The Importance of Your Author Brand This week's show is all about your author brand and Colleen is main character of this week's show. Colleen begins with her third segment in the Building Your Author Brand series. Miss out on the first two episodes? Check out the links below!  Then, in our Guest Interview segment Colleen talks with designer AK Westerman. AK is a book cover artist and she talks with Colleen about her love of art, the way she works with authors, and much more. Conversations with Colleen Building Your Author Brand Part 3 Colleen continues her series on how authors can build a better brand. This week, Colleen talks about the importance of building your own email list. She talks about how you can begin collecting your reader's emails for future communication. Plus, she talks about some of the features within the many email marketing platform that you should consider when selecting which one to use.  Guest Interview AK Westerman This week, Colleen talks with designer and artist AK Westerman. AK works with authors on creating their book cover. From the initial stages, AK works alongside authors to create a stellar book cover that is the perfect match for their story.    Timestamps Conversations with Colleen: Building Your Author Brand Part 3 (2:13) Guest Interview: AK Westerman (9:34) The Author's Voice Links  Episode Links Building Your Author Brand Part 1 Building Your Author Brand Part 2  AK Westerman Links Website - Instagram - Facebook External Links NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment A Case Study In Publishing - And How To Spot a Fraud Recently, news came out about missed royalty payments from Unbound (now known as Boundless). With the news of the missed payments, there came some great informative articles which took a look at Unbound. On this week's episode, we lay the groundwork for the Unbound (now known as Boundless) saga. In the second part of the segment, we talk about how authors can be on the lookout for potential bad actors and scams.  Check out the links down below for more about the articles we discuss and some of the links mentioned in the show.  Timestamps Biz Buzz: A Case Study In Publishing - And How To Spot a Fraud (3:21) The Author's Voice Links  Episode Links Writer Beware Article Publisher's Weekly Article Reddit Post About The Bookseller Article The Bookseller Article External Links NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment Questions From Around the Industry Each of us answers a question we've heard asked from around the publishing industry. From trusted places to publish to the best type of format for your book and how you can tie it all together with your business.  What questions do you have in the publishing industry? Timestamps Biz Buzz: Questions From Around the Industry (2:28) The Author's Voice Links  Episode Links Interview with Vaugh Fahie Is an E-book E-Enough? Popularity of Print Books Finding the Right Providers External Links NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment Selling Your Book Online How do authors sell their book online? From Amazon to their own website to book box and more, there are many avenues authors can take to reach readers online. Amazon has recently reworked their royalty rates for print books priced below a certain price and we began by covering that change. We also talk about how authors can sell both hard copies and ebook copies of their book on their own website. Finally, we talk about some of the newer ways that authors can reach new readers such as places like Kickstarter or book boxes. Timestamps Biz Buzz: Selling Your Book Online (1:51) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

How do you sell your book? This week we discuss two separate avenues for book sales - bookstores and audiobooks.  Biz Buzz Segment Bookstores and Authors Peter and CaZ talk about how authors can work with bookstores to sell their book. With a particular focus on brick and mortar stores, and indie bookstores specifically, authors can work with their local bookstores to promote their book. There is no right way to work with bookstores but there are a few ways we share about how you can make it easier to see you book on shelves or collaborate to have a book signing.  Guest Interview w/ Vaughn Fahie The Importance of Audiobooks Colleen and Peter talk with Vaughn Fahie about all things audiobooks! Vaughn believes everyone has their own unique Voice Print and shares why authors, especially non-fiction authors, should work to have their book in audiobook format.  Timestamp Biz Buzz: Bookstores and Authors (3:53) Guest Interview w/ Vaugh Fahie (32:50) Links From the Show The Bookshop Review: What Bookstores Mean to America Vaugh Fahie: Facebook - Website  The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

This week we talk about bookstores and libraries. The Biz Buzz segment covers how authors and libraries can work together. Then Peter takes a look at the book, The Bookshop by Evan Friss for this month's book review segment.  Biz Buzz Segment Libraries and Authors How can libraries ad authors work together? Libraries are great places for readers to discover new books, fall in love with stories, research new topics, and much more. How can authors work with their local library for events, programming, or just to have their book in circulation? We talk about all of that and more in this week's Biz Buzz segment. Book Review Segment The Bookshop and Kobo Reviews  This month's book review with Peter is a bit of a two-part review. First, he reviews this month's book - The Bookshop: A History of The American Bookstore by Evan Friss. This book covers everything from colonial bookstores like the one run by Founding Father Benjamin Franklin to the big department store bookshelves, from small independent stores to international giants like Amazon. This story, from the perspective of the booksellers themselves is a great way to look at the importance of bookstores in American communities.   Then, Peter reviews the Kobo app. More an more indie authors are looking at ways to share their books outside of just Amazon and Kobo provides that ability. What is similar to Kindle, what is different? Peter takes a look at the ins-and-outs of the Kobo app.  Timestamp Biz Buzz: Libraries and Authors (2:40) Book Review Segment: The Bookshop (25:24) Links From the Show YouTube Video: What Bookstores Mean to America  The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

This week's theme on the show is Reader Magnets. What are they and why are they important for authors to create in their marketing plan?  Biz Buzz Segment The Best Reader Magnets Reader magnets are ways that authors can attract new readers. Colleen begins the segment with a look into the different kinds and versions of reader magnets. Then the three of us talk more in-depth about the reader magnets and why each type of these might be beneficial to certain types of authors.   Conversations with Colleen Segment How to Capture More Readers In Part 2 of the Creating Your Author Brand series, Colleen shares the importance of reader magnets. What are reader magnets? How can authors use them? What are the difference between fiction and non-fiction reader magnets?  There is no one sized fits all definition of reader magnets but Colleen takes a look at the variety of reader magnets and how they can be used by authors to find, connect with, and capture more readers for their books.  Timestamp Biz Buzz: The BEST Reader Magnets (3:05) Conversations with Colleen: How to Capture More Readers (31:18) Links From the Show YouTube Video: Conversations with Colleen: How to Capture More Readers Conversations with Colleen part 1: What Goes In Your Brand? The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

In this week's episode we talk popularity. They say that life is not a popularity contest but it certainly is in the publishing world! This week we talk about the popularity of print books and share what makes some characters so popular.   Biz Buzz Segment The Popularity of Print Books There is nothing quite like cracking open a fresh book . Whether it's a hard back treasure or an easy reading trae paperback, print books are still all the rage. Even with the increased popularity of ebooks and audiobooks, print books have maintained their popularity with readers and publishers alike. What makes this format so popular?  Tales and Threads Segment What Makes Your Characters Loveable? Why do readers fall in love with your book? It's your characters!  This month, CaZ talks about the importance of having characters your readers will love. What makes a lovable character? What are some popular characters beloved by their fans? And most importantly, how can you take those traits and add them to your characters?  Timestamp Biz Buzz: The Popularity of Print Books (3:28) Tales and Threads: What makes your characters lovable? (25:52) Watch on YouTube What Makes Your Characters LOVEABLE?  The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment Was your book used to train AI?  Peter, Colleen, and CaZ talk about the recent news, originally from The Atlantic, which published a database of books Meta used to train their AI. This news came about from a lawsuit filed against Meta alleging they trained their AI using Library Genesis (LibGen) which is a collection of books, journals, articles, etc. which is normally paywalled but are available for free.  We also talk about a great organization where we heard about this first, The Author's Guild. This is an organization which provides resources, news, and collective action for authors and writers.  Check out all the links mentioned in the show below and be sure to follow The Author's Guild to stay up-to-date with news that affects authors.   Timestamp Biz Buzz: Was Your Book Used to Train AI? (3:38) Episode Links Meta's Massive AI Training Book Heist: What Authors Need to Know - The Author's Guild Search LibGen, the Pirated-Books Database That Meta Used to Train AI - The Atlantic  Library Genesis - Wikipedia  Ethics for Artificial Intelligence Books  - Five Books  Previous Episodes on AI  An Intro to AI Can I, or Should I, Use AI As An Author  AI, Marketing, and The Constant Change In Tech AI and the NaNoWriMo Controversy (An Upate) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment Intro to Marketing What does it take to market you book?  It's never too early to begin to market your book and it's not too late start either! We talk about the entry-level marketing tactics that every authors should look at when marketing their book.  Conversations with Colleen Building Your Author Brand - Part 1 Colleen is back with a brand new Conversations with Colleen segment this month where she introduces a three-part series on building your author brand. In the first part of the series Colleen talks about lead generation and you can turn readers into rabid fans.  One of the best ways to capture fans is through a landing page. Colleen talks about the different types of landing pages and how anyone can start with just a single webpage to grow their fandom.  Below are a few links to landing pages that Colleen mentions in her segment. Landing Page Example Links Rachel Hollis' New Book Sandy Phillips Kirkham Author Page James Clear Lead Generation Page Timestamp Biz Buzz: Intro to Marketing (3:04) Conversations with Colleen: Building Your Author Brand (14:22)  The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment What It Takes To Be A Bestseller Do you know what it means to be a bestseller? Did you know there are a variety of bestseller lists? Is the author a bestseller or the book? We dive into the many facets of bestseller lists in this week's Biz Buzz segment. Whether you are a writer or a reader, it's important to understand what the term bestseller means.  Tales and Threads Storytelling Agency CaZ is back again with a great Tales and Threads segment focused on one word: agency. What does it mean for your character to have agency? Do your characters freely make their own path throughout the story? How do they navigate the situations and choices they face?  Learn why agency is a crucial factor in creating characters your readers will connect with. You might even find your book on one of those bestseller lists! Timestamp Biz Buzz: Bestseller Lists (3:25) Tales and Threads: Storytelling Agency (20:38)  The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Did Amazon remove their downloads? Amazon recently made a change to how readers can download books but it's not as bad as some might think.  Biz Buzz Segment Catching Up On Amazon So what the heck is going on with Amazon? This week we take a closer look at some big news which may not really be big news coming from Amazon - They are no longer allowing you to download ebooks to devices through the use of a USB cord. Plus, are readers boycotting Amazon? We discuss some interesting discussion found on Threads, what authors are seeing themselves, and how authors can adapt if they need.  Timestamps Biz Buzz: Catching Up on Amazon (2:49) In-Episode Links Going Wide Vs. Staying Exclusive The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn - Threads Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

What does it take to publish your book? We have a great episode for authors this week! Our Biz Buzz breaks the myth behind going wide in distribution and Tara Hayes joins Colleen for a special guest interview.  Biz Buzz Segment Going Wide Vs. Stay Exclusive What does it mean to go wide in publishing? What does being exclusive mean? When talking about self-publishing, especially in terms of distribution, there are many terms authors and publishers throw out. We seek to set a firm definition of these terms and share how authors can benefit from each option. What is your preferred method of distribution?  Guest Interview w/ Tara Hayes Colleen and Tara share stories from publishing Colleen is joined by Tara Hayes for this week's guest interview segment. Tara is a fellow author and service provider herself who works with authors to help tell their own story. Tara and Colleen talk about their own writing and publishing journeys and how Tara works with authors in her daily life. Plus, it wouldn't be an interview with Colleen with talking a little about editing!  Want to connect with Tara and read her book? Links can be found down below.  Timestamps Biz Buzz: Going Wide Vs. Staying Exclusive (3:04) Guest Interview: Tara Hayes (31:11) Tara Hayes Links Tarafied Publishing  LinkedIn The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Biz Buzz Segment What's On Your Back Cover? How do you sell your book, especially your physical book? YOUR COVER! This week's Biz Buzz segment is a from an older episode where we talk about what goes on the back of your book. Colleen takes the non-fiction perspective and CaZ shares the fiction perspective. There are a few common areas readers look for on the back of your book and even if you only have an e-book, will still be popular so you don't want to miss them!   Conversations with Colleen  The Front and Back Matter Colleen is back with her second installment of Conversations with Colleen. This month, she's talking about what is included in a a published book outside of the story proper. From your cover page through your index and from the copyright page to the back cover, there are crucial parts of your book you need to focus on to make your book professional. Timestamps Biz Buzz: What's On Your Back Cover? (2:46) Conversations with Colleen: The Front and Back Matter (32:11) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

What is going on with the writing and publishing industry? Change and innovation are always happening. Biz Buzz Segment We talk about what we're most looking forward to in the upcoming year in the industry as a whole and within The Author's Voice specifically. From the change in book blurbs (from last week's episode) to the return of the library, and much more, there are many great things in store for the upcoming calendar year.  Tales & Threads  CaZ is back again with a brand new Tales and Threads segment on the show this week. This segment delves into the allure of fiction! Who doesn't enjoy drifting off to a place of fantasy into the mysteries of a legal thriller?  Timestamps Biz Buzz: What's Happening in 2025 (3:09) Tales & Threads: The Allure of Fiction (28:40) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

What are book blurbs and why do so many authors fret over them? We talk about that in our Biz Buzz segment this week. But this all comes about after the shock news that Simon & Schuster is ditching their book blurb requirements. Peter read a great article from Literary Hub (linked down below) about this news and is why we're re-running this segment this week. Plus, Peter lays out some of the upcoming segments for the show including CaZ's Tales and Threads, Colleen's Conversations with Colleen, and Peter's Book Review which are all coming up this month.  Article Links Literary Hub: In a dazzling move, Simon & Schuster is dropping their blurb requirement. Timestamps Biz Buzz: Book Blurbs (3:39) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

Join us once again for as new episode of Blank Page to Bestseller! This week we are back again with our regularly scheduled show and we're bring a few great segments to you this year! Listen in to our first new segment, Conversations with Colleen where she will talk about a variety of things writers and authors should know. Each month will be focused on a different topic so don't miss out on her segments.  Then Peter talks with comic book author Michael Tanner about what it means to be a comic book author. We talk about many great topics like the difference between children's books and young adult books and what the similarities are between comic book writing and prose writing.     Timestamps Conversations with Colleen: Tone and Voice (2:44) Guest Interview: Michael Tanner (11:14) The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

This week's episode is all about writing and writers!  We begin with a throwback Biz Buzz segment where the three of us share our writing and self-editing tips we use.  Then in the second segment, we have a new guest, Adam Fleming on. Adam and Peter talk about Adam's books, his publishing service, and much more! Stick around until the end for a special giveaway from Adam!  Timestamps Biz Buzz: Writing and Self-Editing Tips (2:02) Guest Interview: Adam Fleming (32:21) Guest Links Adam Fleming - Victory Vision - Giveaway - Adam G. Fleming The Author's Voice Links  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

This week's episode is all about editing! We start the episode off with our discussion on the types of editing a book will undergo in the publishing process. From developmental editing to copyediting and more, we talk about the differences between each type of editing and why so many people can confuse them.  Then, the discussion on editing continues as Peter talks with our guest for this weeks she, Sue Toth who is both a developmental editor and a book coach. We talk about why an author would need different editing processes and why an editor and a book coach are not the same thing!  Thanks to Sue for this great interview!  Timestamps Biz Buzz: Types of Editing (2:31) Guest Interview: Sue Toth (37:53) Guest Links Sue Toth: Website - Facebook - Instagram  Show Links Self-Editing discussion - Writing advice and how a dog can tell a story The Author's Voice Links  The Blank Page to Bestseller Course - ON SALE NOW - Use code "BLANK" at checkout for $700 in savings!  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org

A few months ago, a controversy involving a statement made by a NaNoWriMo official sparked a controversy surrounding the use of AI. While the initial response and outcry from the statement was briefly covered, we wanted to check in on what has happened since. We talk about the history behind NaNoWriMo, what the organization is, where the controversy started, what writers/authors were concerned about, and the organization's response.  Peter talks through a statement released by NaNoWriMo and used an article from Wired for background on the topic. Both of those are linked down below. Be sure to read them both for more in-depth information.  Articles/Statements  Wired Article - NaNoWriMo Organizers Said It Was Classist and Ableist to Condemn AI. All Hell Broke Loose. NaNoWriMo's Statement on AI Timestamps Biz Buzz: AI and NaNoWriMo Update (3:31) Show Links Previous AI discussions - Can I, or Should I, Use AI as an Author  Last year's NaNoWriMo discussion - Welcome to NaNoWriMo The Author's Voice Links  The Blank Page to Bestseller Course - ON SALE NOW - Use code "BLANK" at checkout for $700 in savings!  NOW ON SALE! - The Write Way: Conversations with Publishing Pros Follow us The Author's Voice on social: Facebook - Instagram - LinkedIn Watch all of our Biz Buzz segments and more on YouTube Learn more about The Author's Voice on our website: theauthorsvoice.org