Patron Bonus – Exclusive Content Library
https://www.patreon.com/SPAGirlsPodcast
As a valued Patreon supporter, we appreciate you greatly!
Please feel free to download and use these handouts. We ask that you don’t share with anyone else and respect our copyright.
Keep checking back here monthly, as we update the library regularly!
Download your latest bonus Self-Publishing Tip Sheets below:
TROPETASTIC LIST OF ROMANCE TROPES
Romance Tropes Other Fictional Tropes
SELF PUBLISING JARGON: If all the weird and wonderful jargon words and phrases you’ve come across as you’ve been researching self publishing or listening to the SPA Girls podcast are confusing you, this is the list that will solve all your problems!
CRAFTING YOUR WHY STATEMENT: Sometimes, on your writer journey, things get hard. That’s when you need a why statement to remind you of the reason you started and the reason you need to keep going, no matter what!
2023 Crafting Your Why Statement
NAIL YOUR ENDINGS: Hooky chapter endings, when done properly, are the things that hold your story together. Use this cheat sheet to make sure you have an awesome hook that will keep your reading turning the pages!
WORD COUNT TRACKER: It’s great to track your progress, and these awesome trackers will tell you how far you’ve come and keep you motivated to keep going!
2023 – Word Count Tracker – A4
2023 – Word Count Tracker – Letter
AUTHOR NEWSLETTERS: Author newsletters are a vital part of any author’s marketing plan. Check out this prompt map to help you plan content and get readers engaging!
WEBSITES FOR AUTHORS: An author’s website is the centre of their marketing, where readers can go to find out more about your books. Check out this Tip Sheet for the basics of what you need to have on your website and how to make it one that readers will love!
2023 – Websites For Authors Tip Sheet
SERIES TIP SHEET: Anything you ever wanted to know about writing in series is on the pages of this tip sheet!
BLURB CHEAT SHEET: Having trouble with your blurb? This cheat sheet will give you everything you need to craft a compelling blurb!
BOOK LIST FOR PROMOS EXEMPLAR: If you’re wondering how to keep track of all the promos that you’re doing for all your books, this example of the one used by Cheryl (the most organised of use all) will keep you on track!
2022 – A Book List For Promo Exemplar
WIDE VS EXCLUSIVE: Having trouble deciding which way to go? Or just wondering what wide vs exclusive even means? Check out this tip sheet to have it all explained.
2022 – Wide Vs Exclusive Tip Sheet
PRODUCTIVITY FOR AUTHORS: The one thing you need to do is write. This cheat sheet gives you tips and ideas for making sure you keep to your writing schedule!
2022 – Productivity For Authors Cheat Sheet
MARKETING 101: Marketing is a massive part of a self publishing author’s career. This cheat sheet will give you the basics of what marketing is, and how to figure out what kind of marketing is best for you.
2022 – Marketing 101 Tip Sheet
AUTHOR BRANDING TIPS: People keep telling you to sort out your author branding, but you don’t know what they’re talking about? This cheat sheet will help demystify Author Branding so you can get started right now!
FRONT AND BACK MATTER: Wondering what to put at the front and back of your book? This tip sheet gives you all the options!
SPA Girls Podcast – EP382 – Which Course Is Right For You?
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This week Trudi and Shar go rogue … and discuss courses along with our writing friend and writing tutor Tania Hutley / Talia Hunter.
We discuss the courses we’ve done over the years on craft, marketing, self-publishing and mindset and what we’ve learned from them.
Disclaimer – we only discuss our personal experiences, and we are not affiliates for any of them with the exception of SPF.
How do you know your best learning style?
What do you need to be prepared for before you start?
How to do due diligence on the course provider
What red flags should you look for before you plunk down your $$
Mentioned in podcast:
Maggie Stiefvater
Margie Lawson – Dialogue course
Lisa Cron – SPA Girls podcast EP#249
Creative live.com
Inkers Con – Allesandra Torre – SPA Girls Podcast EP235
RWA Recordings – Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Mark Dawson – SPF courses
Becca Syme – write better faster
Udemy
Holly Darling – newsletter – we interviewed Holly (then Holly Mortimer) EP#258
Tammi Labrecque – newsletterninja.net
David Gaughran – free Starting From Zero
Steff Green – Rage Against the Manuscript
SPA Girls Podcast- EP298 – Interview with Lucy Lennox: Success with MM Romance
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We’ve got a very special treat for you this episode – the incredibly talented and savvy, Ms Lucy Lennox, is in the house! Lucy saw extraordinary success straight out the gate, from when she first published her MM romance, Borrowing Blue, in November 2016. In fact, by her second month of publishing, Lucy was earning five figures per month!
Since then, Lucy’s books have soared the bestseller charts consistently and she’s built an incredible career, publishing prolifically (despite a serious health challenge) and building a rabid audience for her sweet and steamy male/male gay romances.
From release strategies, co-writing tips, MM romance tropes to Writing For Your Id and the power of romance beats, Lucy’s honest, no-holds-barred advice will boost your mindset and your business. In fact, we know you’ll come away just as inspired and motivated to get butt-in-chair-hands-on-keyboard we were from talking with Lucy!
No matter what genre you write, this podcast is a must-listen, with something for everyone.
About Lucy Lennox:
After enjoying creative writing as a child, Lucy didn’t write her first novel until she was over 40 years old. Her debut novel, Borrowing Blue, was published in the autumn of 2016. Lucy has an English Literature degree from Vanderbilt University, but that doesn’t hold a candle to the years and years of staying up all night reading tantalizing novels on her own. She has one husband, three children, plays tennis, and hates folding laundry.
Lucy writes male/male gay romance with heart, humor, and heat. To date she’s published 24 novels herself, 12 co-written novels across three series and numerous short stories in her series’ worlds.
Find her at http://www.lucylennox.com/
Join Lucy’s facebook group Lucy’s Lair
Resources Mentioned
Becca Syme’s Write Better Faster course
SPA Girls Podcast – EP284 – Lucy Score talks Reader Groups, Releases and Relationships
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If you’ve ever considered starting up a Facebook reader group, then you need to listen to this episode. Lucy Score’s group is an example of a well run group that is positive, supportive and fun – everything you want in a reader group. She talks to us about how she set it up, and what makes it so great, as well as why she loves her readers so much.
Lucy also gives us insight into her most recent book launch, how she connects to readers and why relationships are such an important part of her very successful Indie career.
The best thing about Lucy? She’s awesome, genuine, and super smart. We love having her on the show, and we know you’ll get a whole bucket load of useful information for your author career in this podcast. Enjoy!
Lucy’s official Bio:
Lucy Score is a Wall Street Journal and #1 Amazon bestselling author. Small town contemporary rom-coms are her lady jam and she enjoys delivering the feels with a huge side of happily ever after.
Her books have been translated into several languages, making readers around the world snort laugh, swoon, and sob. Lucy lives in Pennsylvania with the devastatingly handsome Mr. Lucy and their horrible cat.
In her spare time she enjoys sleeping, drinking copious amounts of coffee, and reading all the romance novels in the universe.
Links mentioned:
Previous SPA Girls Podcast episode with Lucy: https://www.selfpublishingauthorspodcast.com/spa-girls-podcast-ep232-interview-with-lucy-score/
SPA Girls Podcast episdoe with Becca Syme: https://www.selfpublishingauthorspodcast.com/spa-girls-podcast-ep146-interview-with-becca-syme-on-writing-better-faster/
Write Better Faster by Becca Syme
https://betterfasteracademy.com/wbf101/
SPA Girls Links:
✔️ Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter with tips and resources for self-publishing authors https://www.selfpublishingauthorspodcast.com/join/
✔️ You’ll find all the show notes and SPA Girls podcast episodes at: https://www.selfpublishingauthorspodcast.com/
✔️ Watch episode recordings on YouTube @ http://www.youtube.com/c/SPAGirlsPodcast
✔️ Join us on Facebook and Twitter @SPAGirlsPodcast
Losing 55lb / 25kg : Weightloss for Writers
TO EXERCISE OR NOT TO EXERCISE, THAT IS THE QUESTION…
An insight into the life of Wendy Vella.
I have always been a mediocre participant of the hot and sweaty ranks. In my youth I played the obligatory team sports with some success, but as most young people do, I relied on natural fitness. Funny how with age that word ‘natural’ no longer applies.
At 53 I decided it was time to re-gather the reins of my life, lose weight and get fit. The people in my family had been getting thinner and fitter whereas I was moving more comfortably into elastic waists and support knickers.
First I had to address my ability to consume vast quantities of food without drawing breath. What can I say? I love food, sweet or savoury. I was raised in a family that enjoyed eating, so I’m fixing the blame firmly on them!
I started slowly cutting back on things that were really bad (a lot of knuckle biting went on, I can tell you) and replacing them with foods that helped with the cravings. My family supported me – and then they just avoided me, as I tended to snarl and bite if anyone got too close. Eventually I got on top of it and when I started to see the results I decided it was time to start exercising.
The problem with exercise is that the more you do, the hungrier you get. I always want a burger and fries when I finish, which of course defeats the purpose. But somehow a carrot stick just doesn’t cut it.
I’m one of those people who like to exercise hard for brief periods. I sweat buckets, breathe like a steam train interspersed with grunts, and then it’s over.
I’m always slightly ticked off when I look at the exercise bike beside me and find a leggy blonde in all the gear, logos emblazoned all over her, barely breaking a sweat and usually with a full face of makeup. I mean, seriously, what is up with that? Sometimes genetics just suck!
I went to my first spin class not long after I started on my new regimen, excited but a little nervous. I thought to myself, I do road cycling so this should be a breeze, right? Very wrong actually. So wrong that when I stood up for the hill-climbing portion, I re-seated myself right over the back of the bike. The front reared up and it was only through a desperate grab at the handlebars that I managed to stay upright. It broke the ice, however, as most people had to stop pedalling to clutch their sides as they hooted with hysterical laughter.
It has taken me 18 months, but as of today I am 25kgs lighter. I still love food – who doesn’t – but now I can look at it without my eyes glazing over and that voice in my head screaming EAT ME!
