Real Authors In Real Time

All Episodes (21)

From new to old

From new to old From old to new

1. 

   1. The Therapeutic Benefits of Writing Your Story

   After years of technical and academic writing, Dr. Shin-Yu Lee shares her experience of returning to writing as a space for healing while working on her upcoming book. This conversation explores why writing our story is so important in shaping how we understand it. Listeners will also gain insights on when a personal story should be published, deciding what you’re ready to share, and crafting your story so it prompts healing for someone else. Connect with Shin-Yu on Instagram at @lifewithshinyu

   Sep 27,2023 20:58
2. 

   2. How to Create an Authentic Author Brand & Platform

   Author brand and platform can feel incredibly confusing and daunting. However, the truth is that you don’t need to be inauthentic or famous to harness these tools. Rather, an author’s brand and platform create a path for authors to connect with the people they wrote their book for in the first place. In conversation with BPP’s branding and marketing expert Valeri Mills Barnes, this episode clarifies these two terms and the key components of each. Listeners will learn how to authentically present

   Sep 20,2023 17:46
3. 

   3. Learning to Think of Your Book as a Business

   Most authors want lots of people to read their book but have trouble making the mindset shift required to sell it. Successful authors must develop the ability to think of their book not just as a creative venture, but also as a strategic book-based business. In this episode, author Mike E Reynolds shares how he has applied principles from his business background to his career as an author. He discusses how he identified his audience and the creative ways he’s reaching them post-publication.  Mik

   Sep 13,2023 20:14
4. 

   4. Choosing a Publishing Path that Fits Your Priorities

   Authors have more options than ever when it comes to publishing their book, but how do you know which path is a fit for your unique message, needs, and goals?  In this episode, author Michelle Denogean shares what it was like meeting with multiple publishers and what decision-making process guided her final choice. She discusses what her highest priorities were as a first-time author with a niche yet proven message. Listeners will get a deeper insight into the pros and cons of the three major pu

   Sep 06,2023 18:32
5. 

   5. Combining Eastern and Western Ideas for a Book that Helps Us Heal

   In this episode, Dr. Katsura Suzuki shares about her process of writing The Invisible Gift, a book based on her experience growing up in Japan as the tea ceremony master’s daughter. She describes how she knit together the themes of her upbringing with her experiences as an adult in the West. Her book presents a breakthrough mindfulness method that helps readers strengthen and repair their relationships and themselves.  Katsura also has a book called The Birdfish and the Secret of Crystal Island,

   Aug 30,2023 14:40
6. 

   6. The Novelist’s Guide to Timeline, Plotline, and Character List

   Nobody wants plot holes or character inconsistencies, but it can be daunting to resolve these big-picture issues without the right tools. In this episode, we share three essential practices to help fiction writers create compelling and cohesive stories: timeline, plotline, and character list.  In conversation with author Mike E Reynolds and his BPP editor Valeri Mills Barnes, listeners will learn the difference between these three tools and how exactly to use them with real, behind-the-scenes ex

   Aug 23,2023 19:00
7. 

   7. Demystifying the Writing Process from Blank Page to Finished Manuscript

   What exactly happens in the mind of a writer between the spark of an idea and the time it becomes a finished written work? Vastly different from what we typically learn in school, this episode unpacks and demystifies the writing process with composition expert Dr. Diana Glyer.  As an author, speaker, and professor on the topic, Diana presents the five basic stages experienced writers use to create work. Whether you’re a student, author, poet, or playwright, this paradigm will help you get your i

   Aug 16,2023 22:57
8. 

   8. Marketing Your Book and Building Readership Pre-Launch

   This week’s episode is for the author saying, “Help! I’m afraid no one will buy my book!” While you don’t need thousands of followers before launching, there are plenty of ways to establish relationships with readers pre-launch so they’re already invested by the time your book goes live.  In this conversation, author María Pérez-Gómez shares how she got the word out about her book before it launched, and how that effort translated into post-publication sales, book signings, and media features. S

   Aug 09,2023 15:07
9. 

   9. Strategies for Writing a Book in the Margins of a Busy Life

   Work crises, screaming children, health scares, competing commitments—these aren’t exactly the ideal conditions for creativity. Yet as writers know, life doesn’t stop just because you’re trying to write! How do authors manage to get anything done in such slim margins? This week, we discuss this question with Dr. Shin-Yu Lee, a residency-trained, board-certified pharmacist who made a career change to being an author while caring for her two medically complex children. In this conversation, Shin-Y

   Aug 02,2023 20:28
10. 

    10. The Four Ways to Structure a Self-Help Book

    This week, we’re discussing an industry secret for self-help book authors to make their writing both accessible and actionable. A self-help book is written from an abundance of professional and personal expertise. As a writer, you have stories, examples, studies, and steps… and you’re working to present it in a way that can literally change your reader’s life. Where do you even start in organizing it all?  In the publishing industry, there are four basic ways to structure a self-help book. Abby

    Jul 26,2023 15:59
11. 

    11. How to Write a Nonfiction Follow-Up Book or Series

    Fiction books aren’t the only ones that can have sequels! Rather, many nonfiction authors are inspired to write a follow-up or turn their first book into a series. Doing so can be incredibly advantageous. But writing a follow-up prompts many questions: What merits another book? What should it cover? Who should the audience be? How do you create a cohesive series? Not to mention… how do you know people will buy it?  In this week’s episode, Dr. Janyne McConnaughey discusses how she answers these q

    Jul 19,2023 15:27
12. 

    12. The Many Benefits of Working With an Editor to Capture Your Vision

    With a long career in helping start-up companies execute their vision, Michelle Denogean shares her experience working with an editor to communicate her vision. She discusses the elements of the editorial process she did not expect when working with a publisher, expanding specifically on the stretching collaboration that happens when editing for the big picture. This episode is for any writer who wants a better understanding of what it looks like to work with an editor and how to navigate that r

    Jul 12,2023 15:54
13. 

    13. The Surprising Impact of Becoming an Author

    Many writers share their story in hopes it will transform others. However, many are surprised at how much writing a book transforms themselves. This week, coach and fitness entrepreneur Eric Freedom discusses how the process of writing his book transformed him and the way his story is unfolding to this day. He shares how writing core memories leads us to analyze and understand them from a different perspective, which has changed his most important relationships and how he sees himself. If you’re

    Jul 05,2023 17:55
14. 

    14. The Necessity of Having a Support Team to Celebrate Your Writing Milestones

    Writing a book can feel lonely, but publishing is truly a team sport. It takes a village to become an author, bring a book to life, and sustain your author business. This week, we hear from Berry Powell’s Director of Author Relations, Marianne Croonquist, on how authors can build their support network. Marianne weaves her expertise as both a book coach and Marriage & Family Therapist to help writers create their circle of care. While this can be uncomfortable, this episode provides several pract

    Jun 28,2023 17:57
15. 

    15. Writing to Bridge Cultures

    This week, Dr. Katsura Suzuki shares her challenges and insights as an author who writes to bridge the cultures within and around her. Katsura grew up in Japan as the tea ceremony master’s daughter but moved to Switzerland where she resides today. For over thirty years, Katsura has navigated between Eastern and Western cultures, building an esteemed career in global finance and private banking. Her book, The Birdfish and the Secret of Crystal Island is a middle-grade novel based on her personal

    Jun 21,2023 13:16
16. 

    16. Unlocking the Power of Creative Collaboration

    Writing a book can feel incredibly lonely, and when we write in solitude, we can find ourselves stuck for a very long time. This week, internationally recognized writer, teacher, and speaker Dr. Diana Pavlac Glyer shares exactly why and how collaboration brings out the best in their work. Diana paints an expansive definition of collaboration and describes the many forms it can take, like encouragement, practical support, and critical feedback. Her advice equips writers to take the first step in

    Jun 14,2023 23:17
17. 

    17. Writing Your Story as Fiction

    Many are driven to write their personal story, but how? As self-help? Memoir? Fiction? Award-winning author Mike E Reynolds shares how he decided to tell his story in the medium of fiction, and he shares about the challenges and opportunities that came with that decision. In this episode, we explore how to weave reality with fiction to both preserve the message and drive the story forward. Mike also shares how he navigated the interpersonal consequences of publishing this book, and he shares abo

    Jun 07,2023 15:37
18. 

    18. The Four Types of Editing Authors Need to Know

    Whether you’re just starting out or already working with a publisher, knowing the stages of editing is an essential tool for authors with dreams of publishing. This week, we break down the four major types of editing with Berry Powell’s Director of Editorial Services, Abby Dengler. Understanding these stages will clarify what type of editor you need and how to work well with them. If you’re already working with a publisher, these stages will help you locate yourself in the process to avoid frust

    May 31,2023 14:36
19. 

    19. Writing a Book that Impacts Your Readers

    This week, author and blogger Phil Chan shares key lessons and writing tools he gained to write a book—and not just any book, but one that people will want to read and impacts their lives. He discusses learning how people think, becoming a better communicator, holding people’s attention, speaking to people who may think differently from him, and moving from good ideas to something that will help people. Especially if you’re a nonfiction self-help writer or blogger, this week’s episode will provi

    May 24,2023 15:09
20. 

    20. Trusting the Creative Process and the Courage to Start Over

    Author, performer, and playwright María Pérez-Gómez contributes her process behind creating an award-winning chapter book that celebrates Puerto Rican culture and helps children of all backgrounds process loss. She shares candidly about the struggle of re-writing the story, facing the question, “Is this really worth it?” and finding the courage to start again. This episode captures key insights on learning to trust the creative process and write the story you were meant to write. María’s book, T

    May 17,2023 20:36
21. 

    21. Strategies for Writing About Personal Trauma

    Guest: Dr. Janyne McConnaughey, author of award-winning Trauma in the Pews and nationally known trauma-informed author and advocate.Janyne speaks on her challenges and strategies of writing about one's personal trauma so that the reader is affirmed and not re-traumatized. How much do you share? When to name names? How to honor your loved ones? How to show your readers they’re not alone without over-exposing or retraumatizing yourself? And how do you avoid making enemies of the people you want to

    May 10,2023 21:50