I recently read Mind Management, Not Time Management by David Kadvy. It made a big impact on me because David has thought a lot about popular productivity methods like Getting Things Done and considered how they can apply to writers and creatives. He breaks down how creatives can organize their day so they’re at their best when it’s time to write or work on a project and how they can also find time for all the administrative stuff that could come with running a writing business. I was interested...
Jul 26, 2021•37 min
I've read a few books about productivity and work that have radically changed how I think about finding time to work and creative projects. One of those books is Getting Things Done by David Allen, and it made a significant impact on how I think about work. In this week's interview, David discusses how your mind is for having ideas, not for holding onto them, and writers and creatives must have a system for capturing all of their ideas. I started the interview by asking him how GTD has changed s...
Jul 22, 2021•31 min
In this episode, I catch up with TEDx speaker and author Dai Manuel. Dai brings to his work his personal story of the challenges he overcame to become a wellness coach and run a multimillion-dollar business. Dai explains how, when he started to bring more vulnerability into his writing, everything changed for him. His coaching clients increased, and he secured more public speaking gigs, including TEDx. I was interested in finding out from Dai what it was like to give a TEDx talk, and I was fasci...
Jul 19, 2021•35 min
In this episode, we focus on email marketing, and my guest is email marketing expert Keith Monaghan. He knows his stuff as he previously worked as a market researcher and email marketer for companies like Nike, Specialized Bicycles, Trek, and NBC Television. He's the author of the new book, Easy Email Marketing: 10 Simple Steps for Creating and Sending Marketing E-Mail Your Customers Will Love . I asked Keith to walk through all the steps needed to create a successful campaign. From setting up a...
Jul 15, 2021•30 min
Was your first book a bit of a passion project? If you're going to commit to writing in the long term and want to earn a living wage from it, you need a plan. That's one of the topics I address in this week's interview with Orna Ross. She is the Alliance of Independent Authors director, and she also coaches students on creative planning. I wanted to know more about her creative planning process and how writers can benefit from it. I started our conversation by asking her to describe her backgrou...
Jul 12, 2021•35 min
Would you like to start a content website about your hobby that you could sell for many multiples? My guest this week explains how to do just that. Mushfiq has bought and sold over 150 websites since he started his career as a content creator and website builder back in 2008. In other words, he’s an expert on the topic. But what if you have no money and no budget for buying a content website? Mushfiq explains the steps he would take if he were starting from scratch today. He reveals how he buys,...
Jul 08, 2021•31 min
Michelle Cox is the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series author, a mystery romance set in 1930s Chicago. Described as Downtown Abbey meets Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, the books have won multiple awards, and publications like PopSugar, Elle, BuzzFeed, Redbook, and Bustle have praised it as a top read. In this episode, Michelle describes her writing process for mysteries and explains where the idea came for a mystery romance set in 1930s Chicago. Michelle also describes how beta readers help ...
Jul 01, 2021•32 min
Chicago-based scriptwriter Daniel Joshua Rubin is the author of 27 Essential Principles of Story . This book stands out because Daniel uses modern examples like South Park and Breaking Bad to describe how storytelling principles work. Then, he explains how writers can apply the principles to writing screenplays, novels, etc. Daniel describes what it means to live a writing life and how sometimes you need to separate your identity from being a successful writer. Towards the end of our conversatio...
Jun 30, 2021•32 min
Carol and Matthew Newell run the Family Hope Center. It's an organization that has so far supported over 20,000 families dealing with special needs children. Carol and Matthew took some of the ideas they've refined throughout their careers and turned them into a book. One of the key challenges they faced is having spent their entire careers as experts in their field, they found it hard to convey the knowledge they take for granted. I've experienced reading books written by clinicians, and I appr...
Jun 28, 2021•28 min
I recently read a collection of personal essays by my guest today, the Irish Times journalist Patrick Freyne. It’s called OK, Let’s Do Your Stupid Idea. In the book, Patrick reflects on the jobs he’s had, his time in a band, and a friend who unexpectedly passed away. He didn’t necessarily set out to write a book, but one of his personal essays gained traction with a popular writing publication in Ireland. I had the chance to catch up with Patrick and ask him about his writing process and how he ...
Jun 24, 2021•35 min
In this episode, I interview author, biographer, and ghostwriter Ruby Peru. She's written an astonishing 19 books to date, and she spoke to me about how she balances working on her craft whilst working on books for her clients. She also has to juggle this with finding her next client, which can be a painful lesson to learn as a freelancer. It's great to get the paycheque at the end of your commission, but then you have to find your next client. I wanted to know what got Ruby into writing memoir,...
Jun 21, 2021•30 min
People consume books differently from how they did in the past. They like to read books on their phone or tablet. And they also want to listen to books in the car, at the gym, and on the go. And this is where audiobooks come into their own. I've recorded several audiobooks as it's a fantastic way to increase sales. I'd certainly encourage you to consider turning your books into audiobooks. In this episode, I speak with Al Black of Voquent Media. He's an expert when it comes to creating audiobook...
Jun 17, 2021•34 min
My guest on this episode of the podcast is Jeff Leisawitz. His book, Not F*ing Around, was written with creative people in mind. It encourages the reader to get their creative dreams off the ground. He's also a life coach whose work is focused purely on creatives and helping them to achieve their creative goals. As it says on his website: "Jeff burns with a mission— to inspire and teach writers, artists, songwriters, musicians, filmmakers, solopreneurs, arts organizations (and every other human ...
Jun 14, 2021•28 min
Alinka Rutkowska is the CEO of Leaders Press, a company that helps non-fiction authors, specifically in the business genre, hit the USA Today and Wall Street Journal Best Seller List. In this interview, Alinka highlighted the importance of having an email list. While it's true that Amazon and Facebook ads can help you sell books, it's an email list that is the most effective way to keep in touch with your readers and let them know when your work is live. Alinka also discusses how to generate int...
Jun 10, 2021•31 min
What could you accomplish if you wrote 300 words a day every day for 30 days? Nicolas Cole and his business partner, Dickie Bush, put together the "Ship 30 for 30" challenge where they encourage writers to do just that. It's an excellent challenge if you want to tap into the power of small daily wins for your writing. Nicolas is the author of several books, including The Art and Business of Online Writing. I started our conversation by asking Nicolas to explain his rather interesting backstory, ...
Jun 07, 2021•33 min
James Breakwell is a professional comedy writer. He's the father of four girls who were the inspiration behind his popular Twitter account, which eventually went viral. And on the back of that, he produced a series of parenting books, but they're not you're usual parenting books. In this episode, James and I chat about what makes his parenting books different from the others out there. We also talk about his latest book, How to Be a Man (Whatever That Means) . In this episode, we discuss: How Ja...
Jun 03, 2021•28 min
I know many authors who've thought about it, but few who have done it... written a children's book. As the parent of three children, it's certainly something that I have considered. One man who has leapt into children's fiction is John Mashni. He's recently written and published CinderToot , which is a take on the tale of Cinderella. Having read the book, I surprised myself by laughing out loud as it's hilarious, and the illustrations that accompany it are superb. In this episode, John, who runs...
May 31, 2021•32 min
Have you ever used prompts or constraints to inspire your creativity? Herbert Lui is a well-known freelancer. He’s written for top publications like Lifehacker and Fast Company, and I also know him as the guy who introduced me to the Zettelkasten method, which changed how I research and write books. Herbert also runs his own business, helping companies set up blogs and build a name online. In this episode, I ask Herbert what it’s like to write for companies like Lifehacker and Fast Company and h...
May 27, 2021•32 min
Fantasy and non-fiction author, Richie Billing, has written several fantasy books and collaborated with other authors. In this episode, I chat with Richie about his writing process for fantasy, world-building, and collaborating with other authors across the genre. Richie's day job is in digital marketing, and so it stands to reason that he would use this to his advantage when it comes to selling his books. He discusses the current digital marketing trends for authors, the benefits of building an...
May 24, 2021•32 min
Can you build a long and successful career as a writer? My guest on this episode is Linguistics professor Julie Tetel Andresen. Not only has she published more than 35 books, but she also writes in many different genres, including romance, police procedurals, and crime thrillers. I encourage you to listen until the end of the episode, as Julie reveals the importance of a backlist and why it's almost as important as the book you are currently working on. But before that, I was interested in disco...
May 20, 2021•35 min
Have you ever considered writing fiction for young adults? In this episode, I chat to Zara Miller, whose first book, I Am Cecilia , is about to be published. It’s a romance aimed at young adults. We talk about her process for writing young adult fiction and romance, and she explains how she also writes fanfiction set in the Riverdale universe, which she says helps her decompress. Zara also talks about what drew her to write young adult fiction and how she landed a book publishing contract. In th...
May 17, 2021•26 min
Journaling is very popular right now, but could you produce a book from your journal entries? I'm writing a parenting book at the moment, and journaling is the approach that I'm using. I wrote journal entries about the sorts of things that my kids got up to, then, when I was ready to write the book, I reorganized the entries and turned them into chapters. Taking this approach works because if you write 300 words in your journal today, chances are tomorrow you'll feel a bit more comfortable about...
May 12, 2021•30 min
Have you ever considered offering something in addition to your book? I've discovered several non-fiction authors who provide coaching, organize events, or facilitate courses that elaborate on their book's ideas. Doing this helps spread your message more widely because not everybody enjoys learning via the written word. It also enables you to earn more from your writing, which you could invest in your business or live off while writing another book. It can also help you clarify your ideas and re...
May 10, 2021•26 min
You may think that as you're the book's author, then you're the best person to edit it, but finding and working with a good editor can help improve the writing that you produce. Not only will editors find and fix errors in your manuscript that you might have missed when you were writing them, but it can also be like having access to your own coach or mentor. Editors are trained professionals who can help you improve your craft and help you spot issues you've missed. A good editor can offer advic...
May 05, 2021•27 min
Like many authors, you probably have a dream of writing and publishing your first book. Chances are, you've also got to work to pay the bills and write the book when you have some time to spare. At least that's what I had to do. I used to get up at 5 or 6 am and spend the first-hour writing before the kids woke up and my working day started. But, I believe that if you spend 30 - 60 minutes per day on your writing project, you can make great progress. My guest in this episode is Conor Bredin, and...
May 03, 2021•31 min
Have you ever felt the urge to perform your work in front of people? Or do you already love performing your work to others? My guest in this episode of the podcast is Dallas based poet and performer, Tyran Saffold. He spends a lot of time reading and reciting his work and he also runs a spoken word magazine, has a YouTube channel and his own podcast. I had the pleasure of speaking with Tyran and I wanted to know how he gets himself and his pieces ready for a recital and what it is he loves about...
Apr 28, 2021•29 min
Platforms like Medium make it easier than ever to earn a living from writing. My guest on this episode of the podcast is Michael Thompson, a career coach and writer from the United States who emigrated to Barcelona, in Spain. He's also the editor of a popular publication on Medium called Entrepreneur's Handbook and has written dozens of articles that have gone viral on Medium. Mike and I chatted about how he found himself moving to Barcelona from the US and how that move set off a chain of event...
Apr 21, 2021•39 min
Could you write about your family? And if so, how would you decide what to include and what to take out? I've just finished writing a book about my experiences of being a dad to three children, and I've had to make some decisions about what to leave in and what to take out. After all, I want to be fair to the children. And although my editor has given me some good advice, ultimately the best person to look over it and give their opinion will be my wife! It was whilst researching the book that I ...
Apr 14, 2021•30 min
Have you ever tried to write a short story? I've often felt that short stories are a great way to try out different styles and genres without the commitment of writing a novel. They are also a valuable way of moving your writing away from blogging or journalism. Frank Burton is a podcaster and author. Not only has he produced several novels, but he's also a prolific short story writer. I was interested to know more about his short story writing process and how he comes up with so many different ...
Apr 07, 2021•28 min
What does SEO look like for creatives today? It's a great strategy for building traction for a business or a book, how can you do that without throwing money at Facebook or Google ads? My guest in this episode is the Founder of Lolly Co, Daniel Cooper. His new book, Upgrade, shows business owners how to use key strategies and techniques to grow their business, including producing engaging content. Content can come in many forms, from blogging, writing guest articles, newsletters - in fact, anyth...
Mar 31, 2021•32 min
