Tag: Writing

• November 6, 2024Guest Interview, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP473 – Interview with Cathy Yardley

  This is a fantastic episode for writers at all stages of their careers. Cathy covers writing in your unique voice, writing your truth and how to ROCK YOUR PLOT.

• October 1, 2024Guest Interview, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP468 – Short Romance Success with Lana Love

  Lana talks to us about how she has achieved success in short romance in less than two years using a mix of mindset, research and plain old stubbornness (her words, not ours...). We talk about what she did to level up, including the research she did and the tough decisions she made. It's a fascinating interview we know you'll love! 

• August 21, 2024Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP462 – Are You Making Boring Mistakes?

  Welcome back to another SPA Girls minisode. This one is a bit of a controversial take on mistakes writers make that make their work B O R I N G.  How do we know these? Because we've all made them! 

• April 17, 2024Guest Interview, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP444 – Five Steps to Being a Resilient Author with Patricia McLinn

  Being a resilient author means being able to bounce back after experiencing a knock - and we all know that being a self-published author can knock you around sometimes! This week we talk with Patricia McLinn, an author who's been writing for more than 35 years, and who knows a thing or two about how to keep going when the going gets tough. Pat gives us her top five pieces of advice so you can stay focused and keep the positivity flowing when it seems like everything is falling apart around you.

• March 26, 2024Guest Interview, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls – EP441 – Discovery Writing With Kimboo York

  In this podcast we talk to KimBoo York about her latest book Secrets of Discovery Writing. We dive into how you can successfully use discovery writing when crafting your novel. It's an awesome podcast and one the pantsers among us will really enjoy.

• March 20, 2024Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP440 – Launching a Successful New Pen Name with Melissa Pearl

  Our guest today, Kiwi author Melissa Pearl, has five pen names across multiple genres and has been learning about self publishing since she published her first book in 2011. Since then she's published more than 80 books, and shares with us some real and raw insights into the career of an indie author, including all the highs and the lows. When she launched her latest pen name last year, she made sure she used everything she'd learned over that time to ensure her new pen name was successful right from the start. Melissa generously tells us exactly what she did to create her latest pen name, and every step she took along the way to make it successful. Don't miss this information packed episode! 

• March 6, 2024Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Guest Interview, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP438 – Overcoming Procrastination – with Kathryn Burnett

  Procrastination takes many forms for writers, and it holds us back from writing, publishing and promoting our work. We discuss how to get out of your own way with our guest today, Kathryn Burnett.

• February 21, 2024Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP436 – Fast Decisions, Big Results

  Ever hesitate over making an important decision because you were trying to figure out what the 'right' thing to do was... and then miss out on an awesome opportunity because you didn't take a leap of faith? Yeah, us too. That's why this episode is all about making good decisions in your author career.  In fact, we're not only advocating making decisions and moving forward, we're also suggesting that a FAST decision is even better than an average speed decision. Research has shown that fast decisions are often higher quality, perhaps proving that our subconscious brain can move faster than our conscious brain... or maybe it's just our intuition is more capable than our overthinking brain? Whatever the reason, it's a powerful reminder that we know more than we think we know...  In this episode you'll learn some ideas and techniques on how to assess decisions, learn when to make fast decisions and hear about some of the decisions we did and didn't make in our careers and what we learned from them.

• January 3, 2024Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Mindset, Health & Writing Life, Self-Publishing Process & Tools, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls EP – 429 – How To Create Your Author Business Plan

  Today we discuss business plans. Need help creating yours? It doesn't need to be complicated, just download our simple SPA Girls template in the show notes.

• November 28, 2023Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP424 – BookFunnel Tips for Authors

  Most authors know what BookFunnel is these days (just in case: it's a platform that helps you deliver reader magnets, ARC copies, audio files, and so much more to your readers) but do we all know how to use it the best we can? I'm pretty sure the answer is no! That's why we spent this episode with Damon Courtney, creator and CEO of BookFunnel, going over all the functions, from the innovative ways that successful authors are using this platform to deliver ebook files, to using features like the one-on-one author swap tool, the group promo tool, certified mail, and the direct email integrations, to name a few. Because Damon is the creator of the platform, he knows every single thing about it, which means this episode is packed full of all the information you'll ever need to make BookFunnel work for you!

• November 1, 2023Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity

  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.

• October 5, 2023Guest Interview, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP416 – Emotional Wounds with Angela Ackerman

  This week we chatted with Angela Ackerman, one of the authors of the classic writing book, The Emotion Thesaurus.  If you've never picked up one of the amazing thesauruses by Angela Ackerman and her co-writer, Becca Puglisi, you're missing out! Created especially for writers, the ten different thesauruses will help you add emotion, be more creative, and make your book sing!  In this particular episode (aside from Trudi and the other SPA Girls singing the praises of Angela's books) we talk to Angela about emotional wounds - what that means, why it's important for our characters and how we can add emotional wounds into our writing and give our characters more depth.

• September 13, 2023Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Mindset, Health & Writing Life, Self-Publishing Process & Tools, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP 413- Back Engineering a Bestseller

  Today’s topic was prompted by a commenter on youtube who asked us about reverse engineering bestsellers. What makes a book, be it your second one published or your tenth, sell more than others.  We believe there are many variables to that. Timing, tropes, the first 10% of how a book starts. The cover, blurb, and other popular tv or books that may have similar aspects.  There are many things to consider, and today we take a dive into why a book can launch a career!

• July 19, 2023Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls – EP405 – Hotwire Your Publishing Plan For The Holidays

  We know there are still 5.5 months to go until the end of the year! But!! We think it’s important to start getting organized for the final push. Ads, blurbs, covers. In the SPA today we talk about the things you need to focus on!

• July 12, 2023Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP404 – Interview with Ana Huang

  This week we go in-depth with USA Today, international and #1 Amazon bestselling author of new adult and contemporary romance, Ana Huang. Aside from being very successful (check out her Twisted series!) Ana is a super smart and hardworking author with a tonne of great advice that she generously shared with us in this information-packed episode. Check it out now!

• June 21, 2023Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP401 – Lynn Raye Harris, Let’s Talk Series!

  Today we talk to the amazingly talented author Lynn Raye Harris about series. Everything from multiple connected to branding. This is a must listen podcast!

• June 14, 2023Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP400 – Why On Earth Are We Still Here?

  It's celebration time! We've reached another milestone here in the SPA - FOUR HUNDRED EPISODES!  And that's 400 weekly episodes with no repeats, no "best of"s, and no stopping during the eight years we've been doing this. Phew! *wipes brow*  This episode we're looking back on that time, trying to figure out why we're still here, and what we've learned along the way. Go behind the scenes with us as we discuss some of what we've learned, advice we wish we'd been given, and try to give you inspiration that will get you writing and publishing! 

• May 23, 2023Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP397 – Marketing Audiobooks with Rebecca Hefner

  USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Hefner is passionate about marketing audio books wide. After several years of struggling early on, her audiobook sales now surpass her ebook sales most months. As Rebecca says, “I had an excruciating learning curve with wide audio and want to save other authors from this torture!” She shares her best practices and tips for wide audiobook success in this must-listen episode.

• May 17, 2023Guest Interview, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP396 – The Secrets of Story with Matt Bird

  If you've been working on amping up your characters and writing a more compelling novel, this is the episode for you. We talk to Matt Bird - the Amazon bestselling author of The Secrets of Story: Innovative Tools for Perfecting Your Fiction and Captivating Readers and The Secrets of Character: Writing a Hero Anyone Will Love - about characters and other secrets involved in writing an awesome story your readers will love. Matt talks to us about what readers expect from characters and how to ensure they connect and fall in love with your characters early in your novel. He also gives practical examples of techniques that will engage your readers by helping you create flawed, vulnerable and compelling characters. We loved having Matt in the SPA and we know you'll enjoy this episode too!

• December 29, 2022Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP376 – Top Tips from 2022

  This is an awesome episode just for you! We went through all of our episodes from 2022, and picked out the best pieces of advice, the most actionable tips, and the things we definitely think you should be doing for your writing career in 2023 and gave them to you here in one easy episode. You're welcome. :)

• December 7, 2022Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Mindset, Health & Writing Life, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP373 – Lightbulb Moments of Writing Advice

  Lightbulb moments about writing and publishing that have turned you from gloomy to galloping along - have you had them? We have and today we're sharing the nitty gritty self publishing and writing tips that positively impacted our craft and careers - plus, of course, the mentors who've given us great advice.

• November 9, 2022Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP369 – Make Luck Through Belief

  Today in the SPA we talk about not relying on luck to build your career. We believe you can make your own luck, but don’t wait for it to happen! Ron Weasley (or not, we’re not really sure) says believing in yourself is 100% more powerful than luck! Overnight success may happen for some, but if you dig deeper often, what appears to be a lucky break is actually from years of hard work to get to that point.

• November 2, 2022Guest Interview, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girl Podcast – EP 368 – Monster Romance With Lillian Lark

  In this fun episode with Lillian Lark, we learn about monster romance - what it is, how it's defined, who's writing it well, and how to write one for yourself! Not only is Lillian doing well in the genre of monster romance, she's also doing amazing things on TikTok, so we were able to quiz her on her tricks and techniques for the social media platform as well.

• October 26, 2022Self-Publishing Process & Tools, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP367 – How To Self Edit Your Second Draft

  There are many types of editing and today we're discussing how the SPA Girls approach a second draft. Plus, don't miss out on the Second Draft Checklist, an amalgamation of all our processes in one handy spot.

• October 12, 2022Guest Interview, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast  – EP365 – Write To Riches with Renee Rose

  In this episode we talk to the amazing Renee Rose about her new release Write To Riches!  15-time USA Today bestselling romance author Renee talks to us about the power of abundance mindset, manifesting your desires, and attracting wealth. She's an amazingly inspirational speaker and this is one episode you don't want to miss!

• October 5, 2022Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP364 – Superfans with Steffanie Holmes

  Ever wondered how authors create a reader base full of raving superfans... and how you could do it too?? Well, wonder no more! This week we have bestselling paranormal and contemporary romance author Steffanie Holmes on the show to talk about how to create superfans for your books. Steff talks about the methods she's used to create stronger connections with her readers, including having a strong author brand, newsletters, interconnected stories, and so much more! We love having Steff in the SPA, and she's super smart with her marketing, so this is an episode you don't want to miss!

• July 5, 2022Guest Interview, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP351 – The Calm Entrepreneur, Corinne O’Flynn

  When you feel the frantic need to achieve and you don’t, it’s easy to get stuck or suffer burnout. If that’s happened to you, then Corinne O'Flynn has some ideas to get you through. The Calm Entrepreneur was born out of a series of aha moments over the past several years. It's about getting back to basics and re-assessing and re-securing the foundational practices. We know you'll love this awesome episode with Corinne!

• June 7, 2022Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP347 – The Power Of Writing Sprints

  Are you struggling to get your words down each day? Why not give writing sprints a try? You can do them alone, however, you might find they work better with others like we did. Listen to the podcast for more tips regarding: • training yourself • how to set up a sprint group • the power of structure • what length of sprint? • top of the hour sprints • tracking

• May 25, 2022Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP345 – How To Write A Successful Series

  Do you want to learn how to design a series that will hook and keep readers, AND set you up for long term success? Helen Scheuerer joins us today to tell all!

• May 18, 2022Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP344 – Managing Book Projects

  This week, in answer to a listener question, we talk about how we manage the process of writing a book. How many do we write at one time? Do we work on multiple projects at different stages, or just write and edit one book at a time? What do we do to ensure we stay on track and don't procrastinate? 

• April 20, 2022Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP340 – Successful First Drafts

  Hit the ground running with this episode all about how to successfully finish the first draft of your novel! We talk about how we stay motivated, what you need to know before you can start, how we keep going when we get to the saggy middle, what we plan beforehand, and what we leave to figure out as we go. If you've been struggling to get started on your first draft, or you're wallowing somewhere in the middle, this is the episode for you!

• January 27, 2022Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP328 – All About Preorders

  Confused about preorders? Wondering if you should start using them? Wondering if you should stop using them? This is the episode for you! We talk about what preorders are and how they work, how we use them successfully, and when we think you shouldn't use preorders.

• December 15, 2021Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP322 – Uncommon Writing Advice

  We’ve all heard the conventional wisdom for fiction writers – but is it actually appropriate for self-publishing today?  We break down five pieces of uncommon advice that have stood us in good stead and why we think they’ll work for you too ...

• October 6, 2021Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity, Guest Interview, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP312 – What To Do When You’re Stuck In A Creative Rut

  We love our Irish guests and are super stoked to welcome author and writing coach, Bryan Collins, to the SPA today! If you've been feeling BLAH about your writing lately, this is the episode for you ...

• September 8, 2021Guest Interview, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP308 – Interview with Virginia Milner from Kindle Vella

  If you've been considering taking the plunge into Amazon's new serials platform, Kindle Vella (and yes, Wendy asked if they'd named it after her), then this is the episode for you! We talked to Virginia Milner, the principal product manager for Kindle Direct Publishing, and leader of the Kindle Vella project, all about the new platform. She explained how Kindle Vella - which launched in July 2021 to readers - works, how authors are already using it to their advantage, and the possible ways that Kindle Vella could be used by authors in the future to broaden their readership, and sell more books.  It was an awesome episode, and we really enjoyed having Virginia on the show to explain it all first hand!

• December 30, 2020Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP272 – How To Believe In Yourself

  Ever wondered why on earth you're spending all this time writing? Ever think to yourself that maybe your writing isn't that great? Ever think this self publishing lark is just too hard? Yeah, so have we. But this episode is all about how to throw away those dumb old negative thoughts, and learn to believe in yourself and your writing! We talk through some of the most common misbeliefs that authors have, and give you some awesome ways to change your thinking, and learn to believe in yourself and most of all, keep going! 

• July 29, 2020Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP250 – Celebrating 250 shows!

  Celebrating our 250th Episode! We go right back to our first episode (don't worry, we won't replay it), discuss the ONE piece of advice we'd give to new self-publishers, and talk about what we've learned / what's changed, over the years.

• June 24, 2020Guest Interview, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP 245 – Interview with Urban Fantasy author Keri Arthur

  In this podcast, we speak to the wonderfully talented and successful Urban Fantasy author Keri Arthur. She talks to us about transitioning from traditional publishing to self-publishing and shares tips and processes from her writing journey.

• July 9, 2019Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP195 – The Magic Pill For Authors

  We all want a magic wand to be waved over us, or to swallow a pill and instantly be amazing authors. But that's just not possible. Learning to write takes time and hard work. There's no way around it. This week's guest, fantasy author Laura Van Arendonk-Baugh, talks about our expectations as authors, and why we think we're going to be amazing right from the moment we first pick up a pen (or put fingers to the keyboard). And she should know. She's a behavioural scientist who works with problem animals and she loves to break down and assess the how and why of our behaviour. She talks about why we expect so much of ourselves, how society views talent versus skill, and gives some mind-blowing tips on how to trick your brain into doing exactly what you want, i.e. get the writing done! She also talks about how to deal with things like fear of failure, our writing not being as good as we want it to be, and how to keep going despite the barriers we put up.

• December 19, 2018Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP166 – Retrospective Of The Best Of 2018

  Merry Christmas from the SPA Girls! We hope you all have the best of everything this festive season, and that you get to spend the big day with the people you love. (And failing that, some chocolate and a good book.)  In the spirit of giving, we've created an episode full of tips and tricks, advice, with the best of 2018 crammed into one small (ish) episode. (Okay, not so small). Join us for a retrospective of 2018 to find out what we did right, what we did wrong, and how you can learn from us to help you make 2019 the best year yet! 

• October 31, 2018Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP159 – Interview With Kathryn Le Veque

  This is a powerhouse episode! Be warned - it'll inspire you SO much to knuckle down and get to work, you may not come up for air for days! Kathryn is a force of nature whose incredible work ethic has seen her publish her 93rd book this week ( Bay of Fear (Battle Lords of de Velt Book 3) ). She has been self-publishing since 2012 and talks about how she initially launched her career with an incredible number of already-written manuscripts after being rejected by traditional publishers.

• August 8, 2018Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP147 – Top Ten Traits for Self-Publishing Success

  This week we talk about the top ten traits we believe you need to have to be a successful self-published author.  These include, among other things, having a thick skin, being willing to take risks and staying focused. They're not always easy, and some involve practice and mindfulness, but if you manage to get everything on this list right, we believe you'll be on the road to success.   It might seen weird to talk about stuff like this being super important over things like knowing how to put a book up on Amazon or how to market your book, but in fact a lot of what's involved with being successful in self publishing - in fact in any business - is to do with getting your head straight and your priorities focused.  With this in mind, we give you some tips on how to develop and attain some of these skills and traits, what to do when you fall off the wagon, and how to get around it if you really just can't manage to develop that thick skin... 

• June 5, 2018Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP138 – Getting Your Motivation Back

  This week we talk about how to get yourself motivated again after life gets in the way. It could be illness, personal issues, a holiday, an injury or even just your own negative self talk. Whatever it is that has stopped you from doing the amount of writing you want to do, we're here to bust those barriers down and find ways to get you back on track. We've all experienced it at some point in our lives; that feeling that you're wading through the quicksand, your body and mind not working as quickly as you want them to. It can feel almost impossible some days to get out of that quicksand, but we're here to help. This episode is all about the ways we've managed to get back into healthy, happy writing routines after problems in our lives, and what you can do to do the same. We've got options for different types of writers, because we're all different and what works for one person won't necessarily work for another.  The beginning of this conversation was a series of tweets by author Courtney Milan, who talked about how she got herself back into the writing groove after her writing mojo took a dive, by being more aware of how she was 'training' herself to write, and making writing fun again. Let's all make writing FUN!

• March 7, 2018Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP124 – SAS Special Interview with Michael Anderle

  This week we have an amazing interview with self publishing guru Michael Anderle, direct from the Smarter Artist Summit in Austin, Texas. Trudi Jaye was lucky enough to attend the summit and meet Michael in person, where he took the time to chat to her about his journey in self publishing, from writing his very first Kurtherian Gambit book, to creating an exciting new self-publishing model where he collaborates with multiple authors writing in his well-loved universe. Author and former SPA Girls Podcast guest Jami Albright helps Trudi out with the interview - in which Michael also talks about about writing books that people will love, how he connects with his readers, and breaking the rules to get emotional impact. He's accessible, sincere and passionate about his topic, and you'll love listening to him explaining what he thinks are the most important ingredients for self publishing success. This is an interview you won't want to miss!!

• February 22, 2018Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP122 – How To Use Subplots to Amp Up Your Story

  This week we talk about a craft topic that's been bugging Trudi - subplots. Ever since reading Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews, who does it really well, she's been pursued by the idea that maybe she's not doing them properly... So this week, we discuss what they are, why you should be using them in your novels, and the different kinds of subplots that you could consider using in your novel. Done well, a sub plot can add a huge amount of depth to your novel, as well as tension, characterisation and conflict.  We think that adding a subplot to your current novel could be the difference between having a boring one-dimensional novel, and creating a layered book that everyone is gagging to read!! 

• February 14, 2018Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP121 – Interview with Scott King

  This week we had the pleasure of chatting to Scott King, author of non-fiction writing books The 5 Day Novel, Finish the Script! and his latest, Outline Your Novel.  Scott has a background in teaching writing, film and scriptwriting at a college level, and has published multiple books in a variety of genres, so he's perfectly placed to write and talk about writing to other authors. He's also brilliant at breaking down information and making it understandable, and there were several 'a-ha!' moments during this interview where Scott explained something we might have intuitively known, but couldn't have put into words. We talked to him about outlining, sub-plots, writing a book in five days, and where to start if you're a newbie. He's a smart, articulate guest who we know will inspire you to get out there and write! 

• February 7, 2018Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP120 – Should You Use a Pen Name?

  This week our topic is whether or not to use a pen name. Choosing the name to represent your writing career might seem like a simple decision, but there's actually a whole host of things to think about when you consider what name to use - from marketing, to reader expectations and even cover dimensions - and it's not just which name sounds the nicest.  Authors have always had pen names and in the Indie environment, it's not uncommon for an author to be managing several. We discuss our own decisions regarding pen names, why we chose the names we did, and the things we had to think about before we made the final decision. From websites to domain names, choosing the right gender for your genre, and even a couple of rants from Shar thrown in for free, this is another thought-provoking episode. 

• January 31, 2018Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP119 – Interview with NYT Bestselling Author Nalini Singh

  This week we were lucky enough to convince the lovely Nalini Singh to come on the show. A fellow Kiwi, Nalini is also a very smart, savvy author who's been on the NYT Bestseller list an incredible 27 times, and has hordes of ravenous fans the world over. Nalini is also the kind of pioneering author who knew that she would need to do more than simply write great books (you know, cause that's easy, right?)  if she was going to make this writing malarky her career. She knew she would need to connect with her readers and give them something more. With this in mind, she started a popular blog when she first set out to conquer the writing world, and then created a massive organically grown newsletter when the time was right, and finally conquered Facebook, where her current page has over 70,000 readers regularly interacting with her. She gives us the low down on how she's created such a strong reader connection, the kind of content she thinks is vital for authors to give their readers and her secret sauce for interacting with all kinds of people. This one is a little long, but it's well worth the listen for the various wise gems of knowledge that Nalini drops on us throughout the show. (I did say she's a smart cookie, didn't I?)

• January 10, 2018Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP116 – Tough Mindset Questions for 2018

  Are you all set to achieve everything you really want to achieve in 2018? If you're still not sure, this episode will help! We ask three really great questions around our mindset as self publishing authors for 2018, and try to answer them as honestly as we can. There are some home truths, some deep and meaningfuls, and some nearly-tears (we don't do real tears, we're too tough...!!) as we try to unravel what's going to make 2018 great for the SPA Girls.  It might seem simple, but the questions actually made us think quite a bit about what we really want to achieve this year, and what we need to let go of to succeed. Come prepared to put your thinking caps on, to delve deep and to be honest about what you really want as an author this year... 

• October 11, 2017Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP103 – How To Find An Extra 30 Mins Writing Time Every Day

  This week we delved deep into our writing habits from the last ten years, and brainstormed all the ways that we've managed to squeeze an extra 30 minutes of writing out of our days. We're all busy - work, family, other commitments take our time. But even adding just an extra half hour of writing every day can make a big difference to our monthly totals. It's a trap writers often fall into - the belief that you need several hours of uninterrupted writing time to be able to produce anything worthwhile. It's just not true - even just a half hour can move you significantly forward in your manuscript. Here in the SPA we know that it's about regular, sustained writing over time.  This show is about being mindful, thinking about where you're spending your time every day, and looking for the loopholes where you're losing precious time you could be using for writing. :) 

• September 27, 2017Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales, Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP101 – Interview with Katie Cross

  This week we talk to fantasy and young adult author Katie Cross about being a military wife, learning to be a nap-time authorpreneur, and making every moment count. She also gives us some amazing productivity tips for authors who are trying to squeeze their writing career into already busy lives. Katie impressed us right from the start of the interview when she talked about having done some writing before we got on the call. My paraphrasing summary of her words: "It was a choice between going on Facebook for ten minutes, or doing some writing. I decided to do some writing, and managed to get almost a thousand words done in that time." It's always good to be reminded of the things that we can achieve if we pay a little more attention to what we're doing, and how we choose to spend our time!  It's a great interview, Katie is hilarious, and we loved chatting to her. (And we're totally impressed by everything she's able to achieve in her day!)

• July 18, 2017Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls – EP90 – Author Overwhelm Book Launch!

  This week we're launching our brand new book: Kick Author Overwhelm in the B*tt!  Instead of forcing you to listen to our overwhelm stories yet again, we invited three very talented self-published authors to talk to us about their writing careers and how they've faced and overcome Author Overwhelm in their own lives.  This week we're launching our brand new book: Kick Author Overwhelm in the B*tt!  Instead of forcing you to listen to our overwhelm stories yet again (we figured we'd talked that topic to death...), we invited three very talented self-published authors to talk to us about their writing careers and how they've faced and overcome author overwhelm in their lives.  Louisa George, Toni Kenyon and Karina Bliss kindly agreed to join us for this very special episode of the SPA Girls Podcast and opened up to us about their experiences of author overwhelm. They talk honestly about their writing, their cheerleaders, their challenges and the tricks and tips they have for helping to keep their focus on the writing and away from the overwhelm. We had heaps of fun talking to three very funny, smart and accomplished authors, and we're sure you're going to enjoy hearing their stories too. :) 

• July 11, 2017Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP89 – Behind the Scenes with the SPA Girls Podcasters

  This week we decided to go a little bit behind the scenes on the SPA Girls side of things. Instead of talking about our fiction books, we talk about how the SPA Girls came about, what we were trying to achieve when we decided to start the podcast, why we're doing what we're doing and what we were hoping to achieve. We also talk about our branding, our mission statement, and why we decided to publish the Author Overwhelm book, having been podcasting now for 89 episodes! :)

• May 11, 2017Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP80 – Busting Self Publishing Myths

  We’re out to lunch today, recording in a café (so enjoy the ambience of the coffee machine in the background!) where we discuss all those myths about writing and publishing. Some we’ve fallen prey to; some we’ve debunked through experience. You need to know everything about your story and characters before you can start writing. There’s a lot more you need to be doing as a self publisher. You’ll never “make it” without a big platform or great contacts. Sound familiar? Yeah, we’ve all heard them. And a lot more besides! But there is more than one path to writing success, and there’s no such thing as a magic bullet or “secret sauce” – so join us in the café and let’s do some mythbusting together!

• February 21, 2017Goal Setting, Planning & Productivity

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP70 – Productivity Hacks for Writers

  This week we give some of our best writer productivity hacks - ie a big ole list of tips to increase your productivity, based on things that we do each week to help us write more! From exercise tips and the best writing apps to use, to setting routines and ways to stay in the flow, we give you the best tips that we could find to help keep you writing!

• January 5, 2017Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP63 – Interview with Kathryn Burnett

  This week we talk to screenwriter Kathryn Burnett about planning writing projects, as well as setting goals as an author and keeping them - just in time for the start of the year. We went to a fantastic workshop (on creativity and how to keep it flowing) given by Kathryn at the 2016 RWNZ conference, which is why we thought it would be a great idea to get her onto the show. It was a fun interview; Kathryn gives a heap of valuable information for organising new projects and making sure you stay on track, plus she has some really interesting stories about how she got into screenwriting, and the kind of work she does now for clients.

• December 24, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP62 – Christmas 2016 Special Episode

  This week we come to you live from our local cafe as we eat, drink and be merry, and discuss the highs and lows of self publishing in 2016. We call it our Hit, Miss and Maybe list, and we talk through the things that worked, the things that definitely didn't work, and the things we might try again to see if they work better a second time. It's a great episode, we give some of our top tips from the last 12 months, and spread a little Christmas cheer! Merry Christmas, and a happy New Year! xx

• December 1, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP58 – Writing for a Kindle World

  This week it was just Shar, Cheryl and Trudi, and we talked about writing and publishing a book in an Amazon Kindle World. Cheryl has just published her second book in the Laguna Beach Kindle World and she gives us the inside story on how it works - plus the benefits and the issues around writing in a Kindle World.

• October 10, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools, Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP51 – Characters Your Readers Will Love

  This week we crawled out from our sick beds to provide you with this delayed episode of the SPA Girls Podcast. We managed to talk semi-coherently about creating amazing characters that your readers will love. As far as we're concerned, it's all about creating characters with flaws, who your readers can relate to and fall in love with through the course of the story. We gave away all our secrets, so that you can learn to write the best characters you possibly can.

• August 15, 2016Guest Interview, Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls – EP44 – Conference episode with Leeanna Morgan

  This week we bring you a special episode direct from the Romance Writers of New Zealand conference in Auckland, New Zealand. Wendy Vella and Trudi Jaye snuck out of the workshops, grabbed the incredibly talented Leanna Morgan along the way and hid out in one of the conference rooms, making her spill her guts on her self publishing career. And boy, does she deliver. This is a must listen episode for our listeners - Leanna knows what she's talking about. :)

• July 25, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP42 – Surviving Writers Conferences

  This week we talk about our experiences (all family-friendly) at writers conferences and give tips on how to get the most out of conferences (aka overcome the sudden urge to hide behind a large pot plant and not talk to anybody). In a cunning plot twist, we got confused at the intro and said this was episode 41 (instead of 42). Our excuse? Too much heat in the SPA!

• June 28, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP39 – Finding Focus as an Author

  This week we decided to bring back the challenge episodes. It's the middle of winter here in New Zealand - it's cold and wet and dreary, and we're all feeling a little frustrated with where we're at. So we decided to talk about finding our focus again and pushing forward in our writing careers. We all talk through the issues that we're each having, from changing family schedules, to slipping in our usual writing and marketing routines or recovering from illness. And then we talk through the plans we have to solve some of these issues and get ourselves back on the track that we're aiming for.

• June 24, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP38 – Writing Good Sex Scenes

  This week we decided to talk about Wendy's favourite subject - sex! :) Just kidding, it's the favourite topic of all the SPA Girls... When you're writing romance, there will generally be some form the physical activity that happens when people fall in love. ie Sex. The different genres have different heat levels, and it's partially about knowing the conventions of your genre, but also about knowing what you're comfortable with personally. This week we talked through what each of us personally is comfortable with, what we like when we read other romance books, and how to write a sex scene that will knock the socks off your readers. I hope you enjoy it! FAIR WARNING: The language in this episode is a little grittier than we normally go for, sorry about that. If you're not keen on bad language and talk of genitalia, you might want to skip this episode (we're pretty tame, really, but just in case...).

• June 1, 2016Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP35 – A Great Hook for Your Book

  This week we're up to episode number 35, and we talked about brainstorming your next novel. We each talked about how we do it, the kind of methods we use and what we recommend for people wanting to create a solid book idea. At the end we decided to do an impromptu session where we actually brainstorm a brand new novel together. It was a huge laugh, and we hope it's both entertaining and helpful to you when you start planning your next novel.... :)

• May 25, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP34 – How Do I Get Reviews?

  This week - episode 34 - we talked about reviews - what they are, why you need them, and how you might go about getting some more! The best thing about Amazon is the ability to leave reviews and to gather momentum for your books through word of mouth, and we love them for it. Even better, they're pretty good at trying to make sure those reviews are legitimate reviews, rather than people trying to game the system (and okay, there will always be peeps trying to game the system, but at least they're trying).

• May 11, 2016Marketing, Advertising & Sales

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP32 – Getting The Price Right

  In this week's episode we tackle the always-changing topic of pricing in self publishing. It's a biggie, and it's sometimes hard to distill this one down, especially because most people who are new to self publishing just want those who are older and wiser (haha) to just say - "You must do it this way!" Unfortunately there is no "one true path" for pricing, especially given the vast array of differing goals and aims of authors, and the constantly changing nature of the industry. What worked two years ago won't necessarily work now. We suggest that you research the price of other books similar to your own (in genre, length etc), and then determine what your overall strategy is for the launch (eg discoverability vs sales), before you decide what to price your book at. The main thing to remember is that you can always change it later if you decide you've done it wrong. That's the best thing about self publishing, you can test and experiment to find out what works best for you!

• May 4, 2016Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP31 – Self Editing for Self Publishers

  This week, in lucky number 31, we talk about self editing - what we all do, the kind of techniques and strategies that we use to make sure we don't make mistakes in our work, and how we work in with professional editors to make sure we catch as many of the mistakes in our work that we can. And that's a very valid point - no matter how good you think you are, you will ALWAYS miss something in your own work, which is why it's vital to get outside people looking at your work as well as editing it yourself. Don't miss another fascinating episode of the SPA Girls!

• April 28, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP30 – Self Publishing Resources

  This week we talk about our favourite self publishing resources to help make your writing life just a bit easier. From writing tools like Scrivener and writeordie.com to editing support with grammarly.com or the best courses on Udemy and CreativeLive.com, we've packed this episode full of information for self publishers!

• April 14, 2016Writing Craft & Editing

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP28 – Where Do Ideas Come From?

  This week we thought we'd take a quick detour into ideas-land to answer the most common question that writers get - where do your ideas come from? If you're feeling lost or lacking in inspiration, just pinch a few of our ideas for gathering new stories and get going!

• February 22, 2016Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP23 – Dealing with Author Overwhelm

  Welcome to episode 23 of the SPA Girls podcast. This episode we're talking about Author Overwhelm, one of those insidious blockages sent to distract us as authors. When you've got so much on, and so many things that you're trying to do, and it's making you feel panicky and frustrated - to the point where you're not actually doing anything useful at all... that's author overwhelm. We've focused on giving practical tips on what we do when author overwhelm hits, how we keep going through the tough times, and what we do to try and avoid author overwhelm in the first place! I hope you enjoy it, it's a great episode!

• January 25, 2016Guest Interview

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP019 – Interview with Trudi Jaye

  This week we're up to episode 19, and it's an interview with paranormal romance author Trudi Jaye, yet another member of the SPA Girls.

• December 25, 2015Mindset, Health & Writing Life

  SPA Girls Podcast – Christmas 2015 episode

  It's our Christmas episode, and we're hanging out at our favourite restaurant, chatting about our year, and talking about what we hope to achieve in 2016. Join us for this celebration of all the goodness in 2015, and the greatness that will be 2016!

• December 22, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP014 – Websites for Authors

  This week we talked about author websites and why it's vital for self publishing authors to have one, despite the naysayers (mostly from traditional publishers who don't see the point). We talk about what you should include on your website, the kind of content you should be writing, and the style of writing you should use on the web. We also talk a little bit about the technical aspects of setting up a website.

• November 2, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP07 – Overview Of The Self-Publishing Process

  Today, we give you an overview of the whole self publishing process from start to finish!

• October 26, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP06 – Successful Self-Publishers’ Challenge

  We all think it's important to have someone you aspire to be like in any career, and self publishing is no different, so we set the challenge in episode one to research someone who is successfully managing a self publishing career. Today we report back on our own personal self-publishing heroes: Joanna Penn, Courtney Milan, Lindsay Buroker and Marie Force!

• October 19, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP05 – What Is Genre?

  This episode is all about genre - what it is, why you should know about it, and what it means to you as a self publishing author. There are certain conventions in every genre - especially in romance. No happily ever after? Then it's not romance, and your readers are going to be disappointed! This is why it's important to know your genre. Listen on for details ...

• October 2, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP04 – Facebook For Beginners

  Love it or hate it, facebook is THE place to be for romance authors wanting to extend their platform and talk to new readers. We talk about why you should be on there, the difference between a profile and a page, and get the hard word on the do's and don'ts of facebook.

• October 2, 2015Guest Interview, Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP03 – Interview With Author Wendy Vella

  This week we have an interview with one of our own - SPA Girl member Wendy Vella. Wendy has been self publishing since 2013, and she now has 14 titles and has been included in three box sets. She's sold over 100,000 copies of her books, and at the beginning of this year took the plunge and went full time as an indie author. We interview her on her road to success, where and when she writes, and what it took to make it all happen.

• October 2, 2015Self-Publishing Process & Tools

  SPA Girls Podcast – EP01 – Introducing The SPA Girls

  We're four New Zealand-based romance authors, who are trying out self publishing online through stores like Amazon, Kobo and iBooks, and we want to give you a few of the tips, tricks and tales of the things we've learned along the way. Designed with the newbie in mind, we take you from the very beginning, answering those questions you were too embarrassed to ask - basically helping you to avoid the mistakes and pitfalls that we (sometimes) fell into. Thanks for joining us!