Podcasts about creative penn podcast

Happy New Year 2026! I love January and the opportunity to start afresh. I know it's arbitrary in some ways, but I measure my life by what I create, and I also measure it in years. At the beginning of each year, I publish an article (and podcast episode) here, which helps keep me accountable. If you'd like to share your goals, please add them in the comments below. 2026 is a transitional year as I will finish my Masters degree and continue the slow pivot that I started in December 2023 after 15 years as an author entrepreneur. Just to recap that, it was: From digitally-focused to creating beautiful physical books; From high-volume, low cost to premium products with higher Average Order Value; From retailer-centric to direct first; and From distance to presence, and From creating alone to the AI-Assisted Artisan Author. I've definitely stepped partially into all of those, and 2026 will continue in that same direction, but I also have an additional angle for Joanna Penn and The Creative Penn that I am excited about. If you'd like to join my community and support the show every month, you'll get access to my growing list of Patron videos and audio on all aspects of the author business — for the price of a black coffee (or two) a month. Join us at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn. Joanna Penn writes non-fiction for authors and is an award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author as J.F. Penn. She's also an award-winning podcaster, creative entrepreneur, and international professional speaker. You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below. Leaning into the Transformation Economy The Creative Penn Podcast and my Patreon Community Webinars and live events Finish my Masters in Death, Religion, and Culture Bones of the Deep — J.F. Penn Add merch to CreativePennBooks.com and JFPennBooks.com How to Write, Publish, and Market Short Stories and Short Story Collections — Joanna Penn Other possible books Experiment more with AI translation Ideally outsource more marketing to AI, but do more marketing anyway Double down on being human, health and travel You can find all my books as J.F. Penn and Joanna Penn on your favourite online store in all the usual formats, or order from your local library or bookstore. You can also buy direct from me at CreativePennBooks.com and JFPennBooks.com. I'm not really active on social media, but you can always see my photos at Instagram @jfpennauthor. Leaning into the Transformation Economy I've struggled with my identity as Joanna Penn and my Creative Penn brand for a few years now. When I started TheCreativePenn.com in 2008, the term ‘indie author' was new and self-publishing was considered ‘vanity press' and a sure way to damage your author career, rather than a conscious creative and business choice. It was the early days of the Kindle and iPhone (both launched in 2007), and podcasting and social media were also relatively new. While US authors could publish on KDP, the only option for international authors was Smashwords and the market for ebooks was tiny. Print-on-demand and digital audio were also just emerging as viable options. While it was the early era of blogging, there were very few blogs and barely any podcasts talking about self-publishing, so when I started TheCreativePenn.com in late 2008 and the podcast in March 2009, it was a new area. For several years, it was like howling into the wind. Barely any audience. Barely any traffic, and certainly very little income.  But I loved the freedom and the speed at which I could learn things and put them into practice. Consume and produce. That has always been my focus. I met people on Twitter and interviewed them for my show, and over those early years I met many of the people I consider dear friends even now. Since self-publishing was a relatively unexplored niche in those early years, I slowly found an audience and built up a reputation. I also started to make more money both as an author, and as a creative entrepreneur. Over the years since, pretty much everything has changed for indie authors and we have had more and more opportunity every year. I've shared everything I've learned along the way, and it's been a wonderful time.  But as self-publishing became more popular and more authors saw more success (which is FANTASTIC!), other voices joined the chorus and now, there are many thousands of authors of all different levels with all kinds of different experiences sharing their tips through articles, books, podcasting, and social media. I started to wonder whether my perspective was useful anymore. On top of the human competition, in November 2022, ChatGPT launched, and it became clear that prescriptive non-fiction and ‘how to' information could very easily be delivered by the AI tools, with the added benefit of personalisation. You can ask Chat or Claude or Gemini how you can self-publish your particular book and they will help you step by step through the process of any site. You can share your screen or upload screenshots and it can help with what fields to fill in (very useful with translations!), as well as writing sales descriptions, researching keywords, and offering marketing help targeted to your book and your niche, and tailored to your voice. Once again, I questioned what value I could offer the indie author community, and I've pulled back over the last few years as I've been noodling around this. But over the last few weeks, a penny has dropped. Here's my thinking in case it also helps you. Firstly, I want to be useful to people. I want to help. In my early days of speaking professionally, from 2005-ish, I wanted to be the British (introvert) Tony Robbins, someone who inspired people to change, to achieve things they didn't think they could. Writing a book is one of those things. Making a living from your writing is another. So I leaned into the self-help and how-to niche. But now that is now clearly commoditised. But recently, I realised that my message has always been one of transformation, and in the following four areas.  From someone who doesn't think they are creative but who desperately wants to write a book, to someone who holds their first book in their hand and proudly says, ‘I made this.' The New Author. From someone who has no confidence in their author voice, who wonders if they have anything to say, to someone who writes their story and transforms their own life, as well as other people's. The Confident Author. From an author with one or a handful of books who doesn't know much about business, to a successful author with a growing business heading towards their first six figure year. The Author-Entrepreneur. And finally, from a tech-phobic, fearful author who worries that AI makes it pointless to create anything and will steal all the jobs, to a confident AI-assisted creative who uses AI tools to enhance and amplify their message and their income. The AI-Assisted Artisan Author. These are four transformations I have been through myself, and with my work as Joanna Penn/The Creative Penn, I want to help you through them as well. So in 2026, I am repositioning myself as part of The Transformation Economy. What does this mean? There is a book out in February, The Transformation Economy by B. Joseph Pine II, who is also the author of The Experience Economy, which drove a lot of the last decade's shift in business models. I have the book on pre-order, but in the meantime, I am doing the following. I will revamp TheCreativePenn.com with ‘transformation' as the key frame and add pathways through my extensive material, rather than just categories of how to do things. I've already added navigation pages for The New Author, The Confident Author, The Author-Entrepreneur, and The AI-Assisted Artisan Author, and I will be adding to those over time. My content is basically the same, as I have always covered these topics, but the framing is now different. The intent is different. The Creative Penn Podcast will lean more heavily into transformation, rather than just information — And will focus on the first three of the categories above, the more creative, mindset and business things.  My Patreon will continue to cover all those things, and that's also where I post most of my AI-specific content, so if you're interested in The AI-Assisted Artisan Author transformation path, come on over to patreon.com/thecreativepenn I have more non-fiction books for authors coming, and lots more ideas now I am leaning into this angle. I'll also continue to do webinars on specific topics in 2026, and also add speaking back in 2027. It's harder to think about transformation when it comes to fiction, but it's also really important since fiction books in particular are highly commodified, and will become even more so with the high production speeds. Yes, all readers have a few favourite authors but most will also read a ton of other books without knowing or caring who the author is. Fiction can be transformational. Reader's aren't buying a ‘book.' They're buying a way to escape, to feel deeply, to experience things they never could in real life. A book can transform a day from ‘meh' into ‘fantastic!' My J.F. Penn fiction is mostly inspired by places, so my stories transport you into an adventure somewhere wonderful, and they all offer a deeper side of transformative contemplation of ‘memento mori' if you choose to read them in that way.  They also have elements of gothic and death culture that I am going to lean into with some merch in 2026, so more of an identity thing than just book sales. I'm not quite sure what this means yet, but no doubt it will emerge. I'll also shape my JFPennBooks.com site into more transformative paths, rather than just genre lists, as part of this shift. My memoir Pilgrimage always reflected a transformation, both reflecting my own midlife shift but I've also heard from many who it has inspired to walk alone, or to travel on pilgrimage themselves. Of course, transformation is not just for our readers or the people we serve as part of our businesses. It's also for us. One of the reasons why we are writers is because this is how we think. This is how we figure out our lives. This is how we get the stories and ideas out of our heads and into the world. Writing and creating are transformative for us, too. That is part of the point, and a great element of why we do this, and why we love this. Which is why I don't really understand the attraction of purely AI-generated books. There's no fun in that for me, and there's no transformation, either. Of course, I LOVE using Chat and Claude and Gemini Thinking models as my brainstorming partners, my research buddies, my marketing assistants, and as daily tools to keep me sparkly. I smiled as I wrote that (and yes, I human-wrote this!) because sparkly is how I feel when I work with these tools. Programmers use the term ‘vibe coding' which is going back and forth and collaborating together, sparking off each other. Perhaps that I am doing is ‘vibe creation.' I feel it as almost an effervescence, a fun experience that has me laughing out loud sometimes. I am more creative, I am more in flow. I am more ‘me' now I can create and think at a speed way faster than ever before. My mind has always worked at speed and my fingers are fast on the keys but working in this way makes me feel like I create in the high performance zone far more often. I intend to lean more into that in 2026 as part of my own transformation (and of course, I share my experiences mainly in the Community at patreon.com/thecreativepenn ). [Note, I pay for access to all models, and currently use ChatGPT 5.2 Thinking, Claude Opus 4.5, and Gemini 3 Pro). So that's the big shift this year, and the idea of the Transformation Economy will underpin everything else in terms of my content. The Creative Penn Podcast and my Patreon Community The Creative Penn Podcast continues in 2026, although I am intending to reduce my interviews to once every two weeks, with my intro and other content in between. We'll see how that goes as I am already finding some fascinating people to talk to!  Thank you for your comments, your pictures, and also for sharing the episodes that resonate with you with the wider community. Your reviews are also super useful wherever you are listening to this, so please leave a review wherever you're listening this as it helps with discovery.  Thanks also to everyone in my Patreon Community, which I really enjoy, especially as we have doubled down on being human through more live office hours. I will do more of those in 2026 and the first one of the year will blearily UK time so Aussies and Kiwis can come. I also share new content almost every week, either an article, a video or an audio episode around writing craft, author business, and lots on different use cases for AI tools.  If you join the Patreon, start on the Collections tab where you will find all the backlist content to explore. It's less than the price of a coffee a month so if you get value from the show, and you want more, come on over and join us at patreon.com/thecreativepenn My Books and Travel Podcast is on hiatus for interviews, since the Masters is taking up the time I would have had for that. However I plan to post some solo episodes in 2026, and I also post travel articles there, like my visits to Gothic cathedrals and city breaks and things like that. Check it out at https://www.booksandtravel.page/blog/  Webinars and live events Along with my Patreon office hours, I'm enjoying the immediacy and energy of live webinars and they work with my focus on transformation, as well as on ‘doubling down on being human' in an age of AI, so I will be doing more this year. The first is on Business for Authors, coming on 10 and 24 January, which is aimed at helping you transform your author business in 2026, or if you're just getting started, then transform into someone who has even a small clue about business in general!Details at TheCreativePenn.com/live and Patrons get 25% off. In terms of live in-person events, it looks like I will be speaking at the Alliance of Independent Authors event at the London Book Fair in March, and I'll attend the Self-Publishing Show Live in June, although I won't be speaking. There might be other things that emerge, but in general, I'm not doing much speaking in 2026 because I need to … Finish my Masters in Death, Religion, and Culture This represents a lot of work as I am doing the course full-time. I should be finished in September, and much of the middle of the year will be focused on a dissertation. I'm planning on doing something around AI and death, so that will no doubt lead into some fiction at a later stage! Talking of fiction … Bones of the Deep — J.F. Penn The Masters is pretty serious, as is academic research and writing in general, and I found myself desperate to write a rollicking fun story over the holiday break between terms. I've talked about this ‘tall-ship' story for a while and now I'm committing to it. Back in 1999, I sailed on the tall-ship Soren Larsen from Fiji to Vanuatu, one of the three trips that shaped my life. It was the first time I'd been to the South Pacific, the first time I sailed blue water (with no land in sight), and I kept a journal and drew maps of the trip. It also helped me a make a decision to leave the UK and I headed for Australia nine months later in early 2000, and ended up being away 11 years in Australia and New Zealand. I came home to visit of course, but only moved back to the UK in 2011, so that trip was memorable and pivotal in many ways and has stuck in my mind. The story is based on that crossing, but of course, as J.F. Penn my imagination turns it into essentially a ‘locked room,' there is no escape out there, especially if the danger comes from the sea. Another strand of the story comes from a recent academic essay for my Masters, when I wrote about the changes in museum ethics around human remains and medical specimens i.e. body parts in jars, and how some remains have been repatriated to the indigenous peoples they were stolen from. I've also talked before about how I love ‘merfolk' horror like Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant, All the Murmuring Bones by A.G. Slatter, and Merfolk by Jeremy Bates. These are no smiling fantasy mermaids and mermen. They are predators. What might happen if the remains of a mer-saint were stolen from the deep, and what might happen to the ship that the remains are being transported in, and the people on board?  I'm about a third in, and I am having great fun! It will actually be a thriller, with a supernatural edge, rather than horror, and it is called Bones of the Deep, and it will be out on Kickstarter in April, and everywhere by the summer.  You can check out the Kickstarter pre-launch page with photos from my 1999 trip, the cover for the book, and the sales description at JFPenn.com/bones Add merch to CreativePennBooks.com and JFPennBooks.com I've dipped my toe into merch a number of times and then removed the products, but now I'm clear on my message of transformation, I want to revisit this. My books remain core for both sites, but for CreativePennBooks, I also want to add other products with what are essentially affirmations — ‘Creative,' ‘I am creative, I am an author,' and variants of the poster I have had on my wall for years, ‘Measure your life by what you create.' This is the affirmation I had in my wallet for years! For JFPennBooks, the items will be gothic/memento mori/skull-related. Everything will be print-on-demand. I will not be shipping anything myself, so I'm working with my designer Jane on this and then need to order test samples, and then get them added to the store. Likely mid-year at this rate! How to Write, Publish, and Market Short Stories and Short Story Collections — Joanna Penn I have a draft of this already which I expanded from the transcript of a webinar I did on this topic as part of The Buried and the Drowned campaign. It turns out I've learned a lot about this over the years, and also on how to make a collection, so I will get that out at some point this year. I won't do a Kickstarter for it, but I will do direct sales for at least a month and include a special edition, workbook, and bundles on my store first before putting it wide. I will also human-narrate that audiobook. Other possible books I'm an intuitive creative and discovery writer, so I don't plan out what I will write in a year. The books tend to emerge and then I pick the next one that feels the most important. After the ones above, there are a few candidates. Crown of Thorns, ARKANE thriller #14. Regular readers and listeners will know how much I love religious relics, and it's about time for a big one! I have a trip to Paris planned in the spring, as the Crown of Thorns is at Notre Dame, and I have some other locations to visit. My ARKANE thrillers always emerge from in-person travels, so I am looking forward to that. Maybe late 2026, maybe 2027. AI + religion technothriller/short stories. I already have some ideas sketched out for this and my Masters thesis will be something around AI, religion, and death, so I expect something will emerge from all that study and academic writing. Not sure what, but it will be interesting! The Gothic Cathedral Book. I have tens of thousands of words written, and lots of research and photos and thoughts. But it is still in the creative chaos phase (which I love!) and as yet has not emerged into anything coherent. Perhaps it will in 2026, and the plan is to re-focus on it after my Masters dissertation.  I feel like the Masters study and the academic research process will make this an even better book, But I am holding my plans for this lightly, as it feels like another ‘big' book for me, like my ‘shadow book' (which became Writing the Shadow) and took more than a decade to write! How to be Creative. I have also written bits and bobs on this over many years, but it feels like it is re-emerging as part of my focus on transformation. Probably unlikely for 2026 but now back on the list … Experiment more with AI translation AI-assisted translation has been around for years now in various forms, and I have experimented with some of the services, as well as working with human narrators and editors in different languages, as well as licensing books in translation. But when Amazon launched Kindle Translate in November 2025, it made me think that AI-assisted translation will become a lot more popular in 2026. AI audiobook narration became good enough for many audiobooks in 2025, and it seems like AI-translation will be the same in 2026. Yes, of course, human translation is still the gold standard, as is human narration, and that would be the primary choice for all of us — if it was affordable. But frankly, it's not affordable for most indie authors, and indeed many small publishers. Many books don't get an audiobook edition and most books don't get translated into every language. It costs thousands per book for a human translator, and so it is a premium option. I have only ever made a small profit on the books that I paid for with human translators and it took years, and while I have a few nice translation deals on some books, I'm planning to experiment more with AI translation in 2026. More languages, more markets, more opportunities to reach readers. More on this in the next episode when I'll cover trends for 2026. Ideally outsource more marketing to AI, but do more marketing anyway You have to reach readers somehow, and you have to pay for book marketing with your time and/or your money. Those authors killing it on TikTok pay with their time, and those leaning heavily on ads are paying with money. Most of us do a bit of both. There is no passive income from books, and even a backlist has to be marketed if you want to see any return. But I, like most authors, am not excited about book marketing. I'd rather be working on new books, or thinking about the ramifications of the changes ahead and writing or talking about that in my Patreon Community or here on the podcast. However, my book sales income remains about the same even as I (slowly) produce more books, so I need to do more book marketing in 2026. I said that last year of course, and didn't do much more than I did in 2024, so here I am again promising to do a better job! Every year, I hope to have my “AI book marketing assistant” up and running, and maybe this will be the year it happens. My measure is to be able to upload a book and specify a budget and say, ‘Go market this,' and then the AI will action the marketing, without me having to cobble together workflows between systems. Of course, it will present plans for me to approve but it will do the work itself on the various platforms and monitor and optimize things for me. We have something like that already with Amazon auto-ads, but that is specific to Amazon Advertising and only works with certain books in certain genres. I have auto-ads running for a couple of non-fiction books, but not for any fiction. I'd also ideally like more sales on my direct stores, JFPennBooks.com and CreativePennBooks.com which means a different kind of marketing. Perhaps this will happen through ChatGPT shopping or other AI-assisted e-commerce, which should be increasing in 2026. More on that in trends for the year to come in the next show. Double down on being human, health and travel I have a lot of plans for travel both for book research and also holidays with Jonathan but he has to finish his MBA and then we have some family things that take priority, so I am not sure where or when yet, but it will happen! Paris will definitely happen as part of the research for Crown of Thorns, hopefully in the spring. I've been to Paris many times as it's just across the Channel and we can go by train but it's always wonderful to visit again. Health-wise, I'll continue with powerlifting and weight training twice a week as well as walking every day. It's my happy place! What about you? If you'd like to share your goals for 2026, please add them in the comments below — and remember, I'm a full-time author entrepreneur so my goals are substantial. Don't worry if yours are as simple as ‘Finish the first draft of my book,' as that still takes a lot of work and commitment! All the best for 2026 — let's get into it! The post My 2026 Creative And Business Goals With Joanna Penn first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Another year ends, and once more, it's time to reflect on our creative goals. I hope you can take the time to review your goals and you're welcome to leave a comment below about how the year went. Did you achieve everything you wanted to? Let me know in the comments. It's always interesting looking back at my goals from a year ago, because I don't even look at them in the months between, so sometimes it's a real surprise how much they've changed! You can read my 2025 goals here and I go through how things went below. In the intro, Written Word Media 2025 Indie Author Survey Results, TikTok deal goes through [BBC]; 2025 review [Wish I'd Known Then; Two Authors], Kickstarter year in review; Plus, Anthropic settlement, the continued rise of AI-narrated audiobooks, and thinking/reasoning models (plus my 2019 AI disruption episode). My Bones of the Deep thriller, pics here, and Business for Authors webinars, coming soon. If you'd like to join my community and support the show every month, you'll get access to my growing list of Patron videos and audio on all aspects of the author business — for the price of a black coffee (or two) a month. Join us at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn. Joanna Penn writes non-fiction for authors and is an award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author as J.F. Penn. She's also an award-winning podcaster, creative entrepreneur, and international professional speaker. You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below. J.F. Penn books — Death Valley, The Buried and the Drowned, Blood Vintage Joanna Penn books — Successful Self-Publishing, 4th Edition The Creative Penn Podcast and my community on Patreon/thecreativepenn Unexpected addition: Masters in Death, Religion and Culture at the University of Winchester Book marketing. Not quite a fail but definitely lacklustre. Reflections on my 50th year Double down on being human. Travel and health. You can find all my books as J.F. Penn and Joanna Penn on your favourite online store in all the usual formats, or order from your local library or bookstore. You can also buy direct from me at CreativePennBooks.com and JFPennBooks.com. I'm not really active on social media, but you can always see my photos at Instagram @jfpennauthor. J.F. Penn — Death Valley. A Thriller. This was my ‘desert' book, partially inspired by visiting Death Valley, California in 2024. It's a stand-alone, high stakes survival thriller, with no supernatural elements, although there are ancient bones and a hidden crypt, as it wouldn't be me otherwise! The Kickstarter campaign in April had 231 Backers pledging £10,794 (~US$14,400) and the hardback is a gorgeous foiled edition with custom end papers and research photos as well as a ribbon. As an AI-Assisted Artisan Author, I used AI tools to help with the creative and business processes, including the background image of the cover design, the custom end papers, and the Death Valley book trailer, which I made with Midjourney and Runway ML. The audiobook is also narrated by my J.F. Penn voice clone, which took a while to get used to, but now I love it! You can listen to a sample here. I published Death Valley wide a few months later over the summer, so it is now out on all platforms. J.F. Penn — Blood Vintage. A Folk Horror Novel, and Catacomb audiobook I did a Kickstarter for the hardback edition of Blood Vintage in late 2024, and then in 2025, worked with a US agent to see if we could get a deal for it. That didn't happen, and although there were some nice rejections, mostly it was silence, and the waiting around really was a pain in the proverbial. So, after a year on submission, I published Blood Vintage wide, so it's available everywhere now. My voice clone narrated the audiobook, listen to a sample here. I also finally produced the audiobook for Catacomb, which is a stand-alone thriller inspired by the movie Taken and the legend of Beowulf set in the catacombs under Edinburgh. I used a male voice from ElevenLabs, and you can listen to a sample here. The book is also available everywhere in all formats. J.F. Penn — The Buried and the Drowned Short Story Collection One of my goals for 2025 was to get my existing short stories into print, mainly because they exist only as digital ebook and audiobook files, which in a way, feels like they almost don't exist! Plus, I wanted to write an extra two exclusive stories and launch the special edition collection on Kickstarter Collection and then publish wide. I wrote the two stories, The Black Church, inspired by my Iceland trip in March, and also Between Two Breaths, inspired by an experience scuba diving at the Poor Knights Islands in New Zealand almost two decades ago. There are personal author's notes accompanying every story, so it's part-short story fiction, part-memoir, and I human-narrated the audiobook. I achieved this goal with a Kickstarter in September, 2025, with 206 Backers pledging almost £8000 (~US$10,600) for the various editions. I also did my first patterned sprayed edges and I love the hardback. It has head and tail bands which make the hardback really strong, gorgeous paper, foiling, a ribbon, colour photos, and custom end papers. The Buried and the Drowned is now out everywhere in all editions. As ever, if you enjoy the stories, a review would be much appreciated! Joanna Penn Books for Authors Early in the year, How to Write Non-Fiction Second Edition launched wide as I only sold it through my store in 2024, so it's available everywhere in all formats including a special hardback and workbook at CreativePennBooks.com. While I didn't write it in 2025, I made the money on it this year, which is important! I also unexpectedly wrote the Fourth Edition of Successful Self-Publishing, mainly because I saw so much misinformation and hype around selling direct, and I also wanted to write about how many options there are for indie authors now. The ebook and audiobook (narrated by human me) are free on my store, CreativePennBooks.com and also available in print, in all the usual places. If you haven't revisited options for indie authors for a while, please have a read/listen, as the industry moves fast! All my fiction and non-fiction audiobooks are now on YouTube After an inspiring episode with Derek Slaton, I put all my audiobooks and short stories on YouTube. Firstly, my non-fiction channel is monetised so I get some income from that. It's not much, but it's something. More importantly, it's marketing for my books, and many audiobook listeners go on to buy other editions especially non-fiction listeners who will often buy print as well. I'm one of those listeners! It's also doubling down on being human, since I human narrate most of my audiobooks, including almost all of my non-fiction, as well as the memoir, and short stories. This helps bring people into my ecosystem and they may listen to the podcast as well and end up buying other books or joining the Patreon. Finally, in an age of generative AI assisted search recommendations, I want my books and content inside Gemini, which is Google's AI. I want my books surfaced in recommendations and YouTube is owned by Google, and their AI overviews often point to videos. Only you can decide what you want to do with your audiobooks, but if you want to listen to mine, they are on YouTube @thecreativepenn for non-fiction or YouTube @jfpennauthor for fiction and memoir. The Creative Penn Podcast and my Patreon Community It's been another full year of The Creative Penn Podcast and this is episode 842, which is kind of crazy. If you don't know the back story, I started podcasting in March 2009 on a sporadic schedule and then went to weekly about a decade ago in 2015 when I committed to making it a core part of my author business. Thanks to our wonderful corporate sponsors for the year, all services I personally use and recommend — ProWritingAid, Draft2Digital, Kobo Writing Life, Bookfunnel, Written Word Media, Publisher Rocket and Atticus. It's also been a fantastic year inside my Patreon Community at patreon.com/thecreativepenn so thanks to all Patrons! I love the community we have as I am able to share my unfiltered thoughts in a way that I have stopped doing in the wider community. Even a tiny paywall makes a big difference in keeping out the haters. I've done monthly audio Q&As which are extra solo shows answering patron questions. I've also done several live office hours on video, and shared content every week on AI tools, writing and author business tips. Patrons also get discounts on my webinars. I did two webinars on The AI-Assisted Artisan Author, which I am planning to run again sometime in 2026 as they were a lot of fun and so much continues to change. If you get value from the show and you want more, come on over and join us at patreon.com/thecreativepenn We have almost 1400 paying members now which is wonderful. Thanks for being part of the Community! Unexpected goal of the year: Masters in Death, Religion and Culture at the University of Winchester During the summer as I did my gothic research, I realised that I was feeling quite jaded about the publishing world and sick of the drama in the author community over AI. My top 5 Clifton Strengths are Learner, Intellection, Strategic, Input, and Futuristic — and I needed more Input and Learning. I usually get that from travel and book research, but I wasn't getting enough of that since Jonathan is busy finishing his MBA. So I decided to lean into the learning and asked ChatGPT to research some courses I could do that would suit me. It found the Masters in Death, Religion and Culture at the University of Winchester, which I could do full-time and online. It would be a year of reading quite different things, writing academic essays which is something I haven't done for decades, and hanging out with a new group of people who were just as fascinated with macabre topics as I am. I started in September and have now finished the first term, tackling topics around thanatology and death studies, hell and the afterlife in the Christian tradition, and the ethics of using human remains to inspire fiction, amongst other interesting things. It was a challenge to get back into the style of academic essay writing, but I'm enjoying the rigour of the research and the citations, which is something that the indie author community needs more of, a topic I will revisit in 2026. I have found the topics fascinating, and the degree is a great way to expand my mind in a new direction, and distract me from the dramas of the author community. I'll be back into it in mid-January and will finish in September 2026. Book marketing. Not quite a fail but definitely lacklustre. I said I would “Do a monthly book marketing plan and organise paid ad campaigns per month for revolving first books in series and my main earners.” I didn't do this! I also said I would organise my Shopify stores, CreativePennBooks.com and JFPennBooks.com into more collections to make it easier for readers to find things they might want to buy. While I did change the theme of CreativePennBooks.com over to Impulse to make it easier to find collections, I haven't done much to reorganise or add new pathways through the books. I'm rolling this part of the goal into 2026. I said I would reinvigorate my content marketing for JFPenn, and make more of BooksAndTravel.page with links back to my stores, and do fiction specific content marketing with the aim of surfacing more in the LLMs as generative search expands. I did a number of episodes on Books and Travel in 2025, but once I started the Masters, I had to leave that aside, and although I have started some extra content on JFPennBooks.com, I am not overly enthusiastic about it! I also said I would “Leverage AI tools to achieve more as a one-person business.” I use AI tools (mainly ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini) every day for different things but as ever, I am pretty scatter gun about what I do. I lean into intuition and I love research so I am more likely to ask the AI tools to do a deep research report on south Pacific merfolk mythology, or how gothic architecture impacted sacred music, or geology and deep time, rather than asking for marketing hooks. I intended to use more AI for book marketing, but as ever, I was too optimistic about the timeline of what might be possible. There's lots you can do with prompting, finessing things and then posting on various platforms, but I'm not interested in spending time doing that. My gold standard for an AI assistant is to feed it the finished book and then say, “Here's a budget. Go market this,” and not have to connect lots of things together into some Frankenstein-workflow. That's not available yet. Maybe in 2026 … Of course, I still do book marketing. I have to in order to sell any books and make money from book sales. We all have to do some kind of book marketing! I have my Kickstarter launches which I put effort into, as well as consistent backlist sales fed by the podcast, and my email newsletter (my combined list is around 60K). I have auto campaigns running on Amazon Ads, and I have used Written Word Media campaigns as well as BookBub throughout the year. This is basically the minimum, so as usual, must do better! I'm pretty sure I'm not the only author saying this! However, my business has multiple streams of income, and I have the podcast sponsorship revenue as well as the Patreon, plus sporadic webinars, which add to my bottom line and don't require paid advertising at all. Reflections on my 50th year I woke up on my 50th birthday in March in Iceland, by the Black Church of Budir out on the Skaefellsnes peninsula. As seals played in the sea and we walked in the snow over the ancient lava field under the gaze of the volcano that inspired Jules Verne Journey to the Centre of the Earth, and my short story, The Black Church, which you can find in my collection, The Buried and the Drowned. On that trip, we also saw the northern lights and had a memorable trip that marked a real shift for me. I've been told by lots of people that 50 is a ‘proper' birthday, as in one of those that makes you stop and reconsider things, and it has indeed been that, although I have also found the last few years of perimenopause to be a large part of the change as well. A big shift is around priorities and not caring so much what other people think, which is a relief in many ways. Also, I don't have the patience to do things that I don't think are worth doing for the longer term, and I am appreciating a quieter life. I'd rather lie in a sunbeam and read with Cashew and Noisette next to me then create marketing assets or spend time on social media. I'd rather go for a walk with Jonathan than go to a conference or networking event. In my Pilgrimage memoir, I quote an anonymous source, “Pilgrim, pass by that which you do not love.” It's a powerful message, and I take it to mean, stop listening to people who tell you what is important. Listen to yourself more and only pay attention to that which you feel drawn to explore. On pilgrimage, it might be turning away from the supposedly important shrine of a saint to go and sit in nature and feel closer to God that way. In our author lives, it might be turning away from the things that just feel wrong for us, and leaning into what is enjoyable, that which feels worthwhile, that which we want to keep doing for the long term. Let's face it, as always, that is the writing, the thinking, the imagination. As ever, I have this mantra on my wall: “Measure your life by what you create.” It's the creation side of things that we love and that's what we need to remember when everything else gets a little much. Many authors left social media in 2025, and while I haven't left it altogether, I don't use it much. I post pictures proving I am human on Instagram @jfpennauthor which automatically post to Facebook. I barely check my pages on Facebook though. I'm also still on X with a carefully curated feed that I mainly use to learn new cool AI things which I share with my Patreon Community. Double down on being human. Travel and health. Yes, I am a human author, and yes, I continue to age! When you've been publishing a while, you need to update your author photos periodically and I finally had a photoshoot I loved with Betty Bhandari Photography, which means I can add the new pics to my websites and the back of my books. Are you up to date with your author photos? (or at least within a decade of the last photoshoot?!) Here are a few of the pictures on Instagram @jfpennauthor. Healthwise, I gave up calisthenics as it was too much on top of the powerlifting and the amount of walking I do. I did another British Powerlifting competition in September in the M2 category (based on age) and 63kgs category (based on weight). Deadlift: 95kgs. Squat: 60kgs. BenchPress: 37.5kgs. While this is less overall than last year, I also weigh less, so I'm actually stronger based on lift to body weight percentage. I have also done a few pull-ups in the last week with no band, which I am thrilled with! On the travel side, Iceland was the big trip, and I also had a weekend in Berlin for the film festival, where I met up with a producer and a director around an adaptation of my Day of the Vikings thriller. That didn't pan out, as most of these things don't, but I certainly learned a lot about the industry — and why it doesn't suit me! Once again, I dipped my toe into screenwriting and then ran away, as has happened multiple times over the years. When will I learn? … Over the summer of 2025, I visited lots of gothic cathedrals including Lichfield, Rochester, Durham, York, and revisiting Canterbury, as part of my book research for the Gothic Cathedral book. I have tens of thousands of words on this project, but it isn't ready yet, so this is carried over into 2026 as it might happen then, depending on the Masters. I spoke at Author Nation in Las Vegas in November 2025, and before it started, I visited (Lower) Antelope Canyon, one of the places on my bucket list, and it did not disappoint. What a special place and no doubt it will appear in a story at some point! How did your 2025 go? I hope your 2025 had some wonderful times as well as no doubt some challenges — and that you have time for reflection as the year turns once more. Let me know in the comments whether you achieved your creative goals and any other reflections you'd like to share.The post Review Of My 2025 Creative And Business Goals With Joanna Penn first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Joanna Penn, host of the Creative Penn Podcast had me on to talk about:

In this newest episode of the En Factor, we are absolutely thrilled to be joined by Joanna Penn, a long time author, podcaster, and international professional speaker! Joanna joins us from the United Kingdom, where she has written a wide variety of genres over her career from nonfiction providing guidance and advice surrounding authoring and self-publishing, to fictional thrillers, dark fantasy, and memoirs under the name J.F. Penn. Since transitioning out of an IT consultant job to begin writing nearly twenty years ago, Joanna has been recognized by the New York Times and USA Today as a bestselling author for her work. Joanna also joins us from the podcasting realm as she is one of the early adopters of connecting with an audience with a podcast through The Creative Penn Podcast, with hundreds of episodes dating back to 2009.  Discussing the topics of authoring and the business surrounding being an author, Joanna is recognized as one of the top 1% of podcasters in the world, and has developed The Creative Penn into a successful business along with her own online community to connect with her audience even further. Joanna has also spoken at numerous events about the authoring space travelling to events all over the world, as well as virtual conferences and workshops. Having followed Joanna and her work for a long time, this episode was a very special one to record and one you will not want to miss a second of! Join us to learn more about Joanna's entrepreneurial journey, and how she chose herself to pursue her passion of authoring, as well as how she leveraged her knowledge and experience to create numerous valuable assets and build a successful business! Key Words - Women in Entrepreneurship, Author

Join author and podcaster Joanna Penn as she shares the key insights behind The Creative Penn Podcast's journey to 10 million downloads. Learn proven strategies for growing your audience, creating consistent value, and building multiple revenue streams through podcasting. Joanna breaks down her 14-year evolution from recording on a basic phone setup to running a profitable creative business. She delivers practical tips for content creation, audience engagement, and podcast monetization that will help you build a sustainable show with long-term success.

Matty Dalrymple talks with Joanna Penn about THE EVOLVING AUTHOR AND SECOND EDITIONS, including the release of the second edition of Joanna's book, HOW TO WRITE NON-FICTION. Joanna discusses the changes in nonfiction writing, including the importance of storytelling, which led her to apply some of the personal elements and insights she has used in her memoir works into this new edition. We delve into the challenges and benefits of putting out a new edition versus updating the existing one, the evolving landscape of self-publishing, and the impact of new technologies on the writing business. Interview video at https://bit.ly/TIAPYTPlaylist Show notes at https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html  If you find the information in this video useful, please consider supporting The Indy Author! https://www.patreon.com/theindyauthor https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mattydalrymple Joanna Penn writes non-fiction for authors and is an award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers, dark fantasy, and memoir as J.F. Penn. She's also an award-winning podcaster of The Creative Penn Podcast, a creative entrepreneur, and an international professional speaker. Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with THE SENSE OF DEATH; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. Matty also writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage, and shares what she's learned on THE INDY AUTHOR PODCAST. She has written books on the business of short fiction and podcasting for authors; her articles have appeared in "Writer's Digest" magazine. She serves as the Campaigns Manager for the Alliance of Independent Authors.  

Looking for the best podcasts to boost your writing skills in 2024? Curious about where authors get top-notch publishing advice? Tune in as we reveal the 10 must-listen podcasts for writers! - Book Award Pro - https://DaleLinks.com/BookAwardPro (affiliate link) Podcasts Mentioned: - The Indy Author Podcast - https://www.theindyauthor.com/podcast.html - Sell More Books Show - https://www.sellmorebooksshow.com/ - Brave New Bookshelf - https://bravenewbookshelf.com/ - Self-Publishing with ALLi - https://selfpublishingadvice.org/podcast/ - Indie Writers Club - https://www.indiewritersclub.com/ - The Creative Penn Podcast for Authors - https://www.thecreativepenn.com/the-creative-penn-podcast-for-authors/ - Self-Publishing Insiders with Draft2Digital - https://www.draft2digital.com/blog/category/self-publishing-insiders-podcast/ - Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing - https://starkreflections.ca/ - Publish & Prosper - https://www.publishprosperpodcast.com/ - Fully Booked: The Hidden Gems Author Podcast - https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast/ Subscribe to The Self-Publishing Hub - https://TheSelfPublishingHub.com Subscribe to my email newsletter - https://DaleLinks.com/SignUp Join Channel Memberships - https://DaleLinks.com/Memberships Join Me on Discord - https://DaleLinks.com/Discord Check out my main YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/@DaleLRoberts My Books - https://DaleLinks.com/MyBooks  Where noted, some outbound links financially benefit the channel through affiliate programs. I only endorse programs, products, or services I use and can stand confidently behind. These links do not affect your purchase price and greatly helps to building and growing this channel. Thanks in advance for understanding! - Dale L. Roberts

Is it possible to pursue a passion and hold onto a professional identity as a new mom? YES IT IS. In this conversation host Amanda Haro & Josee Smith unravel the challenges of maintaining a professional identity and the importance of pursuing passions as a new mom. Because when a woman prioritizes herself and what brings her joy, it ultimately makes her a better mom. Josee shares: How rediscovering her writer identity not only helped her feel like herself again, but also made her a better mom How to handle self doubt The secret to finding time to write with a newborn Letting go of perfectionism Self publishing tips for new authors Mentioned in this episode: The Creative Penn Podcast. Connect more with Josee Smith, coach for women authors here. Follow Josee on Instagram. Sign up for Amanda's on-the-go coaching package, “Stop Snapping at Your Kids”, here. Give the algorithm the finger–sign up for F*ck It Mothering Newsletter. Follow F*ck It Mothering on Instagram and YouTube Time Stamps: 0:00 Intro 2:21 I lost myself in the newborn phase 11:09 The mindset shift for pursuing your passion 16:33 Women helping women 19:53 Finding time for writing as a new mom 24:45 Letting go of perfectionism 34:46 The transition into new motherhood  39:26 The joys & challenges of motherhood 43:46 The importance of self trust in motherhood 46:43 Self publishing tips for new women authors 52:24 Lightening questions

The Creative Penn Podcast just hit 10 million downloads as reported by my audio host, Blubrry! The podcast is also the main content on my YouTube channel @thecreativepenn, which has had over 3.9 million views, so the total could be closer to 14m. I'm pretty happy with that, so thanks for listening! Here are some […] The post 7 Lessons Learned From Over 10 Million Downloads Of The Creative Penn Podcast first appeared on The Creative Penn.

Recode.law? Was ist denn das schon wieder? Genau das fragen sich die Nerds auch, immerhin steht ‚Student Driven Academy‘ auf der zugehörigen Webseite. Gut, dass sie Moritz eingeladen haben, der nicht nur den Recode-Podcast macht, sondern auch gleich erklärt, was es mit der ganzen Sache auf sich hat.  Dieser Podcast wurde übrigens – selten aber doch – in persönlicher Anwesenheit aller Nerds und Gäste aufgenommen, wobei es auch jene Episode ist, welche die meisten Verweise auf andere Podcasts hat.      Recode.law  Webseite: https://recode.law  Magazin: https://recode.law/category/magazin/  Podcast: https://recode.law/podcast/  Newsletter (New Law Radar): https://recode.law/category/news/new-law-radar/   Digitale Richterschaft (D): https://digitale-richterschaft.de   NetzBeweis: https://www.netzbeweis.com  Lawyerist: https://lawyerist.com  Podcast: https://lawyerist.com/podcast/  NoL-Podcast-Folge 94 zum Lawyerist: https://www.nerdsoflaw.com/2022/09/nerds-of-law-94-legal-speedboats-with-stephanie-everett-from-the-lawyerist/  Lage der Nation (Podcast): https://lagedernation.org   The Creative Penn (Podcast): https://www.thecreativepenn.com/the-creative-penn-podcast-for-authors/   NoL-Podcast-Folge 40 mit Joanna Penn: https://www.nerdsoflaw.com/2021/02/nerds-of-law-40-scalable-income-with-joanna-penn/  Cui Bono (Podcast, 2. Staffel): https://cui-bono.podigee.io  Seelenfänger (Podcast): https://www.br.de/mediathek/podcast/seelenfaenger/888  Dr. Horror (Podcast): https://www.podcast.de/podcast/3302771/dr-horror  Drachentöter (Podcast): https://www.drachentoeter.at  The Dropout (Mini-Serie): https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dropout  Vienna Legal Innovation: https://businesscircle.at/digitalisierung/konferenz/viennalegal/  DocAssemble: https://docassemble.org  Lawlift: https://de.lawlift.com     Subscribe to the Podcast  RSS Feed https://nerdsoflaw.libsyn.com/rss   Apple Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/nerds-of-law-podcast/id1506472002   SPOTIFY https://open.spotify.com/show/12D6osXfccI1bjAzapWzI4   Google Play Store https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=com.google.PlayMusic&isi=691797987&ius=googleplaymusic&apn=com.google.android.music&link=https://play.google.com/music/m/Idvhwrimkmxb2phecnckyzik3qq?t%3DNerds_of_Law_Podcast%26pcampaignid%3DMKT-na-all-co-pr-mu-pod-16   YouTube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7rmwzBy-IRGh8JkLCPIjyGMA-nHMtiAC   Deezer https://www.deezer.com/de/show/1138852     Nerds of Law®   http://www.nerdsoflaw.com   https://twitter.com/NerdsOfLaw   https://www.instagram.com/nerdsoflaw/   https://www.facebook.com/NerdsOfLaw/   Music by Mick Bordet www.mickbordet.com    Nerds of Law ® ist eine in Österreich registrierte Wortmarke.   

Boy, do I have a treat for you guys! Along with my celebrity co-host Jodi Burnett,  my extra special guest on the show today is none other than Award-Winning, Bestselling Author, Entrepreneur, and Award-Winning Podcaster Joanna Penn!!!!Joanna Penn writes non-fiction for authors and is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller, dark fantasy, crime, and horror author as J.F. Penn. She's also an award-winning podcaster as the host of the Creative Penn Podcast that, according to Listen Notes, is in the top 0.5% of three million of all global podcasts. She is also a creative entrepreneur and a highly sought after international professional speaker.In today's episode we discuss:·      Trigger warnings and the implications of using them.·      Her newest book, “Writing The Shadow: Turn Your Inner Darkness into Words.”·      The moment in time Joanna Penn quit her day job and took the plunge into being a full-time author entrepreneur. ·      Lessons learned from Joanna's business accomplishments and missteps. ·      Keeping up with and benefiting from artificial intelligence and other fast-paced technology. ·      Keeping her business as fresh and fun as when she first started.·      Giving away the farm. When is it appropriate and effective?·      The impact and value of podcasting. Setting realistic goals and expectations.·      Joanna's favorite book she has written.Please visit Joanna Penn's website to learn more about her and her books!Please visit Jodi Burnett at her website to learn more about her and her books.Check out Field Training (Brew City Blues Book 1)!!Enjoy the Cops and Writers book series.Please visit the Cops and Writers website. Only for Cops and Writers Podcast listeners! Get 50% off the audiobook version of the F.B.I. K-9 thriller, Avenging Adam by Jodi Burnett. Use code, https://jodi-burnett.com/copsandwriters/Support the show

We've assembled a dream team of industry luminaries to unravel the key trends and issues that will shape publishing in 2024 and likely impact your author business. Join us as we welcome Mark Coker, chief strategy officer, D2D; Jane Friedman, founder & editor of publishing newsletter The Hot Sheet; Joanna Penn of The Creative Penn Podcast; Dale Roberts of the Self Publishing with Dale Podcast; and Orna Ross, co-founder and director of The Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi). //Draft2Digital is where you start your Indie Author Career//  Looking for your path to self-publishing success? Draft2Digital is the leading ebook publisher and distributor worldwide. We'll convert your manuscript, distribute it online, and support you the whole way—and we won't charge you a dime.  We take a small percentage of the royalties for each sale you make through us, so we only make money when you make money. That's the best kind of business plan.  • Get started now: https://draft2digital.com/• Learn the ins, the outs, and the all-arounds of indie publishing from the industry experts on the D2D Blog: https://Draft2Digital.com/blog  • Promote your books with our Universal Book Links from Books2Read: https://books2read.com  Make sure you bookmark https://D2DLive.com for links to live events, and to catch back episodes of the Self Publishing Insiders Podcast.

Today's show is a special bonus episode of me being interviewed on the Creative Penn Podcast with the most excellent host, Joanna Penn! Joanna and I talk about writing realistic police stories, starting a second career as an author, networking, and the dangers of writing about real-life trauma. Please enjoy my chat with Joanna Penn.In today's episode, we discuss:·      Becoming a writer after a significant first career·      Dos and don'ts of finding a mentor·      Being of service and volunteering with purpose·      Knowing when an author relationship clicks·      Writing entertainment vs. writing for therapy·      Managing different energies in an author conferenceCheck out Joanna's website!Check out Field Training (Brew City Blues Book 1)!!Enjoy the Cops and Writers book series.Please visit the Cops and Writers website.  Do you enjoy gritty, action-packed real-life police dramas to get your fill of blood, heartache, and cop humor, and maybe even a little romance?I have partnered up with Michael Anderle and we have released a new crime fiction series called “Brew City Blues.” If you're a fan of Hill Street Blues, Southland, or Bosch you're going to love Brew City Blues! Brew City Blues is now live! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BLR7FX27Support the show

In Season 5, Episode 4 of QWERTY Writing Life, Authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith bring back a previous question, with a twist. Where Is Your Art's Place in the Creative World? Answering where an artist fits in the creative world is one challenge that comes with easy to follow questions. Placing art, though, can be more complicated. Joy and Mea share three perspectives to ease the task and guide fellow creatives. Check out the links referenced in the show: QWERTY Writing Life Podcast, Season 5, Episode 3: “Authors & Readers: Let's Get Together!”: https://qwertywritinglife.podbean.com/e/authors-and-readers-let-s-get-together/ Joanna Penn's interview with John Truby on The Creative Penn Podcast: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2022/11/28/anatomy-of-genre/ The Anatomy of Genres: How Story Forms Explain the Way the World Works, by John Truby: https://bookshop.org/a/95576/9780374539221 (This is Joy's affiliate link for the book on bookshop.org, a fantastic online bookseller that gives back to independent bookstores.) More on Carolina's Legacy Collection—”Southern fiction with Christian roots”—by Joy: https://joyerancatore.com/my-writings/carolinas-legacy-collection/ QWERTY Writing Life Podcast, Season 5, Episode 2: “Where Is Your Place in the Creative World?”: https://qwertywritinglife.podbean.com/e/where-is-your-place-in-the-creative-world/ Subscribe to the QWERTY's monthly newsletter (be sure to click the box next to “opt in to receive news and updates” and check your spam for the confirmation email): https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/z9f1z5 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/qwertywritinglife Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/qwertywritinglife/ Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith. Continue this week's chat via email at qwertywritinglife [at] gmail [dot] com. For more information about the QWERTYs, the show and their writing craft book series, head over to https://qwertywritinglife.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal. Or, if you'd rather see their grinning faces, ring the bell on their YouTube channel. Please share our podcast with your friends, too! For more about Mea and her writing, visit storyswell.net. Joy and her details can be found at joyerancatore.com.

Joanna Penn on Writing the Shadow   Episode 89.  Special Edition Interview with Author, Creative, Businesswoman and Host of the Creative Penn podcast, Joanna Penn. Joanna is a multidimensional person with interests spanning psychology, theology, business, writing, publishing, and Artificial Intelligence among many pursuits. She is the author of over 45 books, and she's already imagining the next one. Her most recent is Writing the Shadow: Turn your Inner Darkness into Words. That's the focus of our conversation in this episode. To join the kickstarter campaign or buy the book click here www.TheCreativePenn.com/shadowbook     Personal Updates On Wednesday evening, October 11, I'll be joined by local musician Mike Bussey for an evening called “Songs and Stories of Weird Wisdom.” Cross Mills Library in Charlestown, Rhode Island. Write me at jim@jameshazelwood.net My Weekly Newsletter with an Essay on Mysticism and Psychology https://jameshazelwood.substack.com/ Guest Bio - Joanna (J.F. Penn) Penn www.TheCreativePenn.com  www.CreativePennBooks.com She is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with 45+ books, with almost a million sold across 169 countries and 5 languages. She is a podcaster, international speaker, and award-winning creative entrepreneur.   Joanna (J.F.) Penn  New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Thriller Author Podcaster. Speaker. Award-winning Entrepreneur.  For authors and writers: www.TheCreativePenn.com  www.CreativePennBooks.com The Creative Penn Podcast: www.TheCreativePenn.com/podcasts/ www.twitter.com/thecreativepenn   Thrillers, dark fantasy, crime, horror:  www.JFPennBooks.com  www.instagram.com/jfpennauthor www.Facebook.com/jfpennauthor     Host: James Hazelwood   James Hazelwood, author, bishop, and spiritual companion, is the author of Weird Wisdom for the Second Half of Life and Everyday Spirituality: Discover a Life of Hope, Peace, and Meaning. His website is www.jameshazelwood.net  

Thanks to Joanna Penn of the Creative Penn podcast for having me on as a guest! In this episode, we talk about: You can find the blog version of the interview here. If you don't yet listen to the Creative Penn podcast, you should check it out. It is one of the best publishing podcasts […]

This week on the Writers Advice Podcast I am joined by Young Adult Paranormal Author, Sean Fletcher. On this episode Sean and I talk about: -His writing journey from writing his first book at fifteen, to now. -Creating a Writing Community -Taking your creativity & author business into your own hands - And Sean gives all his advice on starting your Author business Dive into all of Sean's books here. Grab a copy of my Shadow & Shifter Series here JOIN THE WRITERS ADVICE FACEBOOK GROUP Become a part of my ARC TEAM HERE To Contact Sean:Instagram: @seanfletcherauthorWebsite: seanfletcherauthor.comFacebook: Sean Fletcher | Facebook To Contact Me:Website: oliviahillier.comInstagram: @oliviahillierauthorTikTok:@oliviahillierauthor

This week on the Writers Advice Podcast I am joined by Urban Fantasy Author, Heather G. Harris On this episode Heather and I talk about: -Her journey to becoming a writer. -Moving into becoming a full time writer -Creating a Writing Community -Managing family life & writing -Rapid releasing & taking your creativity & writing business into your own hands. Dive into all of Heather's books here. Grab a copy of my Shadow & Shifter Series here JOIN THE WRITERS ADVICE FACEBOOK GROUP Become a part of my ARC TEAM HERE To Contact Heather:Instagram: @heathergharrisauthorWebsite: heathergharris.comFacebook: Heather G Harris | Facebook To Contact Me:Website: oliviahillier.comInstagram: @oliviahillierauthorTikTok:@oliviahillierauthor

In this episode, I discuss a realization I had while watching Glass Onion, one that was helped along greatly by an episode of The Creative Penn Podcast that I listened to recently. Be sure to go check it out at the following address: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2022/04/25/7-figure-fiction/ If you'd like to send a voice message that I can use in a future episode, go to Anchor.fm/WriteANovel. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel at YouTube.com/@HowToFixCinema. If you'd like to stay up to date on all of my projects, simply sign up for my newsletter at TheWritersEverything.org/newsletter. To support this podcast, please go to Patreon.com/QJMartin or Anchor.fm/WriteANovel/support. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writeanovel/support

How niche should you go with your books? This week's interviewee is Dr. Guy Windsor. He's well known as a martial arts instructor who teaches people the art of sword fighting, but he's also a well-known author in this particular genre or niche. In fact, he's published over 30 books on the subject, and he's created courses too.I first came across Guy Windsor's work in 2015 when he appeared on The Creative Penn Podcast hosted by Joanna Penn, but he's been writing about martial arts and sword fighting and teaching all of the ideas in his books for over 20 years.So, I was fascinated to catch up with somebody who is, firstly, able to sustain an interest in such a niche or specific topic for so long and, secondly, in somebody who was writing about a topic that would have a really specific market.In this episode, we discuss:Combining your real-world interests with your writing interestsUsing Amazon as a lead generation toolHow to format and translate your books appropriatelyThe importance of discipline and motivation in your craftResources:Website: Sword SchoolSupport the showIf you enjoyed the show please leave a review on Apple. And if you have any questions you can find me on Twitter @BryanJCollinsThanks for listening!

This interview with the podcast host of the award-winning The Creative Penn podcast, Joanna Penn, proves the old adage that “you never know until you ask.” I am a big fan of Joanna's podcast, website, and books. On a whim, I pitched an interview to her and she graciously and generously agreed to it. I am still on a high from this interview and the fabulous information Joanna shared.Joanna is a successful writer and entrepreneur.  She covers every aspect of self-publishing from writing, to publishing, to distributing, and to marketing a book in her over 30 books and her podcasts as host of The Creative Penn Podcast . She has grown a successful business as an author of both fiction and non-fiction books as an indy author. How did she do it and what tips can she share with the aspiring writer?Have a listen… Always positive and a self-proclaimed “cheerleader” for authors she believes that an already published book can find more success than a newly launched book with the right marketing techniques and new publishing outlets. She offers insights into the indie publishing field and how she feels it is transformative for new authors in getting their work out into the world. She answers all of my questions - some pretty basic - ie. can you place your book with two different online retailers as the same time? - Sorry, Joanna. But, hey, this is how my mind works. Listen and learn.Any business owner will discover tips from Joanna's expereince.  Her positivity and enthusiasm is contagous.  She shares the story of her pivotstory, we love pivots stories at Stories and Strategies for Women from a traditional career to scaling a true love business.  In addition to books on publishing and marketing and fiction fantasy books, Joanna's 1st book helps to make a career change titled Career Change: Stop hating your job, discover what you really want to do with your life, and start doing it! | The Creative Penn.You can find Joanna Penn and all about her books and her podcasts at her website, TheCreativePenn.comClaudine Wolk Substack: Get Your Book Seen and SoldClaudine Wolk Website: ClaudineWolk.comClaudine's Instagram - @ClaudineWolkThis episode of Stories and Strategies for Women is brought to you by Eyebobs.  Enter code 'StoriesandStrat10" for a 10% discount at eyebobs.comand by ThriftBooks.com, the fun site to buy and collect used books.

Nerds of Law 79 – Non-Fungible Vladan    Wenn Katharina wegen einer neuen Technologie skeptisch ist, muss natürlich jemand in den Podcast geholt werden, der sich damit auskennt! In dieser Folge reden wir nicht über Schwammerlsuppe, sondern über die Frage, ob NFTs wie Luxushandtaschen sind oder doch nur eine gehypte Lizenz? Also wichtig – diese Folge anhören, bevor Sie sich NFT takeout bestellen!    NoL-Podcast-Episode 75: https://www.nerdsoflaw.com/2021/12/nerds-of-law-75-the-voice-of-xpert-mit-vladan-katanic/  NoL-Podcast-Episode 40: https://www.nerdsoflaw.com/2021/02/nerds-of-law-40-scalable-income-with-joanna-penn/  Creative Penn Podcast: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/podcasts/   DeviantArt: https://www.deviantart.com  Account von Michael: https://www.deviantart.com/liebkraft  Discord: https://discord.com  Open Sea (NFT-Plattform): https://opensea.io  Binance: https://www.binance.com/en/nft/home   CryptoPunks: https://www.larvalabs.com/cryptopunks  Metaverse: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaversum  Second Life: https://secondlife.com  Mark Cuben (Investor): https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Cuban  Erschöpfungsgrundsatz (Urheberrecht) https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erschöpfungsgrundsatz  Tinder: https://tinder.com/de  Ethereum: https://ethereum.org/de/  Proof of Art (Ausstellung): https://ars.electronica.art/newdigitaldeal/de/proof-of-art/  Solidity (Programmiersprache): https://docs.soliditylang.org/en/v0.8.11/      Subscribe to the Podcast  RSS Feed https://nerdsoflaw.libsyn.com/rss   Apple Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/nerds-of-law-podcast/id1506472002   SPOTIFY https://open.spotify.com/show/12D6osXfccI1bjAzapWzI4   Google Play Store https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=com.google.PlayMusic&isi=691797987&ius=googleplaymusic&apn=com.google.android.music&link=https://play.google.com/music/m/Idvhwrimkmxb2phecnckyzik3qq?t%3DNerds_of_Law_Podcast%26pcampaignid%3DMKT-na-all-co-pr-mu-pod-16   YouTube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7rmwzBy-IRGh8JkLCPIjyGMA-nHMtiAC   Deezer https://www.deezer.com/de/show/1138852     Nerds of Law®   http://www.nerdsoflaw.com   https://twitter.com/NerdsOfLaw   https://www.instagram.com/nerdsoflaw/   https://www.facebook.com/NerdsOfLaw/   Music by Mick Bordet www.mickbordet.com    Nerds of Law ® ist eine in Österreich registrierte Wortmarke. 

In this episode, I give you tips on how to pitch podcasts to help promote your books and services, while sharing THE MOST exciting news of 2022 for me. Links mentioned during this episode: Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/v8Htcj9GsgI Order "Take Back Your Book: An Author's Guide to Rights Reversion and Publishing On Your Terms": http://www.katlynduncan.com/takebackyourbook Website: http://www.katlynduncan.com *Links included in this description are affiliate links. If you purchase with these links, I will receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you, but this helps me provide you with free content every week

In der letzten Folge der ersten Staffel dreht sich alles um den bevorstehenden ersten Drop auf unserer NFT-Plattform Creatokia am 17.11 um 17:11 (MEZ). Gemeinsam mit Eric Bartoletti, der das Projekt seit sieben Monaten betreut und der bereits in Folge 7 des Podcasts zu Gast war, stellen euch Jens & John den Creatoken-Drop vor und geben euch viele weitere spannende Details. Ihr erfahrt in dieser Folge, welche und wie viele Token geben wird, welche Story wir damit erzählen wollen und welche weiteren Benefits es für Creatoken-Käuferinnen und -Käufer geben wird. Außerdem erzählen sie euch, wie genau ihr euch euren Creatoken kaufen könnt und ihr werdet feststellen: Das ist überhaupt nicht kompliziert. Auch wird euch ein Ausblick auf die zweite Staffel in englischer Sprache gegeben werden: Denn die Reise geht natürlich gerade erst los, frei nach dem Motto: The best is yet to come!Anmerkung der Redaktion:Der Creatoken-Drop findet statt am 17.11. um 17:11 (MEZ). Es schadet aber sicherlich nicht, 6 Minuten früher da zu sein. ;-) Wir freuen uns über Feedback und eine Bewertung bei Apple Podcasts. Schaut gerne auch bei www.creatokia.com vorbei und meldet euch für unseren Newsletter an. Weiterführende Links:Hole dir deinen CreatokenKomme in unseren Creatokia Discord-ChannelJohn & Jens waren zu Gast beim Creative Penn Podcast von Joanna Penn. Nachzuhören auf Apple Podcasts und Spotify Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bill welcomes the "author's librarian" Vikki J. Carter to the show. As a professional librarian and author, Vikki J. Carter reveals the techniques that librarians use to help writers effectively find valuable sources. Vikki's book, Research Life A Librarian, is available in eBook and in print. Since the publication of her book in March 2021, Vikki has scheduled a fall appearance on The Creative Penn Podcast, and she will be presenting at the 2021 Self-Publishing Advice Conference. 

Episode 077 / Genevieve Jack, paranormal romance, fantasy, and urban fantasy author, shares how writing and releasing three to four books a year has created a sustainable career. We also cover branding, writing series arcs as well as book arcs, and tips for going wide. Come over and say hi to Jami and Sara in the WIKT Facebook group! You can find show notes and links at wishidknownforwriters.com. Links: www.genevievejack.com The Creative Penn Podcast about writing humor Anne R. Allen's blog post about writing rules and writing fashions Learning to Reverse Engineer a Novel with Cecelia Mecca Cherry Adair Twitter: @Genevieve_Jack Instagram: @authorGenevieveJack Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorGenevieveJack The Big List of Craft and marketing books mentioned on WIKT podcast episodes Jami's Launch Plan Sara's Book Release Timeline Checklist

Due to recent events we've had to swap our episodes around a bit. So this week we're using our experience as advertising creatives to discuss creativity and where ideas come from. Then we take a long hard look into the future and begrudgingly welcome the unstoppable rise of our, soon to become, robot overlords Useful links TED talk on creativity - https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_harford_a_powerful_way_to_unleash_your_natural_creativity The Creative Penn Podcast. (12th Feb) episode https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2021/02/12/the-artist-in-the-machine/ Tom Scott's YouTube AI generated episode  https://youtu.be/TfVYxnhuEdU 'Sunspring' short Sci-fi film: https://youtu.be/LY7x2Ihqjmc Write your own story/get AI to write one for you here shortlyAI.com Music by Dano Songs

Joanna Penn writes non-fiction for authors and is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author under the pseudonym J.F. Penn. She has written more than 30 books and sold over 600,000 of them in 149 countries and 6 languages. Joanna is also a podcaster whose The Creative Penn Podcast has been downloaded over 4 million times in 220 countries. Joanna’s website, TheCreativePenn.com, offers information and inspiration on writing, self-publishing, book marketing and how to make a living from your writing. TheCreativePenn.com has been voted in the Top 100 sites for writers by Writer's Digest. Podcast host Matthew Felix and Joanna began with an in-depth discussion of the pros and cons of traditional versus indie publishing, including some common misconceptions. Matthew and Joanna talked in detail about making money as a writer, as described in her book, How to Make a Living with Your Writing. Joanna talked about the importance of writers being clear on their own definitions of success and emphasized the need to develop multiple streams of income. She also shared ways to go about that and examples of potential streams. Joanna noted the importance for writers to be aware of and possibly change their attitudes toward money. Joanna discussed common obstacles that can get in the way of an "author mindset" and ways to address them, including self doubt, writers block, fear of judgement, and fear of failure.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links https://www.thecreativepenn.com/ https://jfpenn.com/ https://www.facebook.com/TheCreativePenn https://twitter.com/thecreativepenn

At the "best time in history" to be a creator you should heed Joanna Penn's advice whether or not you're an author.The New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author, who also writes non-fiction for authors, has much to say about how creative entrepreneurs can protect and maximise the value of their intellectual property.Joanna has written 17 novels and 12 books for other writers and sold them in more than 180 countries. She runs her own publishing company and has signed licensing deals with traditional publishers too. Now a multi-six-figure author entrepreneur,  around a third of Joanna's income comes from book sales, with affiliate fees, course sales, sponsorship of her podcasts and donations through Patreon making up other income streams.I fired up the rocket-fuel coffee and bombarded Joanna with questions. Want to publish fiction, non-fiction or interested in taking control of the value of your creative output?  There are encyclopedias-worth of advice crammed into this episode so buckle up and listen well, Joanna is extraordinarily generous and open with her tips. We cover:Being an independently- and traditionally-published authorCommon problems with traditional publishing contracts including astonishing "rights grabs" – don't sign away your soul in blood!Snobbery in the publishing industry and how things have changedJoanna's income breakdown as an author-entrepreneurIndie authors don’t just write, they manage their business: contracts, PR and publicity, ads, commissioning covers or translation and more – how does Joanna decide what to invest her time into and what to outsource?Promotional strategies for fiction and non-fictionAn introduction to the world of new opportunities which AI and technology are unlocking for authors and other creativesAuthors Joanna admires and who inspire herMore free resources you can get from Joanna to help you in your creative and business adventuresJoanna's hundreds of articles, audio podcast episodes, videos and resources are available on her website including her free author blueprint and detailed advice about writing, publishing and marketing your book: https://www.thecreativepenn.comAlso check-out  Joanna's Creative Penn Podcast about writing, publishing, book marketing, and making a living with your writing.

In today's episode, I had the privilege of talking with Joanna Penn - host of The Creative Penn Podcast, fiction and nonfiction author, and futurist. We talked about her journey and where she envisions the indie author space heading as artificial intelligence starts to play more of a role in our author lives. Have a listen!

Ever wonder what it's really like to be a self-published author? Guest Joanna Penn pulls the curtains back on the writing life and shares what she's discovered during her journey of building a six figure author business!   We discuss the myth of overnight success, why being an indie-author requires more than just writing, and the importance of being a life-long learner in order to find success in an ever-changing business world.   Joanna's Links: Visit Joanna's website where you can information about how to become an indie author! https://www.thecreativepenn.com/ You can also download Joanna's nonfiction and fiction books directly from her website here: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/books/   Listen to the Creative Penn Podcast here: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/podcasts/   My Links: Check out my resume writing services and the new website! https://www.evergrowthcoach.com   Here's a link to my latest book! Go Magic Yourself: The Artemis Necklace Series, Book 3 https://books2read.com/u/3LRnyN   You can also download book one in that series for free on all platforms! Suck It: The Artemis Necklace Series, Book 1 https://books2read.com/u/m0O8Oy   Tools I Use for This Show:   Podbean - I use Podbean to host my website because I think they do a great job of distributing it to podcast channels are super easy to use. If you'd like to give it a whirl, here's a link for one month free! https://www.podbean.com/GoFindOutPodcast   Canva - Free 30 day trial of Canva Pro! Make stunning social media images with Canva's designer tools! https://partner.canva.com/c/2534412/647168/10068   Looking for more inspiration?   Sign up for the Go Find Out Podcast email list and get tips on how to kick your fears to the curb and go find out! You'll also hear about upcoming guests and any new book releases!  https://mailchi.mp/269e51a68b80/im-ready-to-go-find-out   You can also follow this podcast on: Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/GoFindOutPodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/gfopodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gofindoutpodcast/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChkAbL0fPvaomE_vZKz-hIQ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@GoFindOutPodcast Email me: EvergrowthCoach@gmail.com   Interested in my fiction or articles about being an Indie-Author? Check out my author website at https://www.jjrussellwrites.com   Want to support the podcast? Buy me a cup of coffee here! https://ko-fi.com/gofindoutpodcast   *Some links included are affiliate links  

This week on Dear Writer we explored several writing resources, and we both chose other podcasts to review and discuss. Sarah talked about The Creative Penn Podcast, hosted by Joanna Penn, while Ashley's choice for the month was also a podcast, The Career Author Podcast, hosted by Zach Bohannon and J. Thorn.

This is a special "Reflections on Other Podcasts" style episode. Mark reflects on Episode 517 of The Creative Penn Podcast, where Joanna Penn interviews Holly Worton. The description from that episode, which is highly recommended that you listen to is this: How can you prevent self-doubt and fear from blocking your creative expression? What if you've built an audience for your books, but then you want to change direction? Joanna Penn discusses these issues and more with Holly Worton in Episode 517 (November 23, 2020) of The Creative Penn Podcast. Holly Worton is the author of 17 nonfiction and self-help books about business mindset and personal growth, as well as on walking and the wisdom of trees and nature. She's also the host of the Into the Woods podcast. Prior to the episode's main content, Mark shares comments from previous episodes, a word from this episode's sponsor . . . You can learn more about how you can get your work distributed to retailers and library systems around the world at starkreflections.ca/Findaway. Mark also shares a personal update, which includes. Progression on NaNoWriMo The launch of the OBSESSIONS anthology Publishing another book (unexpectedly) - Nocturnal Screams Vols 1 to 8 The forthcoming release of RUDE AWAKENINGS FROM SLEEPING ROUGH by Peter C. Mitchell   Links of Interest: Episode 517 of The Creative Penn Podcast: Business Mindset and Pivoting Your Author Career with Holly Worton The Creative Penn Holly Worton Mark's NaNoWriMo Profile Episode 163 - Getting a Creative Edge with Mickey Mikkelson Episode 32 - Hybrid Author Publishing with C. C. Humphreys Kobo Writing Life NaNoWriMo Promo (use coupon code NANO2020) Obsessions: An Anthology of Original Fiction Rude Awakenings from Sleeping Rough Mark's Canadian Werewolf Series This Time Around (Book 0) A Canadian Werewolf in New York (Book 1) Stowe Away (Book 1.5) Fear and Longing in Los Angeles (Book 2) Findaway Voices Books2Read Draft2Digital Wide for the Win Submission Form Patreon for Stark Reflections   The introductory, end, and bumper 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

Joanna Penn, The Creative Penn, discusses FUTURIST TRENDS WE CAN PREPARE FOR NOW. She talks about the role persistence plays in making a career as an indy author, the opportunities offered by content curation—for both creators and consumers—and the importance of bringing a global / digital / mobile mindset to your business model, while also recognizing that we can't beat the machine, so we have to double down on being human. Joanna Penn is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers as J.F. Penn. As an award-winning creative entrepreneur, she also writes non-fiction for authors and hosts The Creative Penn Podcast. Her site TheCreativePenn.com has been voted in the Top 100 sites for writers by Writer's Digest.

In this week's episode, I consider the 5 questions about the writing journey from the 500th episode of the Creative Penn Podcast. 

Writing a book is on the ‘one day' list of many public speakers and entrepreneurs, but after listening to this show you may decide it's a must have rather than a nice to have. That's because today, I'm speaking with Joanna Penn, award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author,about the whys and wherefores of book writing for public speakers. Joanna writes thrillers under J.F.Penn and also writes non-fiction for authors with 30+ books published in 84 countries and 5 languages. She is also a professional speaker, entrepreneur and host of The Creative Penn Podcast, which has been downloaded over 3.7 million times in 219 countries. This episode is jam packed with golden nuggets that apply to business and speaking as well as to how to make writing a book work for you. We cover a lot of ground and I know that you will get massive value from listening. Enjoy! What we talk about: Why you should side hustle before you leap. Success criteria and how you should develop your own measures. The advantages of self-publishing and becoming an ‘indy' author The benefits of documenting your journey. How imposter syndrome affects Joanna. What can trigger imposter syndrome and the antidote. What Joanna learned when her first book failed. The benefits of controlling your IP The difference between non-fiction and fiction How fiction can help people too. Why speakers should consider writing a book. The different streams of income possible. The history of book length and how long yours should be. The importance of picking the right book title. Why you should niche down in book writing and speaking. The first three things you should do if you want to write a book. Thoughts on authenticity. Why it's completely fine if there are already lots of other books in your area of expertise. Why you should consider your definition of success in the way you choose to launch your book. Why being intentional is so critical to your success. Resources* All things Joanna: Website - https://www.thecreativepenn.com Joanna Penn – The Creative Penn Podcast How to Write Non-Fiction by Joanna Penn Public Speaking for Introverts by Joanna Penn Social Media @thecreativepenn Instagram @JFPennauthor Other Resources: Cracking Speech Mate! – How to Use Humour to Make You an Amazing Speaker (Hard Copy) by Sarah Archer Cracking Speech Mate – by Sarah Archer (Ebook) The Success Principles by Jack Canfield  https://www.thespeakingclub.com/masterclass https://www.storyledspeaking.com https://www.standoutpitch.com https://www.saraharcher.co.uk Thanks for listening!

In the final episode of 2018, Mark interviews Science Fiction and Fantasy author Lindsay Buroker, a successful author who has been indie publishing for about eight years.  Prior to the interview, Mark shares a short personal update and thanks new Patron, Michael Lister; he also mentions that he recently released the third special "Reflections on other Podcasts" episodes for Patrons, which appears at www.patreon.com/starkreflections. He also thanks those who reached out to him after hearing him on episode 408 of The Creative Penn Podcast which was released on Dec 23rd. Mark then says a word about this episode's sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .In their conversation, Mark and Lindsay talk about: The main differences between when Lindsay first started out more than eight years ago releasing her first novel, The Emperor's Edge (while also producing her first podcast), and today The joy of getting to a place where each book's sales are enough to ensure paying for the cost of production The pros and cons of writing in multiple series in different genres Reasons why Lindsay released a new series of novels under a fresh and then-unknown pen name in 2014 Managing three mailing lists for the different reader bases that Lindsay has acquired over the years for different genres and pen names Maintaining a very personable persona in the mailing lists and in discussions with her fans The benefit of hosting a podcast with two other people for the SF & Fantasy Marketing Podcast, compared with the solo podcast (Saavy Self-Publishing) that Lindsay created many years earlier What Lindsay gets out of her guests from being one of the hosts of the SF & Fantasy podcast Why she is happy that she didn't experience a lot of luck early on in her writing success, and, instead, slowly built up her readership over time and how they can become loyal fans Lindsay's one experience writing collaboratively and whether or not she plans on doing that again Some of the reasons why, despite her success, Lindsay hasn't yet hired a personal or virtual assistant The early adoption of audiobooks that Lindsay invested in years before most indie authors began creating audiobooks What Lindsay would tell her younger self who was just beginning as a writer After the interview, Mark reflects on the personal connection that Lindsay enjoys and maintains as an important and authentic element of her author journey. Links of Interest: Lindsay Buroker's Website Lindsay's Facebook Page Lindsay on Twitter Science Fiction & Fantasy Marketing Podcast Findaway Voices WMG Publishing Anthology Workshop RUSH - Hold Your Fire Album Info Patreon for Stark Reflections Stark Reflections Survey   Lindsay Buroker has early memories of convincing childhood friends, pets, and stuffed animals to play the roles of characters in her worlds, so it's safe to say she's been making up stories for a long time. She published her first novel, The Emperor's Edge, in December of 2010 and has written and published more than 50 novels since then, most under her own name, but a few steamier ones under a pen name. When she's not writing, she's usually hiking with her dogs, practicing yoga, playing tennis, or eating entirely too much dark chocolate (she only does one of those things truly well, and she will let you guess which it is). She grew up in the Seattle area but has itchy feet and has moved several times over the years. She most recently landed in Bend, Oregon, where she and her dogs now have eighty acres to roam around on. Someday, she may even have a house on that land.  If you're interested in reading more of her work, you can download The Emperor's Edge, Star Nomad, and Balanced on the Blade's Edge for free in your favorite store.    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 podcast Chris and Becca toast the first 100 episodes of the Smarty Pants Book Marketing Podcast by reminiscing about their favorite guests and shows, talking about where the podcast is headed in the next 100 episodes, and celebrating a nod from Digital Book World. The podcast closes with an invitation for listeners to give input about where the next 100 episodes should go. And don't miss the special announcement at the end of the show notes. Show Notes & Links: Nominees for Best Use of Podcasting for Book Marketing Award (Digital Book World annual awards). We recommend you check out the other nominees' shows here: The Creative Penn Podcast with Joanna Penn The Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Marketing Podcast with Lindsay Buroker Minorities in Publishing with Jenn Baker Read it Forward (Penguin Random House) Macmillan Podcasts Specific Episodes We Mentioned in the Show: We believe all 100 episodes are smarty pants episodes, but here are just a few of the favorites we mentioned in the show: Episode 99 - Writing to Be Understood with Anne Janzer (nonfiction) Episode 92 - How to Take Your Readers From Strangers to Superfans with David Gaughran Episodes 89-90: Crisis Management For Authors (Chris) Episode 87: How to Run Successful Book Promotions with Ricci Wolman (Written Word Media) Episode 85 - Marketing to Teens and Instagram with Kate Tilton Episode 72 - Where Book Marketing Is Going in 2018 with Kevin Tumlinson (Draft2Digital) Episode 62 - How to Get Into the Inbox with Tom Tate (AWeber) Episode 41 - What's Data Got to Do With Book Sales? with Honoree Corder and Brian Meeks Episode 37 - How to Build Loyal Readers with Author Roni Loren Episode 18 - Blogging to Build an Audience with Anne Allen Episode 15 - Writing Without Bullshit with Josh Bernoff (nonfiction) ** SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT** Becca's October Write Better-Faster online class still has some openings. If you've been waiting to get into this popular class, now's your chance. Check out the class in this link for more info. **YOUR CHANCE TO TELL US WHAT TO DO!** We'd like to know what you'd like to see in the next 100 podcasts. Or maybe share with us some personal highlights from the first 100 episodes. Just go to the comments (cksyme.com/episode100) and let 'er rip! Inquiring minds want to know.

Mark interviews Joanna Penn of www.thecreativepenn.com about her latest book The Healthy Writer: Reduce Your Pain, Improve Your Health, And Build A Writing Career For The Long Term (co-authored with Dr. Euan Lawson) and they also have a discussion about trends in publishing and speculation about the opportunities that might be coming for writers. In his introduction to the episode, Mark announces that Findaway Voices is now an official sponsor. He shares his own experience with using Findaway Voices to create audiobooks and also his plans for some forthcoming projects. In Mark's interview with Joanna, they talk about: The new book Joanna has co-written with Dr. Euan Lawson (The Healthy Writer) as a book she has written because it was something she needed to learn The “letter to sugar” that Joanna shares in the new book and how it was affecting both her physical and mental health How the decision to co-author this title came about (measuring the value that each brings to the project) and how Joanna and Euan worked on it together How Joanna balances her three different personas (JF Penn, dark fantasy/thriller author; Joanna Penn, the optimistic writing and publishing personality, and Penny Appleton, the co-authored books she is writing with her mother) The critical importance of scheduling one's time into blocks of activities, including “time off” from particular types of activities The role that personal connections can play in terms of building and sustaining a sense of community for a writer How Joanna incorporates business related travel and decisions on which events to agree to speak at for helping with research for her fiction projects The state of “burn-out” Joanna had reached almost two years ago and what inspired her to double-down on her own podcast instead of letting it go A strategy for how writers and entrepreneurs can approach out-sourcing some of the work they need to do for their own goals and objectives What has changed in the writing and publishing industry since Joanna started as a blogger and a podcaster almost ten years ago The thing that surprised Joanna the most about what happened in publishing in the past year The challenges that come with being an early adopter in the digital publishing space The potential forthcoming shifts that are likely to be coming within the book industry within the next few years and what it means to authors The story structure, drama, character development and masterfully storytelling from particular movies and television program like The Crown, which are also areas of opportunity for writers What the advent of self-driving cars might mean for content creation and distribution In his post interview wrap-up, Mark shares a short section from The Healthy Writer that has resonated with him, discusses the importance of optimism in a writer's life, and then shares his own plans to train for a half-marathon later this year and how that ties back to an inspirational talk that Joanna gave in a backlist episode from her own The Creative Penn Podcast about a 100 Kilometer ultra marathon that she completed and what that taught her about her own writing. This podcast was sponsored by Findaway Voices – a company that gives authors and publishers everything they need to create professionally-narrated audiobooks and reach listeners in more than 170 countries through the world's largest audiobook distribution network Links of interest: The Creative Penn (Joanna Penn's website) Joanna Penn on Twitter Euan Lawson (Doctor and writer) Euan Lawson on Twitter The Healthy Writer Joanna's 9 Lessons Learned about Writing (from the KWL Blog – Episode 74) Findaway Voices

Mark Lefebvre, Director of Self-Publishing and Author Relations for Kobo is the host for this episode, and introduces a memorable clip from Episode 279 of The Creative Penn Podcast where Joanna Penn talks compares walking the 100KM "Race to the Stones" with writing. In her talk, Joanna goes into the details regarding 9 Lessons Learned About Writing from Walking 100K in a Weekend: Deadlines and specific goals help you achieve more It's good to have a goal, but training (and the journey) is the point Stamina builds up over time with practice You need a support team, but nobody can do the steps for you There are fun parts, but some of it will be hell Don't compare yourself to others. The race is only with yourself Follow the path others have set before you It's worth spending money to get the right gear A lot of people give up along the way – persistence is the key to success Mark then talks a bit about the beginning and end of the year as common goal-setting times for writers, and shares 5 of the bigger writing goals he had set for himself in 2016. He goes into detail, explaining the highs of meeting deadlines and goals, and the struggles with not achieving a goal (including his own 10 year struggle with getting his novel A Canadian Werewolf in New York published - he started working on it on a series from The Writing Show Podcast back in 2006) - something likely every writer faces.   Links of Interest from this episode The Creative Penn Podcast Episode 279 of The Creative Penn Podcast with Roz Morris Joanna Penn's books on Kobo (About Writing) Joanna's J.F. Penn novels on Kobo KWL Episode 32 - Interview with Dan Rubinstein The "Getting Published with Mark Leslie" episodes of The Writing Show Mark's A Canadian Werewolf in New York on Kobo