Podcast

Episode 84 – Unconventional Publishing Models with David Morris

Photo of a white man with gray hair in a button up and suit jacket standing in a field. The logo for Lake Drive is set next to his head, which includes text beside a line drawing of a bridge over a lake.

This episode’s guest is David Morris of Lake Drive Books. In today’s interview, David tells us more about Lake Drive’s mission, publishing practices, and unconventional financial model. David also offers his takes on how to determine what works for you when it comes to choosing a publishing path and gives some platform-building insights for authors. … Read more

Episode 83: Plottr, Storysnap, and Letting Writers Choose

Click here to visit Plot for Good and support youth writing programs! Recent surveys (from Gotham Ghostwriters and BookBub) verify what you probably have already guessed, that there are profound divides between writers who use AI and writers who downright refuse. But interestingly, these surveys have also shown that around 60% of writers do use … Read more

Episode 82: NaNoNowWhat?

It’s that time of year again. You may love it, hate it, fear it, or be totally uninterested. I’m talking about…well, what you’re calling it now depends on your history with it and your feelings on the way things went down. It used to be National Novel Writing Month, aka., NaNoWriMo, and in some cases … Read more

Episode 80: Clarify Your Message through Storytelling with Karl Becker

I think books have a purpose for an author, and mine is about impacting change, helping people take what they want, and hopefully making their life or their team’s lives better. Karl Becker I’ve been lucky to work with Karl Becker on his three books, Set Up to Win, Sales & Marketing Alignment, and Iceberg … Read more

Episode 78: What Copywriting Can Teach You About Writing Books with Kelley Gardiner

photo of Kelley Gardiner with the text "Episode 78: What Copywriting Can Teach You About Writing Books"

“They say people don’t read on the internet, but people read when they’re interested, right? So if it’s interesting, if it’s applicable to my life and what I need right now, then I’m going to read and continue reading.”

—Kelley Gardiner

Website copywriter Kelley Gardiner joins Emily to talk about how the principles of writing a good nonfiction book and good copy overlap.

In this episode, we talk about:

  • The importance of knowing your audience. Yes! It’s just as important for books as for conversion!
  • How to test whether your work will appeal to the right readers.
  • Choosing clarity over cleverness.
  • When you know your work is ready to be put out into the world.

Guest Bio — Kelley Gardiner

Kelley Gardiner is a conversion copywriter who’s obsessed with how website copy works. She loves helping solo service providers get better results through website copy audits, website refreshes, coaching, and education. 

Where you can find Kelley:

Transcript for this episode below:

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Episode 77: Ali Shaw, Founder of Indigo Editing, Design, and More

Headshot of Ali Shaw of Indigo Editing, a smiling white woman with glasses and long auburn hair

We talk about Ali’s definition of self-publishing versus independent publishing, how Indigo is working to improve the book world, and the exciting process of learning how to produce audiobooks. Guest Bio Ali (McCart) Shaw (she/her) thinks her love for the written word might have something to do with the pungent odor of ink from her … Read more

Episode 76: Joan Conte of Trans Book Box

logo for trans book box, a 2 dimensional open book with a coffee cup icon sitting over it. both are inside a square, and the colors are in the light blue and pink of the trans flag.

Guest Bio Joan Conte (they/them) is an educator, a poet, and the CEO of Trans Book Box. Joan is also trans non-binary, queer, and disabled. Joan developed Trans Book Box while unemployed during the pandemic and sought to build a box that dedicated more than a book a year to trans representation. The Box’s Bio … Read more

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