Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing

In this episode Mark chats with Dave Sweet and Sarah Graham about their new book SKELETONS IN MY CLOSET: Life Lessons from a Homicide Detective, an unorthodox police memoir taking readers on a ride-along like no other, revealing poignant truths about life and death, and how we can all work and live together. Danger and grit pair with humour and compassion in this gripping, fresh read. Dave Sweet, a conservative, veteran homicide detective has teamed up with Sarah Graham, a liberal, optimistic author to write this unconventional universal life-lessons book. Before the interview, Mark shares a personal update which includes: Why he is pushing back the release date of his book INDIE PUBLISHING INSIDER SECRETS Some reflections on how previous Stark Reflections podcast guest Dana Pharant turned a mistake into a win Mark's forthcoming trip to Las Vegas to teach at a WMG Publishing Master Class about the business of writing and publishing This episode is sponsored by Findaway Voices . . . In the interview, Mark and Dave and Sarah talk about: How Dave and Sarah first met and then decided to work on this project together The work Dave has been doing with local area writer groups looking for insights and realistic detail related to actual police work The dichotomy of "Homicide Cop" and "Life Lessons" The importance that this book be optimistic and not be gratuitous in its portrayal of Dave's experiences The transformation that is witnessed in the various people involved in a homicide investigation and the lessons learned along the way The early reader expectation of "more grit" and how the authors responded to that with respect for the victims and their loved ones The decision to release this book as by Dave with Sarah rather than keeping Sarah's name hidden like a more traditional "ghost written" book, because of the way that Sarah's voice and influence helped to smooth out some of the rougher edges that come from Dave's experience The processes and different techniques used in how they wrote this book together (actual writing, raw words, interactive presentations, phone calls) What Dave learned about writing through this process What television actually gets right about police work and police life How Sarah's experience as a writer was different than the writer/cop partnership seen on television programs like Castle The publishing options, agent feedback and choices made for the publication of this book The intriguing "sneak peak" preview eBook their publisher created in a "Behind the Scenes" chapbook The comparison between when Sarah is all-consumed when working on edits and Dave is all-consumed when focusing on a case The "Reading Guide/Study Guide" section at the end of the book Forthcoming books in this series which will each explore courage and death After the interview, Mark reflects on how Dave and Sarah kept working at testing out different ways of making the collaboration work, not giving up, but continuing to experiment and find new ways for the process to happen smoothly. He discusses their publishing path as well, which was a series of learnings and tweaks and changes, until they found the one that suited them best. He considers how they applied patience, persistence, partnership and progression in their path towards publication. Mark then thanks Patrons for their sponsorship of the show via www.patreon.com/starkreflections. Links of Interest: Skeletons in My Closet Mischievous Books WMG Publishing Workshops Findaway Voices Dana Pharant on Stark Reflections Dana's Facebook Video about mistakes & wins Patreon for Stark Reflections Stark Reflections Survey The 7 P'S Of Publishing Success Killing It On Kobo The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

In this week's episode, Mark speaks with Tina Dietz who is an award-winning and internationally acclaimed speaker, audiobook publisher, podcast producer, and content marketing expert. Prior to the interview, Mark shares a few personal updates that include the launch of his new traditionally published book Macabre Montreal, and how that book launch interfered with attending the NIGHT OF THE WRITING DEAD event in Pittsburgh that same weekend. This episode is sponsored by Findaway Voices . . . . . . and also by the Patrons of the show at www.patreon.com/starkreflections. All patrons will find, this week, the full audio of the first chapter about PRACTICE from Mark's forthcoming audiobook of The 7 P's of Publishing Success. In their conversion, Mark and Tina talk about The link between writing/expression and entrepreneurship How writing (particularly in print) can be an enduring format as a tangable legacy Tina's introduction into podcasting and audiobook production Tina's Forbes article "Do You Sound Like a Leader?" that focuses on the relationship between vocal qualities and how a person is viewed as a leader Getting used to and comfortable with the sound of one's own voice Breathing techniques and facial exercises used for voice or singing voice Food and drink to avoid when doing voice work (dairy and citrus, for example) The coaching Tina does helping authors getting ready to do interviews for radio or podcasting The difference between forms of media like television, radio and podcasting Trends in the audiobook industry that authors might not be familiar with The concept that anything you create needs to be an asset and not a burden The free download that Tina has on her website that helps demystifies the audiobook process - www.launchyouraudiobook.com Things to consider when deciding between narrating and producting an audiobook yourself or outsourcing that How Tina's clients often "come for the audiobooks and then stay for everything else" The pre-interview Tina sent to Mark ahead of the podcast which made things so much easier for Mark In the post-interview reflections, Mark talks about how Tina's info PDF made his job as an interviewer so much easier and he also shares a link to a WORD document template that authors can download and modify so they have something similar to use for their own podcast or radio interviews. Tina Dietz is an award-winning and internationally acclaimed speaker, audiobook publisher, podcast producer, and content marketing expert who has been featured on media outlets including ABC, Inc.com, Huffington Post, and Forbes. Tina's podcast, The StartSomething Show, was named by INC magazine as one of the top 35 podcasts for entrepreneurs. Tina's company, StartSomething Creative Business Solutions, connects leaders, entrepreneurs and experts with larger audiences, resulting in expanded influence and income. Tina divides her time between the US and Costa Rica, where she's part of a leadership team building a conscious community called Vista Mundo. Links of Interest: Tina's Website Tina on Twitter Facebook LinkedIn YouTube Goodreads Findaway Voices Patreon for Stark Reflections Night of the Writing Dead More Information about Stark Publishing Solutions Stark Reflections Survey Macabre Montreal The 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

In this solo episode, Mark reflects upon some of the things that happened at NINC and why he enjoys attending it every year. One of the things, of course, was that he recently became Director of Business Development for Draft2Digital. This episode is sponsored by Findaway Voices . . . . . . and also by the Patrons of the show at www.patreon.com/starkreflections. Links of Interest: Findaway Voices Patreon for Stark Reflections More Information about Stark Publishing Solutions Stark Reflections Survey NINC (Novelists Inc) Macabre Montreal The 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

This episode centers upon four quick chats with industry folks from NINC (Novelists Inc) 2018 in St Pete, Florida. Mark shares chats (originally posted as Facebook Live videos on Sept 27, 2018) with: Carlyn Robertson from BookBub Damon Courtney from BookFunnel Christine Munroe from Kobo Writing Life Ricardo Fayet from Reedsy Prior to the interview, Mark shares some personal updates, including some activities that happened at the conference (such as a bookstore visit to Haslam's in downtown St. Pete) as well as prior to the conference. He also shares that his book The 7 P's of Publishing Success is now live at all the major eBook retail sites, with the print and audiobook versions coming soon. He also mentions a comment on the previous episode which inspired him to make getting the audio version of the book a priority, and talks a bit about using Findaway Voices (the sponsor for this episode, to get that book distributed and into the market).After the interview, Mark reflects upon the learning that can happen, at all levels, at a conference like NINC. Links of Interest: Findaway Voices Patreon for Stark Reflections More Information about Stark Publishing Solutions Stark Reflections Survey NINC (Novelists Inc) Haslam's Book Store Tomes of Terror: Haunted Bookstores & Libraries The 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

In this episode, Mark shares an early audio draft of the chapter on Professionalism for his forthcoming book THE 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS which will be released under his "Stark Publishing Solutions" imprint by the end of Sept 2018. Prior to the audiobook excerpt, Mark shares a few personal updates which include: Attending NINC (Novelist's, Inc.) writer conference in St Pete, Florida, where he will be giving a talk entitled 5 CAREER KILLING ERRORS AN AUTHOR SHOULD AVOID as well as co-hosting an open discussion entitled BRAINSTORMING "THE FUTURE" FOR AUTHORS AND VENDORS Also, while at NINC, Mark will be visiting Haslam's Book Store which is allegedly haunted by Jack Kerouac (Mark wrote about it in his book Tomes of Terror) A thank you to the Patrons supporting the podcast via www.patreon.com/starkreflections A shout-out to Rook Winters for an awesome photo of some skull plates he shared on Twitter Thanking new folks who continue to fill-out the Stark Reflections Podcast Survey (with a mention of how the show has been modified in line with a few common comments from some previously rec'd surveys Mark also talks about how the main content for this episode is a test/early draft for the audiobook version of his book THE 7 P's OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS and mentions the way he'll be using Findaway Voices (the sponsor for this episode). In the main content of the episode, Mark talks about the importance of professionalism for authors and breaks it down to three main elements: Paperwork, Contracts and Content In Person Appearances and People Skills Adversity and Rejection After the main section, Mark shares the behind a behind the scenes look at how the book this chapter is taken from came to be. Both it and another book, were originally chapters in the main book he had been working on to capture the many things he has learned in his decades of experience in the bookselling and publishing industry. But these two particular chapters grew a life of their own and became unique products as part of a larger line up of titles in the Stark Publishing Solutions Imprint/Series. These books will be: THE 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS (Sept 2018) KILLING IT ON KOBO (Oct 2018) INDIE PUBLISHING INSIDER SECRETS (Nov 2018) While still finalizing re-writes and edits of the books, Mark talks about the desire to get them all up for pre-order as soon as possible. He shares where people can sign up to be informed about them as well as other related "Stark Publishing / Stark Reflections" updates: www.markleslie.ca/starkpublishingsolutions Links of Interest: Findaway Voices Patreon for Stark Reflections More Information about Stark Publishing Solutions Stark Reflections Survey NINC (Novelists Inc) Haslam's Book Store Tomes of Terror: Haunted Bookstores & Libraries The 7 P'S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

In this episode, Mark interviews Nathan Van Coops who claims that he lives on a diet comprised mainly of tacos. He enjoys old planes, motorcycles, and Volkswagens, contends that there is such a thing as "dressy" flip-flops and is the time travel adventure series, In Times Like These, and The Skylighter Adventures. Nathan, of course, isn't just an author, but he is also an aviator and the man behind Book Faces Live and we talk about all three things, and more. Prior to the interview, Mark gives a personal update that includes: His story "Active Reader" appearing in the latest issue of Pulphouse Magazine (#3) and how that had been a long-time goal The royalty check received from McGraw/Nelson for a short story "Almost" that is being used in a British Columbia high school curriculum He considers how both of these "new" items are stories that were previously published and yet can still result in residual income Mark then thanks new Stark Reflections Patron, Amy Teegan and all existing Patrons who support the show via www.patreon.com/starkreflections In the interview, Mark and Nathan talk about: Nathan's latest book, THE WARP CLOCK and its tag-line "To save her future, he can't have one." and the stand-alone nature of this series (THE WARP CLOCK is book 4 in the series) that allows a reader to jump in at any book How time travel isn't just a trope that is being used and, instead, is an integral part of the world and story, in the same way that J.K. Rowling used magic in her Harry Potter universe The first person present tense POV that is used for the majority of these books that are told through Benjamin's perspective The genesis of the SKYLIGHTER adventures, based on the quiet and calm that Nathan experienced while flying a plane. He imagined the concept of what if the sky was actually as busy as the ocean? The advice that Nathan would give to his younger self just starting writing The branding Nathan created for his series, landing on using Damonza covers and then taking a hands-off approach to let them do what they do best The reasoning behind why Nathan started Book Faces Live (to fill a gap in his own weekly podcast listening routine) and how he use his podcast to learn and gather information The fact that, unlike many writers, Nathan is an extrovert; always where and when Nathan likes to write The deliberate placement of Benjamin from the IN TIMES LIKE THESE series in 2009 After the interview, Mark talks about the tech issue that affected the tail end of the chat, and reflects upon how Nathan handled the unexpected issue quite professionally and effectively. He reminds writers that these types of things will happen and that it is important to remember the audience is actually cheering for you and you are in this together. Mark remembers the way Nathan thought of the reader when working on his book covers, and suggests that Nathan did the exact same thing here during the tech issue - he considered the audience and did his best to safely "land" the podcast. The lesson? When things go wrong, take a breath, and consider the audience. Links of Interest: Nathan's Website Book Faces Live Nathan's Interview with Mark (Episode 37) Pulphouse #3 (featuring Mark's story "Active Reader") Damonza (Book Cover Services) Findaway Voices Stark Reflections on Patreon

Mark chats with Dana Pharant, a business owner, a speaker, an author and the host of the Inner Dominatrix Podcast, about her new book The Inner Dominatrix Guide: Become a Badass in Business. Before the interview, Mark shares a few personal updates: Misadventures of the cat and the headset cord Experience using PublishDrive Getting Sean into indie audiobooks (and a mention that this podcast is sponsored by Findaway Voices) Mark also thanks new Patrons of the show, Joanna Penn and Ellie Ashe as well as all existing patrons who support the podcast via Patreon. In their chat, Mark and Dana discuss: The back-story and where the use of "Dominatrix" comes from (Dana spent 6 years as a Dominatrix) how principles of healing were learned through that experience which Dana has been able to apply to the concept of power, space and authority that are integral to the Inner Dominatrix The intriguing parallels between the role of Dominatrix and the role of Author Where the "Badass" attitude comes from and the energy that it can put people into The way that creative people can really shrink back when it comes to the business, marketing and promoting of their work The last thing that a person who is tied up and blind-folded wants to hear The importance of leaning into being unapologetic in one's approach The energy-based concept of "practical woo" The three main principles that Dana teaches: 1) Getting you out of the "wrongness of you" 2) Connecting with and following your intuition 3) Being willing to lose it all Her forthcoming book launch (October 15th) and the early-preview launch speaking event on Sept 26th After the interview, Mark reflects about the concept that Dana mentions of "stepping into authority" and how he believes this to be important for authors. He also talks about his friend James A. Owen, who regularly reminds authors of not downplaying the importance and value of what they do. Links of Interest: Dana Pharant: The Dominatrix's Guide to Inner Power in Business Stark Reflections Episode 30 (previous appearance by Dana): Target Markets & Relationships Episode 77 of Dana's podcast (Dana interviews Mark about the Transition in his life) Findaway Voices PublishDrive CAPS: Canadian Association of Professional Speakers Dana's CAPS Speaker Profile Mark's CAPS Speaker Profile Stark Reflections Listener Survey Patreon for Stark Reflections Sean Costello James A Owen Superstars Writing Seminars The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

In this solo episode, Mark talks about two specific examples from his own publishing experience, where having a crappy cover didn't help sales. He walks through the back-story for the eBooks in question, his reasoning behind the initial crappy cover as well as the positive results that came after he recognized his mistake and created a better cover. He explains that he is using personal examples for a few reasons, which include: the fact that it's easier to see fault in someone else's mistakes - perhaps seeing the mistakes Mark made makes it easier for an author to understand for their own purposes to illustrate that, even though he has fourteen years of experience in self-publishing and more than twenty-five years in bookselling, and should know better, he still makes mistakes - which means everyone can and will make these mistakes (so don't beat yourself up over it) Prior to the main content of the podcast, Mark provides a personal update about two items. 1) Recently received audiobook royalties from ListenUp Audiobooks and Findaway Voices. (With a mention that this podcast is sponsored by Findaway Voices - because he's just that cool at slipping it into the conversation) 2) A recent promotion that Mark ran on his book A CANADIAN WEREWOLF IN NEW YORK in order to help support the Kobo/Walmart promo that is taking place. Mark walks through the logistics of how some of the Kobo lists are set up and explains the third-party promo from Written Word Media that he used to help elevate the ranking and status of his book in the Kobo/Walmart list. He shares the numbers and results (so far) for this promo (the details from this are shared with Mark's Patreon supporters) The two examples of book cover updates that Mark walks through are: Spirits - a 6,000 word short story that Mark originally launched in eBook in June of 2011. Mark walks through the reasoning behind publishing this short story as an eBook in terms of the financial return based on his original goals to sell the story to a pro market. Snowman Shivers - Two snowman-themed tales that Mark launched in 2012 that required BOTH a cover and a sub-title makeover. Mark closes up the podcast by thanking his Patreon supporters as well as explaining a new option that Kobo Writing Life recently announced to authors, the ability to transfer ratings and reviews to new eBooks, and what that can mean from authors interested in updating/changing their distribution to Kobo methods. Links of Interest: Findaway Voices Episode 33: Two Wrongs That Make a Writer Spite Episode 8: Author Promotions with Ricci Wolman from Written Word Media (BargainBooksy/FreeBooksy) Transfering Your Ratings & Rankings on Kobo Details about Canadian Werewolf Promo Cost, Numbers, Results, for all Patreon Supporters The music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

This episode includes a conversation with three guests: Ara Grigorian, Janis Thomas and Julie Strauss. Ara and Janis are the brains and brawn behind the Novel Intensive Seminar and Workshop and Julie was a writer who has attended and benefited from these sessions. The Novel Intensive Workshop is a hands-on full day collaborative workshop in which writers are able to apply the Novel Intensive Tools and Principles to their current work in progress. Guided by best-selling author Janis Thomas and award-winning author Ara Grigorian, the workshop gives writers an opportunity to share their writing, ask questions, focus on their own and unique challenges, and receive immediate feedback. Hands-on exercises are provided which are designed to help writers hone their storytelling skills. For this episode's personal update, Mark shares the fact that this week he is embarking on a two day personal writing retreat to a location that is about a two hour's drive from home; while there, he will be focusing on finishing the first draft of a non-fiction book for writers that will be released under his Stark Publishing Solutions imprint. The book shares Mark's what he has learned about the business of writing and publishing in the more than 25 years he has been a writer, a bookseller and an industry representative. He also shares that he recently secured the audio rights for his novel I, DEATH back from Edge Publishing and plans on posting the project to Findaway Voices, this episode's sponsor. Mark thanks his Patreon sponsors and then moves to the main interview feature for this episode. In their conversation, Mark, Julie, Ara and Janis discuss: How the Novel Intensive workshop first came together (Janis and Ara's own "meet cute" style reciprocal teaching relationship which led to the eventual collaborative workshop The way that the workshop was born out of the desire to gather all the things Ara and Janis have learned about writing and then package it into an easily digestible info-filled interactive workshop that other writers could benefit from Julie's discovery of the program via a presentation (a significantly abbreviated and truncated version of the full day workshop) that Ara gave at an annual RWA (Romance Writers of America) Conference and how, half-way through that session, she had that "a-ha" moment which helped solve a dilemma she'd been struggling with on a novel in progress Why Julie plans on returning to some of the same workshops she has already attended for insights and inspiration on future projects, and how Ara and Janis always keep one of their own works in progress in the back of their minds while teaching, to draw similar inspiration How Ara and Janis use the Novel Intensive principles in different ways they adapt into their own distinct writing processes The thing that surprised Julie the most about the way that Janis and Ara teach together and the way that each of the 10 students in one particular workshop had their own unique "a-ha" moments at different times throughout the day The underlying messages of the Novel Intesive workshop, such as "formula doesn't have to mean formulaic" and the importance that a writer fights for fully realizing the emotional moments in the story The use of popular or well-known movies from multiple genres in teaching and highlighting examples of story and character moments through a workshop How it's not about plot VS character, but rather how those two elements interact and play off one another Julie's thoughts on what her investment in the Novel Intensive workshop (both money and time), has meant to her writing The reason why this course is an in-person experience and the value that comes from the intimacy of the group (between 10 and 20 people per session) A series of excellent tips for how writers can apply Novel Intensive techniques to being their own story coach A look at the opening scene in Julie's Prosecco Heart and the way that the Novel Intensive workshop helped her with that novel Forthcoming projects that Julie, Ara and Janis are each working on After the interview, Mark shares thoughts on two things. The first is the value of how you can learn something new from re-reading, re-watching, re-listening, re-learning, re-experiencing something. The second is magic and serendipity that can happen during physical encounters with other writers at workshops, conferences, etc which can be far more powerful than the experience of a digital or virtual one. ARA GRIGORIAN is the international award-winning author of Game of Love (2015), and Ten Year Dance (2017), his critically-acclaimed second novel. Ara is a technology executive in the entertainment industry. True to the Hollywood life, Ara wrote for a children's television pilot that could have made him rich (but didn't) and nearly sold a video game to a major publisher (who closed shop days later). Fascinated by the human species, Ara writes about choices, relationships, and second chances. He is a public speaker, a story coach, and a workshop leader for the Southern California Writers' Conference, Writer's Digest Novel Writing Conference, Santa Barbara Writers Conference, and others, including the popular Novel Intensive. Ara is represented by Stacey Donaghy of the Donaghy Literary Group. JANIS THOMAS is the author of best-selling What Remains True and All That's Left of Me from Lake Union, as well as three critically-acclaimed humorous Women's Fiction novels, Something New, Sweet Nothings, and Say Never. Award-winning Murder in A-Minor is the first book in her Musical Murder Mystery series featuring songwriting detective Samantha Wedlock. Janis is a popular workshop leader and speaker, and a passionate writing advocate. When she isn't writing or fulfilling her PTA duties, she loves to spend time with her kids, sing with her sister, play tennis, and throw lavish dinner parties with outrageous menus. She lives in Southern California with her husband, children, and two crazy dogs. JULIE STRAUSS is the author of the three stand-alone "Chefs in Love" novels that include Moonstone Heart, Hungry Heart and Prosecco Heart. She lives in Southern California with her husband and four kids. Julie says that she eats dark chocolate and drinks good wine and reads lots of books and regularly speaks in movie quotes. She used to publish romance novels under the pen name Emma Foster, but says she realized that she was way too lazy to keep up two online profiles in addition to all the other personalities inside her head. So she dumped the pen name, and now you can find her at social media places under the persona "Julie Wrote A Book."

Mark interviews Alberta writer Samantha Davidson a writer he met at the recent When Words Collide conference in Calgary about the author branding of hers that immediately caught his attention immediately and about her next plans while being just at the point of finishing the first novel she plans on publishing. They also talk about the way that she helps to inspire creative people, not just writers but creatives from all pursuits. Prior to the interview, Mark shares a personal update, including a few of the talks he presented at WWC. Knowing the Basics and Steering Clear of the Pitfalls of Digital Publishing What 25 Years as a Bookseller and Industry Rep Taught Me About the Business of Writing & Publishing The 2nd presentation is a bit of an early look at the non-fiction book on writing and publishing that Mark plans on releasing later this year. Links to PDFs of both presentations are available to all Patrons of the Stark Reflections Podcast. Mark also shares some info about a talk he did on the art and business of telling ghost stories, as well as the #FreeFridayFrights performed at WWC in front of a live studio audience and a chat about audiobook options for writers. This episode is sponsored by Findaway Voices. You can learn more about them via www.starkreflections.ca/findaway In their chat, Mark and Samantha talk about How Samantha has always been interested in writing and other creative pursuits, including photography; and the suspense novel that she finished years ago that is still sitting on a shelf The way that NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) re-inspired her to get most of the first draft of a YA novel completed after being previously disheartened about her writing (with that book being the "first act" of something that appears to be a four-act series of books Samantha's experience at When Words Collide, including details on how much value she took away as well as a negative experience with the "Live Action Slush" editor panel critique sessions (a live critique of anonymous submissions of first page readings of various submitted pieces), and how, this time around, with another year of experience writing under her belt, she has been able to recognize some of those writing rookie mistakes that she hadn't been able to see the first time through Why Samantha did not give up even after getting her writer ego beat up a little Some of the highlights from Samantha's experience at When Words Collide, which include recognition of how important that sense of community can be for a writer The author branding that Samantha has already started on, which comes from her experience as a graphic designer and her long-time desire to create a community of followers sharing meaningful things and feeling inspired Samantha's podcast "The Inspired Author" The mentoring and coaching program where Samantha helps creative people with how to adapt their creative passions into a sustainable career, and the fact that she has a few open spots starting at the end of September The "bookish soap company" that Samantha operates called "A Novel Idea" – soaps and similar products all inspired by classic literature - http://shopanovelidea.com/ The important things Samantha has learned about writing, including getting over the "downward" moment that comes right after that initial "getting-started high" that new writing and creating projects can come with as well as the risks that come with the pursuit of perfection The recognition of the "sometimes it's not okay" dark moments and struggles that writers regularly deal with (but which usually stay hidden) The next steps that Samantha is taking with her YA series, including the process of working with her editor, the query process and the open-ended approach After the interview, Mark reflects upon perfection, sharing the darker sides, "the good, the bad and the ugly" of a writer's life and the struggle of introversion that he regularly faces when at conferences. Links of Interest Samantha Davidson Website Facebook (AuthorSamanthaDavidson) Instagram Twitter Podcast YouTube When Words Collide Jonas Saul Darren Lacroix Stark Reflections Survey Patreon for Stark Reflections Findaway Voices Samantha Davidson is a world-travelled photographer, who began her career as an editorial journalist for a weekly publication in British Columbia, Canada. After touching many of the arts, her heart brought her back to the written word. She is currently working on her debut series – a young adult fantasy due to be published in 2019. Samantha offers mentoring and coaching services to "creatives" who are looking to build a career in writing, photography, or any creative business endeavour; truly believing her purpose is to inspire aspiring authors and artists in their dreams of marrying their passions and career. Samantha lives in Alberta, Canada with her husband. Her work is the result of passion, positivity and perseverance.