Fully Booked: The Hidden Gems Author Podcast

Fully Booked EP14: Why are Romance Books so popular?

What is it that makes romance such a popular genre among readers? The genre is massive, made up of countless sub-categories that allow for a wide variety of stories to be told, but the most popular of them usually conform to certain tropes or norms that tie the genre together. It’s important for authors to understand what it is that makes romance novels work for readers, and who better to discuss that with than NYT and USA Today bestselling author Krista Lakes.Krista has been writing successful and very popular billionaire romance for years, and she has a plenty of insight into not only that particular category, but in what makes romance stories work in general. Krista Lakeshttp://kristalakes.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 EP13: Industry issues and news - April, 2022

As a semi-regular ongoing feature of Fully Booked, Hidden Gems will cover news, issues or rumors that affect authors and publishing in general. In the first episode of this series, Craig and Roland discuss three separate issues.
Amazon ads for traditional published authors – In a recent blog post, Roland posted about how Amazon’s ad platform has recently opened up to authors of books that were published by traditional publishers and what it may mean for traditional publishing. There were a few comments on that blog from readers that disagreed with his take, so we discuss the issue and Craig gives his thoughts.
Read and return controversy – Recently, a battle has been waging between authors and some TikTok users that are urging readers to return their eBooks for a refund after having read them. We discuss this issue in detail as well as give our take on both sides of the argument and what, if anything, should be done about it.
Amazon product page changes – Amazon is constantly tinkering with their product pages, making it harder for authors to know where the info is coming from, and thus potentially losing a rich source of advertising information.
LinksOriginal HG Amazon ad blog post with comments:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/amazon-delivers-blow-traditional-publishers/One article about the read and return issue, and the change.org petition:
https://medium.com/lets-write/this-new-tiktok-trend-is-damaging-your-favorite-authors-47817bd7c1f6https://www.change.org/p/change-amazon-return-policies-for-completed-e-books-protect-authors-from-theftHidden 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 EP12: Bringing your Passion Project to Publication

Despite receiving numerous rejection slips and even a warning from the producers of the James Bond movies themselves, menswear aficionados Peter Brooker and Matt Spaiser nevertheless spent five years bringing their book "From Tailors with Love" to bookshelves worldwide. If you've been working on your own literary passion project and want some inspiration, you'll get a lot from listening to Matt and Pete explain how they navigated the challenges of writing a loving homage to a copyrighted franchise. Peter Brooker https://fromtailorswithlove.co.uk/
Matt Spaiser https://www.bondsuits.com/
Hidden Gems Hidden Gems offers a beta reading service which you can book right here: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/product/beta-reader-service/
All episode details and links:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP11: How to Keep the Creative Juices Flowing.

When it comes to sheer productivity, it’s hard to find someone that gets more done than Bradley Charbonneau. He spent years writing every single day, hosting multiple podcasts, running courses and events, and publishing a multitude of books. If there is anyone to look to for advice about breaking down the barriers that are preventing you from writing, it’s him.
This week, Bradley sits down with Fully Booked to go through some of the tactics he’s found to keep those creative juices flowing. It’s a fun and lively discussion with plenty of ideas for not only established authors to try, but even as motivation for those want-to-be writers that have been sitting on the sidelines, dreaming of getting started as they wait for their “someday” to come along.
 
Bradley Charbonneau
https://bradleycharbonneau.com/
 
Hidden Gems
Hidden Gems offers a beta reading service which you can book right here: https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/product/beta-reader-service/
 
All episode details and links:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 

Fully Booked EP10: Making the Case for Publishing Wide

The idea of “Going Wide” refers to making your books available from a variety of sources instead of limiting them to only a single vendor. Many authors agree to exclusivity deals without really understanding what it is they’re giving up, such as allowing their eBooks to be available from libraries, or even being eligible to be included in some of the biggest bestseller lists like those from the New York Times or USA Today. 
 
Erin Wright runs the biggest online Facebook group for authors that publish wide, with over 11,000 members, which is why she’s the go-to expert on the subject. Today, she sits down with Fully Booked to discuss what it means to go wide, what the benefits and options are, who should or shouldn’t do it, and so much more. 
 
Erin Wright:
https://erinwright.net/
 
Wide for the Win Facebook Group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/wideforthewin
 
 
Hidden Gems
Hidden Gems offers a beta reading service which you can book right here:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/product/beta-reader-service/
 
All episode details and links:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast
 
 

Fully Booked EP9: Yes, you need Beta Readers. Here’s why...

Whether you’re a new author or a seasoned pro, it never hurts to have a fresh and unbiased assessment of your story, BEFORE it gets published or into the hands of reviewers. Beta readers familiar with your genre can give valuable feedback on common and expected tropes, plot, characterization, or pacing.
But they can be used even more specifically when needed, such as by choosing readers that fall within the specific demographics of your target audience, or from those with the unique knowledge to comment on how you may have handled any potentially sensitive topics that your story deals with.
Today, Fully Booked talks with authors Helen Yeomans and Lisa M. Lilly, both of whom have used beta readers for years and from a variety of sources. Together, we dive into this topic to give some answers to questions such as who does or doesn’t make a good beta reader, how they work, where they can be found, how many you need, and even thoughts on how to decide which suggestions, if any, should lead to changes in your book.
 
Lisa M. Lilly
https://lisalilly.com/
 
Helen Yeomans
https://www.helenyeomans.com/
 
Hidden Gems
Hidden Gems offers a beta reading service which you can book right here:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/product/beta-reader-service/
 
All episode details and links:
https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast

Fully Booked EP8: Could Radish, Vella, or serialized publishing be right for you?

Breaking content into parts that can be sold, distributed and consumed on a schedule isn’t a new idea. We see it on television all the time, where we’ve become accustomed to waiting a week between new episodes of our favorite shows.
Fiction has been doing it for even longer, with Charles Dickens often credited with writing the first serialized novel (The Pickwick Papers). But recently, novel serialization has exploded in popularity through a number of companies that began to deliver content in this format and finding huge audiences happy to consume it. The popularity has led to a number of very expensive acquisitions in the space, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, and the entry of a new and very big player in Amazon and their creation of Vella.
Author/Publisher/Marketer Sean Zirconia has been publishing in this space for a while, and has experience with a number of the options available. Today he sits down with Fully Booked to take us through who can benefit most from this model, how they earn money, how your books get marketed on them, and even some of the pros and cons of the different platforms available.
 
Krista Lakes (Sean’s wife)
https://www.amazon.com/Krista-Lakes/e/B00AW3NJTY
 
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 EP7: Do you need an author assistant?

Whether you need help with social media, book formatting, mailing list setup and automation, or any number of other things, a versatile author assistant has a range of skills and tools that allow them to take over not just the tasks an author doesn’t have time for, but even the ones they either don’t enjoy doing or don’t have the knowledge to handle themselves.
Erin Tolbert has worked as an author assistant for years, and today she sits down with Fully Booked to go through all of the things that she or her peers can help with, an idea of how much you can expect to pay, and even provide tips on what to look for when you hire them.
So whether you need an assistant on a continual basis, for one-time tasks, or even just to get you organized, the sooner you get the help you need, the quicker you can get back to the part of being a self-publisher that actually earns you money – writing your next book.
 
Erin Tolbert
https://www.etolbert.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 EP6: Making money with non-traditional writing alternatives

Writing books is one way that authors can earn a living, but these days there are plenty of other alternatives available as well.
Whether you’re a seasoned pro that just wants to take a break from writing novels, a new author that isn’t sure you’re ready to write an entire book, or even if you simply want to try something new, there are plenty of reasons and options for branching out creatively while still getting paid.
Author Naomi Bellina has experimented with a variety of non-traditional writing paths, and she sits down with Fully Booked to deliver all the details. From interactive gaming and visual novels, to professional blogging and greeting card writing, Naomi is either familiar with it or has tried it herself.
Find out what works and what doesn’t, the pros and the cons, and what options are available to authors looking to build new audiences and revenue streams by going beyond traditional books.
 
Naomi Bellina
https://www.naomibellina.com/
https://www.naomibergner.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 EP5: Finding your tribe makes it easier to write for them

Many authors write their books first, and then struggle to identify who the audience for it is and how to reach them. Author Gail Z. Martin found success by reversing this process, identifying the key elements and tropes that made one of her favorite shows, Supernatural, so successful and then using those same elements in her own original works. This allowed her to connect with the audience for that show through their shared passion, and allowed her to offer them something unique, yet comfortably familiar.Even though Gail had been publishing and building her audience for years prior, building this separate series and publishing it under a completely new pen name gave her a big advantage when it came to marketing and advertising it, because she already knew exactly who the audience for it was and where to find them. There is much to learn from Gail’s story about how she found her tribe – a group of people that share similar interests and tastes – because having a strong connection to your audience is one of the most important factors in selling your book.
Gail Z. Martin: www.GailZMartin.com
Morgan Brice: https://morganbrice.com/
ConTinual: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ConTinual/
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