Mark Leslie Lefebvre's Blog, page 40

Episode 56 – Balance and Counterbalance with Katie Cross

In this episode, Mark speaks with Katie Cross, a writer, mother and out-door enthusiast.

On her website, Katie describes herself in this way: “I am a creator of worlds, destroyer of evil, and a born wordsmith bringing light to the dark night of those that need an escape.”

This is the perfect description for her, which you will get a solid taste of in the interview.

Before the interview, Mark welcomes new Patron Ember Casey, thanking her for her patronage of the Stark Reflections podcast. Ember and other patrons will have access to 27 patron-only posts, 3 special mini “Stark Reflections on other Podcasts” episodes and other additional audio and video content for as little as a coffee or two a month. If you are interested in the extra content or supporting the show, you can check it out at patreon.com/starkreflections.

Mark also shares a word about this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .

Learn more about Findaway Voices

. . . as part of his personal update, which includes:

2019 audiobook plansAn update on the progress with the recording of the audiobook for The 7 P’s of Publishing SuccessA detailed look at three different views of Mark’s 2018 writing income, broken down by type, format, and activity.



[image error]2018 Writing Income Type Overview

In the interview Mark and Katie talk about:

The inspiration behind the first YA Fantasy series that Katie wrote, which started with the novel Miss Mabel’s School for Girls, which was published in 2014



The Network Series (you can get book one for free)



The Wattpad-like platform that Katie first started releasing the book on in order to get honest feedback before she published itLearning how to read as an author rather than reading as a readerThe reason why Katie has the entire Antebellum series book covers designed and ready to go even though she hasn’t published them yetHow the Dragonmaster Trilogy was initially supposed to be part of the Antebellum Collection but became its own unique projectThe process of finding professionals to work with, through networking, slowly, over the yearsThe importance of Efficiency and IntentionThe concepts of balance and counterbalanceOutsourcing particular tasks, like housekeeping and accounting, to allow for prioritizing writing activities



The Dragonmaster Trilogy (FLAME is out and FLIGHT is coming soon)



The two businesses that Katie runs – the Fiction Business and the GhostWriting Business (ghost-writing non-fiction books for high end entrepreneurs who want to write a book but either don’t want to do the writing or aren’t able to)The scheduling for tasks such as social media, email, and interacting with fansThe importance of scheduling “self-care” time into each dayThe community of about 200 people that Katie and her family are a part ofThe daily hiking routine that is important for the entire family (including the dogs)How Katie runs Facebook ads for her fiction and how much she spends per month on these adsThe two distinct mailing lists that Katie has for her different fan bases (YA Fantasy and Chick Lit), and how she interacts with and cares for the people on each listThe importance of talking to the reasons why reasons gravitate towards each of those unique genresThe advice that Katie would give to her herself when she was first starting, which includes finding a good mentor



[image error]Katie and Mark in a Facebook Live video from Superstars Writing Seminars 2018

After the interview, Mark reflects on the concept of Balance and Counterbalance.

Links of Interest:

Katie Cross WritingKatie Cross ChickLitKatie Cross GhostwritingA March 2017 interview Mark did with Katie for the Kobo Writing Life PodcastFindaway VoicesSuperstars Writing SeminarsPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections SurveyJeff Goins BlogWattpadThe 7 P’s of Publishing SuccessKilling It On Kobo

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“Magic captivated me the moment I held my first book,” Katie says. ” I lived many lives as I scoured story after story. Now, I write fantasy books so you can seize the light, hold magic in your fingertips, and forget the shadows of real life to live your wildest adventure.”

Katie Cross grew up in the mountains of Idaho, where she still loves to play when she gets the chance. If she’s not writing, you can find her trail running with her husband, playing with her two kids, or curled up with a good book and a cup of chai. 

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 55 – Forward Momentum While Looking Back

In this solo episode, Mark takes a look at his 2018 writing and publishing goals and shares the hits, the misses and the alterations that took place in the past twelve months.

He feels it is important to remind writers that if they are already beating themselves up for not completing all the previous year’s goals, that he didn’t hit all his goals; that he failed at most of them; that he screwed up along the way; that he made mistakes. But also that he adapted several of the goals he’d set as I went along. And he inserted new goals mid-year.

That can happen. It will happen. It’s how you deal with those changes that can make the difference between seeing it as a complete failure, or seeing it as an ongoing work in progress.

Mark then says a word about this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .

Learn more about Findaway Voices

Mark first talks about the goals he had set at the beginning of 2018 and how he did with them:

1) Write a non-fiction book called INDIE PUBLISHING INSIDER SECRETS
2) Finish the sequel to A CANADIAN WEREWOLF IN NEW YORK
3) Finish the sequel to EVASION
4) Pitch and write a traditionally published book SPIRITS UNTAPPED – to Dundurn
5) Compile a new full book short story collection
6) Stay retired

He then shares a number of goals for 2019:

1) Publish Audiobook for 7 P’s of Publishing Success
2) Publish Audiobook for Killing It on Kobo
3) Finish writing and Publish eBook/Print and audio for Indie Publishing Insider Secrets
4) Publish Audiobook for ACWWINY
5) Publish Audiobook for I, DEATH
6) Publish Audiobook for ONE HAND SCREAMING (story collection)
7) Write and release SCREAMING SKULLS: And Other Haunted Objects in eBook/print and audio
8) Finish the first draft of FEAR AND LONGING IN LOS ANGELES
9) Book new speaking gigs – Ideally, another keynote either in the last half of 2019 or the first half of 2020

Mark also shares his 2018 eBook sales percentages:

Kindle –45.97%Kobo20.68%StoryBundle20.27%BundleRabbit6.80%Apple3.25%Nook2.30%Direct Sales0.30%Google0.21%Scribd0.12%Tolino0.06%Smashwords0.04%



[image error]Mark’s eBook sales breakdown for 2018

Mark comments on the importance of Kindle being less than half of his income, and is happy that, though it is a significant percentage, that 54% of his sales come from multiple sources.

He also reflects on how the #3 and #4 platforms were BundleRabbit and StoryBundle – two collaborative publishing platforms.

Mark talks about what he achieved and what he didn’t achieve in 2018. He talks about what he did well and what he didn’t do well.

He also mentions a few of the accomplishments, which did include publishing a few full sized books, 8 eBooks and a traditionally published book in 2018.

[image error] Mark and Shayna Krishnasamy at the book launch for Macabre Montreal (A ghostly face is captured in a reflective surface behind them) – click the image to read about that

Mark closes off the podcast by reminding writers of the importance of focusing on the forward momentum made, even where a goal wasn’t completed. If there was forward momentum, even a little bit, that is a step in the right direction.

Links of Interest:

Episode 49 – Rambling Across America with Tommy RayEpisode 9 – Collaborative Publishing with BundleRabbit (with Chuck Heintzleman)Episode 27 – Jamie Ferguson on Bundles, Curation, and CollaborationArticle with a short video of Mark’s 2014 Talk on The Future of Publishing (Hint, Hint – It’s About Collaboration)BundleRabbit The Books Gone Bad BundleThe Crimes, Capers and Rule-Breakers BundleThe Haunted BundleAmazing Monster Tales (An Anthology published using BundleRabbit) StoryBundleDraft2Digital Announces Shared AccountsFindaway VoicesMark’s BooksThe 7 P’s of Publishing SuccessKilling It On KoboPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections Survey

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 54 – Personable Publishing with Lindsay Buroker

In the final episode of 2018, Mark interviews Science Fiction and Fantasy author Lindsay Buroker, a successful author who has been indie publishing for about eight years. 

[image error]Dragon Tear[image error]

Prior to the interview, Mark shares a short personal update and thanks new Patron, Michael Lister; he also mentions that he recently released the third special “Reflections on other Podcasts” episodes for Patrons, which appears at www.patreon.com/starkreflections. He also thanks those who reached out to him after hearing him on episode 408 of The Creative Penn Podcast which was released on Dec 23rd.

Mark then says a word about this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .

In their conversation, Mark and Lindsay talk about:

The main differences between when Lindsay first started out more than eight years ago releasing her first novel, The Emperor’s Edge (while also producing her first podcast), and today



[image error]Lindsays first three novels



The joy of getting to a place where each book’s sales are enough to ensure paying for the cost of productionThe pros and cons of writing in multiple series in different genresReasons why Lindsay released a new series of novels under a fresh and then-unknown pen name in 2014Managing three mailing lists for the different reader bases that Lindsay has acquired over the years for different genres and pen namesMaintaining a very personable persona in the mailing lists and in discussions with her fansThe benefit of hosting a podcast with two other people for the SF & Fantasy Marketing Podcast, compared with the solo podcast (Saavy Self-Publishing) that Lindsay created many years earlierWhat Lindsay gets out of her guests from being one of the hosts of the SF & Fantasy podcastWhy she is happy that she didn’t experience a lot of luck early on in her writing success, and, instead, slowly built up her readership over time and how they can become loyal fans



[image error]Lindsay with J Thorn, Joanna Penn, and Zach Bohannon (Co-Authors on a Train)



Lindsay’s one experience writing collaboratively and whether or not she plans on doing that againSome of the reasons why, despite her success, Lindsay hasn’t yet hired a personal or virtual assistantThe early adoption of audiobooks that Lindsay invested in years before most indie authors began creating audiobooksWhat Lindsay would tell her younger self who was just beginning as a writer



[image error]Mark & Lindsay at 20Booksto50K Vegas

After the interview, Mark reflects on the personal connection that Lindsay enjoys and maintains as an important and authentic element of her author journey.

Links of Interest:

Lindsay Buroker’s Website Lindsay’s Facebook PageLindsay on Twitter The Creative Penn Podcast Episodes Episode 317 – Co-Authors on a Train (with Lindsay)Episode 408 – Tips for Long Term Publishing Success (with Mark) Science Fiction & Fantasy Marketing PodcastFindaway VoicesWMG Publishing Anthology WorkshopRUSH – Hold Your Fire Album InfoPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections Survey



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Lindsay Buroker has early memories of convincing childhood friends, pets, and stuffed animals to play the roles of characters in her worlds, so it’s safe to say she’s been making up stories for a long time. She published her first novel, The Emperor’s Edge, in December of 2010 and has written and published more than 50 novels since then, most under her own name, but a few steamier ones under a pen name.

When she’s not writing, she’s usually hiking with her dogs, practicing yoga, playing tennis, or eating entirely too much dark chocolate (she only does one of those things truly well, and she will let you guess which it is).

She grew up in the Seattle area but has itchy feet and has moved several times over the years. She most recently landed in Bend, Oregon, where she and her dogs now have eighty acres to roam around on. Someday, she may even have a house on that land. 

If you’re interested in reading more of her work, you can download The Emperor’s Edge, Star Nomad, and Balanced on the Blade’s Edge for free in your favorite store. 

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The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 53 – The Co-Founders of Draft2Digital

In this episode, Mark interviews Aaron Pogue (President), Kris Austin (CEO) and Toby Nance (CTO), the co-founders of Draft2Digital about how they worked together and played off one another’s strengths to create the company.

[image error]Caricatures of Aaron, Kris, & Toby by Elyssa Dolinger

This episode is partially a response from a few listeners who heard Mark mention that he recently joined the D2D team, but they weren’t familiar with the company.

They asked if it might be possible to share a bit of information about what Draft2Digital is all about. What better way to learn that than starting with the company’s origin story directly from the three guys who worked together to make it happen.

If you’re not familiar with Draft2Digital, this will provide a decent introduction. And if you think you know Draft2Digital, perhaps there’ll also be some deeper info and insights for you to learn even more by pulling a bit of that curtain back on three gentlemen who usually prefer to operate behind the scenes at this author-friendly company.

Prior to the interview, Mark talks about the new announcement from this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices which is called VOICES PLUS.

Learn more about Findaway Voices

Mark then provides a personal update which includes his recent visit to Oklahoma City to visit the Draft2Digital office, his short story “The Ritual of the Drawing” which recently appeared in the anthology Amazing Monster Tales: Dawn of the Monsters.

[image error]Books2Read links for Amazing Monster Tales Vol 1: Dawn of the Monsters

Mark also mentions his recent appearances on a few other podcasts, including the Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast and the Disruptor Podcast.

In their conversation, Mark, Aaron, Kris and Toby talk about:

How Aaron has been a writer since he was six years old and how his interest in self-publishing led to his desire to have a tool to make it easy to publish



[image error]Some of the many novels Aaron Pogue has written. (Ghost Targets series & The Godlanders series)



The fact that the three of them became best friends in collegeThe initial “Google Doc to eBook” conversion tool that was a command line program that Aaron had requested Toby create for himHow that tool was the beginning of the collaboration between Aaron and Toby, and Kris to create a platform all authors could benefit fromThe business proposal Kris put together that involved making a product that gave authors power in the industryToby’s joking description of Aaron as both Draft2Digital’s first user and least supported userThe company’s goals to offer the best customer support of any of the other players in the industryThe importance of making the systems and systems easy for non-technical personsThe partnership of being there to help writers achieve their writing and publishing goalsThe origin of Universal Book Links from looking in detail at author problems that everyone knows about but nobody has time to work on (such as allowing the author a single link to their book where readers can choose the retailer where they’d like to purchase that book)How Books2Read links work better the more readers who use it (including the ability for users to set their own preferred store that Books2Read will automatically take them directly toThe recently announced Account Sharing Controls that allow for virtual assistants, for example, to manage some of an author’s metadata and assets without having access to their more sensitive information, such as banking informationThe things that they are each most looking forward to as we head into 2019

After the interview, Mark reflects on three things this conversation and his recent trip to Oklahoma City made him think about: Personal connections in a digital world, collaboration and being open minded.

[image error]Mark and Kelsie Stelting, OKC author, hanging out at D2D

Links of Interest:

Draft2Digital D2D BlogD2D Announcement about Shared Accounts Findaway Voices Voices Plus Announcement Books2Read Sample Links:Aaron Pogue’s Novel – Surveillance (Free on most retailers)Kevin Tumlinson’s Novel – The Antartic ForgeryMark Leslie’s Collection – Active Reader: Cautionary Tales from the Book WorldScience Fiction & Fantasy Marketing Podcast Episode 210Disruptor Podcast Episode 5Amazing Monster TalesStark Reflections Episode with Jamie Ferguson (Episode 27)Stark Reflections Episode with Kevin Tumlinson (Episode 15)Kelsie Stelting’s WebsiteAaron Pogue’s BooksPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections Survey







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Aaron Pogue is the President and co-founder of Draft2Digital, a company offering online, author-assistance tools to enhance the business of publishing. Sporting simple but beautiful ebook formatting and conversion as well as easy distribution across some of the most powerful digital stores available, D2D is growing both its market share and its influence in the self-publishing world. Draft2Digital was founded in 2012 and enjoys continued growth and success.
Before taking his post at Draft2Digital, Aaron worked as both a Technical Writer with the Federal Aviation Administration and a writing professor at the university level. He holds a Master of Professional Writing degree from the University of Oklahoma. He also self-publishes novels in the fantasy and science fiction genres. His books have sold a quarter of a million copies since his debut in 2010.

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Kris Austin is the CEO and co-founder of Draft2Digital, a company offering online, author-assistance tools to enhance the business of publishing. Sporting simple but beautiful ebook formatting and conversion as well as easy distribution across some of the most powerful digital stores available, D2D is growing both its market share and its influence in the self-publishing world. Draft2Digital was founded in 2012 and enjoys continued growth and success.
Before taking this post with Draft2Digital, Kris worked for a private information technologies firm, where he managed the IT departments of dozens of Oklahoma City businesses. He received a B. S., Computer Science from Oklahoma Christian University in 2004.

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Toby Nance is the CTO and co-founder of Draft2Digital, a company offering online, author-assistance tools to enhance the business of publishing. Sporting simple but beautiful ebook formatting and conversion as well as easy distribution across some of the most powerful digital stores available, D2D is growing both its market share and its influence in the self-publishing world. Toby has been the head of development for Draft2Digital since its founding in 2012.
Before taking this post with Draft2Digital, Toby worked at MSCI as a team lead writing custom workflows in LISP. He also worked on the Core Development Team, improving their tool support for LISP. Before that, he worked as Senior Design Engineer at Lowrance Electronics in charge of automotive mapping. He wrote a turn-by-turn routing navigation system and tides and currents prediction software and maps.

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 52 – The Simple Life with Gary Collins

Mark interviews author Gary Collins about the simple life, both the name of a series of books as well as the new life he enjoys after some very unique experiences that include military intelligence and Special Agent.

Before the interview, Mark shares a personal update that involves flying to Vancouver for the annual CAPS (Canadian Association of Professional Speakers) Convention and then to Oklahoma City to spend some time with his colleagues at Draft2Digital.

Mark then says a few words about this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .

In their conversation, Mark and Gary talk about:

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Gary’s long and circuitous approach into publishing, the great lessons learned and passions experienced along the wayThe concept of not just knowing how the sausage was made but actually being the sausage via his life as a government agentThe early 40’s burnout Gary experienced, which led to a new beginning and new passions that included health and fitnessThe valuable mentorship and tough love that Gary experienced from Steven PressfieldGary’s first experience in self-publishing where mistakes were made and more lessons were learnedBooks that were derived from trying to provide information to clients without having to repeat the same info over and overThe purchase of twenty acres of land and building a house off the grid and the resulting influx of questions about it that led to another bookThe process of saving money for six months, then building for another six months, then working and saving money for the next period, in a repeated cycleHow the sales of the book about the simple life and going off the grid attracted a distribution companyThe mistakes on Gary’s path and how he didn’t find his purpose, but his purpose found himHow Gary doesn’t rely on scheduling for his writing, but the discipline involved when he actually sits down20Booksto50K being the first writer conference that Gary has ever attended and the fortuitous break of being able to attend after being on the waiting list for the sold-out show



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Learning the importance of integrating oneself with other writersHow Mark and Gary connected via the RUSH shirt that Gary had been wearing one day at 20Booksto50KThe fact that Gary will go ahead and reach out to anyone without any fear because “what’s the worst that can happen?”Gary’s withdrawal from social media in the past year and his belief on how it can suck the life out of a personAdvice on how to adapt the simple life methodology into one’s lifeHow a person’s purpose can change over time, and the reality that the purpose doesn’t have to be dramatic or enormousThe importance of putting effort into the positive rather than into the negative

After the interview, Mark reflects on the idea of “reaching out to anyone” and explores the possible risk along with the possible opportunity involved in that.

Links of Interest:

Gary’s WebsiteCAPSFindaway VoicesPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections Survey



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Gary Collins has a very interesting and unique background that includes military intelligence, Special Agent for the U.S. State Department Diplomatic Security Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Collins’ background and expert knowledge brings a much-needed perspective to today’s areas of simple living, health, nutrition, entrepreneurship, self-help and being more self-reliant.

His website www.thesimplelifenow.com, and The Simple Life book series (his total lifestyle reboot), blows the lid off of conventional life and wellness expectations, and is considered essential for every person seeking a simpler, and happier life.

Gary now lives off-the-grid part of the year in a remote area of NE Washington State, and the other part of year exploring in his travel trailer with his trusty black lab Barney.

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 51 – A Lot of Niching To Be Done with Rachel Amphlett

In this episode, Mark interviews Rachel Amplett, the author of the successful Dan Taylor and Kay Hunter police procedural thrillers as well as stand alone thrillers and mystery novels.

[image error]Scared to Death – the 1st novel in Rachel’s Kay Hunter series

The interview includes a lot of information related to this episode’s sponsor, Findaway Voices

Mark shares a bit of an update about the new Authors Direct option that Findaway Voices is beta testing.

In their chat, Mark and Rachel talk about:

What compelled Rachel to writing in the first place.The confusing and conflicting messages she received from different publishers when shopping her first Dan Taylor novel around.How Rachel started out in indie publishing a stand alone novel, WHITE GOLD, seven years ago after a suggestion from a friend (and how it all started with a Goodreads page and an author account at Smashwords).The emails from readers around the world that prompted Rachel to write a sequel to her first novel; something she hadn’t planned in the first place.How the experience of being approached by a publisher in Italy interested in publishing an Italian version of her novel WHITE GOLD (having found her “by accident”) prompted her to see what could be done by applying her experince as a project administrator into a business plan with marketing efforts, which she started at 2015.The fact that Kobo was the first retail platform where her sales really started to take off after a 99 cent BookBub deal.Being so successful that she was able to go full time as writer without having actually “broken out” in the US, the one market that seems to be the easiest for authors to break into.Getting into the audiobook market relatively early as part of a strategic business plan.Investing some of the money that was coming in from Rachel’s Kay Hunter novels into the creation of the audiobooks and the stacked-up rapid release of the first several books in the series within a couple of months.The producer (Audio Factory) and narrator Rachel found in the UK for the audiobooks.How the narrator, Alison Campbell, has become the voice of Kay Hunter for Rachel and many of her listening readership.The challenge of staying on the exhausting “hamster wheel” that a writer can find themselves on working on steady releases and how Rachel is avoiding burn-out by strategic scheduling and the inclusion of passion projects.How success can come from sitting down at the end of a project and engaging in an exercise of “lessons learned.”The early success Rachel has seen via Findaway Voices sales at Playster.How you can never know where in the world the sales of your books can come from.What happens when you try something a little bit different and focus on the niche markets that are working for you.How Rachel Findaway Voices Authors Direct program was a Godsend.How a large portion of Rachel’s print books sell to libraries around the world – a great way for readers to read their favorite authors for free in eBook, print and audio.The things Rachel thinks will be the most important for authors to think about in the next year.



[image error]Left to Right: Mark, Damon Courtney of Bookfunnel, author Gary Jonas and Rachel in Las Vegas

After the interview, Mark shares his thoughts on the success Rachel had outside of Amazon as well as her systematic project management process that helps keep her on track and balanced in her writing life.

[image error]BRIDGE TO BURN – Kay Hunter Series Book 7 (Coming Jan 2019)

Mark then shares a few appearances he had recently on the Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast as well as in a Reedsy live webinar about selling more on Kobo.

Links of Interest:

Rachel Amplett’s WebsiteFacebookTwitterInstagramRachel’s NovelsKay Hunter SeriesEnglish Spy MysteriesDan Taylor SeriesStandalone ThrillersRachel’s Shop Direct Audiobook link (via Authors Direct)Mark’s Shop Direct Audiobook link (via Authors Direct)Audio Factory (The Company Rachel worked with to produce Kay Hunter audiobooks)
Findaway VoicesScience Fiction & Fantasy Marketing Podcast – EP 210: Selling More at Kobo and Relying Less on AmazonReedsy Webinar (Video Replay) – Getting Your Book Featured on KoboThe 7 P’s of Publishing SuccessKilling It On KoboPatreon for Stark ReflectionsStark Reflections Survey



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Before turning to writing, Rachel Amphlett played guitar in bands, worked as a TV and film extra, dabbled in radio as a presenter and freelance producer for the BBC, and worked in publishing as a sub-editor and editorial assistant.

She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction and spy novels, including the Dan Taylor espionage novels and the Detective Kay Hunter series.

After living in Brisbane, Australia for 13 years, Rachel has now returned to the UK. She’s a member of International Thriller Writers and the Crime Writers Association, with the Italian foreign rights for her debut novel, White Gold sold to Fanucci Editore’s TIMECrime imprint, and the first four books in the Dan Taylor espionage series contracted to Germany’s Luzifer Verlag.

Her novels are available in eBook, paperback and audiobook formats from worldwide retailers including Amazon, iBooks, Kobo, and Google Play.

A keen traveller, Rachel holds both EU and Australian passports and can usually be found plotting her next trip two years in advance!

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 50 – 5 Things Learned In 50 Episodes

In this episode Mark reflects on five of the many things he has learned on the journey through the first fifty episodes of this podcast.

Those five things are within the theme of:

GLOBAL IS MORE GLOBAL THAN JUST GLOBAL
THE POWER OF AUDIENCE FEEDBACK
THE POWER OF COMMUNITY & THINKING BEYOND
ONGOING GROWTH & IMPORTANCE OF COLLABORATION
BRANDING & PROFESSIONALISM

Throughout the five points (which do overlap), Mark mentions many different episodes and interviews that came to mind as he was drawing these themes.

Links of Interest:

Stark Reflections Survey
The 7 P’s of Publishing Success
Killing It On Kobo
Patreon for Stark Reflections

Episode Mentions:

Mark refers to a number of previous episodes in this one. For ease of reference, here are links to those episodes.

Episode 4 – Optimizing Your Author Brand with Robert J. Sawyer
Episode 9 – Collaborative Publishing with Chuck Heintzelman of Bundlerabbit
Episode 13 – Going Your Own Way with T.S. Paul
Episode 16 – Crowd Funding & Audience Engagement with Natasha Bajema
Episode 17 – Focusing on Your Readers with Steena Holmes
Episode 18 – Finding the Right Professional with Ricardo Fayet from Reedsy
Episode 21 – Real World Connections in a Digital World with J. Thorn and Zach Bohannon
Episode 24 – A Life in Storytelling Together with Laura and Daniel Martone
Episode 26 – Armand Rosamilia on Engagement and Community
Episode 27 – Jamie Ferguson on Bundles, Curations, and Collaboration
Episode 29 – Terry Fallis on Writing with Authenticity, Humor & Passion
Episode 30 – Target Markets & Relationships with Dana Pharant and Barb Stuhlemmer
Episode 43 – Dave Sweet & Sarah Graham on Skeletons, Closets, and Homicide
Episode 45 – Co-Authoring with the Writers Behind C. K. Wiles

 

http://traffic.libsyn.com/markleslie/StarkReflections_EP050.mp3

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

Episode 49 – Rambling Across America with Tommy Ray

Henry David Thoreau said: “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you imagined.”

In this episode’s interview, Mark speaks with musician and writer Tommy Ray about how he had done just that. They talk about Tommy’s experience of how he took a dream (an actual dream) and transitioned it into reality by listening to his heart and trusting his instincts in recreating his life.

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Before the interview Mark shares a quick personal update that includes:

Being interviewed by Joanna Penn for a forthcoming episode of The Creative Penn podcast, which will air on Dec 24, 2018
A shout-out to Patrons of the show who support this podcast via www.patreon.com/starkreflections – By saving up the monthly funds Mark was able to order a higher quality microphone for the podcast
The printed proof copies of THE 7 P’S OF PUBLISHING SUCCESS that Mark sourced locally, but will be distributing to all retailers as a POD file through Draft2Digital’s new beta D2D PRINT option
The “Kobo Publishing: Getting Your Book Featured” Webinar Mark will be hosting via Reedsy Live on Wed Dec 5th

Mark then shares a word about the podcast’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .In their chat, Mark and Tommy talk about:

The origin of Tommy’s dream mid year in 2015 that had him jumping into his pickup truck and traveling across America to play and share his music
How Tommy was also inspired by books from authors Paulo Coehlo and Dan Millman as well as music from artists like Cat Stevens
How long music has been a part of Tommy’s life (including a memorable photo of Tommy as a young child standing next to a guitar)

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The concept of being “meant to live a creative life”
Music Tommy wrote that was derived from the experience of following the creative dream
The pre-planning that involved reaching out to 100 venues Tommy had intended on playing in (but not having heard back from any of them)
The two award nominations that Tommy rec’d prior to his trip (which altered his trip from a full year to 7 week one, where he drove through 15 trips and clocked 9,000 miles)
Zama (population 36), the town where Tommy was born and where his father lived most of his life
How Tommy’s experience as a musician intertwines with his creative writing
The extensive research that Tommy did to teach himself writing, and to learn about publishing and how to find support, such as editors and cover designers for his books
Tommy’s use of 3 editors on his book RAMBLING ACROSS AMERICA

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Maintaining passion, strength and integrity when the road is difficult
Tommy’s temporary return to a day job where he currently is: St. Croix of the US Virgin Islands
The preference Tommy has for playing his own music rather than playing cover songs at the local bar
The way that being on stage as a musician is easier for Tommy than the prose he shares via the page
The new series of dark/horror fiction that Tommy has started writing, inspired by actual dreams and actual mental and emotional torment, starting with the book MIRROR OF PERCEPTION
How you should never take this life for granted and how you can leave your mark on this world in a positive and optimistic way

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After the interview, Mark talks about Tommy’s creativity and his relentless optimism and passion for living a creative life. He finds it fitting that, at the same time he was producing this episode he was watching his friend Julie Strauss post updates about the catch-up she has been doing on her latest novel for NaNoWriMo.

What Mark loves about the past week of writing sprints in which Julie is trying to catch up for some lost writing time during the month, that love is that, as frustrated and restless as she is, she hasn’t once stopped digging into the work with all her heart and soul. And she is turning the angst into hilarious and cheeky updates so many other writers are cheering her on for while being entertained by her musings of the writer’s struggle.

Mark then plays a short sample of Tommy’s song Zama, reflecting on the creative life and the places we have all called home, lived in and loved.

Links of Interest:

Tommy Ray Books
Tommy Ray Music
Tommy Ray Insights (Blog)
Tommy Ray’s Email: tommy@tommyraybooks.com
Tommy Ray’s YouTube Channel
Findaway Voices
The 7 P’s of Publishing Success
Killing It On Kobo
Patreon for Stark Reflections
Julie Strauss’s Website
Episode 35 (Featuring Julie Strauss)
Stark Reflections Survey

 

[image error]Tommy Ray choose to become an author to create value and inspiration to the world. He desires all to leave their mark, to not take this life for granted, and never give up on your dreams. He has always been inspired by travel adventure tales of real-life journeys.

He always had a voice inside of him telling him he desired to live his life through a creative voice. For many years, he ignored the voice to follow other endeavors, but the voice was always there and increasing in volume.

Tommy loves to travel, write, compose, blog along with performing. He decided it was how he desired to spend his life. “Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations,”-Unknown.

To add to his catalog, he recently created the “Amid the Blackness” series. Short stories which fall in the suspense category. Keep a look-out for upcoming music from Tommy Ray along with future books as “The Country Boy.”

 

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

 

http://traffic.libsyn.com/markleslie/StarkReflections_EP049_RamblingAcrossAmericawithTommyRay.mp3

Episode 48 – Publishing Strong with Andrea Pearson

In this episode, Mark chats with Andrea Pearson, an author, a marketing guru and a mother. We talk about how she balances all three roles, about the tools she uses, her latest fiction, how she manages to get so much writing done as well as some of her personal takeways from the recent WMG Business Master Class workshop she had attended.

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Prior to the interview, Mark shares a personal update about the status of some of his recent November goals, which include the print version of his two recent non-fiction books about writing and publishing (The 7 P’s of Publishing Success & Killing It On Kobo).

Mark also shares a word about the podcast’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .During the interview Mark and Andrea discuss:

The genesis of the Self-Publish Strong podcast where Andrea and her husband Nolan discuss movies in a way that writers can learn from
The motivational marketing or publishing tips/quotes provided in each and every episode of the podcast
The balanced blend between comedy and instruction that the two balance in their episodes
Andrea’s desire to help people and how that led to various tools and resources within her Self Publish Strong brand
The fiction Andrea writes, including a new urban fantasy book which is her latest release in Koven Chronicles, with The Shade Amulet as the first book in that series)

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How having children has helped Andrea become more structured and write more books
The software that Andrea uses for dictating her novels (and the high volume of works she can create in an hour of dictation)
Additional take-aways Andrea reflects upon from the recent WMG Publishing workshop
The work that Andrea’s virtual assistant does for her vs the work she does herself
How hiring a virtual assistant paid for itself because of how it cleared up Andrea more time to publish more books
Marketing advice for authors who are just beginning

After the interview, Mark reflects upon one of the things Andrea said regarding the needless stress authors often place on themselves when looking at their lack of sales, or, conversely, a great sales trend – particularly when that time could be better spent working on the next book.

 

Links of Interest:

Andrea’s Author Website

Andrea’s Books


Andrea’s Self Publishing Strong Website

Self-Publish Strong Online Courses


Andrea’s Facebook Group: BookBub Promotions and More
Episode 38 of the Self Publishing Strong Website (Takeaways from the Vegas WMG Business Master Class)
Findaway Voices
WMG Business Master Class (2019)
The 7 P’s of Publishing Success
Killing It On Kobo
Patreon for Stark Reflections
Stark Reflections Survey

 

 

[image error]USA Today bestselling author Andrea Pearson has been a leader in the indie author arena since early 2011, with 50+ books under her belt and over a hundred articles published on professional blogs and websites. She hosts the popular Self-Publish Strong podcast that focuses on both publishing and craft, and she offers multiple online courses that surround her favorite topic: marketing.

Andrea was executive director for Indie Author Hub for a year and a half, and she is frequently invited to teach reader engagement through advanced newsletter marketing tactics and successful promotional campaigns at conferences and workshops. Andrea has been interviewed on the Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing podcast, the Rocking Self-Publishing podcast, and the Author Hangout. She has guest posted on JA Konrath’s A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing blog, and her tips have been mentioned several times on the Sell More Books Show.

 

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

 

Episode 47 – In The Pilot’s Seat With James Blatch

If you are familiar with the Self Publishing Formula Podcast, you’ll likely recognize James Blatch as Mark Dawson’s right-hand man; his co-host, or, perhaps, his co-pilot for the podcast.

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But in this episode Mark puts James in the pilots seat with a focus on Blatch’s own writing, his background as a reporter, a videographer and, of course, as a pilot.

Prior to the interview, Mark shares a word from the podcast’s sponsor, Findaway Voices . . .

Mark also welcomes new Patron Jan Field to his list of Patrons via www.patreon.com/starkreflections.

In his personal update, Mark reflects upon the recent death of Stan Lee and talks about the impact Lee’s writing had on him, and, in particular, the influence that the character Peter Parker (Spider-Man’s alter-ego) had.

In the interview, Mark and James talk about:

The type of specific videos or books that lend themselves best to YouTube videos VS Facebook videos
How videos for most authors, specifically fiction authors, is a medium that can be used to connect and engage with a community of readers
The intimacy of radio and digital audio format
A bit about James’ experience at the BBC and how the skills, particularly of his final few years there lent to this new role as a co-host of the Self Publishing Formula Podcast

[image error]A James Blatch sandwich between two Marks. (Mark Dawson, James Blatch, Mark Leslie Lefebvre) NINC 2016

James’ first writing experiences as a young man and his more recent NaNoWriMo experience where his current novel came to him in a single flash of inspiration
The evolution of this novel with various feedback from readers and editors
The turning point moment for James of meeting and working with editor Jennie Nash

Jennie’s prompting question: “Why do you need to tell this story” and all that question sparked in James
Other questions that Jennie asked or prompts given that helped with the re-imagining of the way the story was unrolled

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The origin of his love for aviation
How James is an even split between the exuberant mother and his reserved and “stiff-upper-lip” father
James’ recent experience in Florda flying with Nathan van Coops (from episode 38)
The advice that James would go back and give to himself when he was just starting

After the interview, Mark reflects upon the latest “catastrophy” in the indie publishing space, the recent disappearance of the buy buttons on Amazon for thousands of titles.

He offers a reflection on the likely reason for this odd phenomenon and then suggests that much time is wasted worrying over the matter instead of working on the next book. He also considers, if it truly is the negative thing authors think it might be, it’s yet another reason why authors shouldn’t be putting all their eggs in a single basket.

 

Links of Interest:

James Blatch’s Website

The Last Flight


James Blatch on Twitter
The Self Publishing Formula Podcast

Episode 133 – The Author Accelerator with Jennie Nash


David Gaughran’s Blog Post About KDP Books Unavailable To International Readers

(With explanation of how authors can see their book’s true availability on Amazon.com)


Findaway Voices
Stan Lee
Spider-Man
A Canadian Werewolf in New York
Kobo
NaNoWriMo
Patreon for Stark Reflections
Stark Reflections Survey

 

[image error]James Blatch is a former BBC Defence Reporter and a former BBFC Film Examiner. He reported for the BBC on the UK military from, among other places, HMS Invincible (Operation Desert Fox build up), Kuwait (Ali Al Salem allied air base), the Arctic Circle as well as covering the UK air offensive during the Kosovo Conflict in 1999.

During his time as a defence reporter he became the first civilian to twice fly in a BAe Harrier with 1 (Fighter) Squadron. He also enjoyed a trip in a Sepecat Jaguar with 41 Squadron to mark the thirtieth anniversary of the type’s introduction to RAF service.

Blatch is a director of the Self Publishing Formula Limited, an online course provider for independent authors. He co-hosts the weekly SPF Podcast.

The music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0