How can you write what you love and still aim for bestseller status? How can you combine craft and business in your writing life? Suzy K Quinn answers these questions and more in this fascinating interview. In the intro, entrepreneur and author Derek Sivers sells $250K worth of ebooks and audiobooks direct from his website […] The post How To Write A Bestseller With Suzy K Quinn first appeared on The Creative Penn.

It’s episode 500! Time flies indeed. The first episode of The Creative Penn Podcast was released on 15 March 2009. I had a couple of non-fiction books out, the international Kindle had not even launched, and there was no empowered indie author movement as we know it today. I was living in Ipswich, just outside […] The post Writing And Business Lessons Learned From 500 Episodes And 11 Years Of The Creative Penn Podcast first appeared on The Creative Penn.

The life of a full-time independent author involves wearing many hats. You have to balance your time between learning your craft and pleasing readers with great books, as well as publishing, book marketing, and building a business that will support you for the long-term. In today's interview, Nick Thacker talks about the key aspects of […] The post Writing Action Adventure Fiction And Systems Thinking With Nick Thacker first appeared on The Creative Penn.

We live in a binge consumption culture and the best-loved stories are often those that allow a deeper experience of character and world. Think of your favorite TV shows or books and you will likely find a few series in there! Writing a series can also make you more money as a writer since you […] The post Writing A Series. Satisfy Readers And Make More Money With Lindsay Buroker first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Monsters tap into something primal that lies at the heart of being human. We have always feared what lies at the edge of the campfire, just out of sight, and as writers, tapping into those fears can be a powerful form of creation. In this interview, Philip Athans talks about why we find monsters so […] The post How To Write Monsters With Philip Athans first appeared on The Creative Penn.

“Write something universal as illustrated by a deeply personal tale.” This advice is true regardless of the genre we write, and in this interview, Marion Roach Smith explains how we can dig deep into our truth and experience to write memoir, plus how she has created a business around a book, and a podcast around […] The post How To Write Memoir With Marion Roach Smith first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Writing is a life-long practice, and for many of us, a long-term career. But how can you continue to thrive in a creative business while still changing over time? In this interview, I talk to entrepreneur Natalie Sisson about how she pivoted her brand after a change in lifestyle and how books play just one […] The post Building A Creative Business For The Long Term With Natalie Sisson first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Do you aspire to write better stories? Do you have the ambition to aim for a career that rivals the biggest names in publishing? Today's interview with JD Barker will inspire you and give you some great tips around writing bestselling stories and building a long-term career. In the introduction, James Daunt of Waterstones and […] The post How To Develop Bestselling Story Ideas With JD Barker first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Writing a first draft is only the initial step in the journey to creating a novel. The next step is editing, and in this interview, Kris Spisak talks about the different kinds of editing, as well as tips for your self-editing process. Plus, I share my insights from my latest edit on Map of the […] The post Writing Tips: How To Self-Edit Your Novel With Kris Spisak first appeared on The Creative Penn.

As writers, we use tools every day — from the laptop we write on, to the internet we research with, and the social media sites we use to reach readers. We are used to using digital tools to enhance our author life, but could we really work with artificial intelligence to push our creativity to […] The post Creativity, Artificial Intelligence, And Time Off With Max Frenzel first appeared on The Creative Penn.