SPA Girls Podcast – EP129 – Five Branding Tips You Can Use Right Now
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This week we’re talking about Author Branding, using the example of four different indie authors who we think are doing a fabulous job of branding themselves and their series.
From Penny Reid’s romantic comedy tag line (Smart Romance) and aptly named Facebook group (Sharks of Awesome) to Michael Anderle’s extensive author’s notes and Melissa Storm’s personal connections in her newsletters, we give a range of ideas and tips that are being used by these authors that you can use to improve your branding and find the right readers for your books.
We even managed to give you a list of five simple action points that you can do right now to amp up your Author Branding and sell more books. (Phew. We worked hard on that. So you should totally listen and use those tips, because they’re gold.)
Episodes 100 – 200 List
200 What we’ve learned so far…
199 Interview with Adam Croft – Mindset and Marketing
198 Find Your Sparkle – with Julie Schooler
197 Hack Your Muse – with Kelly McClymer
196 Public Speaking For Authors – with Alena Van Arendonk
195 The Magic Pill – with Laura Van Arendonk-Baugh
194 A Day In The Life Of A Writer
193 Keep It Simple
192 Interview with Skye Warren: Money Mindset and Facebook Ads
For Authors (Part Two)
191 Interview with Skye Warren: Time Management & Advertising
For Authors (Part One)
190 Dragon Wrangling with Scott Baker: secrets for
Successful dictation
189 Interview with Patricia McLinn: Writing by the seat of
Your pants
188 Interview with Morgana Best: Writing & Marketing
Cozy Mysteries
187 Interview with Geoff Symon: Wounds & Crime Scenes
186 Interview with Natasha Bajema, WMD for Authors
185 The Writer’s Detective with Adam Richardson
183 Facebook Advertising with Maria Luis ~ Part Two
182 Facebook Advertising with Maria Luis ~ Part One
181 Learn dictation with Kilby Blades
180 Interview with Brian Meeks, Mastering Book Descriptions
179 Interview with Tara Cremin, Kobo Writing Life
178 Interview with Larissa Reynolds – Newsletters Part Two
177 Interview with Larissa Reynolds – Newsletters Part One
175 Wrangling Facebook: How To Make It Work For You
174 How To Write A Regency Romance
173 How Do You Identify Your Writing Weaknesses?
172 Interview With Dan Wood, D2D
171 Interview With Serenity Woods
169 5 Goals You Need To Make In 2019
168 Jumpstart Your 2019 Marketing with 31 Quick To Dos for Jan.
167 Scheduling For Writing Success
166 Our 2018 Roundup
165 He Said, She Said: Creating Dazzling Dialogue
164 Interview with Steffanie Holmes: Reverse Harem
163 Interview with YA author Kelly St Clare
160 Amazon Excl v Wide – things to consider and how to market
159 Interview With Kathryn LeVeque
158 Some Like It Hot – Or Not. Heat Levels In Romance
157 Interview With Louisa George
156 The Kindness Factor: Helping You Achieve More and Stress Less
155 Editing
153 Characters: From Cookie Cutter to Kapow
152 Interview with Tina Dietz: Audiobooks
151 Interview with Grace Burrowes
150 Should You Prune Your Mailing List?
149 RWNZ18 Interview with Damon Suede & Geoff Symon
148 Interview with indie superstar, Bella Andre
147 Top Ten Traits for Success
146 Write Better Faster with Becca Syme
145 Newsletter Ninja Tammi LaBrecque
144 Looking After Your Creative Health
143 Interview with Carlyn Robertson from Bookbub
142 Personal Branding For Authors with Lauren Clemett
141 Ten Free Online Tools For Authors
140 Tempting Taglines & Heartstopping Hooks
139 Findaway Voices with Kelly Lytle
138 Get Your Writing Mojo Back
137 Interview with Toni Kenyon: facebook live & serials
136 Dealing with misinformation and change in Sp-ing
134 Interview with Kevin Tumlinson, Draft2Digital
133 Interview with Sara Rosett
132 Organization For Authors – how to keep track of your
research and book details without losing your mind
131 Interview with Ricardo Fayet of Reedsy
130 Critical Care: Leveraging feedback for success
129 Brand You
128 SAS Special: Interview with Johnny B. Truant & Sean Platt
127 Industry Insiders with Damon J. Courtney of Bookfunnel
& Christine Monroe of Kobo
126 SAS Debrief with Jami Albright
125 SAS Special: Interview with Michelle Spiva
124 SAS Special : Interview With Michael Anderle
123 Sports Psychology for Authors – Interview With Nate Vella
122 Using Sub Plots To Amp Up Your Writing
121 Interview with Scott King: Outlining Your Novel
120 Pen-names Pros, Cons and Possibilities
119 Reader Engagement with Nalini Singh
118 Writing the Small Town Setting
117 Handling Negativity and Naysayers
116 Tough Mindset Questions For 2018
115 Interview With Nicola Davidson: Sex and Sensibility
114 Tropealicious
112 Interview With Honoree Corder & Ben Hale: Write Like A Boss
111 Ten Health Hacks For Writers
110 Interview with Kathryn Burnett: Your Writing Audit For Future Success
109 Interview with Melissa Storm: What Readers Want
108 Interview With Zoe Dawson: Writing Across Genres
107 Interview With Dave Chesson, The Keyword King
106 Pros and Cons of Kindle Unlimited
105 Why YOU should do Nanowrimo
104 Ten Truths For New Self Publishers
103 Find 30 Minutes A Day EXTRA!
102 Your Christmas Presence: Maximizing the Holiday Season for Authors
101 The Writing Life: Interview with Katie Cross
100 100 Episodes! Retrospective with funny moments; changing AO title
SPA Girls Podcast – EP133 – Interview With Sara Rosett: Writing Cozy Mysteries
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This episode we are thrilled to talk with USA Today bestseller, Sara Rosett, about the wonderful, (sometimes) wacky and hugely popular sub-genre of Cozy Mysteries. Cozies have a rabid audience, but writers need to be sure that they’re meeting reader expectations and delivering a great puzzle, compelling characters and intriguing setting.
Sara has not only been writing a number of successful cozy-mystery series since 2006, but she also teaches an online How To Outline A Cozy Mystery course – so she’s the perfect person to talk through crafting cozies.
So what defines a cozy versus “normal” mystery?
The elements/tropes of a typical cozy mystery:
- Mystery is the main component, usually a murder
- A female amateur Sleuth
- Usually a small town or a contained setting like a cruise ship or a resort
- A side-kick. Often the same one but not always.
- A vocation like cooking, needlework or something that lends itself to a group.
- A pet, very often a cat
- Quirky friends / community
- A romantic thread
- Covers should reflect the genre. Usually quirky, light, with a mystery element, and the animal.
- Cozies are “clean” – ie no swearing, no sex, no gore, no violence (murder takes place off the page)
- The mystery is solved at the end of the book – no cliffhangers.
- Also very popular are paranormal cozy-mysteries (witches, warlocks, were-creatures)
Sara also talks about her launch process and her advice on wide distribution versus Kindle Unlimited /Amazon exclusive for new writers.
Enjoy the episode!
About Sara
A native Texan, USA Today bestselling author Sara Rosett grew up reading and dreaming of writing books. Her stories and essays have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Military Wife’s Soul, Georgia Magazine, The Writer, and Romantic Times Book Review.
She is the author of the Murder on Location series, the On the Run series, and the Ellie Avery series. Sara also teaches an online course, How to Outline A Cozy Mystery.
Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, “satisfying,” “well-executed,” and “sparkling.” Sara is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and NINC. You can find her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads, or Litsy.
Sara’s Online Course: How To Outline A Cozy Mystery
Sara’s non-fiction books for writers (click on cover to learn more):
SPA Girls Podcast – EP77 – Great Beginnings for Authors
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Easter is here, a time for new beginnings, so we thought we’d talk about the beginning of your book. It’s always been important for authors, but we would argue that in the days of ebooks for less than the cost of a coffee, creating a kick-ass beginning that will hook your readers straight into your book is VITAL!
We read out a few of our favourite beginnings, plus some that are less beloved, and talk through what makes them great (or not). There are also some suggestions for the different types of beginnings you might want to try, and how to link it in to the rest of your story. If you’re wondering whether the beginning of your book is as good as it can be, listen to this episode for some of the tips and tricks that we use.
– Beginnings are crucial to hook a reader.
– What would have been a great beginning before the rise of e-books, is not necessarily classed the same now. Remember, people can download a sample of your e-book for free, and this MUST hook them, for them to continue!
– A new author more than anyone else must capture a reader from the start!
– Remember there is a lot of competition out there now if you don’t hook them, they’ll move on.
– Create characters that your readers want to read. Give them a taste of what is to come.
What can you use to create an excellent beginning?
– Dialogue. Start in the middle of a conversation. Prompt the reader to ask questions of your characters from the beginning.
– Mid action. Start in the middle of an important scene/event.
– The meeting. Get the couple together asap. (don’t put in too much description)
– The intriguing opening.
– Landscape. Don’t bore a reader with lavish descriptions. Short, sharp sentences are the key to putting your hero or heroine into a scene.
– Don’t get caught up at the start of your book if you’re struggling. Rewrite it later.
– If it’s not happening first off, then write yourself into the book, and remember, there’s every chance you may have to cut a few thousand words!
The beginning is not set in stone! You can change it at a later date.
LINKS
https://www.amazon.com/First-Five-Pages-Writers-Rejection/dp/068485743X
https://www.amazon.com/Walkers-Point-Guide-Writing-Romance/dp/129196231X
