don’t take rejections to heart. I really think that’s what’s set me apart in the writing world — I just keep subbing. And subbing. And subbing. It’s a numbers game:

* More stories out = more chances to sell.

* More stories out = more editorial feedback.

* More editorial feedback = a better writer.

Look at this list of rejections…

But honestly? We have to remember to have fun. We’re doing this because we love it. I’ve looked for the money in fiction writing, and it’s hard. There’s far more money in nonfiction, which is why my day job is journalism — though it does feed nicely into the market research I do for all of us.

Anyway, I appreciate every one of you. Good luck with your own submission Jenga, and I hope to meet you at a con one day. Conferences are my new love — they’re so energizing, and every single time I go to one, my career and my dreams take a step forward.

Okay — toodles! 👋

All this stuff takes me time, and I will be bringing in some pay walls, please join the next tier! Selling short stories is what we do.

** Stay tuned for your May list of open calls on Tuesday!

Most of my information is free, but some of the most exclusive info is paid. Join the next tier!

I met Sylvie Soul at the Toronto Indie Author Conference and knew immediately I’d found a kindred spirit — someone who loves short fiction, wrestles with the same questions about craft and career, and isn’t afraid to go to dark places on the page. We sat down to talk about perfectionism, productivity, the courage it takes to write what you actually love, and why embracing your inner “disrupter” might be the best career move you ever make.

The notes below are just a tiny taste of all the fun stuff we chat about in the actual podcast! Listen above, or if you like to watch (and who of us doesn’t?) Click here for the YouTube link:

AF: Tell us a bit about yourself and your writing.

SS: I’m a writer of short fiction — I’ve published several short stories over the years. The main goal, though, is the novel. The full manuscript I could either traditionally publish or, if not, I’m very much looking forward to self-publishing. I’ve been exploring my love of fiction, learning more about myself, discovering that speculative fiction is really my home. And I’m trying to get back to having an online presence. I had a site, it’s been dormant since the pandemic, but after meeting everyone at the Toronto Indie Author Conference, I feel motivated to bring up my brand and really express myself again.

AF: There’s so much pressure these days for authors to be their own marketing machines — social media, TikTok, BookTok, all of it. Do you think every author has to be an influencer?

SS: No, and I think there has to be a balance. I’m actually an introvert — I prefer being behind the scenes, and that’s even true in my day job, where I’m more in a support role. But when it comes to my writing, I’ve felt a shift lately. I do want my face out there. I want my personality attached to what I write. But the balance is the thing — you can build a presence, do the TikTok dances, do the BookTok thing, but if you’re devoting all your time to promoting that image, there’s little left over to actually focus on the craft. Especially if you have a day job on top of it. I don’t write full-time. Right now it’s a hobby. The dream is that eventually what I create overtakes what I do in my day job. But I think I’m a long ways out from that. So it’s about finding balance — fill my cup and also get paid.

AF: I’ve come to believe that the one thing all successful full-time authors have in common is sheer output — the number of books they have out there. Zoe York has over a hundred, Mallory Cooper over four or five hundred. What do you think?

SS: Consistency is the word that comes to mind for me. Don’t focus on motivation — you know what you have to do, so just get it done. But you’re right that it comes down to productivity. You have to add productivity to that triangle of talent, opportunity, and luck. That’s what lets them build. And honestly, what holds me back most is perfectionism. I always tell myself done is better than perfect, but I’m always so fearful that I’m going to be embarrassed in the future when people read something that isn’t exactly right — and that fear ends up freezing me completely.

AF: You have a completed novel. Tell us about it.

SS: I lovingly call it draft 1.5, because I’ve gone through moments where I’ve completed it, then gone, no, I don’t like this, I need to scrap it and start over. I finally had a version I was happy enough with to get from point A to point B. I gave it to my editor last year, and she gave me phenomenal notes.

Now I have to go back and, as I say, take a sledgehammer to it and beat it into submission so it’s better.

No one who cares about their audience ever puts out a first draft. Maybe it’ll be draft five. Maybe draft nine. I don’t know where it is yet, but it’s somewhere on the horizon. And word count wise — I’ll be honest — it’s still in novella territory. I haven’t cracked 50,000 words yet. But I think the market’s changing. People used to want a big fat tome. Now I think readers are more receptive to smaller, bite-sized stories they can actually consume. So if I just can’t embellish further, maybe it stays at 35,000 to 40,000 words. And that’s fine.

AF: What’s your take on editors?

SS: They are absolutely essential, and I don’t think we give them nearly enough praise. I was lucky enough to get a Toronto Arts Grant to help fund my editing, and it was the best money ever spent. I think when we reach the stage where we truly want to write the best thing possible, we’ve evolved past peer workshops — those can be overwhelming because you get six or seven different schools of thought and you don’t know which one to follow. You might have someone who has a completely different story in their head, and if you cater to them, you’re damaging your own story for someone who might not even read it anyway. When you actually invest in your writing by hiring a real editor, that’s when you take it to the next level.

AF: Where can people find you and your work?

SS: I’d recommend starting with Midnight Indigo — it’s one of the very first pieces I sold for money, and it’s called Waiting Room. I don’t want to spoil it, but it’s a bit dark and it’s short. It’s a good introduction to the kind of writing I do. My Substack is growing, so come find me there.

Hey…

Of course you know folks who want to hear about the effervescent Sylvie Soul. Share this interview!!

I’m running a Kickstarter… and if you are a short story writer, you need this Guide with so many of the best paying markets and HINTs on how to send them your best stories.

Plus, I share my insights right from the publishers and editors.

Welcome to part two of my no-holds-barred chat with Joe Solari.

If you’d rather watch a video, HERE IT IS.

This podcast is dropping a day late—on a Monday instead of Sunday—because I spent the weekend at the Toronto Indie Author Conference at the Toronto Public Library, and I’ve got to tell you, I’m so glad I went.

(I learned the difference between an em dash and an n dash during my free edit of the upcoming Roxie Vega novella. That was worth the price of admission alone, lol.)

I met some remarkable people, learned a ton, came away with new strategies, and got that free edit. (Hi Sylvie! And of course, my conference bud, Mark Leslie Lefebvre)

Paid subscribers can read all about what I learned and where I’m taking my career because of it in an exclusive post tomorrow.

One thing writers absolutely need to do is keep learning. And that’s what this weekend was about for me. AND why I’m going to Author Nation.

We need to hear how other authors are running their businesses, what’s working, what isn’t, and where the opportunities are.

Because, as Joe said in our chat last week, there is no magic bean that grows a successful author career.

The right person has to read the right story at the right time. But you can absolutely improve your odds of being discovered.

If there’s one truth I keep coming back to in my years-long search for how to make real money with writing, it’s this: the more books you have out, the more chances you have to succeed.

So whatever’s been holding you back—and I’m saying this to myself too—fear, imposter syndrome, perfectionism—it’s time to shove that aside in 2026.

This is the year I give this thing a real go.

Attending conferences like the Toronto Indie Author Conference and going to Author Nation this November are a big part of my strategy. It’s the networking. It’s the learning. It’s the headspace you put yourself in when you’re around people who are serious about this business.

So I hope you enjoy part two of my chat with Joe, where he gives me a real blueprint for what to expect at Author Nation this November.

Enjoy! (Ps. Most of the “stuff” is in the podcast and video. The bit below is just a summary.)

— Here are the links mentioned in the chat;

https://www.spoken.press

https://www.curios.com

https://www.kickstarter.com/

https://www.authornation.live

https://www.royalroad.com/home

AF: For authors who are wondering whether Author Nation is worth attending, what’s the biggest value?

JS: Access. At a large event like Author Nation, authors can connect with major service providers, new technology companies, and other serious authors all in one place. It’s not just about inspiration. It’s about relationships, information, and opportunities that can save years of trial and error.

AF: So it’s partly about networking, but also about learning what tools and strategies are actually working now?

JS: Our job is to bring the industry to the community. That means established players, new platforms, and emerging technologies. We want authors to see what’s changing, think critically about it, and decide what fits their business.

AF: You also talked about helping authors before they even get to the event.

JS: One example is the free Kickstarter cohort. Authors can join, learn by listening, get feedback, simplify their campaigns, and improve their odds of funding. We’ve seen people use Kickstarter not just as a fundraising tool, but as a smart first launch for a book.

AF: That was one of the most interesting things you said—that Kickstarter can help authors make money earlier instead of pouring money into a launch and hoping it works.

JS: If authors can break even or better on a first launch, that solves a real business problem. It helps them fund production, build confidence, and grow without digging into savings.

AF: And Author Nation is also creating projects that give authors opportunities beyond just attending panels.

JS: Absolutely. We’ve run anthologies, launched them on Kickstarter, and created ways for authors to earn money and gain exposure. We’re also developing projects like comic adaptations, where writers from the community can see their work turned into something new. That kind of hands-on opportunity matters.

AF: So this isn’t just a conference where people sit in rooms and take notes.

JS: Everything we’re building has a purpose. We want authors to leave with clearer direction, better tools, stronger connections, and real ways to grow their business.

AF: You also made an important point that authors need to think like business owners.

JS: Nobody will care about your career as much as you do. Whether you pursue direct sales, Kickstarter, wide distribution, Kindle Unlimited, audio, serial fiction, or live events, you need to understand the model you’re choosing and build intentionally.

AF: And that’s one of the real benefits of Author Nation—you’re giving authors a place to figure out which path makes sense for them.

JS: There isn’t one right path for every author. The goal is to reduce friction between writers and readers, help authors understand their options, and create an environment where they can make smarter decisions faster.

AF: So if an author comes in with too many ideas, too many possibilities, and not enough focus, Author Nation can help them narrow things down? (Asking for a friend… who am I kidding… This is SO me.)

JS: The more work an author does ahead of time—thinking about where they want to be in two years and what stepping stones matter—the more they’ll get from the event. But even then, the point is clarity. Focus. Better decisions. Better opportunities.

AF: That really feels like the core of it. Author Nation helps authors connect, learn, focus, and find practical ways to move their careers forward.

JS: That’s the goal.

Learn more about Author Nation!

And here is the link to my Kickstarter, which I’m doing as part of the Author Nation Kickstarter Cohort. Join up to be notified when it launches! Very cool rewards. Including paid subscriptions to this SUBSTACK!

Or why wait? Join now and read all about my super intense insights from the Toronto Writing Conference tomorrow.

I’m going to Author Nation this year, and the founder and driving force behind one of the biggest writing conferences in the world talks about WHY this event can’t be missed if you are looking to take your author career to another level.

PREFER to 👀? LINK TO YOUTUBE INTERVIEW

PS. There was so much good info! Part two will drop next week.

AF: What makes Author Nation different from other conferences?

JS: Having been in this industry for 10 years now, and seeing how it’s changed and what’s going on, and understanding how it works — we’re really trying to create a place where two things happen:

* One, we’re actually being forward-thinking and proactive and changing how the industry will work. If you’re not happy with how things are, change ’em.

* But also being realistic about how difficult it is, especially if you’re striving toward earning a living as an author. Once you understand how difficult that is, what can you do to change the probabilities?

We’ve never been the kind of group that says:

“Oh yeah, come and buy our magic beans and you’re just gonna have success and it’ll be wonderful.”

That’s not the truth.

But what we can do is look at how things work and say, okay, what are the main failure points in author businesses? Then either educate you to go around those points or do things as a community to stack advantages toward our community.

That’s how I think and how we’re approaching the show, and why it’s structurally different than other events. It really is kind of a system.

AF: So, having raw talent isn’t enough to be successful in the author world?

JS: Talent’s the floor, assuming it’s a good product, because bad products won’t sell no matter what. It really is luck, and there are so many factors you can’t control when it comes to algorithms and word of mouth.

And then we complicate it further by having situations where people say, “Well, this is what I did, and you do the same thing, you can be successful.”

I’m not saying those authors are lying, they do honestly believe that their success is repeatable. That’s survivor bias. But there are too many factors that can’t be controlled.

AF: So what should authors take away from that?

JS: Don’t beat yourself up because you’re in that fat tail, (Authorial note: Joe explains the Power Law Curve in our talk, and most authors are in the big tail and not the tall head of success.)

Understand that what gets you to move from the average result to an above-average result isn’t your average cost of advertising, or how much you spend on marketing, as more often than not it’s a threshold event driven by your audience that you’ve built.

AF: And what creates that threshold event?

JS: It has more to do with a rinse-and-repeat cycle. The more you launch your books on Amazon, the more that you go to live events, the more that you do whatever it is that you’re deciding to build your brand around.

(Authorial note: then I asked Joe Solari about a podcast episode I heard him on.. Self-Publishing with ALLi - Why Recipes for Publishing Success Dont Work. This is what he dives into next.)

And this gets us to the artificial cultural market study. I think we should all be talking about it all the time. It demonstrated that if you took the same books on Amazon and took them to a parallel universe, it would come up with a different number one book right now.

It’s about how the audience interacts with that data set. It has more to do with word of mouth and what’s driving a popularity market.

I’ve seen a lot of times where authors will huddle up and try to case-study a successful author. What if we did all these things? What if we imitated the writing style, cover, whatever?

We’re all gonna make covers like her now and we’re all gonna write psychological thrillers.

But her success will lift the whole genre and may make some other people lift up, but it’s not like her audience sees your book, if it looked identical and was written similarly, as an equal substitute. It’s not like one pound of sugar is equal to another pound of sugar.

It has more to do with the audience’s personal connection with those brands and the story world and the characters.

AF: You mentioned Matt Dinniman and the wild success of Dungeon Crawler Carl. What did he do that made such a difference?

JS: It was a long time before those books took off. A lot of people were not willing to do the things that Matt was doing.

He went to a lot of live events. He was going to things like Dragon Con, but also anytime he would go anywhere that he traveled, he would do local book events. He would call up an independent bookstore and say, “Hey, I’d like to host some of my fans.” Maybe in the beginning, two to five people would show up.

But he would keep doing it. And doing it. And doing it.

Now he’s massive. Live Nation is running his events because they’ve gotten so big. But here is an example of how he goes the extra mile: They canceled his New York event, and he got on Facebook and his group and said, “Well, I’m here in New York and I know there was snow and they canceled the event, but I’m gonna hang out at this bar, whatever day, from two to five. Meet you there.”

Now he didn’t have to do that, but he understands.

AF: Does this lead into why it was important to create Reader Nation as a part of Author Nation?

(Authorial note: On the last day of the conference, there is an enormous mass signing event on the Saturday, where fans can come and buy books and get them signed.)

JS: One of the things we’ve invested heavily in and are focused on is the sister event, Reader Nation, which is a live signing event.

People have asked, “Well, why are you doing this?” There’s kind of this disconnect. “Well, I thought this was about authors networking and authors learning about business.”

Yes, it is.

Our approach is, how do we make this thing the most effective event possible? Our hope is that over time many authors will come to our show, they’ll get that first part, which is the author education and the networking and all that cool stuff, and then they’ll stick around and participate in the live event, and they’ll come home not only with their head full of information, but they’ll have paid for their trip through selling books.

(Authorial note: Is this not genius? But I’m still terrified of live selling. Maybe next year…)

AF: You’ve changed your thinking about where book sales are going. How so?

JS: If you asked me five years ago where book sales were going, I would’ve pointed you at things like direct sales. I was an early adopter of stuff like using Shopify and Kickstarter.

But then what I observed is there’s this really crazy thing going on in the world, and that is that new readers, younger readers, are coming into the marketplace buying physical books at live events.

AS PART OF THE AUTHOR NATION KICKSTARTER COHORT, I’M RUNNING A KICKSTARTER NEXT MONTH! SIGN UP TO BE NOTIFIED.

Click here

AF: One of the practical things that interested me most was your print-on-demand system for the event.

JS: My wife Suze and I are the owners of the show. This is how we do stuff. We are creative people, we love solving problems.

The value is created between what I call the reader-writer relationship. If there’s not a writer creating story and there’s not a reader who’s prepared to give some money up for that story, it doesn’t matter—Amazon, us, the whole thing collapses. That’s the keystone relationship. The symbiotic relationship that drives everything.

Our event lets writers sell directly to readers. But they need their books.

(Authorial note: I told Joe that I can’t even imagine hauling all my books to sell on a plane, paying for the extra baggage… etc.)

All those people have to get the books there. That’s a problem for you as an author, especially if you’re coming from out of the country. And the hotel is not really thrilled with thousands of boxes showing up from Amazon.

So once we knew we had the store and were going to have to collect taxes, the next thing was to open our store up earlier so you’re not just selling books on the day, you’re selling books weeks ahead of time. The orders come in and get delivered to one place.

We look at all of the orders that come in ahead of time and we get those printed.

The whole idea is solving problems. That’s how we add value to this whole community.

Joe blew my mind with this interview. He graciously spoke to me for over an hour! Part Two dives more into how an author (like myself) can get the maximum out of her first journey to AUTHOR NATION.

It’s this November.

Wanna meet me there?

If you’re going, drop a comment and let me know!