At what point in your Sales Page/Amazon Listing do you think you're losing your non-readers? What can you do to solve this problem? What was your process for coming to this conclusion? This week Bryan is getting ready for The Free 5-Day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge that starts July 13th. H. Claire Taylor also has some exciting things in the works for this summer, make sure to join her list. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Liz Alton. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Embracing the Magic, More than Monsters, and God and Gigs. The Top Tips of the week include what to do when thinking about going wide, where to submit your film ideas for Netflix, and why you should think about marketing your book first before anything else. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what is happening with The Internet Archives, why Apple is being targeted for their Apple tax, why Author Alexandra Duncan cancelled her own novel, what influences a reader to pick up their next book, and why you shouldn’t be afraid of going wide. Question of the Week: At what point in your Sales Page/Amazon Listing do you think you're losing your non-readers? What action do you think you should take to fix it? What was your process for coming to this conclusion?

Do you have an area of your publishing or marketing that's fallen flat? What can you do to change your course of action to improve it? This week Bryan is joined by MM romance author Quinn Ward. Don’t forget to leave a review on the show! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Margaret McGriff. Thank you to our featured Patrons - The Secret Blush, Gone, and What Sells Books. The Top Tips of the week include how to stop social media from distracting your writing time, what to know about a new survey from bookcareers.com, and tips for proofreading your own writing. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what marketing tips you should know, what Barnes & Noble has to say about e-books, how self-help author Marc Reklau went from $800 per month to over $35,000, how the COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to affect the business of publishing, and why indie authors are changing the publishing industry. Question of the Week: What's one area of your publishing or marketing that's fallen flat? How can you change your course of action to improve it?

We talked about growing our email list, what’s one activity you could do regularly grow your list by 10% in the next 30 days? This Thursday is Bryan’s Blurb Webinar make sure to check it out at the link below and H. Claire Taylor is releasing the third book of her Kilhaven Police series! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Lisa M. Lilly. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Cowgirl, Unexpectedly, A Dragon among the Eagles: A Novel of the Roman Empire, and The Ten-Year Turnaround. The Top Tips of the week include what to know about using someone else email newsletter, why to consider using a sensitivity reader, and where to find tools for outlining your novel. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how writing a novel is a lot like a romance, what vanity press is according to ALLi’s John Doppler, how to market your audiobook, what you need to know about Amazon’s branding, and how to get the most out of email lists. Question of the Week: What's one activity you could do regularly that would grow your email list by 10% in the next 30 days?

What's one opportunity you can employ for you to earn more than the usual $2.99 from your biggest fans? This week Bryan is back and getting ready for a live Book Description Demo next week while H. Claire Taylor is getting back into the swing of things and finishing up her last Jessica Christ book! Remember that she is still offering a 20% discount on her story alignment course when you use the code SMBS. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Kelsie Stelting. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Wanderer's Escape, Unfrozen, and Hypercage. The Top Tips of the week include what kind of personality do you have according to mystery author Greta Boris’ quiz, what to know about SEO, and where to find free educational opportunities. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what to know before writing a book with a friend, why you should do some homework and math before deciding where to publish, how thinking of your writing like a business will set you up for success, what advice author Jenny Madore is giving us, and how the publishing world could be changing. Question of the Week: What's one opportunity you can employ for you to earn more than the usual $2.99 from your biggest fans?

After listening to the discussion about how to use keywords and key phrases in your book description, what's the first step you're going to take toward optimization? This week H. Claire Taylor is joined by Monica Leonelle be sure to check out her series The Productive Novelist. H. Claire Taylor is still offering a 20% discount on her story alignment course when you use the code SMBS. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Christopher Wills. Thank you to our featured Patrons - The Cordova Vector, The Thing Speaks for Itself, and Kick Author Overwhelm to The Curb. The Top Tips of the week include what words you should be adding to your blurb, what new feature IngramSpark is offering, and how to successfully enter into a collaboration. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what genre is rising in sales, why Internet Archive is facing some serious trouble, what four types of books are we seeing a surge in, how to use Kobo’s cost-per-click to distribute your book, and how author RJ Blain upped her typical sales by over $30,000 in less than one month. Question of the Week: After reading about how to use keywords and key phrases in your book description, what's the first step you're going to take toward optimization?

You are running an awards show for your genre, what would you call it and why? This week Bryan is having a FB Ads Webinar with Alana Terry and H. Claire Taylor is getting back into her writing groove! Don’t forget to leave a podcast review. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Kori D. Miller. Thank you to our featured Patrons - What Am I?: A Collection of Traditional Word Riddles – Deluxe Edition, Ships of My Fathers, and Somebody's Darling. The Top Tips of the week include what to know when it comes to pricing your books, why you should be asking questions before writing a guest blog, and how many words should you be writing. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include whats going on with Wolf-Kink Erotica, why self-help books are doing so well right now, how you now have the opportunity to sell your books on Instagram and Facebook, why to get yourself ready for Kobo, and why the RWA has retired their RITA award. Question of the Week: If you ran an awards show for your genre, what would you call it and why?

In the show we covered Series Page promo ideas, will you be trying them out? Would this preform well for you? How might you incorporate this into your promo schedule? This week Bryan is offering a special discount on his course that expires 5/20 and H. Claire Taylor is giving us a pro tip so make sure to listen for it at the end.This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is J Bennett. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Dad’s Girls, Vanguard: The Complete First Season, and 31 Days of Wisdom. The Top Tips of the week include how Joanna Penn edits, what programming tools you need to look into, and why you should add more categories to your book. This week we have an honorable mention and that is I Will Survive. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why ebook and audio sales are seeing a dramatic increase, what World Media is doing to support authors, why do over 80% of authors quit within 3 books, why you should be marketing your series page instead, and how BookBub is allowing you to customize your ad campaign. Question of the Week: Will you try out the Series Page promo idea we discussed during the show? How might you incorporate this into your promo schedule and how well do you think it would perform for you?

What is keeping you from producing audiobooks? If you already have audiobooks, what made you decide to pull the trigger and how did you make the decision between profit share or all up front? This week H. Claire Taylor is joined by author Nathan Van Coops! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Christopher Willace. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Call of Dust, Twins of Prey, and Monkey Justice. The Top Tips of the week include why you don’t need a Mac to go direct with your books on Apple, how to keep all your publishing eggs in your own basket with direct selling, and what to think about when it comes to turning your book into audio. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include who was the mystery donor that helped UK bookshops weather the coronavirus pandemic, sales success tips from author Adam Geen, why you should check your emails if you saw some unusual activity with your Kindle books, how author Adam Fletcher is earning a full-time living off of a genre that practically doesn’t exist, and what Amazon sales ranks currently are. Question of the Week: If you already have audiobooks, what factors did you consider to decide between profit share or all up front, and how did you decide when to pull the trigger? And if you don't have audiobooks yet, what factors are keeping you from feeling like now is the right time to produce them?

Everyone has a reason for starting, what is your "why" behind writing and publishing your books? Bryan and H. Claire Taylor are feeling good this week and want to remind you to leave a review on the show! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Lars Hedbor. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Inharmonic, Achieve Anything In Just One Year, and Flotsam. The Top Tips of the week include what Amazon is doing for European Union marketplaces, how to get a review on your book the easy way, and which company takes an additional cut before pricing your book in the catalog. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how to help your local bookstores stay afloat, who’s sales is the coronavirus boosted, what author Steven Higgs is doing to earn $21,000 this month, who is doubling ACX, and what great tips Author Megan Erickson is sharing. Question of the Week: What's your "why" behind writing and publishing your books?

What is one non-writing task that you could spend just one hour a day on for the next week, that could have the most impact on your publishing career? Bryan's Amazon Ad School Course just concluded and he had an awesome turnout! H. Claire Taylor wanted to remind everyone that she has some free recourses on tips for writing and marketing as well as coming up with author strategy available on her website so make sure to check those out. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Dave Core. Thank you to our featured Patrons - The Silent Marriage: How Passive Aggression Steals Your Happiness, The Avant Champion: Rising, and Rebel Song. The Top Tips of the week include where you can find a free guide with advice tailored to authors of every level, how really knowing your genre well can help in writing to market, and why setting up your writing space ahead of time is setting you up to conquer new challenges. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include could Google Books really be opening up or are they pulling our leg, who is making the decision to stop paying royalties for books downloaded with a promo code, what author John Van Stry did because he felt it would help the author community, why we should continue to keep distributing to Barnes & Noble and keep some faith in them, and what cozy mystery author C.S. Woolley is claiming to be worth the time investment for the results she is seeing and will continue to see. Question of the Week: What non-writing task that you spend just one hour a day on for the next week would have the most impact on your publishing career?

How does the painfully long wait time on ACX approvals affect your publishing plans and what could you do to mitigate or even capitalize on this new reality?Bryan's Amazon Ad School Course is now live. You can get 30 days of direct email support and lifetime access to the Amazon Ad Profit Challenge at SellingForAuthors.com/April20 This week H. Claire Taylor is joined by author Jami Albright who is also an Indie publishing coach so make sure to check out her website. Claire is still running a promo on her story alignments with he code SMBS. All link will be provided for you. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is S.A. Schneider. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Black Shadow Moon: Stoker's Dark, Twisting Fate, and A Christmas Gift. The Top Tips of the week include what could be better for you than an author website, what can help you build stronger reader connections, and what playing a metadata game can teach you. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why library supporters are calling authors and publishers greedy, how Ingram’s LightningSource could become the new normal, what drastic changes are happening to people in the Amazon Associates affiliate program, could Amazon be struggling during this pandemic, and who’s two week standard processing time has turned into seven weeks. Question of the Week: How does the painfully long wait time on ACX approvals affect your publishing plans and what could you do to mitigate or even capitalize on this new reality?

What is something that you could do to enhance your marketing, publishing, writing, or service that would also increase your energy (i.e. you really like doing it!)? Bryan’s 5-Day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge is live and its not to late to join, check it out. Claire gave us a 20% off coupon for her Story Alignment Course which is code SMBS don’t let it go to waste! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Connie B. Dowell. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Carnal, Character Sketch & Color, and The Perfect Death. The Top Tips of the week include how popular authors are using Instagram and Twitter to help promote new book releases, what special offers Print on Demand service Ingram Spark is running, and what new software you can use to polish up your grammar in your online writing apps. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why indies might find this a good time to go wide, how regular email contact with your readers can be a more affective way of advertising than social media, what very quiet landmark deal was made between Apple and Kindle, are print books being considered an essential during this time, and who you can contact to help you understand Amazon Ads and make them seem less intimidating. Question of the Week: What is one thing you could do to enhance your marketing, publishing, writing, or service that would also increase your energy (i.e. you really like doing it!)?

Only choosing one, at this stage in your author career, are you trying to improve your ROI or scale up your existing ROI? Bryan’s 5-Day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge is back on April 13th don’t miss it! Claire also hinted to us that she will be putting another workshop together! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Darren Sapp. Thank you to our featured Patrons - The Last Verdict, Divorced Dad: Kids are Forever, Wives are Not, and Sanyare: The Last Descendant. The Top Tips of the week include where you can find some financial help during this time of crisis, why you should limit or force yourself when it comes to being creative, and how this might be your time to dip your toes into Facebook ads. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how you can not only order your favorite fast food with Postmates but a book as well, what Amazon is now doing about pre-orders and delays, which horror and thriller author achieved a four-figure profit with Amazon Ads, what genre of books are are seeing a spike in sales, and who reached dolphin status of 50k sales in one month? Question of the Week: At this stage in your author career, are you trying to improve your ROI or scale up your existing ROI? (And remember, you can only choose one or the other)

What is something that you as an author could “take a loss on” now that could possibly build your audience later on? Bryan’s 5-Day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge is back on April 13th don’t miss it! Get a story alignment consultation with Claire to get your story fixed up and save $149 through April 4th when you use the code FOURFOUR. All the links for these will be available to you. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Chez Churton. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Jaded: Luke, Hook's Daughter: The Untold Tale of a Pirate Princess, and How to Pick Up Women with a Drunk Space Ninja. The Top Tips of the week include how starting a daily blog might keep your creative brain rolling and keep you from feeling burnt out and ready to quit, why readers are saving nineteen dollars and ninety-eight cents with Amazon, and how bad reviews can possibly help your books sell. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how accurate are the numbers in the Bookstat list, what Amazon is now replacing with Amazon Charts Top 20 Books, what novelists are doing on social media to promote their colleagues during this time of cancelled book tours, what genre of books are rising in sales and which aren’t, and where are Amazon promo codes going? Question of the Week: Putting yourself in the shoes of early ACX, what could you give away or take a loss on now that might help you to build your audience later?

With the current crisis going on, as an author what are some things you may be able to do to help your readers out? On today’s show Bryan is joined by Alana Terry, a Christian suspense writer and teacher for authors on paid advertising. They want to wish everyone peace an good health during these times! Alana has her course up as a pay what you can and a portion of the proceeds will go to helping out during this time of the Covid-19. Be sure to check out Claire’s free supercharge your protagonist workshop, she also has a sale right now on her story alignment consultation so be sure to also check that out and use the code FOURFOUR by 4/4/20. All the links for these will be available to you. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Liberty Speidel. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Get it Done, The House, and Dark as the Grave. The Top Tips of the week include how taking the sidebar from your blog can help you start up your author website, what you can gain from using a writing prompt regularly, and how easy it is to turn your book into the latest EPUB 3.0 format with Daisy.org. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how PublishDrive is making it easy for authors to publish your print and digital and audiobook formats, why something as simple as asking readers to review your books can make a huge difference, whats causing Macmillan to abandoned its unpopular ebook embargo, who is announcing that their entire library of ebooks, audiobooks, and magazine articles will be free for 30 days, and ACX is doing to help out due to the impact of Covid-19 to the creative community. Question of the Week: What are some ways that you feel like you as an author could help your readers handle this crisis?

When working from home do you have a certain routine that helps you “get out of your pajamas” and start your work day? If so, what is it? Today is the final day of Bryan’s Blurb Bonus Package with Best Page Forward so make sure to check it out and H. Claire Taylor has a free chat on April 2nd talking about supercharging your protagonist, there are only 10 seats available so grab yours soon! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Blaine Moore. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Thawed: CRYERS Book 1, How To Drive Your Next Car Deal: The How-To Guide To Negotiating A New Car Deal, and The Tilt. The Top Tips of the week include how being quarantined may lead you to writing your best work like Shakespeare, why “writing crap” is a common tip amongst successful romance authors, and how putting on some pants can encourage you to get to writing. This week’s honorable mention goes to Amazon being flooded with coronavirus books. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what is the future of coronavirus vs authors, publishers, and booksellers, how learning the skills of publishing and web designing can save you lots of money, why British company DeepZen is already ahead of the game, why the UK government is saying goodbye to the 20% VAT, and what finding your niche can do for your book sales according to children’s book author Melissa Torres. Question of the Week: When you work from home, do you have any routines to make you feel like you have transitioned to the professional period of your day or do you just get into it and mix it up?

The last calendar year has been filled with many different events, say you could create a subgenre based on a specific one, what would it be?  Bryan has a Sell More Books Forever Webinar this Thursday so be sure to check it out and H. Claire Taylor has a pre-order up for a new pen name! This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is S. A. Schneider. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Where The Leaves Wither, The Three Story Method: Foundations of Fiction, and 5 Numbers of Destiny. The Top Tips of the week include why calculating math might be worth it for your read-through rates, how your not so happy ending books can partake in the hottest new literary genre, and why to start thinking about copywriting. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how to make your non-writing tasks a bit easier, what is causing the Big 5 to possibly turn Big 4, why you should consider alternate plans when it comes to the London Book Fair, how tweaking and relaunching ‘failed’ books may start to earn you some money, and how Indie author M.R. Mathias went from being in a Texas prison to writing dozens of books that have totaled over $1 million through amazon book sales. Question of the Week: If you could create your own subgenre based on events of the last calendar year, what would it be?

The first quarter of 2020 is almost over, what will you be doing in the second quarter of 2020 to market your books? Maybe something out of your comfort zone? Bryan mentions that he will be having a book description webinar coming soon and H. Claire Taylor is recruiting people for her new class. Be sure to check out Kirsten Oliphant's Launch Class. This week’s Super Charger Story Course Winner is Dan Thompson. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Woodpecker Wars: Celebrating the Spirituality of Everyday Life, Taking Charge: Making Your Healthcare Appointments Work for You, and The Final Arrangement. The Top Tips of the week include what is causing Indies to give up on google, how you can use content marketing to market not only non-fiction but also fiction, and why your best promotional tool is your readers themselves. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Hachette’s 2019 revenue increased by 5% over 2018’s revenue, why Publishers Weekly believes Amazon Publishing has come out on top, how authors can learn from the marketing mistakes from the movie Birds of Prey, what is being done about book scams starting on April 27th, and why Hachette, Amazon, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Penguin US are all pulling out of the London Book Fair. Question of the Week: What are you going to do to market your books in the second quarter of 2020? If you try something outside of your usual comfort zone, what will it be?

What crazy and fun way would you try to promote your book if money wasn’t a concern? How would you go about it? Bryan announces that he is going to be getting back into non-fiction this year and H. Claire Taylor shares with us that she has been putting up medium posts on author and story strategy as well as writing productivity. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Darren Sapp. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Nolan Walker And The Superiors Squad, Journaling Power: How to Create the Happy, Healthy Life You Want to Live, and WordPress Security 101: How to secure your website against hackers. The Top Tips of the week include how to look out for yourself to prevent getting scammed, what Matthew McCreary’s five step process is to writing a book, and where you can find the best apps for writing projects. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why authors in the US income will continue to decline, how your biggest obstacle when it comes to writing productivity may just be yourself, how self-publishing can lead to more money and flexibility, what you can do to get your short piece of fiction shared with the public, and why Indie author and mentor Chris Fox funded a role-playing game version of his bestselling space fantasy series that is now over 133% funded. Question of the Week: If money weren't a concern, what wild and fun activity would you want to try to promote your book? And how would you get started?

What challenges do you think you'd face as part of the adaption if you could acclimate a story of yours into any other medium, what would it be and why? Bryan and H. Claire Taylor are feeling very grateful to be able to talk to all the listeners every week whether it be diving deep into some big controversy or diving deeper into ideas relating to self-publishing. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Ethan Jones. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Removed, A Curse upon the Saints, and If You Give a Guy a Beer. Tickets are available for Self Publishing Live. The Top Tips of the week include how to get the most out of any author conference, why scheduling time to write is so important, and how getting your books into a library can create a domino effect. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how you can hire the right person for the job using self-publishing service providers, why self-publishing is also learning publishing and marketing for yourself, how to get books in the mail that you might have never considered, how learning to master ads will help you not suck at marketing, and where you can find a new documentary about self-publishing. Question of the Week: If you could adapt a story of yours into any other medium, what would it be and why? What challenges do you think you'd face as part of the translation?

When AI learns to write a novel that's identical from human novels, how do you think that the writing world will shift? Bryan and H. Claire Taylor are getting things done and checking things off of their to do lists. This weeks Happy Books Review Winners are Jon Auerbach & Bethany Tucker. Thank you to our featured Patrons - One Survivor, Citizen Second Class, and Jasper Kaine. The Top Tips of the week include why you should have a copyright notice and a reservation of rights, why to consider donating a copy of your children’s book to Diverse Book Finder, and how to give your print books a new look. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what new technology will be affecting the writing world, how we know that the author business is continuing to grow, which transcription service is the best fit for you, why many people are not happy about how Barnes & Noble and Penguin Random House celebrated Black History Month and how author Jayne Hawke recovered from burnout. Question of the Week: How do you think the writing world will change when AI learns to write a novel that's indistinguishable from human novels?

What joyful moments have you had that led you to today in your publishing career? Bryan and Claire are in the same room! Thank you to all of our Patrons! The Top Tips of the week include how Booksprout is your cure all, why you need to join Brandon Sanderson’s class, and what is the best tool to write in. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how you can still be frugal when it comes to editing, how to hire a ghostwriter, what the numbers say about libraries and other activities, why Author Chris Fox didn't love his cover, and why you should write what you love. Question of the Week: Looking back on your writing and publishing to this point, what are three moments that brought you incredible joy in the smaller milestones that led you to where you are today?

What would you want your readers to expect from you? Bryan is finally taking a rest day! Claire’s party is this week! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Garett Robinson. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Dad's Girls, The Outline Book, and Cubicle Jail to Laptop Lifestyle. The Top Tips of the week include how to recover from a failed book launch, how you can still make a living in indie, and what you need to be productive. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what the Macmillan boycott has done to the bottom line, why you may want to get into self-help books, what procrastination may actually mean, how author Steff Green earned $200k, and what is changing with Penguin Random House. Question of the Week: In your ideal world, what would your readers' expectations be about what you write, how often you release it, what you price it, and how often you get in contact with them?

How would your work change if you shifted your focus? This week is the final parts of Bryan’s Amazon Ad Challenge it's never too late to follow along! Claire is getting her launch party ready! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Linda Fausnet. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Grand Theft Auto and Other Misdemeanors, Angelborn, and Time Code. The Top Tips of the week include how to edit your book faster, why you need to reach out to your superfans, and what ads are the best. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what new law has hit Missouri, how the lawsuit with Audible turned out, why Amazon ad school may be a great call for you, how author Howard Tayler sees success, and why your word count may be falling short. Question of the Week: If you changed your focus from looking for productivity to meaning, what would you stop doing and why?

What do the next four years look like for you? This week is Bryan’s Amazon Ad Challenge its never too late to follow along! Claire is finishing up her series up! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is  Bill Cokas. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The 30-Day Writing Challenge, Stalked, and SMART Social Media. The Top Tips of the week include what you need to do to sell your book, why Instagram is your friend, and how the public domain has changed. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include was has changed in the RWA, how Janna Penn manages her time, why getting a coauthor may refuel your fire for writing, who will be charting books, and what S.W. Hubbard is going to do in 2020. Question of the Week: When you think ahead to what you'll have accomplished in four years, what will you do to get the most out of your awesome backlist in 2024?

What will your new year’s resolution help your productivity? You’re going to learn a little more about our new host Claire. How she spends her days and what she's done this year! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Jerri Williams. The Top Tips of the week include how to promote your new book, how StoryOrgin can help you track yourself, and what Kells Mcphillips recommends to keep up the productivity. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why Refined Fool Beer is the place to publish, what ebooks lost out on in the 10s, what scam you need to avoid, why the Rita Awards were cancelled, and why you shouldn’t be like Laura Burton. Question of the Week: Going into 2020, what changes will you make to your routine to save more time and get more accomplished?

What is Jim going to do with all this new free time? Episode 300 is here! We say goodbye to Jim and welcome Bryan's new co-host. The Top Lessons we learned, Consistency is Key, Be UnSkippable, and Reward fans with Callbacks. An honorable mention goes to how to get your books viewed. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why writers aren’t able to keep up, how amazon made this author raise her price, what has happened since Christmas in the romance novel world, why Author Brady Frost did better than expected, and what changes are coming for Rakuten. Question of the Week: What do you think Jim will do with his Tuesdays now that he's not recording the Sell More Books Show?

What story did we miss in 2019? Episode 300 is next week! Bryan is visiting family and Jim is getting ready for life after SMBS. Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she is five-feet ten-inches tall. Be on the lookout for Bryan’s new Amazon Ad Challenge coming up in January. The 5 News stories that mattered most to indies in 2019 include what Barnes & Noble did to stay in business, the struggles and successes of Amazon, how many wonderful options exist outside of the Audible exclusive option, why some indie community success stories sound so familiar, and what are the biggest changes in the Amazon Ad dashboard. Question of the Week: What's the biggest news story of 2019 that we didn't cover in today's episode and why?

What does the year 2039 look like for the publishing world? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she is obsessed with ghost adventures. Two more weeks with Jim! Be on the lookout Bryan has a new Amazon Ad Challenge coming up in January. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Guillaume Sauvé. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Get it Done, How to Pick Up Women with a Drunk Space Ninja, and Leah’s Choice. The Top Tips of the week include what your last minute gift can be, how you can revisit this years 20books event, and Smashwords' new feature. An honorable mention goes to why the Big 5 may be changing. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how podcasts are going to change, why 2039 may be the year with no books, how libraries are bringing the people back, why your upticks may actually be old, and How Kobo is changing and growing. Question of the Week: Do you think paper books will be dead by the year 2039? Why or why not?

When should an author change up how they do translations? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she has written over 20 novels. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Patrick O’Donnell. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Planet Dead One Shot, How to Sex Your Snake, and Excelsior. The Top Tips of the week include how to improve your cover, what ways you can spruce up your older books, and why you should maybe get a mentor. An honorable mention goes to why you need to make an audiobook. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why you don’t need to worry about AIs, how to be more successful when publishing wide, how social media may not be the key, why your ads won't get old, and when you should change your translations. Question of the Week: At what point in an author's journey do you think he or she should try this new system for creating translations of their books?

How do you build confidence? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan’s new hint for the new cohost is that she lives in the United States! Both Bryan and Jim are going to story shop sumit in Texas! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Julie. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Guild of Tokens, Awakening Forever, and Mayhem & Murder. The Top Tips of the week include how to manage your time, what new tool is at your fingertips, and how to get your book on library shelves. An honorable mention goes to why trademarks may be in for a dark road. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how the prison system is trying to make money, why you may need a smart speaker, what your verified review might really be, why you still can make it big, and how library ebooks are backfiring. Question of the Week: How do you deal with self-doubt when you're trying to put your words out into the world?

Your first big success, what do you remember? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan is back home in Pennsylvania with family for Thanksgiving. Jim has five episodes left, but the Sell More Books Show will continue. Jim explains how to catch a turkey! Bryan is having a Black Friday Sale! Tickets are still available for Self-Publishing Live 2020. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Thomas J. Sullivant. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Nolan Walker And The Superiors Squad, Sales Success Stories, and How to Self-Publish A Children's Book. The Top Tips of the week include how to publish your book in audio, what you need to do on reading days, and how reviews may be cheaper. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what the most recent YA scandal is, how amazon is updating again, how to increase you read-through, what the pros of traditional publishing are, and what novelist Rob Billiau is doing right. Question of the Week: What do you remember about the first time… you sold more books than you expected?

How about a little Jim Kukral nostalgia? Episode 300 is so close! Bryan's back from 50 Books! Bryan has an Amazon Ads Makeover coming this Friday. Jim has BIG news at the end of the episode! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is J. Thorn. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Prometheus Rising, The Unknown Devil, and Flotsam. The Top Tips of the week include why you may need MyNoise and not Noise cancelling headphones, what 38 free things you need according to Shaunta Grimes, and how to keep moving forward. This week's Honorable Mention goes to, why Instagram may be bringing poetry back. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why amazon is ordering fewer books, what is happening with ACX, why you may not want to get Klingon married, and how you may be able to have your own bookshop. Question of the Week: What's been your favorite Jim Kukral moment from Sell More Books Show history

What genres seem to have the most success with paid promotions and why?Episode 300 is so close! Now it's Bryans turn to be away, he is in Vegas at 20 books to 50K. Jay Thorne in the guest host of the week Early Bird tickets for his Self-Publishing Live are on sale now! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Darren Sapp. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Chicago Blue, "What Am I?", and  WordPress Security 101. The Top Tips of the week include why and how you can create a facebook author page, how you can get unblocked, and why you may need to start a podcast. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what fancy new gadget Amazon is releasing, why you can actually write under noisy conditions, what new genre or subgenre readers are excited about, what new feature Findaway Voices is rolling out, and why you might want to wait for the BookBub deal. Question of the Week: What genres seem to have the most success with paid promotions and why?

What discipline hacks do you have to keep your indie author goals on track? Episode 300 is so close! Jim is gone this week, hopefully on some kind of vacation, so we have Patrick O'Donnell as our Guest Host. Early Bird tickets for Bryan's Self-Publishing Live are on sale now! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Roland Denzel. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The Hunted, The Sell Smarter Collection, and Level Up. The Top Tips of the week include what new app could make your writing easier, how you can get your new work on Audible.com, and what new service could help you keep track of everything publishing related. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what the Chicago library is doing right, why empty books are making money, how you should be saving your money, what author Steven Higgs prioritized over sleep and how it changed his life, and why you might need to spend more money on ads. Question of the Week: How do you apply discipline to your everyday life to get the words and publishing done in the midst of all the other stuff in your busy schedule?

What publishing hacks do you wanna bring back? Episode 300 is so close! Jim’s webinar is later today at 2PM CST. Show up and learn the ropes! Bryan will officially be doing an Author conference in Chicago coming up next year! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Justin Salisbury. Thank you to our featured Patrons: A Turn for the Worse, Leaving Eva, and God and Gigs. The Top Tips of the week include How to write you book (outline) in three simple steps, what new ways you can advertise on Amazon, and why content marketing might change how you advertise. Honorable Mention this week goes to why Draft2Digital cancelled the Play Store. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how California’s new bill may not be as good as it sounds, why Amazon is cracking down on scammers, what different ways you can be successful as a full time author, how more books can mean more money, and why a series may be the way to your reader’s heart. Question of the Week: What self-publishing tactic that worked back in 2015-2017 would you love to bring back and try here in 2019?

In five years, where will the publishing industry be? Episode 300 is so close! Jim and Bryan will not be going to Australia for the 300th show. Bryan has a webinar next week for making sure you don’t skip steps in your self-publishing journey. Jim will be holding a webinar on how to become a professional paid speaker - link next week. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Jennifer Kelly. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Strings of Subversion, Dorothy and the Cane of Destiny, and Fighting to Survive. The Top Tips of the week include How you can avoid taxation through Amazon, why your readers may be missing your books, and why your website could be the reason your losing readers. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what new ways Amazon is helping readers with prime, why Amazon’s CEO should break up the company before it breaks him, why indie novel sales are on the rise according to Bowker, what advice author Caitlin White can give, and what changes have happened and whats to come in the publishing world. Question of the Week: What's the most obvious prediction you can make about the publishing industry coming up in the next five years?

Video or audio, do you have a preferred way of getting content? Episode 300 is so close! Were going to start releases on video now as well! Jim will be hosting a webinar on becoming a public speaker, Bryan is excited about 20BooksVegas and he will do a Meetup Pizza Party by the pool. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Roland Denzel. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Kiss Kill, A Dragon among the Eagles, and Stone Cold. The Top Tips of the week include how Sandra Beckwith helps authors turn reviews into more sales, why Facebook may be a way to reach more readers, and why your seven keywords may need to be upgraded. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how publishers create a gray area for plagiarism, why Audiobook is changing how you market, how K-Lytics will help you decide if you need to write a Christmas novel, why author Nick Thacker was finally able to quit his day job, and which sites vaporized due to Facebook's false information and how they tried to make up for it. Question of the Week: Now that the show will be available in video, do you think you'll keep listening in audio or consume the podcast in its video format? Also, what is the giant trophy for on Bryan's bookshelf?

Do you think ads for your English-version books will appeal to Amazon’s German market? Bryan and Jim are enjoying the great weather. Bryan is planning another Amazon Ads Challenge for January—stay tuned! Jim’s co-author fiction project is really taking shape and he's already making plans to turn it into a film. Call for Success Stories! Submit via email or in the comments. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Gisele LeBlanc. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Leading Effectively, The Life of Magdaline Slatewood, and Cowgirl, Unexpectedly. The Top Tips of the week include How a first line generator can jumpstart your creativity, why your book description should be scan friendly, and how often should you be sending a newsletter and what should be in it. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why the Audible request for a referral in their settlement suit was denied, why HarperCollins started to put backlist titles on Kindle Unlimited in Australia and the UK, how shortening your completion date can be more productive, how you can get audiobooks uploaded directly to Kobo Writing Life, and why foreign advertising can help you promote your books. Question of the Week: Do you plan on using Amazon Ads in the German market and do you think they'll be successful for books in English?

What do you think motivates Amazon to make changes to its promotion programs? Episode 300 is coming! Bryan is recovering after an intense Amazon Ads 5-day challenge. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Eric Warren. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The Busy Busy Author, Dead Still, and Achieve Anything In Just One Year. The Top Tips of the week include how podcasts may be your way to the top, what are the benefits of connecting with the final product instead of the work in progress, and how to find your niche and how to spread it around. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Bookshop will bring back bookstores, how libraries can actually be helpful to book sales, why is Facebook hiding your likes, why Author Mark Dawson is on a new journey, and how Amazon is changing in drastic ways. Question of the Week: Why do you think Amazon got rid of Giveaways and the Matchbook program?

How much do you usually write during the day? Episode 300 is coming! Bryan is off this week because he is running his 5-day Amazon Ad Profit Challenge. Jim’s cohost is the amazing Kirsten "Beersten" Oliphant. And… Happy Birthday to Jim! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Dan Thompson. Thank you to our featured Patrons: A Band Director's Guide to Everything Tuba, The Darby Shaw Chronicles, and Doubt The Stars. The Top Tips of the week include how to navigate Amazon's new ad features, the difference between a website and an ideal website, and 10 words all authors should know. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include the still banned Harry Potter books, reselling used ebooks, why author Heather Demetrios shouldn’t have quit her day job, how ebooks have not taken over the book world, and how outlining could increase your daily word count. Question of the Week: What's your average word count written per day?

How much is too much when you share personal info with readers? Episode 300 is coming! Jim is off this week and Bryan’s cohost is the brilliant Becca Syme. Bryan is recovering from a concussion and he’s also got a big Amazon Ads promo going on. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Tom. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Guardian of the Grail, The Thing Speaks for Itself, and Dark as the Grave. The Top Tips of the week include how to avoid social media FOMO, why beta readers are so valuable and how just one in-person event per year can benefit all types of writers. We have an Honorable Mention story this week about the amazing Keanu Reeves and his foray into the small press world. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how to workaround Vellum’s “no more .mobi” announcement, how author Jack Knight reached $1k in monthly sales with only two books, why author Julia Watts has been disinvited from a teen literary festival, how author Tamie Dearer reached $10k per month after 19 books, and where the line might be between connecting with readers and over-sharing. Question of the Week: If you were to become the bestselling author in your genre tomorrow, would you be nervous about the amount of personal information you've shared with your fans? Why or why not?

Place hand here to pay! Is Biometric scanning the future of payment? Bryan and Jim are counting down to show #300! Bryan announces his five days of building profitable Amazon ad campaigns for you. If you sign up for this five day challenge you’ll be entered in a raffle to win the Amazon Ads Group Coaching Mastermind. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Blaine Moore. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Inharmonic, Hitler Out of Time, and Shadow Raiders. The Top Tips of the week include the benefits and drawbacks of using Facebook groups as an author, how to change your mindset to “it’s about my book” in order to obtain better promotions, and the advantages of setting parameters while working on a multitude of projects. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include outrage at Amazon from small shop owners for early release on products, a rise in ebook rentals at libraries due to Hoopla, just a flick of the wrist and you can pay at Whole Foods Market, the growing industry of Audible, and how authors can set pre-order options up to a year in advance. Question of the Week: Do you think biometric scanning for payments will become normal within the next decade? Why or why not?

If Amazon relinquished its publishing of indie Authors what would you do to maintain readers? How would it effect customers that have ereaders? Bryan and Jim are counting down to show #300! Bryan and Jim discuss avoiding Google newsfeed while receiving words of wisdom. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Rosanne. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The Last Days, Gone, and Covermint Design. The Top Tips of the week include why Findaway Voices can help authors set prices and branch across multiple selling platforms, how an ebook scam to take your book to “Hollywood” can cost you a fortune, and the true importance of a book cover. We have an Honorable Mention story this week and it seems that Audible will not use their captioning technologies on audiobooks where publishers have filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include where to tap into new social media marketplaces for your ads, a lawsuit for copyright infringement on the common term “tamer,” How Amazon Prime has brought various consumers to indie authors out of self-interest, Eric Warren’s first series flop has motivated his second collection’s success, and how over one billion dollars has been paid out to the authors of Kindle Unlimited. Question of the Week: What would ebook customers do if Amazon decided to drop publishing indie authors tomorrow? What would you do as an author?

How would you improve Goodreads ads if you had limitless power? Bryan and Jim are counting down to show #300! Jim announces his fiction writing team project will be an amazing sci-fi adventure novel written with Tom Sully Sullivant—sign up for previews in the Show Notes. Bryan . This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Lori L. Robinett. Thank you to our featured Patrons: The Secret Blush - A Jennifer Morgan Novel, Wanderer's Escape, and A Curse upon the Saints. The Top Tips of the week include why controlling your brand is so important, how the right reader magnets can attract your ideal reader, and when ritual is needed to accomplish your writing goals. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Abacus can make royalty sharing a breeze, what the Big 5 are doing to stop Amazon’s copyright infringement, How author Jim Heskett made the leap to full-time, how Beatrix Potter’s own tale surpasses that of her rabbit, and when Goodreads will stop running their self-serve ads and why. Question of the Week: If you could rebuild Goodreads and Goodreads Ads from the ground up, how would you do it and why?

Is your book launch strategy built on a foundation of goals or floating in a sea of fate? Bryan and Jim are looking forward to show #300! Jim will announce his new project in next week’s episode. Bryan will be sending excerpts of Hook, Line, Bestseller to his ARC team. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Zach Guido. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Twins of Prey, The Final Arrangement, and Wanderer’s Escape. The Top Tips of the week include why reviews disappear, 14 great marketing tips, how bigger ad spend can benefit your data. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Google started renting books, why authors supporting one another is critical to success, why writing to market works, how the YA community came together to support one of their own, and how author Alana Terry made 1k on a standalone in less than 30 days. Question of the Week: Have you ever set goals for a book launch or promotion? What's your goal with your next book?

Are you ready for a “British” bookstore invasion? Bryan is on vacation this week. Bryan is back and the team is at full strength this week! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is David Avoura King. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Cubicle Jail to Laptop Lifestyle, The Dragon Rustler (Cowboys and Dragons Book 1), and Star Flame: A Story From the Meclauks Kingdom. The Top Tips of the week include how to get the mist from your ACX coupons, the true value of an accountability partner and where to find one, why the great outdoors is your creative partner. This week’s Honorable Mention covers the addition of more big names to the Amazon author stable. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how the Norsemen pillaged Netflix, how author Mike Chen used ad stacking to soar up in the rankings, why Rachel Morgan Goetsch set he sights on Kobo sales, how the new CEO will steer the Barnes and Noble ship, and how the Vines managed to double the sales and KU reads of Chris’s debut after only two weeks. Question of the Week: With James Daunt from Waterstones taking over the B&N CEO job, what are some ways he could make the U.S. bookstore as British as possible?

To sign or not to sign? What would it take to convince you to subject yourself to a morality clause in a publishing contract? Bryan is on vacation this week. Jim welcomes his special guest host, Chrishaun Keller-Hanna! This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Randy Green. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Guild of Tokens: Initiate, Mayhem & Murder, and How to Self-Publish A Children's Book: Everything You Need To Know To Write, Illustrate, Publish, And Market Your Paperback And Ebook. The Top Tips of the week include why the right keywords are so important, what you can learn from the top authors in your field, and what the pros and cons are of Bookbub’s various advertising opportunities. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include what you should know about pirates, how traditional publishers an AB-using morality clauses, how author Jeffrey Munn used niche marketing to nearly triple his sales, what happened to the Washington Post bestseller list, and how author RE Vance hit his first 5-figure month. Question of the Week: What would you need from a traditional publisher to sign a contract with a morality clause in it?

Do you think Amazon imprints are in a position to attract more big name authors? Bryan will be off next week and Jim has a special surprise guest host booked! Bryan has over 300 people signed up to his ARC team and is setting the goal of 100 reviews in the first 48 hours. Jim’s book Unskippable will be at 99 cents for a few more days - grab a copy if you haven’t had the chance. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Lars Hedbor. Thank you to our featured Patrons - The Reluctant Detective, Get it Done, and Sanyare: The Last Descendant. The Top Tips of the week include what you can do to streamline your BookBub “follow” call to action, how a simple card can give people the information they need to remember you—and your book, and what you can do to declutter your work-in-progress. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why the French Army is turning to sci-fi writers for advanced warning, how Kym Thurlow used a pen name to test the waters and learn from her mistakes, how Wattpad’s monetization features are benefitting authors, why Jami Albright turned to free options to support her latest book launch, and why Dean Koontz has taken the plunge with an Amazon imprint. Question of the Week: What do you think Amazon promised in its marketing plan to author Dean Koontz to get him to sign a big deal with an Amazon imprint?

What is your opinion of Audible’s new audio to text feature? Bryan and Jim are looking for a great idea for the 300th show. Bryan shares some great author feedback and testimonials from Best Page Forward! Jim’s book Unskippable is currently available for 99 cents for a limited time. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Jon Evans. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Corruption of Identity, Hook's Daughter: The Untold Tale of a Pirate Princess, and Sales Success Stories: 60 Stories from 20 Top 1% Sales Professionals. The Top Tips of the week include how to recover from a failed book launch, why it’s so easy to waste money marketing your book, and what are the three essential questions every author must answer. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why teen writers are actually using ghostwriters, how Danielle Burton hit her first $1k month, what the royalty changes on Google Play mean for indie authors, how Aidy Aaward is making her 20BooksTo50k dreams come true, and why it sounds a lot like copyright infringement over at Audible.com. Question of the Week: Would having the text available during your audiobook listening improve your reader experience? Do you think that Audible has violated existing rights agreements by testing its new audio to text feature?

Does your author business have a favorite charity? Bryan’s new book about writing awesome Amazon ads and hooks is coming soon! Jim has hit more than 60 reviews for Unskippable and recommends authors spend the time to build a good ARC team. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Philip. Thank you to our featured Patrons: How to Pick Up Women with a Drunk Space Ninja, Leah’s Choice, and The Rookie Writer Playbook: A Planner/Organizer for Writers. The Top Tips of the week include how to juggle writing time and relaxing time on vacation, why mailbox overload can spoil a great vacation, and what visibility tips you might be missing if you’re a KDP author. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why libraries are boycotting Blackstone, how Victoria Smith doubled her sales for June 2019, how the Association of American Publishers plans to sue Amazon into submission, how to avoid the dangers of comparisonitis, and why niche marketing turned into profits for Alexa Kang and company. Question of the Week: If you could donate some of your book sales to charity, which charity would you donate to and why?

What’s your author type - are you a Self-Publisher, The Indie Author, or The Authorpreneur? Bryan is hosting a a new webinar, How to Optimize Your Amazon Sales Page to Sell More Fantasy Books Forever. Sign up today! Jim is beginning a joint venture into fiction with a writing partner—more to come. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Holly. Thank you to our featured Patrons - Jaded: Luke by Hildie McQueen, Chicago Blue: The Red Riley Adventures #1, and What Am I?: A Collection of Traditional Word Riddles – Deluxe Edition. The Top Tips of the week include how to get the biggest bang for your buck on your next book launch, why it is important to write interesting characters that aren’t just different for the sake of being different, and why Facebook groups may be more important than ever. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why the WGA’s new Code of Conduct is stirring up trouble, how the lack of diversity in the Carnegie medal for literature award is being re-examined, how the Kindle Storyteller Awards may be opening doors for more original content via Amazon Studios, how Jean Lowe Carlson hit her first true $5k month, and why knowing what kind of author you are can help you focus on improving the right skills. Question of the Week: In Orna Ross's post, she said authors fell into three types: Self-Publisher, The Indie Author, or The Authorpreneur. Which one are you and why?

What do you do to celebrate your achievements? Jim is off this week on his Unskippable booksigning tour. Bryan welcomes his guest host, Elise Kova. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Eustacia Tan. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Outage Boxed Set Books 1-3, Win For Love, and Not Write Now: A How-Not-To Guide for Writing Fiction. The Top Tips of the week include why in-person connections at writing conferences are so powerful, what the five must-haves are for every new author, and how to keep your readthrough rates high. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why counterfeit books are still for sale on Amazon, how Microsoft is stealing books back form readers, why finding books at your local library may get more difficult, what’s the latest Amazon reporting hiccup, and how slow and steady can still win the race. Question of the Week: How do you reward yourself for completing a milestone?

Would you consider working with a coach to improve an aspect of your author career? Jim is excited for his Unskippable booksigning event in Las Vegas. Bryan reminds everyone to check out the new Best Page Forward podcast and fill out the submission form if you want your blurb rewritten during the live show. There are only 41 slots left in the Amazon Ads Made Easy 5-module course—grab yours today and take control of you ads. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Mike Stop Continues. Thank you to our featured Patrons: Sanyare: The Last Descendant, Blogging for Authors, and Awakened: Paragons Book One. The Top Tips of the week include how creating work seasons can increase productivity, why both existing fans and new readers are both important to your marketing plan, and how changing up your routine can reignite creativity. We have an Honorable Mention: How one bad Tweet poisoned the whole nest. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include one more BIG reason to resist the urge to reply to bad reviews, Audible is doubling down on their subscription service for Romance, how Victoria Smith found the boost she needed to more than triple her monthly income with the assistance of a coach, why Ellie Masters considers marketing as the key to reaching 5-figure sales, and how books are being stolen from WattPad and appearing for sale on Amazon. Question of the Week: Have you ever used a coach or a mentor to help you get to the next level of your career? If so, did it help? If not, is it something you'd ever consider in the future?

How do you feel about translation of your books and potential international success? Bryan announces his Waitlist for June openings in the Amazon Ads Made Easy course. Jim soft-launched Unskippable and he is looking forward to digging into serious advertising to promote the title. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Lars Hedbor. Thank you to our Patrons - Star Flame: A Story From the Meclauks Kingdom, Planet Dead One Shot: The Briggs Boys, and The Secret Blush. The Top Tips of the week include why crowdsourcing cover design could be the wrong move, how robots can help you edit, and why it is so important to meet reader expectations with subgenres. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how to phone it in for success, why you can finally embrace the zero, how Patrick McLaughlin squeezed the most out of everyday to write his way to success, what the Amish are doing in space, and how Caroline Vermalle von Ruben hit $50k in one year without selling a single book in the U.S. Question of the Week: How many international self-publishing success stories do you think go unreported in the U.S.? Does this make you more excited about the idea of doing translations of your books in the future?

If you had control over B&N, what next step do you think would be best for readers? With Bryan taking the week off, author and launch consultant Courtney Kenney dropped in to talk news and tips with Jim. Tips included writing to multiple genres, a handy tool to manage reviewers, and why you should always value people over algorithms. News stories focused on writing in the angry age of social media, the rise and potential drop of ebooks, how writing helped one veteran provide for his family, how essential research is before hitting publish, and the bidding war over Barnes & Noble. This week's Question of the Week: If you bought Barnes & Noble, what would you do with it?

How many times will a reader go back to a “poisoned” well? Bryan and Jim are grateful for new listeners, and listeners who have been with them since Episode 1. Bryan is reaching the end of releasing his Amazon Ads Made Easy modules and has learned to enjoy math and use data to improve his ad spend. Jim is suffering through the final editing phase but is looking forward to purchasing Vellum and formatting his new book. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Hildie McQueen. Thank you to our Patrons: The Thing Speaks for Itself, Dark as the Grave, and Pirates vs. Dragons. The Top Tips of the week how to squeeze more juice out of Instagram, learn more about what readers want through podcast research, and how to stoke the fires of creativity. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include which publishing scam is making a sequel, how Karl Drinkwater used his Bookbub Featured Deal to grab a #1 spot, why readers keep reading bad books, what Kyla Stone did to reach 50K in sales, and how Amazon celebrated its 10th publishing birthday. Question of the Week: How many bad books do you think it takes for a dedicated reader to give up on an author?

What’s your current schedule for checking royalty income? Bryan and Jim hope you all enjoyed your Memorial Day weekend. Bryan is having a great experience teaching his Amazon Ads Made Easy course and is generating some wonderful tactics for students. Jim is looking for serious ARC members for his launch team. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Dan Thompson. Thank you to our Patrons: Guardian of the Grail, Doubt The Stars, and Leaving Eva. The Top Tips of the week why new story structure options can boost your writing, how scheduled and regular breaks can improve mental health, and when three tips aren’t enough you can count on a few more. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Google is shooting themselves in the proverbial foot on Google Play, why Kobo is happy to be wrong about potential readers, what Taylor White did to hit $500 in royalties on her debut release, what KDP is doing with new royalty reports and how Bink Cummings used Facebook ads and a rapid release strategy to move her much closer to her 6-figure-per-month goal. Question of the Week: How often do you check your royalty stats? Will that number increase with the new KDP Royalties Estimator?

What makes an email service useful to authors? Bryan is excited to be teaching Amazon advertising and learning a ton about ad strategy. Jim is handing off Unskippable to his editor and will soon be looking for beta readers. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Connie B. Dowell. Thank you to our Patrons: The Dragon Rustler, Shadow Raiders, and The Final Arrangement. The Top Tips of the week are how to test your email service provider, what to do with bad reviews, and why you need a well-designed business card. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why Ariana Grande is being sued for posting a picture of herself, what happened to Amazon’s operations in China, what expanded distribution choices are left, how to run a successful Kickstarter campaign, and how changes at Mailchimp could leave you hanging or paying more for bananas. Question of the Week: Which is the best email service provider for authors and why?

What is your strategy to overcome major struggles as an author, or in life? Bryan and Jim are back from the Summit and excited about all the wonderful presenters and attendees that participated. Thank you to our Patrons: Leading Effectively: Proven Leadership by Mildred Stallworth, A Band Director's Guide to Everything Tuba, and Twins of Prey. The Top Tips of the week are how Lindsay Buroker has developed a workaround to be in KDP Select and wide, how Creative Commons can quickly get you to the royalty free images you need, and why printed proofs can help authors get a clear perspective on WIP manuscripts. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why Will Self feels that creative writing graduates will never make a living as novelists, what Apple books is doing to actively squash all mention of competition in the back matter, why Shawn Inmon shifted gears to self-publishing and a happier life, how Amazon is harpooning KU whales, and how Liz Copen was able to use her writing income to help her family in a difficult time. Question of the Week: When is a time you faced a major struggle in your life (as an author or otherwise) and needed to work at a higher level to overcome your challenge?

What does success look like for you and how will you move toward that vision? Bryan and Jim are recording this week’s episode LIVE at the Sell More Books Show Summit. Thank you to our Patrons. Bryan and Jim thank the 2019 Summit Sponsors: Vellum, PublishDrive, Draft2Digital, Kobo Writing Life, BookFunnel and Reedsy. The Top Tips of the week are why a good team makes your story stronger, how tagging can improve the efficiency of your mailing list management, and why clean data is important when determining how well your book converts. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how attending conferences helped Cecelia Mecca go from part-time to full-tie writer, why Jami Albright encourages writers to publish at their own pace and move toward goals, why the current Writers Guild of America standoff could open up opportunities for indie authors, Jim how changing the way you think can move you toward success, and Chris Fox explains the importance of ad spend, releases and targeted promotions. Question of the Week: What is the life you want to lead with your books, and what changes are you going to have to make to achieve it?

Could a reading list promo be added to your book marketing plan? Bryan and Jim are looking forward to the Sell More Books Summit which begins in less than 36 hours! This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Chris Duryea. Jim thanks our Patrons: Removed, Inharmonic, and More than Monsters. The Top Tips of the week are how organic traffic on Amazon is changing, why movement and creativity go hand-in-hand, and how to combine speed and quality to boost productivity. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Christian bookstores can resurrect sales, why local bookstores need your support, why Nora Roberts takes plagiarism so seriously, how sharing a booklist with you readers can put money in your pocket, and what Shashane Wallce did to jump sales from $50 to $5,000 a month in less than one year. Question of the Week: How might you use Books2Read Reading Lists as part of your book promotion?

Would you consider running a reader poll on genre preference? Bryan and Jim are looking forward to the Sell More Books Summit! This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Matthew Staggs. Bryan thanks our Patrons: Achieve Anything In Just One Year, How to Sex Your Snake, and Excelsior. The Top Tips of the week are how to tackle your first novel, why large print is a market you need to explore, and what tool can help you get a handle on worldbuilding. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how indie authors could benefit from Amazon’s antitrust-proofing, how Barnes and Noble’s new eInk could breathe life into their bottom line, why the new EU copyright hooplah might be a victory for authors, how you can make 70,000 words per week a reality, and who gets to decide if it’s sci-fi or not so much. Question of the Week: Have you ever checked in with your readers to see what genres they enjoy and what they like about your work? Why or why not?

Is there a point in your writing career where you would consider having an agent? Bryan and Jim celebrate FIVE years of the Sell More Books Show podcast! This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Trish Heinrich. Bryan thanks our Patrons: Stone Cold, Kiss Kill, and Cowgirl, Unexpectedly. The Top Tips of the week are why split testing for Bookbub is critical, how repurposing content can catch more readers, and the simplified royalty share option. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how indie authors could suffer the same fate as their videographer counterparts, why literary agents may not be your best bet, how Maria Mahaffey’s launch plan took her to #1—five times, how Amazon may be under-reporting paperback sales, and what steps took Yesenia Vargas from zero to hero with a write to market strategy and a mindset shift. Question of the Week: What purpose do you see agents filling in the 2019 publishing landscape? At what point in your publishing journey do you think you'd need an agent, if any?

How do you feel about category policing? This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Elise M Stone. Bryan thanks our Patrons: Awakening Forever, A Dragon among the Eagles, and The Hunted. The Top Tips of the week are how you can use meditation to improve creativity, why you should show some personality on Insta, and how emotions will help you defeat AI. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include why you should take note of the vending trend in the UK, how audiobooks are on the rise, what happened to the disappearing books on Amazon, why mis-categorized books hurt everyone, and what Ines Johnson did to skyrocket her income. Question of the Week: How do you think Amazon should handle the problem of books populating categories they don't belong in?

What options to authors have to increase income, besides advertising on Amazon? This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Dave. Bryan thanks our Patrons: The Top Tips of the week are how to simplify your Amazon pre-orders, how does Nora Roberts crank out so many books, and why Bookfunnel exclusive content is such a boon. We have an Honorable Mention story about what happens to bad little book pirates. The 5 News stories that matter most to indies this week include how Barnes and Noble coupons can give you an edge, what happened with the white-washed RITAs, why a Facebook Group might be the free marketing your book launch needs, where is Data Guy’s data, and how Alana Terry doubled her income with an ad-supported wide release. Question of the Week: If you challenged yourself to double your book income without using Amazon Ads, what would be your strategy and why?

Should the general public provide Amazon with quality control? Bryan is attending a mastermind retreat and Jim welcomes his guest host, Cecelia Mecca. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is John Box. Jim thanks our Patrons are Prometheus Rising, Triumviratus, and Dead Still. The Top Tips include why relevant hashtags are so important on Instagram, how Amazon ads improvements will help indies get more bang for their bucks, and what Bookfunnel’s “buy” button will do for you. The five Hot News stories for indie authors this week include what happened to Blasty, how Audible’s new Spanish-language platform will impact authors, what are the pros and cons of Amazon’s new quality dashboard, why Patreon has rolled out a new tier system, and how indie authors can compete with trad-pubbed authors for the top spots on the charts. Question of the Week: What do you think is the purpose of Amazon's new "quality dashboard"? And do you think it'll be helpful or potentially abusive for authors?

What do you think of the “in-depth” episode? Avoiding contests and list-building ads may help you to preserve a more organic email list, according to author LJ Shen in a post on the Self Publishing Formula blog. Shen says she spends a “good amount of time,” on social media, feeling that her time is not any more valuable than her readers’. She gathers newsletter followers organically and does not run contests or advertisements to gain new subscribers. She asks for followers on Amazon, BookBub and Facebook, through links available on her website and her Amazon and BookBub author pages. Shen recently used her list to pick up 1,400 Amazon reviews on one of her books in the first 30 days of release. Question of the Week: What do you think of this new every-other-week format? Should we keep it? Trash it? Expand it?

How has the new copyright law impacted your decision to copyright (or not) your work? Jim and Bryan celebrate the thaw. Bryan is holding a “deep dive” into simplifying Amazon ads, click the link below to sign up. This week’s Happy Books Review Winner is Darren Sapp. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons: The Unknown Devil, A Turn for the Worse, and Leading Effectively: Proven Leadership. The Top Tips include what new channels Draft2Digital added, why it’s important to examine the reasons behind your priority list, and what benefits you may experience from organic email lists. Honorable Mention goes to why Amazon is pulling down its popups. The Big Five news stories for indies this week are why there seems to be an outrage in support of piracy, what you may be losing when you fail to file for copyright, how Kimbra Swain took her love of the story straight to the bank, how Reedsy’s new Discovery service will help indies, and how repackaging delivered Kevin McLaughlin the #1 he needed and a fresh audience for his backlist. Question of the Week: Will the landmark Supreme Court decision on copyright change whether or not you decide to copyright your book? Why or why not?

Episode 257 - Chirp, Amazon Ads, and the Nebula Controversy

What does the new audiobook world look like for you and your titles? Bryan is excited to report on what is happening in the author community right now! Jim discusses the effects of Mercury in retrograde. This week’s Happy Books Review winner is Crissy Moss. Our Featured Patrons: Shadow Raiders, Strings of Subversion, and Fighting to Survive. The Top Tips this week include how advanced reader feedback can improve your standalones, why a reading plan is just as important as a writing plan, and what can go wrong with ghostwriters. We have an Honorable Mention story is the incredible tale of an author who could win $100,000 to ditch her smartphone. The big five news stories that matter most to indie authors include how the Books-a-Million closure will affect indies, why establishment sci-fi authors are attacking 20Booksto50K, which tools are providing Dean M. Cole with the keywords that jumpstarted his earnings, what steps did Kristen Oliphant take to jump from $100 per month of writing income to a steady five-figures, and how Bookbub’s new discount audiobooks will impact the market. Question of the Week: How do you think BookBub's Chirp will change the audiobook landscape over the next 12 months? Do you have any books currently locked up by ACX's 7-year contract?

Do you have a strategy to deal with plagiarism of you books? Bryan is back and recovering from his soccer-related concussion. Jim gives an update on the progress on synthetic audio books. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is William Oday. The featured Patrons for this episode include Gone, Inharmonic, and Kept In The Dark. The Hot Tips for you are why dictation could be the productivity tool you need, why you should put your phone in airplane mode when you’re on the ground, and how GoCreate.me can help bring order to your online chaos. The five News stories that matter most to the indie community include what you need to know about author blogs, how Kaitlin Bellamy is creating her success one baby step at a time, why creating an ideal reader avatar is critical to your writing, which steps Paul Park took to move his writing into the four-figure lane, and when plagiarism is OK—spoiler alert—never. Question of the Week: If you found out that your books had been plagiarized, what would you do to handle the situation?

If you wrote a choose your own adventure style book, what format would you choose? Jim welcomes guest host Mark Lefebvre from Draft2Digital. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is RJ Beam. Jim thanks our Featured Patrons: The Thing Speaks for Itself, The Cordova Vector, and Somebody's Darling. The top tips include how to get the most out of your Author Central profile, what steps you can take to grow an email list from zero, and why the superfan is a myth. The news stories that matter most to indie authors this week are why AI is getting dangerously good, who is profiting from the new choose your own audio books, what steps Brianna Boes took to increase reader engagement and boost her launch, why Patreon is flip-flopping, and how testing several methods led Bridget Baker to success with Facebook ads. Question of the Week: Would you ever want to write a chose your own ending style book? And in what format would you want to do it?

What question would change your author business forever? Listen in as Jim and Bryan share the latest in publishing and marketing news. If you have yet to leave a review, then now is the perfect time to review us on iTunes. Thanks so much for listening! 

How are your books selling internationally? Jim and Bryan experience a little technical difficulty with the audio at the beginning of the podcast, and Bryan’s Relentless Authors Advertise update is missing. Pop over to Bryan’s Friday podcast to get all the details on the RAA project. This week’s Happy Books Review winner is Milissa Story. Jim thanks our featured Patrons: Write! Shonen Manga, Star Flame: A Story From the Meclauks, and More than Monsters. The Hot Tips this week include how to expand your online ebook sales by targeting more retailers, how to improve your ability to edit your own work, and why a test drive of PublishDrive may be the easiest way to experiment with Amazon ads. The Top News stories that matter most to the indie publishing community are what reader benefits that will come from Scribd hitting the one million mark, how online book buyings affects cover design needs, what steps did Eliza Boyd take to move her author career to an intentional path, how one indie author is knee deep in movie deals, and why Sarah Williams inspiring success story is an indie win. Question of the Week: What kind of success have your books had outside of the U.S. and off of Amazon?

If you have a Return on Investment number that you consider “good” - how did you arrive at that figure? Bryan and Jim report on the effects of the Polar Vortex in the Midwest. Bryan gives an encouraging update on the Relentless Authors Advertise podcast and thanks all the listeners who are joining the experiment. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Rebecca Markus. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons: Awakening Forever, Guardian of the Grail, and The Reluctant Detective. The Hot Tips include the good of reader give-and-take, how to bridge the gap between writing on the side and writing full time, and why focusing on fewer tasks is actually more efficient. Our Honorable Mention story explains why pre-order reviews have disappeared as quickly as they arrived. The Top News stories affecting the indie community this week are the short-lived Barnes and Noble ad experiment, what ill tidings are reported in the 2018 Authors Guild Survey, how Christina DeMara used hashtags to increase book sales, why Wattpad is diving into publishing, and what steps Jen Thorn took to see success with her new pen name in just 30 days. Question of the Week: Do you know how to calculate Return on Investment (ROI)? Even though even 1% ROI is a profit, is there a certain number of ROI you deem to be Good? How did you come upon that number?

Is there an unspoken agreement for only positive feedback when a reader accepts an advance copy for review? Bryan shares progress on the launch of his new podcast - Relentless Authors Advertise, which soft-launched two weeks ago and is gaining momentum. Jim reports that in his consults with authors through the SmarterAuthors platform he is seeing the positive effects of paid ads for his clients. This week’s Happy Books Review winner is Jonathan Small. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons: Cowgirl, Unexpectedly, The 30-Day Writing Challenge, and A Dragon Among the Eagles: A Novel of the Roman Empire. This week’s Top Tips include why faster is better for the Wordslinger, which audiobooks could lead to perfect matches with readers, and how to get more mileage from your Facebook pixel. The news stories that matter most to the indie community this week are the down and dirty business of ARCs, how truth is stranger than fiction in a crazy real-life poisoning plot, John Weston demonstrates what you can actually accomplish with focused writing and publishing, how Amazon is giving the trad pubs a wake-up call, and how Miranda Honfleur used scheduled releases and paid promos to hit her six-figure income goals. Question of the Week: Do you feel as though giving out Advance Reader Copies is unethical because it's more likely to lead to positive reviews? Or do you feel as though the practice is completely legitimate and why?

What’s your take on “new age” concepts that may or may not help you progress toward your goals? Have you? Would you? The guys celebrate their 250th episode by presenting their 250th episode! Big thanks to all the listeners and subscribers who have, and do, support the show. Click on over to iTunes and leave a rating or review to congratulate Jim and Bryan on this milestone. This Thursday, Jan 17, Bryan will be hosting a genre-specific class for Mystery/Thriller/Suspense writers to reveal tips to help sell more books in those markets and there will be prizes, too! If you haven’t had a chance to talk to Jim about your specific book head over to SmarterAuthors and schedule your one-on-one call with Jim. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Thomas Herold. This week’s Featured Patrons: Prometheus Rising, Flotsam, and Kiss Kill. The Hot Tips include how Facebook pixels can help you squeeze more out of Bookfunnel, why Publish Drive could be the free formatting tool you’ve been searching for, and what keeping secrets can do to ramp up the tension in your writing. The Top Five news stories that matter to indie authors this week include how a new Netflix show on reducing clutter is driving authors nuts, how Amazon is now allowing readers to leave reviews on preorders, why a launch and tell strategy could be the method for you, what an iBooks app for Android devices could mean for authors, and how vision boards helped Brandon Ellis to stay on track and reach his 5-figure sales goal. Question of the Week: How woo-woo are you (-you)? Would you (or have you ever) used concepts like Vision Boards, Affirmations, or Visualization to help achieve your goals?

Here's what you'll learn in Episode 249:

- How authors can protect themselves when buying book covers

- Why a calendar might be the most important writer’s tool

- How using video chat can spark writing creativity

- What advantages indie-publishers have over traditional

- How an author turned around a dollar a month in sales into a part-time living

- What Written Word Media thinks will happen in 2019

- What one author did to hit Trout status and fulfill a writing dream

- How the new Amazon ads platform will impact your marketing

Question of the Week: What was your first reaction to the new Amazon Advertising dashboard? How has your opinion changed (if at all) since you've had a chance to look around inside?

Take a look at Bryan’s and Jim’s predictions for the coming year and give them a “thumbs-up” or “thumbs-down.” The guys have mixed things up for the first show of 2019 and are looking forward to your feedback. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is Isabel Peterson. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons: How to Sex Your Snake, Guild of Tokens: Initiate, and The Strange. And a huge “thank you” to everyone who supported the show in 2018! Play along as Bryan and Jim debate the likelihood of the Top 25 Predictions for 2019. Will you pick TRUE or FALSE? Bryan reveals his BIG THING for 2019 and invites all of you to follow along. Happy New Year to all of our Sell More Books Show listeners! Question of the Week: What do you disagree with for our 2019 predictions? Also, what should Bryan call his new show?

What was the highlight of your indie publishing journey this year? Bryan and Jim review the highs and lows of indie publishing in 2018 through the 5 biggest stories of the past year. Bryan and Jim thank all the Patrons who supported the Sell More Books Show this year. There are a few more sponsorship opportunities available for the Sell More Books Show Summit in 2019. The Top news stories that affected indie authors in 2018: How did the GDPR implementation change our industry, what are the side-effects of the Createspace to KDP migration, which scandals hit our community this past year, why the pay-to-play world deserves your attention, and which success stories made the “wrap-up” list. Question of the Week: What was your own biggest personal publishing story in 2018 and why?

What’s the "sweet spot" number of rewrites before a blurb is ready to post on a retailer sales page? Jim welcomes Bryan back to the studio. Bryan reports on the benefits of being completely disconnected from the internet for three days. The Sell More Books Show Summit is officially SOLD OUT! The winner of Clark Chamberlain’s outline service is Chad Boyer. The Happy Book Reviews winner this week is Mary Hamilton. Bryan thanks this week’s featured Patrons: How to Become a Productivity Guru, The Darby Shaw Chronicles Box Set, and Mayhem and Murder. Jim mentions Honoree Corder’s new course - You Must Write a Book. The Hot Tips this week include why word-of-mouth marketing is essential in 2019, how to find the focus you need to increase productivity, and which unprofitable niches you’ll want to avoid. The News stories that matter most to indie authors are what new tricks is Barnes & Noble up to, how to increase royalty earnings on Apple audiobooks, Erin St. Charles repacking success story, how great blurbs help Svetlana Melyan relaunch her YA paranormal series, and why ads are now a do or die for authors. Question of the Week: How many rewrites do you usually do of your book descriptions before you post them to the e-retailers? Are you usually pretty happy with them when they're finished?

When you examine your author career, how do you define success? Bryan is taking a mental health break this week and Jim welcomes his co-hosts J. Thorn and Zach Bohannon. Jim thanks our Featured Patrons: Rebel Song, Triumviratus, and Level Up. This week’s Happy Book Review Winner is Tory Element. The Top Tips include why Amazon Web Services could be your next email newsletter service, how meditation can help you access creative energy, and how to view your marketing strategy as a marathon—not a sprint. The News stories that matter most to indie authors this week are how an Australian author kept the royalties she deserved, what are YouTube Stories and how can you use them, what Matt Staggs did to hit his first $500 dollar month, why author self-education is such a critical piece of the success puzzle, and congratulations to indie author and podcaster Mark Dawson on realizing the million dollar dream. Question of the Week: What's your definition of success as an author? Is it a dollar amount per month? Is it 500 reviews? The only answer you can't give is “when a reader enjoys my book.”

If a genie could grant you one of the following, which would you want: Amazon Charts ranking, New York Times bestseller ranking, or 1,000 reviews on the book of your choice? Bryan encourages everyone to listen to the Self-Publishing Decisions Webinar Replay and set some goals for 2019. Long-time friend of the show Clark Chamberlain is currently running a sale for his outstanding outline service and Bryan is going to purchase one and raffle it off - listen to the podcast for details. Jim reminds everyone that an Author Marketing Club lifetime membership is still available for $97. The Happy Book Reviews Feature winner this week is Nicki Davis. Bryan thanks this week’s Featured Patrons: Planet Dead One Shot: The Briggs Boys, Strings of Subversion, and Mayhem & Murder. Hot Tips for indie authors include why mental endurance is important to a writer, how slow and steady can win the race, and how to prioritize writing even with a day job. Honorable Mention goes to Joanna Penn and her amazing decade. The news stories that matter most this week are why Mystery Writers of America un-awarded, how to make a go of publishing/aggregating, Dorene Stalter's likes and interests author success story, how to hit the NYT bestseller list, and how JA Culican found success around the world. Question of the Week: What would you rather have: a spot on the Amazon Charts, a spot on the New York Times bestseller list, or 1,000 reviews on a single book and why?

What do you think the secret is to local indie bookstore survival? Bryan discusses the benefits of matching family snowsuits and Jim hopes all of you had a wonderful holiday. Thursday, November 29, Bryan, Jim, J. Thorn, and Zach Bohannon will be hosting a free webinar designed to help you achieve the sales and success you need. (Link in the show notes) Over on Author Marketing Club there is a fantastic sale in progress! The Happy Book Reviews Feature winner is Holly Ostara. Bryan thanks our featured Patrons: WordPress Security 101: How to Secure Your Website Against Hackers, Awakening Forever, and Flotsam. The Hot Tips this week include why commenting on a Netflix Facebook page could be a fun strategy, how beta reader diversity can help your writing, and what Amazon Giveaways can do for your marketing. The news stories that are important to indies right now are the benefits of giving your books to people in need, why Bryan thinks indie bookstores are on an upsurge, the Honey Phillips success story, how Jim thinks the indie author journey will differ from indie musicians, and how research paid off for author Sadie Moss. Question of the Week: When's the last time you went into an independent bookstore? How do you think the indie bookstores around you have stuck around for the long haul?

What would be your perfect sales reporting software? After sharing their Thanksgiving plans, Jim and Bryan award Nathan Goodman the latest Happy Book Reviews feature. They also thanked their patrons Sales Success Stories, Nolan Walker and the Superiors Squad, and How to Self-Publish a Children's Book. The tips included creating a "to-don't list," writing with audio in mind, and why creativity may need a walk. This week's stories include checking your Createspace password, the latest on Amazon buy buttons for books, Amazon's newest sales reporting dashboard, why Mark Dawson thinks Amazon is headed for a pay-to-play platform, and how Jami Albright knocked her latest launch out of the park. Question of the Week: What features do you think have been missing from book sales reporting software? Do you think you'll use Amazon's new KDP Reports often?

Do you have a financial plan to get you through lean months? Jim welcomes Bryan back from the 20Booksto50K conference in Las Vegas. This week’s Happy Book Reviews feature winner is Pete Bauer. Bryan thanks our featured Patrons: Doubt the Stars, A Turn for the Worse, and Born Under a Bad Sign. The Hot Tips for indies this week are how indie authors can be better indie publishers, why negative reviews can boost sales, and what a marketing education can do your for your titles. The News you don’t want to miss includes how AI book translation is changing the future, what happened at Bowker, what steps did Sara Celi take to eradicate her impostor syndrome, where did all the ebooks go and what is Amazon doing about it, and how to fit your passion into your profits. Question of the Week: How do you plan for months where you'll earn less from your writing than usual?

If you had one "author wish" what would it be? Our Happy Book Reviews feature winner this week is George Sirois. Bryan thanks our wonderful Patrons: Fighting to Survive, The Hunted, and Leading Effectively: Proven Leadership. This week, Bryan talked success stories with nine awesome special guests. Expect insights, entertainment, and wildly varying amounts of white noise. Enjoy! Question of the Week: If you could get a genie to grant you your perfect author success story, what would it be? Please describe it in your response.

Do you give great advice? Do you wish you’d take it? Bryan reports on the benefits of his mental health day last week. Jim talks about preparing for a speaking road-tour in 2019. This week’s Happy Book Reviews feature winner is S.J. Pajonas. Bryan thanks our featured Patrons: Stone Cold, Dorothy and the Cane of Destiny: Book One in the Elderly Chronicles, and The Life Actionbook: Tools and Actions for Personal Development. The Hot Tips you need include how to set home office boundaries to increase productivity, why pre-planning can help you reap more benefits from writer’s conferences, and why writing stories of different lengths can broaden your audience. Our Honorable Mention news story is a great new subscription bundle which includes Scribd with the New York Times. The top News stories affecting indie authors this week include how Dragon Professional has abandoned the Mac platform, why James Patterson is adding Facebook Messenger to his next book launch, what happened to some authors buy buttons on Amazon, who unmasked Data Guy, and how John Logsdon leveraged his writing into a $20K per month business. Question of the Week: Have you ever given advice to another author you haven't taken yourself? How has it felt when that advice worked like gangbusters?

Would you knowingly write a book in a poorly selling genre? Jim welcomes his cohost Alex Newton from K-Lytics. This week’s winner of the Happy Book Reviews feature is Katherine Bogle. Jim thanks the featured Patrons: Achieve Anything In Just One Year, Dead Still, and The Busy Busy Author: Writing Faster and More Efficiently to Fit Around your Busy Life. The Hot Tips this show are why you need a good quality author photo, what path do readers take to find your titles and become superfans, and how a good author bio can strengthen your brand. The big News stories for the indie author world this week include how audiobooks are taking off in Canada, how will a mega-store closure affect traditional publishing, why tiny niche markets can be great for sales, what is Kobo gaining by working with Walmart, and an author success story on rebranding and revitalizing. Question of the Week: Have you, or would you ever, write a book into a genre you knew wasn't selling that well? And if so, why?

Have you stumbled across some unusual keywords that have given you surprisingly positive results? “Happy Birthday!” to Bryan, who celebrated this past weekend. This week’s Happy Book Reviews Feature winner is Dan Thompson. Bryan and Jim share a hilarious post from William Oday—the ultimate Sell More Books Show spinoff—Bigfoot Big Heart: A Steamy Cleaned Romance. Bryan thanks the Patrons - Cold War: Alien Incursion and Guardian of the Grail. The Hot Tips include why the best keywords may not be your first choice, new ways to win back old email subscribers, and why price pulsing on ebooks can be an effective strategy. The Top News stories that matter to indies this week include the pros and cons of Barnes and Noble’s new print book pre-order feature, how recent changes at Apple could affect authors and increase income, author Katherine Bogle’s success story on rapid release and writing to market, Jim’s thoughts on Apple’s opportunities in the audiobook market, and how author Elana Johnson made massive financial gains in a single year. Question of the Week: Which unexpected advertising keywords and targets have provided you with results for your books and why didn't you think they'd work?

If you had the opportunity to pick a spinoff for a specific market from one of your series, which one would you choose? Jim is still scheduling 15-minute consultations over on AuthorAccelerate.com, hop on over and set up your one-on-one. Bryan had a great time on Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn and shares his awesome experience. This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is RJ Beam. Bryan and Jim thank our featured Patrons: We Own the Sky, Faster Than Falling, and Leaving Eva. The Hot Tips include how to sell books without selling your soul, why Google docs could be the workflow solution you’ve been searching for, and why NaNoWriMo is worth a try. The News stories that matter most to Indies this week are how a change in VAT could line your pockets with extra cash, what issues will likely cause Wattpad’s token system to fail, how Kyla Steinkraus reached $5k in monthly earnings with a write-to-market spinoff, what’s up at Draft2Digital and why you should care, and how author Aidy Aaward exploded her income with a few key strategies. Question of the Week: What would be your Spinoff to Market? Also, what would be a Spinoff to Market for Jim and Bryan with the Sell More Books Show? (i.e. Shawty and the Hustla in the Wild Wild West)

If Amazon is willing to ditch long-string categories, what else do you think they will jettison? Jim welcomes Bryan back from his West Coast mastermind retreat. The guys celebrate their 700,000th podcast download. This week’s Happy Book Review feature winner is David Mark Brown. Bryan thanks the featured patrons God and Gigs, Star Flame, and Peppermint Mocha Murder. The top Tips this week include how to successfully schedule the habit of writing, how stats can help you master paid advertising, and why author endorsements might not be out of your reach. Here are the News stories you won’t want to miss: How the subscription model of book sales is flourishing in Sweden, why the Wonky Donkey kicked Fear from the top spot, which tips Craig Zerf followed to double his income in August, Dave Chesson explains what is happening with Amazon categories, and how going wide helped J.D. Brown gain a big boost for a backlist series. Question of the Week: Amazon may be getting rid of longer category strings on your sales pages. What do you think is the next big change Amazon will put into practice?

Is Kboards.com going to start publishing all your stuff? Do you have a nickname for guest host Craig Martelle? Bryan is on vacation and Jim has the pleasure of guest hosting with prolific sci-fi writer Craig Martelle. Jim and Craig discuss the 20Booksto50K Facebook group that Craig manages, a group that recently hit 25,000 members and adds about 50 new members per day. Jim thanks all the show Patrons which can be viewed at SellMoreBooksShow.com/books. Your Top Tips this week include why you shouldn’t overdo the “show don’t tell,” how Facebook is improving you ability to interact in groups, why Story Origin could help improve your also-boughts. The news stories that you definitely need to hear this week are why the French don’t approve of indie pubbing, how Rachel Medhurst moved her sales without a rapid-release strategy, who’s been taking bribes to make negative Amazon reviews disappear, how Michelle Lancaster found success in writing pulp fiction, and how Kboards.com’s new TOS may be driving user to jump ship. Question of the week: Was the legal wording put in at Kboards.com just legal mumbo-jumbo, or was it really put in so they could do things with your content? Sub-question: What is Craig Martelle's SMBS show name? Crazy Craig Martelle? We need something better than that!

Will developmental editing or marketing give you the biggest bang for your buck on book one? Would you publish without an in-depth edit? Bryan and Jim have a great show for you this week! Bryan’s getting ready to take a little time off and Jim will have a special guest host for you next week. Jim notes that his Author Accelerate conferences have revealed that a lot of authors are in the wrong category. Winner of the Happy Book Reviews feature is Chuck Manley. Bryan thanks our featured Patrons: SPA Girls - How to Kick Author Overwhelm in the Butt!, The Thing Speaks for Itself, and Dark as the Grave. This week’s hot Tips include how to manage distractions and write more, what authors think the cost of hiring editors, and why patience is the name of the game with AMS ads. The stories that matter most to indie authors are why Target is redacting certain words in book descriptions, how Instafreebie’s rebrand could help you, how slow and steady release schedules can lead to author success, why ad spend and careful monitoring is critical to success, and which strategies and choices helped Kevin Butman to a successful book launch. Question of the Week: Is it more important to spend money on developmental and copyediting on your first book or to spend it on marketing like book covers? If you had to choose between waiting to publish or going forth without the heavy editing, which would you choose and why?

How does your author business set the tone for your lifestyle? Do you need to make changes to your business plan to achieve the lifestyle of your dreams? Jim and Bryan ask everyone to stay safe during the approaching hurricane on the east coast. This week's Happy Book Reviews winner is Nadja Baer. Bryan thanks our featured Patrons: The Author's Guide to Ebook Publishing, More than Monsters, and A Band Director's Guide to Everything Tuba: A Collection of Interviews with the Experts. Don’t miss this weeks Top Tips including how to avoid the sophomore slump with your second book, why dividing your time between projects will lead to long term success, and when to use reader surveys to foster community. The “Don’t Miss” news stories are why Amazon purchased Tapzo, which strategies can help you hit the $1,000 per month mark, what’s up with AMS ads now, how Amy Linnabary Meyer got to a five-figure month, and what does Jeff Bezos hold for the future. Question of the Week: What kind of a lifestyle do you want connected to your author business? What kind of changes would you need to make to your publishing and marketing to make that lifestyle happen?

If one of your books or series exploded with unimaginable monetary success, would you continue to write in that world or would you pursue other passions? Jim is back from Montana and he and Bryan have a great show for you. Bryan has a limited time sale on Best Page Forward book descriptions over at https://www.sellingforauthors.com/laborday18 ! Some of the Sell More Books Summit speakers are announced. Jim is still taking submissions for the Author Accelerate 31 Covers revamp! This week’s Happy Book Reviews winner is JB Wocoski. Bryan thanks our wonderful featured patrons: The Efficient Writer, Taking Charge - Making your Healthcare Appointments Work for You, and Nightblade. Here are the Hot Tips this week: Why you should disregard one-star reviews, how authors can re-title a series without missing a beat, and why it’s important to connect with influencers in a genuine way. We have an Honorable Mention news story that reveals the true nature of Ian Fleming’s indie author roots. You won’t want to miss these Top News Stories including how traditional publishers are experimenting with more aggressive ebook pricing, how Walmart and Kobo are making their move with competitor price matching, author Jacki James shares which strategies helped her get to a four-figure per month income, how two authors turned a zombie snafu into a marketing boon, and which writing strategies helped author Brent Nichols move past his backlist and into profits. Question of the Week: If you had your big-time unicorn success with one of your books or series, would you continue to write in that genre or would you spend time on your other artistic passions as well?

Happy Labor Day weekend! Enjoy this bonus episode, an audio-only replay recording of Wednesday's How to Optimize Your Amazon Sales Page to Sell More Books Forever webinar. We've included the slides and the video edition in the show notes. If you'd like to take advantage of Bryan's Best Page Forward bulk description sale, click and select Add to Cart before Fri., Sept. 7th: https://www.sellingforauthors.com/laborday18/ Each level provides at least one special bonus, including the five-pack bonus of three group coaching sessions with Write to Market master Chris Fox! We hope you enjoy this special episode.

How can you overcome your own mental roadblocks to take your writing career to the next level? Jim is out fishing and Bryan has a wonderful guest co-host—Adam Croft. Bryan and Adam get off course discussing cider, but bring it back on topic with Adam’s new nonfiction book, The Indie Author Mindset. This week’s Happy Book Reviews feature winner is Steeven R. Orr. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons The Strange, Excelsior, and How to Sex Your Snake. Some great tips this week include how to republish on Kobo without losing your reviews, which overhaul strategies helped launch one author’s career, and how to up your click-through rates on Bookbub ads. We have an Honorable Mention story this week about which types of entertainment kids are into besides video games. The Top News stories you’ll want to hear are which new promotional tools can help your next release, how soon you’ll have to move your books from Createspace to KDP, an author success story with quadrupled sales, why tax law changes could add to you bottom line, and what strategy one author used to double page reads. Question of the Week: How do you think your mindset has held you back in your indie author career? What would you have to do to overcome that mental hurdle to take your career to the next level?

What's your best "sky is falling" clickbait headline for the author community? Jim and Bryan are back in action, and they're here to announce the Author Accelerate 31 Covers promotion, which gives you a chance to get a professional cover tweak! After thanking their patrons Hypercage, The Secret Blush, and Sell More Books With Less Social Media, the dynamic duo provided tips on writing out of town, organizing your email lists, and building your brand. News stories included the launch of the Walmart/Kobo online bookstore, the biggest international stories of the week, China Literature's recent film company purchase, one author's slow but steady path to success, why the sky isn't falling on Facebook, and how another author 30x'd his sales by buckling down and doing the work. This week's Question of the Week: What's the best made-up headline you can come up with about the latest terrible thing happening to the author community? (i.e. Amazon Now Requires Blood Sample to Join KDP Select)

What is a promotional technique you’ve used in the past that you're willing to give a second shot? Bryan and Jim talk about the importance of family time. This week’s Happy Book Reviews feature winner is StoryHack. Bryan thanks our Featured Patrons How to Drive Your Next Car Deal, A Christmas Gift, and The Last Verdict. Some great self-publishing tips include why frugality and creativity are a winning combination, how to make the most of squeeze pages, and which Gmail hacks can save you time. We have an Honorable Mention news story this week delving into the recent Mailerlite maelstrom. The Top Five news stories you need to know include why trad pub authors are taking a hit, how authors can take advantage of Amazon’s new video feature, a fantastic success story from Victoria Bright, which authors are the latest victims of Amazon’s Terms of Service crackdown, and why giving away free books can still lead to great sell-through royalties. Question of the Week: What's a promotional method you've tried in the past that didn't work that you'd consider giving your full effort on here in the present?