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Optimize for joy and make great money doing it.
The. Only. Good. Marketing. Is. The. Marketing. You. Do.
The best way to make money as an author is to not to grin and bear something you don't like. It's to find something you already innately understand and obsess over it.
Always sell the transformation
No wonder everyone hates sales and marketing. The ways writers think about self promotion is deeply flawed. I would hate it if I did it their way, too.
Down and dirty character tricks
I don’t talk about craft much, but I’ve written over 40 novels, plus produced over 1,000 pages of comics, so I do understand a lot about story.
Find brand clarity & direction with a moodboard
Moodboards can be a powerful tool for all creators. They can help shape the visual direction of a project or publication, offer a sense of clarity, and focus your creative vision.
Be interesting enough for long enough around enough people
Do you wanna really know how to grow your Substack? There is really only one piece of advice.
"How do I market myself without feeling gross about it?"
This is the whole game, right? I mean, if we can all feel good about our marketing and we're reaching people that care about what we do, then it's easy to keep doing it forever.
Debrief of our $3,972 Bulletins at the End of the World Kickstarter campaign
We did a campaign, and here is what I thought about it.
It’s a good time to be a ghost(writer)
While it's harder than ever to land a publishing deal and the whole industry teeters on the brink, it might be a good time to consider becoming a ghostwriter.
What's new on Kickstarter since Get Your Book Selling on Kickstarter came out
Since we first launched Get Your Book Selling on Kickstarter in October 2021, there has been a seismic shift in the way Kickstarter has been perceived in the indie community.
Debrief of the $18,348 How to Build a World Class Substack Kickstarter campaign
Claire Venus and I just finished our How to Build a World Class Substack (H2BWCS) Kickstarter campaign. How did we do?
I know my Author Ecosystem. Why do I even care and what do I do now?
People are often stumped as to what to do once they have their author ecosystem. This is a guide all about what you do with it to get to success faster than you ever thought possible, and it's a lot.
How to supercharge your writing career with Kickstarter
Learn how to validate your Kickstarter idea, build hype for your campaign, and deliver well so backers come back repeatedly.
Substack x Publishing 2024 virtual summit debrief
Wherein I spill all the tea about my summit with Claire Venus for our How to Build a World Class Substack book.
Most of your best readers haven't even been born yet
A seeming contradiction about marketing, sales, and finding your people.
Outward success, inward turbulence
Sometimes, maybe even often, maybe even most of the time, it looks much different than it is behind the scenes.
How to form strong strategic partnerships in publishing
My motto is "do cool things with cool people" but what does that mean in practice?
The era of rapid trend cycles in publishing
AI's Impact on rapid releasing, a decreased ability to find category arbitrage, and the shift in the balance of Author Ecosystems dominance in publishing.
Tana French's In The Woods and the allure of damaged characters
Messy relationships are my jam thanks to the author's Dublin Murder Squad series.
How to increase new subscribers by refreshing your publication
Over the last few months, I have followed the advice of several prominent Substack experts and redesigned my publication to maximize engagement and findability.
Following along with the How to Build a World Class Substack campaign (part 1)
Since most people on Substack haven't heard of and definitely did not now how to launch a book on Kickstarter, I made a series of posts throughout the campaign about what was happening.
Following along with the How to Build a World Class Substack campaign (part 2)
This is the continuation of the previous article.
Mastering the art of attention as a writer
Unlocking the secrets to capturing and sustaining visibility in the creative world
The great Medium vs. Substack debate
The conversation is pivoting on the wrong axis and making the same fundamental mistake we made at Writer MBA for years.