SPA Girls Podcast

USA Today Bestselling romance author, Steffanie Holmes, returns to the SPA to educate us on how to run a successful kickstarter. Inspired by the knockout success of Brandon Sanderson and many other authors, Steff ran an incredibly successful kickstarter in 2022 to fund limited-edition hardcovers of her books – in fact, it was fully funded in just FIVE HOURS! In this episode Steff walks us through all the steps needed – from deciding what to fund, to how to set reward levels, how to promote your kickstarter campaign, managing logistics, stretch goals, what fans want, how “unknown” authors can make it work, and the lessons she’s learned to take into her next kickstarter campaign. About Steffanie Holmes Steffanie Holmes is a USA Today bestselling author of dark, gothic, and sinful romance books. Her books feature clever, witty heroines, secret societies, creepy old mansions, and alpha heroes who always get what they want. Steff received the 2017 Attitude Award for Artistic Achievement, and was a finalist for a 2018 Women of Influence award. Her books are enjoyed by thousands of readers all over the world. Steff is also the creator of Rage Against the Manuscript, an online community for writers to learn about self-publishing, finding their readers, and building a badass author brand. Steff’s passionate about helping authors from all walks of life find their voice and tell their story. Watch Steff on national tv here: https://youtu.be/7nZLQQKBPrs

Today we talk about not relying on luck to build your career. We believe you can make your own luck, but don’t wait for it to happen! Ron Weasley (or not, we’re not really sure) says believing in yourself is 100% more powerful than luck! Overnight success may happen for some, but if you dig deeper often, what appears to be a lucky break is actually from years of hard work to get to that point. Wendy, Cheryl, and Trudi dig deeper into this subject in the podcast. ❤️ The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons!  Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there! www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast  Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

In this fun episode with Lillian Lark, we learn about monster romance – what it is, how it’s defined, who’s writing it well, and how to write one for yourself! Not only is Lillian doing well in the genre of monster romance, she’s also doing amazing things on TikTok, so we were able to quiz her on her tricks and techniques for the social media platform as well.  About Lillian Lark: Born and raised in the saltiest of cities in Utah. Lillian is an avid reader, cat mom to three demons, and loves writing sexy stories that twist you up inside. Click here for Lillian’s website… 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there! www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

There are many types of editing and today we’re discussing how the SPA Girls approach a second draft. Plus, we’ve produced a checklist, which is an amalgamation of all our processes. First, we suggest you start with a break from the project altogether, and how long that is will depend on your timeline, so going forward factor this in.There are many types of editing and today we’re discussing how the SPA Girls approach a second draft. Plus, we’ve produced a checklist, which is an amalgamation of all our processes. Here’s our checklist: Does your story make sense? Is there enough conflict? Pacing is vital – Does it flow and read well? It is too slow or fast? Does the tension build? Setting – Does it hit all the feels? Can I visualise it? Buildings, places, etc. Characterisation – Are your characters consistent? Do they do what they are supposed to? Do the support cast do their job? Do the hero or heroine achieve growth in the book? Or reach the goal you originally set for them? Description – are you recounting or summarising, or are you world building? Hooks – Does each of the last lines in chapters make you want to read on? Action – is it clear what the roles of your protagonists and antagonists are playing in your book? Black moments – that moment when everything is changed and there is no going back. Is it compelling, – or do the sentences run on, (overwriting) Does each scene move the book forward? Not all of them will be action-packed, but they must have a purpose. Would you want to read this book again? Because if you don’t no one else will. Love your book! There is so much more, so listen in to the podcast. 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there!  www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

Even the most experienced writers and self-publishers make mistakes. It’s not what you do wrong – it’s how you overcome the hiccups and potholes in the road. This episode sees the SPA Girls sharing their own Big Oops and how they recovered / learned from them. Inspiration plus for indies at all stages of their careers 🙂 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there! www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

In this episode we talk to the amazing Renee Rose about her new release Write To Riches! We love having Renee on the show; she’s an amazing guest, and we always finish feeling so much more motivated and inspired. We hope you feel the same way. 🙂 Renee is a 15-time USA Today bestselling romance author who loves a dominant, dirty-talking alpha hero. In her career she’s sold over two million copies of steamy romance with varying levels of kink. She’s also passionate about helping other authors find and maintain an abundance mindset to catapult their careers and create their best future. She wrote Write to Riches so she could teach more people about the power of the abundance mindset, manifesting your desires, and attracting wealth. Find her at: write2riches.comreneeroseromance.com ❤️ Make sure you’re signed up to our weekly self-publishing tips newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bGkz8L Come say hi on Facebook and Twitter @spagirlspodcast  

Ever wondered how authors create a reader base full of raving superfans… and how you could do it too?? Well, wonder no more! This week we have bestselling paranormal and contemporary romance author Steffanie Holmes on the show to talk about how to create superfans for your books.  Steff talks about the methods she’s used to create stronger connections with her readers, including having a strong author brand, newsletters, interconnected stories, and so much more!  We love having Steff in the SPA, and she’s super smart with her marketing, so this is an episode you don’t want to miss!  Show notes: Steffanie Holmes is a USA Today bestselling author of dark, gothic, and sinful romance books. Her books feature clever, witty heroines, secret societies, creepy old mansions, and alpha heroes who always get what they want. Steff received the 2017 Attitude Award for Artistic Achievement, and was a finalist for a 2018 Women of Influence award. Her books are enjoyed by thousands of readers all over the world. Steff is also the creator of Rage Against the Manuscript, an online community for writers to learn about self-publishing, finding their readers, and building a badass author brand. Steff’s passionate about helping authors from all walks of life find their voice and tell their story. Find her at: https://www.steffanieholmes.com/home Also find her at: https://www.rageagainstthemanuscript.com/ 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there! www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

A long-time friend of the SPA Girls Nalini Singh is here to talk about world-building, and if anyone knows how to do this–it’s Nalini! New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the Psy-Changeling and Guild Hunter series of paranormal romances, Nalini also writes New Zealand-set thrillers, the most recently released of which is Quiet in Her Bones. Her contemporary romances include the Rock Kiss and Hard Play series, the latter of which revolves around a rugby-loving family in Auckland. 33 of Nalini’s solo titles have hit the New York Times Bestseller list (most recently Archangel’s Light, in November 2021). Her books have also hit the USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller lists. She’s received the Australian Romance Readers Award several times and won two Sir Julius Vogel awards. The first book in the Psy-Changeling series, Slave to Sensation, was named as one of the New York Public Library’s 125 books from the last 125 years that inspire a lifelong love of reading. Born in Fiji and raised in New Zealand, Nalini was first published in 2003. Her books are both traditionally and indie published and have sold over eight million copies worldwide with translations in multiple languages. Phew! Makes your head spin, right? Every book you write is part of a world and you need to know as much as possible about the world before you start writing—but be prepared to pivot! So how does Nalini tackle world-building? Every book you write is part of a world and you need to know as much as possible about the world before you start writing—but be prepared to pivot! This could include the history of the world / characters / weather seasons / politics / religion / culture and customs.Keep track of your world in book bible or whatever makes sense to you.Different genres require more, or less worldbuilding depending on what they are.  E.g., Contemporary romance requires less than paranormal.  Nalini’s latest release is Storm Echo in the Psy-Changeling series, with Archangel’s Resurrection coming in October 2022. Find her at www.nalinisingh.com – don’t forget to check out her advice for writers there too    💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there!  www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

Looking for tips to make your marketing tasks more organized and less stressful? This is the episode for you! From marketing bibles to free online tools, your book marketing should become a whole lot less overwhelming. Plan your marketing early • Know your goals• Write out a simple plan• Be consistent• Take action on your plans• Complicated vs simple• Perfect is the enemy of done• Limit what you’re doing – don’t try to do it all• Brainstorm everything, then pick the most important to do first Lists • Write everything down.• Look at it every day – reminds you what you’re doing• Prioritize• Important vs urgent matrix Know your data • Don’t just guess or think you know.• Monthly scorecard• Be consistent and regular• Make decisions based on the data• Make changes based on the data Have everything prepared beforehand • A folder of information or a marketing bible.• Make it easier and faster for you to do the marketing you do on a regular basis Resources mentioned: Trello trello.comTick Tick ticktick.comHeartbreathings with author Sarra Cannon  Home · Heart BreathingsReaderlinks  Reach your independent author goals with The Author Helper Suite

This week we talk to the amazing Mia Brody all about how she makes a fulltime living writing instalove short romances. It’s an informative episode with plenty of wow moments, that you won’t want to miss! Mia writes steamy stories about alpha men who fall in love with big, beautiful women. She loves happy endings and every couple she writes will get one. When she’s not writing, Mia is searching for the perfect slice of cheesecake and watching way too many K-dramas. You can find her at miabrody.com Resources mentioned: Bookfunnel, Grit by Angela Duckworth, Writing Instalove Facebook Group Writing Instalove | Facebook The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your questions. Come on in and join us, we’d love to see you there! www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast  Don’t forget, all our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info are at: at www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com