The Indy Author Podcast

Rob Archangel and Mikal Keefer talk about FINDING AND BEING A GHOSTWRITER. Rob, the principal at author services provider Archangel Ink, discusses the different circumstances that lead a person to look for a ghostwriter, how ghostwriting varies based on the client’s needs and skills, and the variables that influence the cost of a ghostwriting service. Mikal, one of the ghostwriters at Archangel Ink, talks about how he matches the voice of the work to the client, and the pros and cons of ghostwriting as a career—and of working on someone else’s books instead of your own. And both share tips for how to make a ghostwriting engagement a positive experience for both the ghost and the client. For a transcript of this interview and links to more information, go to https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html. Did you find the information in this video useful? Please consider supporting my work at The Indy Author via Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor) or Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple). Rob Archangel is the owner of Archangel Ink, and author of THE PUBLISHED PROFESSIONAL: How Self-Publishing Can Help Build Your Brand, Attract More Clients, And Increase Sales. Rob founded Archangel Ink to help clients more effectively reach their audience, share their message, and build their brand. Rob and his team help busy authors, entrepreneurs, and business professionals self-publish their written work with quality and ease, so they can focus on their area of expertise. Mikal Keefer is a freelance author who’s published more than 35 books and ghosted a half-dozen more. He’s a veteran copywriter, crafting advertising and brand collateral for dozens of brands and hundreds of product launches. Mikal has served as an Executive Editor at a publishing house, written hundreds of video and audio scripts, developed curricula, and for one glorious day was hired to write fortune cookies.

Author Kristina Adams examines writing myths and questions the common wisdom of writing and publishing that perhaps shouldn't be so common. She shares her thoughts on what it means to be a productive and successful author, and debunks some of the myths of a writer's life, including the belief that writing is a talent, not a skill; the admonition to write what you know; how writing short stories is easier than writing a novel; and how a writer's life is necessarily a solitary one. For a transcript of this interview and links to more information: https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html  Did you find the information in this video useful? Please consider supporting my work at The Indy Author via Patreon https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor or Buy Me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple  Kristina Adams is the author of fifteen books and too many blog posts to count. She helps writers overcome their creative obstacles on her blog, podcast, and courses, over at THE WRITER’S COOKBOOK. When she’s not writing, she’s inflicting cooking experiments on her boyfriend or playing with her dog, Millie.

Nicholas Erik talks about Valuing the Creative Process and the importance of factoring in the enjoyment you get out of the process. We talk about the dangers of trying to increase productivity by taking shortcuts, and the importance of making the puzzles and challenges that you have to solve ones that you want to solve, not ones you dread. And we talk about why Nick places less emphasis on goals, where you set an end date for an activity, and more emphasis on objectives, or how you want to spend your days today and in the coming years … because as Nick says, “If you just want to make money, there are a lot easier ways to do that than writing.” For a transcript of this interview and links to more information, go to https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html. Nicholas Erik is the author of science fiction and urban fantasy, with over 20 books, including THE FINAL COLONY series and THE REMNANTS trilogy. He also writes comprehensive guides for his fellow indy authors on how to sell more books, build your fanbase, and be more productive. He runs 1-on-1 ads workshops and provides ads management for select clients. Nick previously joined me for Episode 052 - Five Keys to Building a Resilient Indy Business with Nicholas Erik, which I believe is a must-listen for any indy author.

Ricardo Fayet, one of the founders of the resource marketplace Reedsy, discusses FINDING A CREW FOR YOUR CREATIVE VOYAGE. He discusses what signs might tip off authors that they have reached the point where investing in this kind of help makes sense, how authors can decide what to outsource, best practices for finding a good match between needs and resources, and how to work effectively with these professionals to make it the most productive and creatively energizing experience for both parties. For a transcript of this interview and links to more information, go to https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html. Did you find the information in this video useful? Please consider supporting my work at The Indy Author via Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor) or Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple). Ricardo Fayet is one of the four founders of Reedsy, a marketplace connecting authors to the world's top publishing talent--from editors to cover designers, book marketers, or literary translators. He's the author of several Reedsy Learning courses on marketing and a regular presenter at several prestigious writers' conferences, including NINC, RWA Australia, and The Self Publishing Show Live. He recently released his first book, “How to Market a Book: Overperform in a Crowded Market.”

Rebel author Sacha Black discusses SIDE CHARACTERS--what are side characters and what distinguishes them from the protagonist and antagonist? Is a sidekick different from a side character? How can side characters support the story or the portrayal of other characters? And what are good and bad reasons to kill off a side character that readers are / will be invested in? For a transcript of this interview and links to more information, go to https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html. Did you find the information in this video useful? Please consider supporting my work at The Indy Author via Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor) or Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple). Sacha Black is a bestselling author, rebel podcaster, and professional speaker. She has five obsessions; words, expensive shoes, conspiracy theories, self-improvement, and breaking the rules. Sacha writes books about people with magical powers and other books about the art of writing, including THE ANATOMY OF PROSE: 12 STEPS TO SENSATIONAL SENTENCES, 10 STEPS TO HERO: HOW TO CRAFT A KICKASS PROTAGONIST, and 13 STEPS TO EVIL: HOW TO CRAFT SUPERBAD VILLAINS. She lives in Cambridgeshire, England, with her wife and genius, giant of a son.

Michael La Ronn talks about his decision end his podcast THE WRITER’S JOURNEY. He discusses his original impetus for starting the podcast, the adjustments he made to it over time, and the personal and professional considerations that made him decide to bring that creative endeavor to an end. He discusses the benefits he gave up and the benefits he gained—and where he plans to redirect his creative energies. For a transcript of this interview and links to more information, go to https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html. Did you find the information in this video useful? Please consider supporting my work at The Indy Author via Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor) or Buy Me a Coffee (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple). Michael La Ronn is the author of over forty science fiction & fantasy novels and self-help books for writers. He also runs the popular YouTube channel, Author Level Up, where he publishes weekly advice videos for writers. Michael also serves on the staff of the Alliance of Independent Authors as a US Ambassador and he co-hosts the AskAlli Member Q&A Podcast where he answers new writers’ most burning questions about self-publishing.

In this week's episode of The Indy Author Podcast, author Ben H. Winters discusses the "both-ness" of compelling characters. We talk about how he used the concept of “both-ness” in his own books, including THE QUIET BOY, UNDERGROUND AIRLINES, and THE LAST POLICEMAN, and how other authors have—or haven’t—used it in some of his favorite books, including THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH and STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. We talk about the importance of recognizing “both-ness” in people not only in books but in real life. And we talk about “other-ness,” and how to portray characters who are not only separated in some way from the rest of the world they live in, but sometimes even from ourselves. Ben H. Winters is the author of the novels THE QUIET BOY, GOLDEN STATE, the New York Times bestselling UNDERGROUND AIRLINES, THE LAST POLICEMAN and its two sequels; the horror novel BEDBUGS; and several works for young readers. His first novel SENSE AND SENSIBILITY AND SEA MONSTERS was also a Times bestseller. Ben has won the Edgar Award for mystery writing, the Philip K. Dick award in science fiction, the Sidewise Award for alternate history, and France’s Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire. His writing has appeared in Slate and in the New York Times Book Review. He also writes for film and television and was a producer on the FX show LEGION. He lives in LA with his family.

Tiffany Yates Martin shares best practices for how to give and receive critique … and cites some pretty harrowing examples to illustrate her points. We look at the value of formal critique groups; the fact that all input is opinion, not fact; and tips for how to weigh how that input aligns with the vision you have for your work. We talk about whether reading your reader reviews is a good idea, and when you just have to pour yourself a bubble bath and have a glass of wine. Tiffany Yates Martin has spent nearly thirty years as an editor in the publishing industry, working with major publishers and New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling, award-winning authors as well as indie and newer writers. She is the author of the Amazon bestseller INTUITIVE EDITING: A CREATIVE AND PRACTICAL GUIDE TO REVISING YOUR WRITING. She's led workshops and seminars for conferences and writers' groups across the country and is a frequent contributor to writers' sites and publications. Under the pen name Phoebe Fox, she's the author of the Breakup Doctor series and her most recent release, A LITTLE BIT OF GRACE.

Dan Wood of Draft2Digital takes a look back at his eight years at Draft2Digital and, more importantly, looks ahead to share how indy authors can apply that perspective going forward. We discuss how social media has changed over that time, what technical and retail platforms indy authors can take advantage of today that were not available in 2013, and how the writing and publishing worlds’ perspectives on indy publishing has transformed over that period. Dan Wood is the Vice President of Operations at Draft2Digital, where he has spent the last 8 years helping authors publish their books to stores, libraries and subscription services worldwide. During this time he has had the privilege to present at conferences in 7 countries and to speak with thousands of authors at various stages in their careers. Dan is the Co-Host of the Self Publishing Insiders Podcast and Co-Host of Authors Pubhouse, a (mostly) weekly chat Thursdays on Clubhouse with industry professionals and authors.

In Episode 85 of The Indy Author Podcast, I interviewed Dave Chesson of Kindlepreneur and creator of Publisher Rocket about keywords, and after that episode I got pretty obsessed about my own keywords, and played around a bit with Dave’s four-column method. Of course, the devil’s in the details, so as I was working on optimizing my keywords, I decided to tap into a couple of additional resources, including two previous guests of the podcast, and I’m going to share with you my “before” keywords, the process I went through, and my “after” keywords. I hope this will inspire you to take a look at your own keywords with an eye to making sure you are getting maximum value in guiding the right readers to your books. Many thanks to previous guests Dale L. Roberts and Joshua Tallent for contributing to this inbetweenisode.