Fully Booked: The Hidden Gems Author Podcast

Fully Booked EP38: Industry Issues and News - October 2022

As a semi-regular ongoing feature of Fully Booked, Hidden Gems covers news, issues or rumors that affect authors and publishing in general. Today, Craig and Roland are following up on a few issues we’ve previously discussed in blogs and on podcasts, plus one newly announced Amazon product.
Amazon finally bows to industry pressures and announces planned changes designed to make their eBook return policy more restrictive and less likely to be abused
Quick update to Vellum ePub kindle files – previous format issues have all been completely resolved.
Quick update on Send to Kindle ePub support.
Our thoughts on Kindle Scribe, the latest eReader device announced by Amazon that includes a stylus. Is this something people really want or need?
 
Original Blog about the Return Policy Issuehttps://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/amazons-ebook-returns-process-abuse/
Hidden GemsNeed our help publishing or marketing your book? https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
 
All episode details and links: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP37: An Editor’s Advice on Thinking Like a Writer

When you’re trying to become a successful writer, one of the most important things you need to do is form a connection with your readers. The first step toward doing that is to really understand why people read and write in the first place, and then use what you learn to help improve your craft. At least, that’s what author and editor Peter Gelfan believes - our guest on today’s podcast.
Peter believes it’s because great books often do more than just tell a story. They can also impart knowledge in a way that resonates with people and sticks with them. After all, humans are the only creatures that can learn through second-hand or even third-hand knowledge. Our survival skills aren’t dependent on taking risks to gain experience, but rather on listening to a storyteller impart that knowledge to us through anecdotes and stories we can connect to.
Unfortunately, many authors do things that distract their readers from the message they’re trying to impart, weakening their story’s ability to really resonate and take hold in a reader’s mind. As a professional editor, Peter has seen many examples of this throughout his career, and spent years compiling a list of the most common issues and how best to help authors fix them. In today’s podcast, he explains a few of them.
 
Peter Gelfan
https://petergelfan.com/
 
Hurling words into darkness: A Book Doctor’s Dose of Brain Science for Writers https://www.amazon.com/dp/1955196672/?tag=hgbblog-20
 
Hidden Gems
Need our help publishing or marketing your book?
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
 
All episode details and links:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP36: Are Independent Publishers a Good Alternative to Self-Publishing?

There’s more to self-publishing than just writing. As a self-published author, writers are often forced to take on multiple different roles involved in marketing and selling the books they’ve written - and not every author is able or interested in that side of the industry.
For many writers, the idea of having somebody else take on the responsibility of publishing and marketing your book is really appealing, which is why the option of finding an independent publisher seems like a great option. Independent publishers straddle the gap between self and traditional publishing, offering more opportunities for new authors to see their books in print.
However, finding and being accepted by a reputable independent publisher comes with its own set of challenges. Given that anyone can call themselves an independent publisher means there are many stories of predatory companies seeking out naïve authors and taking advantage of them.
Author Daemon Manx fell victim to one of these disreputable companies when he started his journey as a writer - but instead of letting the bad experience disillusion him, he decided to start his own independent publishing company in order to do things the right way. Today, Daemon is here to not only tell us about his writing and publishing journey, but also to give us advice on what independent publishers can and can’t do for authors - and how to make sure you’re selecting one that isn’t going to just rip you off.
 
Daemon Manx
https://www.daemonmanx.com/
Last Waltz Publishing
https://www.lastwaltzpublishing.com/
 
Hidden Gems
Need our help publishing or marketing your book? 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
All episode details and links: 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP35: Can Raising the Stakes Produce More Compelling Fiction?

Whether you’re writing a romance story or a thriller, your characters undoubtedly have goals - but how you communicate, escalate, and eventually let your characters achieve those goals (or fail to) often marks the difference between a well-written book and a great one. 
Today’s returning guest is Alex Kourvo, author of No Hero Wants To Save The World. She joins Craig and Roland to make the case that all of the stakes in your books are life and death, regardless of your genre - and communicating that is what really makes a book memorable.
In a thriller, those stakes might literally be ‘life or death’ - but Alex argues that in other types of stories, life and death are equally at stake, just in a different way. That could mean anything from the death of a relationship to the destruction of a character’s standing in your community. 
Alex has a lot of insight into the best (and worst) ways to go about doing it, and if you’re interested in taking your writing to the next level, there’s plenty you’ll learn in this discussion - not least of which is how “raising the stakes” keeps your readers not just invested in your current book, but also looking forward to how you raise the stakes in your next book as well. 
 
Alex Kourvo
https://alexkourvo.com/
 
Hidden Gems
Need our help publishing or marketing your book? 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
 
All episode details and links: 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP34: Improving your keywords and categories with Publisher Rocket

There are few self-published authors who haven’t at least heard of Kindlepreneur, Publisher Rocket, and its creator, Dave Chesson. Obsessed with data, Dave helped democratize access to Amazon’s behind-the-scenes sales and marketing information when he created Publisher Rocket, and today it’s become one of the most talked-about and hotly-reviewed self-publishing software tools on the market. 
But a tool is only useful if you know how to use it, and today Dave joins Craig and Roland to discuss just what independent authors can hope to get out of investing in Publisher Rocket, and all the different features and functions it provides - including many that have only just been added to the latest update (or are coming soon). 
So, whether you’ve already got a copy of Publisher Rocket and want to get more out of it, or you’re thinking of buying it, take a listen and learn what you can expect. 
 
Publisher Rocket
https://hiddengems--rocket.thrivecart.com/publisher-rocket/
Amazon Book Sales Calculator
https://kindlepreneur.com/amazon-kdp-sales-rank-calculator/
 
Hidden Gems
Need our help publishing or marketing your book? 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
 
All episode details and links: 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP33: How Can Authors Get The Most Out of Social Media?

Using social media to market your books comes naturally for some authors - but for many others, it can feel like an absolute chore. After all, the goal should be using it to create a connection with your audience, which isn’t achieved by what so many of us do when we open an account for our pen name - which is generally just sending out the occasional post about our latest release. 
Using social media effectively is tricky, which is why we invited Aimee Ravichandran to help us figure it all out. Aimee is the owner of Abundantly Social, an agency that specializes in helping authors master social media, which has quickly become a fairly essential ingredient in the recipe for self-publishing success. Aimee was full of all sorts of tips and helpful advice, such as knowing which of the social sites are a good fit for which type of author. That’s right, you don’t have to post to all of them!
So whether you’re new to all this social stuff, or think you have it all figured out, listening to this episode will help you on the road to getting the most out of all your posts, tweets and likes.
 
Aimee Ravichandran
https://abundantlysocial.com/
 
Hidden Gems
Need our help publishing or marketing your book? 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
 
All episode details and links: 
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP32: Should You Translate Your Books Into Other Languages?

Just because you only speak one language doesn’t mean you have to limit yourself to only selling your book to other speakers of that language. Translating your book can be a great alternative income stream, but it’s not something that a lot of self-publishers have experience with. The reason for that may be because there are a lot of steps and costs involved in the process, and very places that really lay out how to get it all done. That’s why we were excited to have author Lilian Monroe on with us. Lilian has gone through all of the steps needed to translate multiple books from English to German, and she’s in the process of translating her work into other languages as well. Not only did she take us through all the steps needed, but Lilian was also very upfront and open about the costs involved and how well the translations did for her in terms of sales. If you’re considering whether it’s time to start translating your books, or wondering how to get started, this is the podcast you’ll want to listen to! Lilian Monroe https://www.lilianmonroe.com/
Hidden Gems Need our help publishing or marketing your book? https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
All episode details and links: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP31: The Secret to Creating Unforgettable Characters

If you think back across all of your favorite books and movies, it’s more likely that some of the great characters of those tales spring into your head faster than many of the grander plot details. Just as images of Darth Vader and Yoda are conjured up whenever we hear the words “Star Wars,” would “To Kill a Mockingbird” be so well-loved without the character of Atticus Finch? How many of us can recall the details of the mysteries he solved more vividly than the character of Sherlock Holmes himself? If you want your stories to be memorable, you’ve got to fill them with characters that readers can connect with. But how? To answer that question, Author Melinda Curtis turned to psychology, studying the character traits that define a person, how they develop, and why they drive the decisions we make. Melinda then put what she learned into her book “Frankly, My Dear: Creating Unforgettable Characters”, and today she sits down with Fully Booked to go through some of the fundamentals. Because just like real people, our characters need a backstory, a set of conflicts, internal and external, that drive who they are and the decisions they make. If you get that right, you can transform your fictional characters from mere words on a page, to true three-dimensional people that live in the minds of your readers long after they’ve gotten to the end of your book. Melinda Curtis https://www.melindacurtis.net/
Hidden Gems Need our help publishing or marketing your book? https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/ All episode details and links: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP30: Getting Satisfaction by Following Your Own Path

Most people measure self-publishing success by number of copies sold, or total profit earned. That makes sense, especially if you write for a living or to support your family. It also explains why so much of the conventional advice given to new authors is geared towards those goals, such as studying your genre, writing to market, or using cover designs that will be familiar to your readers. It's a safer path to success, while still allowing you to eventually build up a fanbase that can act as a safety net later in your career, allowing you to then try out some of your riskier ideas. Some authors, however, choose to take that riskier path right from the start – whether by accident or by choice. Terrance Layhew falls into the latter category. With a regular job that both pays his bills and provides ample writing time, Terrance recognized that he had the opportunity to take chances and do things differently right from his very first book. It’s not that he doesn’t dream of selling loads of copies or seeing his name at the top of the charts, but his livelihood doesn’t depend on it. And to some, being able to forge your own path without compromise can be just as satisfying as becoming an overnight bestseller is to others. Terrance Layhew https://terrancelayhew.com/
Suit Up! Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/suit-up-with-terrance-layhew/id1524236505
Hidden Gems Need our help publishing or marketing your book? https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
All episode details and links: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP29: Can Self-Published Authors Benefit From a Publicist?

The idea that publicists are only employed by traditional publishers to work with their authors and aren’t used by self-publishers is as outdated as the idea that only a traditionally published author can make a living as a writer. Publicists can and do work with independent authors, but the author still must understand what sort of benefits they offer and whether it is the right time in their career to hire one. That’s the purpose behind today’s discussion with Mickey Mikkelson, founder of Creative Edge Publicity. Mickey helps both traditionally published and self-published authors build their brand and promote themselves as authors, and he’s here to lay out the details of everything a publicist can do for an author, how to pick the right publicist for you, and even give us an idea of what it might cost for the various services that they offer. Mickey Mikkelson – Creative Edge Publicityhttps://www.creative-edge.services/
Hidden GemsNeed our help publishing or marketing your book? https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/
All episode details and links: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast