In July 2022, I launched my online shop at www.CreativePennBooks.com. Its built on Shopifys eCommerce platform, and in this solo episode, Ill explain why I built the store, my lessons learned, tips if you want to build your own, and how I intend to expand it over time. This episode is sponsored by my wonderful [] The post Selling Books Direct With Shopify: The Minimum Viable Store first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Selling your books direct to readers and listeners can bring you more money, faster, and allow you to control your customer's experience and data. Morgana Best explains why selling direct is so important for an author business, and some of her tips for implementing a Shopify store. In the intro, the publishing court case of [] The post Selling Books Direct On Shopify With Morgana Best first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
What do you need to consider if you want to go full time as an author entrepreneur? What challenges might you face in your first few years? Sacha Black shared her lessons learned from 3 years full-time. In the intro, PRH and S&S merger heads to trial [Publishers Weekly]; Pilgrimage episodes on my Books and [] The post Lessons Learned From 3 Years As A Full-Time Author with Sacha Black first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How will blockchain technology change the way creatives register copyright, as well as monetize their work? Roanie Levy explains how blockchain can solve the attribution problem, and how smart contracts will allow new business models with ownership of digital assets in web 3. This podcast is sponsored byWritten Word Media, which makes book marketing a [] The post Blockchain For Copyright And Intellectual Property With Roanie Levy first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you lean into your strengths as a writer to find the genre and the business model that suits you best? A.G. Riddle talks about his writing process, his publishing choices, and how he's planning to pivot into the next phase of his career. In the intro, I talk about my experience [] The post Writing A Bestseller With A.G. Riddle first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Tools and tactics may change, but the principles of book marketing remain the same whatever the situation. Becky Robinson gives advice on how to reach readers and market your books for the long term. In the intro, The Things You Think Matter Dont [Ryan Holiday]; Boost Your Backlist [ALLi]; Craving Independence [The Bookseller]; 21st [] The post Reach: Create The Biggest Audience For Your Book With Becky Robinson first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How To Write a Novel: From Idea to Book is out now if you buy direct from my store, www.CreativePennBooks.com for ebook, audiobook, paperback, or workbook editions. It will be out everywhere on your favorite store in your preferred format from 13 August 2022. More details and links here. In today's special inbetweenisode, I share [] The post Writing A Novel Will Change Your Life. Audiobook Introduction Of How To Write A Novel. first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you write a series which keeps your readers engaged, while still keeping your creative spark alive? How can you sustain a writing career for the long term? With Tess Gerritsen. In the intro, The Creator Economy report [The Tilt]; Publisher Rocket tutorial. Today's show is sponsored by IngramSpark, who I use to print [] The post Writing For The Long-Term With Tess Gerritsen first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Print on demand makes it easy to sell print books without the hassle of storage and shipping but it's limited to what the established POD printers allow. What if you want to do a special print run, either for a crowdfunding project, or because you want higher quality print production with extras? White Fox [] The post Publishing Special Print Editions And Crowdfunding with John Bond and Chris Wold from White Fox first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
What are the different types of editing? How can you find and work effectively with the best editor for your book? What are some editing tips to watch out for in your fiction or non-fiction manuscript? With Kristen Tate from The Blue Garret. In the intro, hiring virtual assistants [ALLi]; and I'm recording my audiobook [] The post Different Kinds Of Editing, And How To Find An Editor With Kristen Tate first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you write twists that surprise a reader? How can you market your books effectively as a traditionally published author? Clare Mackintosh talks about her creative process, and how she works with her publisher to reach more readers. In the intro, Kate Bush is the worlds biggest independent artist right now and more on [] The post Writing Twists And Marketing As A Traditionally Published Author With Clare Mackintosh first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
What is GPT-3 and how can writers use it responsibly as part of their creative process? How can we approach AI tools with curiosity, rather than fear? Thriller author Andrew Mayne talks about these aspects and more. In the intro, I mention the discussion about whether Googles language model, LaMDA, could be sentient [The Verge]; [] The post Writing With Artificial Intelligence With Andrew Mayne first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you sell books direct to your readers for all formats without dealing with the pain of shipping print books? How can you automate sales with email? How can you earn 80-90% of the sales price and have it go into your bank account in days or even hours, instead of months? Katie Cross [] The post Selling Books Direct on Shopify with Katie Cross first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you manage a successful Kickstarter campaign without burning out? How can you expand into multiple streams of income? Bryan Cohen talks about crowdfunding, changes in his business model, and more. In the intro, 10th year of double-digit audiobook growth [Publishing Perspectives]; Spotify's plans for audiobook expansion [Spotify]; Free webinars for audiobook month [FindawayVoices]; [] The post Kickstarter And Multiple Streams Of Non-Fiction Income With Bryan Cohen first appeared on The Cr...
How can you make your self-published books available to libraries in every format? How can you pitch librarians so they are interested in ordering your books? Eric Otis Simmons explains how he successfully pitches and sells to libraries throughout the USA. In the intro, Books2Read is useful for sharing wide links; Lindsay Buroker gives long [] The post How To Get Your Self-Published Book Into Libraries With Eric Otis Simmons first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Why do you need an email list when you can just reach readers with social media? How can you use reader magnets to build your email list? Tammi Labrecque gives beginner and advanced tips for book marketing. In the intro, The state of the Creator Economy report from ConvertKit; and I use and recommend ConvertKit [] The post Build Your Email List With Reader Magnets With Tammi Labrecque first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How do we decide on the hero for our story? How can we write distinctive but still believable characters? Matt Bird talks about aspects of writing character. In the intro, a guide to UBLs, Universal Book Links [Draft2Digital]; Your author brand [Ask ALLi with me and Orna Ross]; The Creator Economy in Bath. [] The post Writing Characters With Matt Bird first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
I've been talking about AI narration for several years now, but it's just starting to go mainstream and I've been getting emails every day recently asking the same questions, so this is a round-up article with the most important information. For context, I am an audiobook narrator. I narrate my own non-fiction and short stories. [] The post An Update On AI-Narrated Audiobooks [May 2022] first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Why is writing so important? How can we pursue true independence as authors? How can we stay open to technological change while still focusing on the fundamentals of craft? Derek Sivers talks about these things and more. In the intro, How to know if you are putting too much pressure on yourself [Holly Worton]; Breaking [] The post Writing, Independence, And Selling Books Direct With Derek Sivers first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
If you want to create, sell, buy, or trade NFTs, you need to understand the financial and tax implications. In this interview, Joe David explains the important aspects of blockchain assets and cryptocurrency. [Disclaimer: This is not financial or legal advice. This is just a conversation based on our interest and experience. Please consult a [] The post Financial And Tax Implications Of NFTs With Joe David, Crypto Accountant first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
In this inspirational interview, crime writer Angela Marsons talks about how she overcame years of rejection and broke out of societal expectations to reach writing and publishing success. She also talks about tips for writing a long-running crime series, and how she weaves her home of the Black Country into her stories. In the intro, [] The post Writing A Successful Crime Thriller Series With Angela Marsons first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you make more money without growing the size of your business? What systems and mindset do you need to focus on in order to leverage your limited time? Elaine Pofeldt talks about Tiny Business, Big Money in this interview. In the intro, Google Play Books opens up their AI narration for audiobooks; thoughts [] The post Tiny Business, Big Money With Elaine Pofeldt first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you hook readers into your story by using universal human desires and motivations? How can you write what you love, run your author business your way, and still maintain the ambition for a 7-figure author business? Theodora Taylor gives her thoughts in this interview. In the intro, self-publishing predictions for the 2020s [ALLi]; [] The post 7 Figure Fiction With Theodora Taylor first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Why are digital scarcity and ownership so important to the business model of creators in web 3? How can an author use a wider fictional world for creative and business goals? Rae and Stephen talk about why creators need web 3 and their fantasy universe, SitkaWorld. In the intro, I mention the Creatokia podcast with [] The post Creating A Fictional World In Web 3 With Rae Wojcik and Stephen Poynter first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you turn one idea into a short story or expand it into a novel? How can you find a writing process that brings you joy for the long term? Jessie Kwak talks about writing craft tips in this interview. In the intro, I comment on Andy Jassy's letter to shareholders and the importance [] The post From Big Idea To Book With Jessie Kwak first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you write a book that children will love? How can you reach schools and libraries with your books? What might you be leaving on the table in terms of revenue in your author business? Daniel Miller shares his tips, and we also discuss the potential opportunities in his business model. In the intro, [] The post Creating And Selling Books For Children With Daniel Miller first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you create distance from your manuscript in order to see it as a reader does and edit effectively? What are some of the biggest issues with editing a manuscript? How can you edit on a budget? Tiffany Yates Martin talks all about editing in this interview. In the intro, 10 years of the [] The post Intuitive Editing With Tiffany Yates Martin first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
Would you like to successfully crowdfund your book on Kickstarter? Monica Leonelle shares practical and mindset tips for creating the right kind of project, as well as mistakes to avoid, and how to satisfy fans and make money with your books. Monica and I recorded this before Brandon Sanderson's epic Kickstarter which has raised [] The post Kickstarter For Authors With Monica Leonelle first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How can you future-proof your author career by being careful with the publishing clauses you sign? Why are NFTs so interesting for intellectual property? How might DAOs help authors with estate planning? Copyright and trademark attorney Kathryn Goldman talks about these things and more. In the intro, I talk about my art NFTs [JFPenn & [] The post The Legal Side Of Intellectual Property, NFTs, and DAOs With Kathryn Goldman first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
How do we tell the deeper story that matters in a way that engages readers? How can we tackle the inner critic, self-censorship and fear of judgment? And does social media actually sell books? Nikesh Shukla talks about why Your Story Matters and gives his writing tips. In the intro, Amazon opens up Ads to [] The post Your Story Matters With Nikesh Shukla first appeared on The Creative Penn ....
