If you’ve been chasing the magical marketing strategy that will finally make your book “take off,” welcome to the club. In this episode, I’m addressing the question nearly every author eventually asks: What does it actually take to make a book successful?

Spoiler: there’s no guaranteed formula. Even authors with six-figure advances, NYT bestsellers, or celebrity blurbs still worry their latest book won’t sell. 

So what are we really buying when we shell out thousands for a publicist? Often, it’s access and visibility, not actual sales. You can land your book in front of all the right people, and still... crickets. Why? Because readers are human. Think about how long you’ve let a book sit in your online cart before clicking “buy,” even if you really wanted to read it.

Success usually requires a mix of good writing, staying power, and yes, a little luck. But maybe it’s time we stop defining success only by sales numbers. What if it’s about writing something you’re proud of? Or c...

Miranda Cowley Heller's father was a book editor; her grandfather edited Jack Kerouac and was friends with Hemingway. That legacy, while inspiring, left her frozen when it came to pursuing her own writing. 

Instead, she built a thriving career in publishing and TV, eventually heading up drama series at HBO. Then, in her 50s, she wrote the novel she’d been carrying around for years, The Paper Palace, which became a New York Times #1 bestseller and a Reese’s Book Club pick. 

Now, she's returned to her first creative love—poetry—with a stunning new collection: The Deep Water Knows. “Poetry is almost like putting snapshots of your soul into the world,” she tells me. 

In this episode, Miranda gets real about the myth of getting wiser with age, the vulnerability of releasing creative work into the world, and why your voice is never too late to matter.

ABOUT MIRANDA

Miranda Cowley Heller has worked as senior vice president and head of drama series at HBO, developing and overseeing ...

Author Lori Gold is pulling back the curtain on publishing, in both this conversation and her newest novel, Romantic Friction. 

INSIDE THE EPISODE

⭐️ Yet another reason bestseller lists aren’t what you think (I didn't know this until I read her book!)

⭐️ A great tip for handing reviews without spiraling (or swearing off Goodreads forever)

⭐️ What AI is doing to authors' voices, and why it should concern all of us

⭐️ How writing happens even when you're not writing

⭐️ How Lori studies the bones of books she loves to make her own writing even stronger

CONNECT WITH LORI

Instagram: @lorigoldsteinbooks

Grab a copy of Romantic Friction

👉 CLICK HERE to write the first draft of your nonfiction or memoir written in 33 days!

...even if you don't have a cabin in the wilderness, 4 uninterrupted hours a day to write, or confidence that you're a "real" writer. No overwhelm, no confusion. Just simple, actionable steps.

Awesome Email Templates for Authors

From communicating with...

What started as sharing her story online about living with chronic illness turned into a book deal with Penguin Random House. In this episode, Gigi Robinson shares how she leveraged consistency, relationships, and a clear vision to go from content creator to published author.

Here’s what we get into:

• Why she chose to write A Kid’s Book About Chronic Illness (and how it ended up getting picked up by Penguin/DK).
• The ridiculously simple promo strategy Gigi swears by: bring the book everywhere and make it part of the conversation.
• Why she went the children’s book route to make a heavy topic more digestible.
• Her take on promotion as storytelling, not selling.
• How she filters advice from all the "experts” while staying aligned with her bigger vision.

CONNECT WITH GIGI

Website: gigirobinson.com

Instagram: @itsgigirobinson

TikTok: @itsgigirobinson

👉 CLICK HERE to write the first draft of your nonfiction or memoir written in 33 days!

...even if you don't have a cabin in th...

This week, I’m joined by publicist Emily Florence, and we’re talking about how to set publicity goals before you start chasing them, why a Today Show appearance might not sell nearly as many books as you think, and how to make your marketing feel less like shouting into the void and more like having conversations that matter.

Here’s what we get into:

• Why knowing your goals (career author? credibility? visibility?) makes all the difference
• The surprising truth about big media hits (and what works better)
• Building an author platform that doesn’t rely on hacking the algorithm or pretending to be someone you’re not
• How to build a real-deal, supportive author community (no fake “collabs” required)

👉 CLICK HERE to get the first draft of your nonfiction or memoir written in 33 days!

...even if you don't have a cabin in the wilderness, 4 uninterrupted hours a day to write, or confidence that you're a "real" writer. No overwhelm, no confusion. Just simple, actionable steps.

Bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz has published nearly 80 books (yes, 80), and in this episode, she shares what it really takes to build and sustain a long-term writing career. From surviving the shifting tides of publishing to protecting what gets you "in the mood" to write, she shares the kind of wisdom every author loves hearing. 

INSIDE THE EPISODE:

🎉 Melissa's advice: Don’t quit your day job until the math says you can

🎉 Success is wonderful; it also resets with every new book

🎉 How to protect your creative hours (8am–1pm, in her case)

🎉 Books are logic puzzles, not lightning strikes (I love this analogy!)

🎉 If social media isn’t fun, don’t do it. Period. (Who's cheering?)

🎉 The final sprint before deadline is where the magic (and panic) often happen

Whether you're writing book 1 or book 71, this episode's packed with truths you'll be grateful for.

CONNECT WITH MELISSA

Website: melissa-delacruz.com

Instagram: @authormelissadelacruz

X: @MelissadelaCruz

Faceboo...

Thriller author N.L. Blandford isn't afraid to go dark—like, murder scene dark—and she absolutely loves it.

In this episode, she talks about writing gritty thrillers with complex villains you’ll root for and recoil from. Natasha never planned to become an author. She just wanted to cross “write a book” off her bucket list. Now she’s five books in, spanning multiple series, and shows no signs of slowing down.

We talk about:

• Why she never plots in advance (hint: her characters have strong opinions)
• Her secret weapon for book sales (spoiler: it’s not bookstores)
• Why she chose to publish “wide” to support Canadian platforms like Kobo
• What she’s loving and learning while writing a new series about a fictional mob family in Nova Scotia
• Why “show vs. tell” trips up so many new writers (and how she works through it)

CONNECT WITH N.L. BLANDFORD

Website: www.nlblandford.com

Instagram: @nlblandford

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nlblandford

Books: Bookshop.org, Amazon.com

STILL ...

In this no-fluff episode, publishing powerhouse Jane Friedman speaks to the aspects of writing and publishing that every aspiring author need to hear about. With decades in the industry and zero interest in sugarcoating, Jane breaks down what’s actually working in publishing today. 

WE'RE TALKING ABOUT: 

• Why the so-called "good old days" of publishing weren’t actually that great (unless you love gatekeepers and waiting around)
• The myth of the full-time writer dream—and why your day job might be your creative secret weapon
• What MFA programs don’t teach you about storytelling that readers actually care about
• How to build an author platform without selling your soul 
• The cold, hard truth about bookstore distribution and hybrid publishing 
• How sponsorships can turn your author newsletter into a profitable platform—and why subscriptions might not be the move
• What nobody tells you about post-publication anxiety (spoiler: publishing a book doesn’t magically fix your inner critic)
...

CHAPTER ONE: DONE (SUPPLEMENTAL VIDEOS)

*These videos complement the Chapter One: Done training. You can join the (free) training here: Chapter One: Done 

💡 How to quickly determine whether you're writing nonfiction or memoir

WRITING NONFICTION

STEP 1. THE OVERALL ROADMAP

STEP 2: IDENTIFYING YOUR MAIN TOPIC

STEP 3: HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR NORTH STAR

STEP 4: HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR IDEAL READER

STEP 5: WRITING CHAPTER ONE (NONFICTION)

WRITING MEMOIR

STEP 1: THE OVERALL ROADMAP

STEP 2: IDENTIFYING YOUR MAIN TOPIC

STEP 3: HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR NORTH STAR

STEP 4: HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR IDEAL READER

STEP 5: WRITING CHAPTER ONE (MEMOIR)

In this episode, author Audrey Ingram shares what inspired her newest novel, The Summer We Ran (coming June 3, 2025, Zibby Publishing). Think: teenage love, political ambition, and a dual-timeline structure that spans 25 years and manages to hit you right in the gut and makes you think.

We also dig into how Audrey traded in her life as a practicing attorney for full-time writing and mom-life. The decision to pivot careers during a pandemic? Bold. Brave. And totally intentional. Plus, it’s given her a fresh lens on fulfillment, feminism, and what it really means to choose your own adventure.

INSIDE THE EPISODE:

🎙️ Why the publishing world is actually a surprisingly supportive crew—and how connecting with fellow writers can keep you sane

🎙️ How redefining feminism helped her embrace passion over pressure

🎙️ Her 12-week first draft practice, and why editing is where the magic happens

🎙️ The role of trusted early readers (and how she uniquely approaches this step)

🎙️ How she ups ...