SELF PUBLISHING SHOW LIVE 2025 - TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW CLICK HERE

Podcast

SPF-089: Masterclass: The Value of a Sale – with Mark Dawson

20 October 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


This week’s highlights include:

• Using Facebook Messenger to boost launch sales
• On the excellent response rate of Messenger
• Calculating ROI for ads based on sell-through rates, rather than just sales of one book
• Different ways to calculate read-through
• Why it makes sense to run ad campaigns at a loss because of read-through
• Ways to promote and encourage read-through
• On the new and updated modules for the Ads for Authors course

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Authors on a train

Facebook Messenger for Business

Help! My Facebook Ads Suck (book)

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-088: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Revision Process – with Joan Dempsey

13 October 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


This week’s highlights include:

  • The misconception that the first draft is the finished book
  • The overwhelm that can occur when revising a novel, and how to tackle that
  • Breaking the revision process into smaller chunks to deal with overwhelm
  • On Joan’s online courses about revision and their flexibility for different types of writers
  • Tips for establishing distance from your manuscript in order to revise like an editor
  • Tips for overcoming “My writing is rubbish” syndrome

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Joan’s Website

Joan’s novel: This is How It Begins

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-086: How to Administer your Advance Readers – with Chris Leippi, Booksprout

6 October 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


This week’s highlights include:

  • The challenges Chris faced when sending ARCs to his readers
  • How Booksprout addresses those challenges
  • Why having advanced readers matters
  • Price points for new authors and also those with larger review teams
  • How Booksprout reduces follow-up time for authors
  • Discoverability for readers on Booksprout
  • The leap in ARC review response Chris has seen since using Booksprout himself

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Booksprout

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-085: Shaking Up the Audiobook Market – with Kevin Tumlinson

29 September 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


Kevin Tumlinson from Draft2Digital reveals the company’s exciting new plans for indie authors wanting to make the most of the audiobook market.

This week’s highlights include:

  • Changes to the tools available for indie authors at Draft2Digital
  • The new partnership between Findaway Voices and D2D
  • Details on the expanding world of audiobooks available to authors
  • Removing the limits on pricing and book length that have been in place
  • Why audiobooks are an important part of an indie author’s library

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Draft2Digital (https://www.draft2digital.com/)
SPF Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/SPFPodcast)

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-084: When Your First Novel Goes Global – with Felicia Yap

22 September 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


Felicia Yap talks at length about how she achieved global success with her first novel – and how she’s dealt with the repercussions.

Highlights of this week’s episode:

  • Felicia’s unique and intriguing premise for her new thriller, Yesterday
  • Working out story ideas on the dance floor
  • Felicia’s very flexible approach to her writing routine
  • Applying to the Faber School
  • Finding an agent and working with editors
  • Applying creativity and a strong work ethic to the submission process

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-083:Breathing Life into your Backlist with Chris Fox

18 September 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast


How do you go about ensuring that ALL of your books are out there earning for you? Cue, self publishing wiz, Chris Fox, on how to get the most out of your previously released books.

This Week's Giveaway

Chris Fox’s free book: Relaunch your Novel

Download

This week’s key highlights:

  • Chris’s beginnings as a writer and his background in Silicon Valley
  • About Chris’s books and videos offering help for authors
  • How to make a novel work
  • Chris’s approach to productivity
  • The power of a backlist
  • The recommended tools that Chris uses for his writing and publishing

Resources and links mentioned in this episode:

STORY GRID: Editor Shawn Coyne’s book about story structure

MORE ABOUT STORY STRUCTURE: Dan Harmon’s Story Circle

PATREON: The SPF Podcast Patreon page

FREE COPY OF CHRIS FOX’S LATEST BOOK

Download TranscriptLeave a Review

SPF-080: How to Sell Your Foreign Rights – with Orna Ross

1 September 2017
Mark Dawson
Categories: Podcast

The paradigm shifts in publishing have opened doors for authors. And sometimes caused challenges for those authors who have lost rights to a trad publisher and now want them back. Orna Ross, Founder and Director of the Alliance of Independent Authors, talks to James about these issues, how authors can approach getting lost rights back, what it takes to sell rights in foreign territories, and what to be aware of when doing so.

Read More