SPA Girls Podcast – EP192 – Seven-Figure Success With Skye Warren – Part 2
Jun18

SPA Girls Podcast – EP192 – Seven-Figure Success With Skye Warren – Part 2

This is the second episode in the interview series with bestselling author and Facebook guru, Skye Warren. 

Skye has had a fascinating author journey, and in this second episode she talks to us about the changes she had to make with regards to her mindset before she could become successful as an author.

If you’ve ever said that you can’t do something that you know you need to do for your career, then you have to listen to this episode (and you probably need to have a look at your mindset, and what you’re subconsciously telling yourself).

And finally, she talks about Facebook Ads, and gives us some tips on how to make our own ads successful. 

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Episodes 100 – 200 List
Mar27

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                                                  

184             Keeping The Faith                                                                                               

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                                                       

176             Self Publishing Jargon                                                                                                                 

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                                                                         

170             Get Your Head In The Game                                                                                           

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                                                             

162             Launch Plans That Work                                                                                     

161             Cracking Christmas Promo                                                                                 

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                                                                                                                 

154             The Power Of Four                                                                                              

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                                           

135             Interview with Maria Luis                                                                                   

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

113            2017 Christmas Episode

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

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SPA Girls Podcast – EP420 – Why Forward Planning is Vital for Authors
Nov01

SPA Girls Podcast – EP420 – Why Forward Planning is Vital for Authors

This week we talk about the forward planning we all do for our author careers. Because we’re all so different here in the SPA, we all plan differently, and have different goals. But that means there will be nuggets of gold for everyone in this episode!

We go through what it means to forward plan in your author business, why it’s important, what we think about when we do our planning, and how to actually get it down in a format that works for you.

No two people do it the same, and it has to be something that works for you and your goals. It’s all very well doing the planning, but it has to be done in such a way that you’ll take action on it as well!

What we are all in agreement on is that if you don’t do any forward planning at all, it will be that much more difficult to achieve your dreams!

PS – This is also the episode where Wendy finally reveals her Cliffton Strengths. For anyone who has heard Wendy moan about the Clifton Strengths and how much she dislikes them, you’ll understand how big a moment this is! (And believe me, her top five totally fits who she is!) This episode is worth a listen, just for that moment alone!

SHOW NOTES:

Forward planning / noun. 1. the process of making plans to take into account what is likely to happen or be needed in the future. “with a bit of forward planning, this party can be fun for all ages” taking into account future circumstances or requirements when you make a plan.

Links mentioned:

Skye Warren working 4 hours/day Parts 1 & 2

Sarra Cannon on the SPA Girls

💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons!

⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your burning questions.

⭐ Get personal online coaching with the SPA Girls each month through our $100 tier. Spots for this are strictly limited and on a first-come-first-served basis.

All the info is at http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast

✍️ Visit http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info

😊Watch our weekly show on http://www.youtube.com/c/SPAGirlsPodcast @spagirlspodcast

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SPA Girls Podcast – EP247 – What Advertising Is Working For Us
Jul08

SPA Girls Podcast – EP247 – What Advertising Is Working For Us

This week we discuss what advertising is actually working for our romance, urban fantasy and cozy mystery books. From facebook to series promotions, we’ve picked up some helpfully tips and strategies for getting the most bang of your advertising buck!

Trudi’s notes on Facebook Ads:

– need more than one book to make it work. (at least to make a profit, if your goals are to get eyes on your book, or get a rank, that might be different.) My new series ads aren’t making me money, because there’s only one book. That’s why I’m frantically writing the next books in the series.
– baby steps and you need to have patience. Small iterations win the day. Don’t freak out and give up (like I have in the past) and say they don’t work. Because they work for some people, so why not you too?
– Set a budget, make a plan, check every day, but not for long. (data rules the world)
– don’t spend all your time on your image, it’s a waste of time. (not a complete waste of time, it’s just that the ad image that wins in a test isn’t always the one you think is the best image.)
– Don’t forget to iterate your Amazon page. (this is super important. It doesn’t matter if you have a kick ass ad, if they’re not buying because you’ve got a lame Amazon page, then it’s a waste of time)
– Read through is really important for ads
– Test everything, including the buttons. (with or without, different ones etc). This can add 5-10% to your conversion, and every little bit helps.
– Different things work for different genres. What works for one author might not work exactly the same way for you, but that’s okay. Test until you find what works for you

Cheryl’s Notes on Series Promotion through Written Word Media:
Book One Free
Book Two 99cents
Book Three 2.99
Book Four full price

Cheryl also discusses how she’s approach promo stacking and using Bookbub ads and new release promo.

Wendy’s notes on facebook and fear:

FB – doing a budget beginning of each month. Allocate how much to spent on -backlist, -new release etc, -email newsletter signups. Break down each book etc
FB- get in and just do it!

Wendy also discusses rebranding an entire series, and getting traction without a bookbub; using other platforms and 5 free days promo.

As promised, here are Wendy’s before her rebranding makeover:

And July 2020 rebranding for the Lake Howling series:

Wendy’s updated blurb example for A PROMISE OF HOME , book one in the Lake Howling series….
Original Version:

When Branna O’Donnell heads back to Lake Howling, Oregon, she’s not sure what to expect. It’s a place that holds plenty of memories, both good and bad, but Branna is determined to find some peace there from the demons of her past. However, she soon realizes that living in a small town again comes with complications, and one of them is named Jake McBride. 

Once the town golden boy, Dr. McBride has returned from Iraq angry and, like her, shouldering a few emotional scars. They strike sparks off each other from the outset, and Branna knows that if she gives in to the attraction between them it’s going to result in a world of pain. The problem is she’s not sure how to walk away.

Updated blurb:

Reclusive. Grumpy. Irresistible.

Dr Jake McBride loves two things in life. His people, and chicken cheesy-crust pies. Returning from Iraq, he’s done with medicine and strangers… in fact life. He knows all about trauma, and plans on dealing with his, his own way. His needs are simple, solitude and working on his new career as the town recluse. The only problem with that… well two actually, are the interfering towns folk of Lake Howling, and Branna O’Donnell. He’s damn sure that her return means nothing to him… until it does!

His first mistake was kissing her. His second was doing it again.

Branna O’Donnell is burnt out and needs a place to stop running. Strange how that place is back where she’d once been happy. Settling in to small town life again comes with complications and the biggest has a serious attitude. Once the town golden boy, Jake McBride now wears a permanent snarl, not that anyone but her seems to notice the sexy doctor has changed.

Sharing a bed complicates things but no way is Jake leaving Branna alone until they find who is threatening her, and even then he’s not sure he’ll be able to walk away. He can feel himself changing, and it’s all on her, but when her past comes calling with it comes the realization that more than lust is involved. He’s not sure he can be her hero but he knows he wants to try.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

KDRoi

SPA Girls Podcast Episode #225 – David Gaughran’s Amazon Decoded

SPA Girls Podcast Episodes #182 and #183 Facebook Ads with Maria Luis

SPA Girls Podcast Episodes #191 and 192 with SKYE WARREN
SPA Girls Podcast Episode #92 with Mark Dawson

SPA Girls Podcast Episode 202 : Bookbub Ads with Melissa Storm

Books:

BookBub Ads Expert: A Marketing Guide to Author Discovery David Gaughran
Help My Facebook Ads Suck by Mal Cooper

Amazon Ads for Authors by Deb Potter

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