It's really easy to get caught up in the emotional streams of creating, and that can be great -- or destructive. Let's talk through some common and predictable moods so we know they're coming and know what to do with them.

"The Eye of Argon" is generally considered to be the worst piece of writing every produced in English -- but is that fair? Let's talk about the history behind -- and then do a live reading of -- the iconic disaster, "The Eye of Argon." And then let's talk about what we can learn from it as writers.

What I gained and what I learned from my first author table at Gen Con, and then preparing for NaNoWriMo.

Live brainstorming! Well, more chatting. Some brainstorming. Lots of chatting. XD Laura answers questions as she tries to work.

After Apple's less-altruistic-than-advertised "privacy changes" change open rate reports for emails, what are we to do to measure engagement? Well, we can measure actual engagement, beyond open rates. Let's talk about newsletters!

We've had questions about audiobooks and now we've got answers! Join professional narrators Tim Alexander and Liz Morey to talk about how to audition, collaboration, Audiblegate, why narrating is the best job, and more.

An overview of how pacing affects a story and how you can pace to your advantage. A requested topic!

Evernote is one of several "remember everything" apps and the one I use extensively. Come see how I organize my research, my writing, and my life with it. This may be more beneficial with visuals: https://youtu.be/1wsgrXMTxXU

Or, "how equine influenza made your newfangled electric sewing machine run." Did you know the United States had a complex and efficient, electric train system that serviced most of the population? Did you know this train system brought electric power to rural communities? Let's talk about the interurban, and about how transportation affects your worldbuilding. With guest Alena Van Arendonk.

Ermigersh! It's an Ask Me Anything! Everything from marketing to ebook pricing to what I think people do wrong. (Don't worry, we have a time limit!)

I give a painfully honest accounting of the first week live with Kindle Vella and my new Patreon. We also talk about planning and prioritizing ideas.

Writing prompts can spark your creativity, and they can also be used for marketing and reader engagement! Join author, editor, and publisher Janeen Ippolito to talk about quirky writing prompts.

Surprise guest Dave Chesson (Kindlepreneur, Publisher Rocket) walks through the forthcoming writing/formatting software Atticus with me. We see what's working now in the closed beta, what's coming soon, and how Atticus will take on Scrivener and Vellum.

We chat about the gaps sometimes left in worldbuilding when people forget that all of society, geography, technology, etc. is connected. Think through your worldbuilding to make your writing better!

We have the fabulous Margaret McGriff back to talk about newsletters for authors! From why people want to hear from us (no really) to what we should talk about, and how often, and what to do when our newsletters flop, she's got great help for the writer facing down that terrible newsletter.

Offering memberships or subscriptions to fans can provide regular and special content to them while providing more predictable income to creators. We discuss ideas and best practices with creators currently offering fiction, drama, poetry, visual art, and more.

With Kindle Vella on the horizon, let's talk a bit about serial fiction, some of the confusion and misinformation about Kindle Vella, and what we might look for and plan for in choosing our own applications and career paths.

Content marketing is my favorite kind of marketing -- the marketing that doesn't feel like marketing! Let's talk with Margaret McGriff about how to use this in our branding. (If you haven't seen my episodes on branding and marketing without selling, you might want to get those, too!)

In today's market, it's critical to be able to reach your audience directly. Let's walk through two options for selling audiobooks directly, for maximum control and profit, via Soundwise and Bookfunnel.

Today we start to walk through author snapshots (and then chat about those and other marketing things). If you're not doing a monthly snapshot, this is an easy place to start!

How did a war for natural resources in Korea lead to a ubiquitous American college food? Let's talk about how in real life everything is connected, and how we can use that to make our fictional worlds more robust, cohesive, and fascinating. This is an episode from my weekly show on the business of creativity, from craft and development to marketing and entrepreneurship. Join us for live discussion on Twitch, or catch the replays here on YouTube. Find the schedule of topics and guests here: https://go.lauravab.com/1rsV

Let's talk about Procrastination! (Spoiler: You're probably not just lazy.) Speaking generally, writers procrastinate. A lot. But why, and what can we do about it? Here are five primary reasons why creative people procrastinate on their projects, and what to do about it. Plus a lot of fun chat.

Networking! You've heard before how authors are colleagues, not competitors, and how we need to stick together to get ahead. That's all true. But there are social conventions and best practices to ask for help, and knowing how to ask is as important as knowing what to ask.

Ivorivet joins us again to talk about historical fiber arts, from carding to spinning to weaving! Great for historical or fantasy world details.

Often the idea of building and maintaining an author platform can be daunting. Let's talk about the myths of author platforms and what we really do need to focus on (and how we can keep it manageable and fun).

The fabulous ShyRedFox and SableAradia join me to talk about the many features of World Anvil, a worldbuilding platform, for authors, from organization to content sharing to discovery.

This week we welcome Emi Blaser to talk about metal-casting in historical and contemporary context for writers to use in historical or fantasy settings.

It's hard to get negative feedback! Let's talk about how to handle it -- and it's more than "just grow a thicker skin" -- and how to filter criticism and negative feedback for useful aid.

Let's talk about backups, passwords, to-do lists, and oh yeah, goals (but actionable ones!).

For today's field trip, we travel to Isla Floreana to explore the murders which may or may not have taken place.

As writers, we love the drama of a desperate search for a missing person! But so many books, movies, and television shows get their depiction of search teams completely wrong. Let's talk about search and rescue, human remains detection, and the many myths of search work -- and what you can do to get it right with more drama. This Learn With Me's special guest is trainer and handler Connie Swaim.

We've talked so much about the business side of things -- now let's review how we keep creating and business separate. It's critical, even when looking at writing as a career, that we separate these mindsets and be able to switch modes. Let's talk about why and how.

Okay, now that we've been talking about how to use spreadsheets, let's talk about accounting! No, wait, come back, it's not scary, I promise! We have Christ Morris, a CPA, a writer, and a CPA who helps writers, to walk us through beginning and not-so-beginning accounting for authors.

(Note: Jon's audio is unbalanced for most of this episode, and I apologize. We did get it fixed at the end but that's late.) I get it: We're writers. Spreadsheets are from the other side of the office suite, and they're scary. That's why I'm bringing in a freakin' spreadsheet wizard to help you tame and embrace them, to simplify and organize your writing career. All sales from all countries on one page, rendered to your home currency and prettified for quick reference? Done. Know at a glance what you spent on production of your last release and how near it is to paying for itself? Done. Know how your mailing list is growing compared to your social media? Done. Keep all your ad copy organized for quick repeats or changes? Done. And this is a great chance to get set up before we meet with the fabulous Chris Morris, a CPA who specializes with creative entrepreneurs, on Dec 1 to talk about accounting for writers.

Let's talk about rewards versus reinforcement -- what is the difference, and how can you leverage better science to keep yourself going?

For this month's Learn With Me, I sit down with martial artist, writer, and fight editor Carla Hoch to talk about creating confrontation and conflict in story -- everything from how to choose your character's best technique to choosing a setting.

After years of hearing uneducated opinions about National Novel Writing Month from people who have never tried it, I'm making NaNoWriMo the topic for this week's stream. Wear good boots, because I may step on a few toes as we walk through all the reasons you SHOULD try NaNoWriMo, even if -- especially if -- you think you can't, and then all the things we SHOULD NOT expect of our favorite month of frenzy.

In this episode we tackle the little-discussed but not uncommon phenomenon of the fear of success. Let's go over several ways we see this happen, what might be behind it, and what we can do about it.

We take our first field trip, visiting Argentina's Iguazú Falls, a hike at the end of the world, Cape Horn, Antarctica, and Elephant Island, where we have our first Story Time on the harrowing real life adventures of Ernest Shackleton's Endurance expedition and their absolutely crazy journey.

Ceallaigh S. MacCath-Moran joins me for this month's Learn With Me, sharing an academic discussion of folklore, fiction, responsibility in using story, the universality of motif, and conspiracy theories!

It's so easy to get into a creative rut -- let's talk about trying something new as a method to stay fresh and productive. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bonus Material See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Susan Spann joins me to talk about moving beyond a life of fear as she climbs 100 Japanese mountains in a year while beating cancer and writing a book about it all. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.