Publishing Rodeo: The Good, The Bad, and the Bloody Ugly

Are we really back? Were we ever truly gone? Who is special guest Drake Scottford, and why is he joining us today? These questions and more will be answered in episode 45.On a more serious note, we cover a wide range of topics today: a general catch-up on where we both are, career-wise, what prompted us to record again, and how life after debut is going. (Spoiler: it's complicated and stressful.)There's been a move in the industry to talk about the problem of career longevity, which is definitely a favorite subject here, and now we're weighing in, almost 3 years exactly after our 2022 debuts. Though we have no guest other than Drake Scottford, we did collect some responses in an informal questionnaire, and share a few of those answers.Other things we discuss: the magic sales number, and an infamous AMA with a big 5 marketing person, and the absolute joy of reading commercial fiction.Link to the Reddit AMA with Marketer: https://www.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/1nw96ti/ama_big_five_marketer_umssalt/Link to The Magic Number, by Todd Satterson:https://bardpress.com/the-magic-number/Tracks of My Tears (article featuring David Headley):https://www.thebookseller.com/features/tracks-of-my-tears-where-does-the-fault-lie-when-books-fail-to-hit

Catch-up episode after a long gap! Sunyi and Scott both discuss career momentum, cheerfully losing at the Hugos, and the pushback they've had from Reddit / the internet. Sunyi explains why she'd turn down other nominations in the future, while Scott talks about why he was happy to sign a smaller deal for his UK rights. They also cover future plans, and what happened to previous author guests. And finally, they each get to give the pettiest hill they'd die on. Hint: Sunyi's hill starts with "J" and ends in "owling".Link to the Guardian article that Sunyi talks about in her Petty Hill at the end: https://www.theguardian.com/books/1997/jul/08/booksforchildrenandteenagers.danglaister

Authors are expected to juggle many different demands on their time and energy--from social media and self-promotion, to side projects and live events. How do we decide what is or isn't worth our efforts, and where do we set boundaries to prevent burnout and overwhelm?Award-winning author and professor, Suyi Davies Okungbowa, discusses how he makes the writing life work for him, by balancing his original fiction and his prolific IP work against his academic career. Among many other topics, he outlines the crucial role of a personal assistant (especially how they can supplement publisher marketing), his criteria for accepting or rejecting IP projects, his very unique approach to social media, and how he sets certain boundaries with publishers.

Kristina Perez has lived all over the world, working alternately as a journalist, an author, and now as top literary agent. In this episode we cover a number of different topics, putting forward a combination of our own questions and reader-submitted questions, chatting with Kristina generally about the state of the industry and her multi-sided perspective on it. Topics include: reviving a flagging career, romantasy, trends and pitches, a nuanced discussion on the relevance of platform, and Scott attempting to guess Kristina's accent. Kristina also outlines some of the help she provides her authors, and graciously gave us a number of links to use in the show notes (seen below)

This audio file is a compilation of 11 clips across various episodes, and is part of our submission to the Hugo Awards "Voter Pack." Everyone who pays for Hugo membership is given a "voter pack" with electronic copies of the books, short fiction, novellas, essays, and--in our case--audio files for fancasts.Rather than subject voters to hours of episodes, we've chosen to create a short(ish) compilation, spanning the whole of our show! Runtime is only 31 minutes, and we hope it will give you a sense of the kind of humor, content, and discussion that we cover on Pub Rodeo.Transcripts + show notes are on our website, and on RSS.com.

Just an outtakes edit from Alex Darwin's episode 38, in which Scott shares a hunting misadventure. Absolutely no industry content whatsoever, simply a short bit of chat. Also featuring: Alex Darwin and Sunyi Dean. CONTENT WARNING: Animal hunting (elk) is discussed in detail, which may be upsetting to some listeners.

What's the deal with author book events? Are they useful, do they shift books, and why do they all follow the same format? This week, we speak with Sam Missingham, who spent many years working with the Bookseller, and later with Harper as an author events creator. We talk about what works and what doesn't, whether hiring publicists as a trad author is worth the time, the influence of class and connections in publishing, and the real reason so many publisher-run book events fall a little flat. If authors want a successful career, Sam stresses that this requires a long-term perspective and a focus on writing multiple books, as well as a creative and individual approach to self-marketing.00:00 Introduction01:00 Background and Experience in the Publishing Industry04:11 The Role of Events in Book Marketing07:05 The Challenges of Filling Book Events09:00 The Value of Events for Debut Authors10:26 The Influence of Class and Connections in Publishing15:00 The Myth of the Slush Pile18:39 The Need for Engaging and Fun Book Events20:24 The Value of Indie Author Events25:26 The Role of Marketing and Publicity for Authors27:22 Working with Traditionally Published Authors31:33 The Challenges of Hiring PR and Marketing Services41:57 The Empowered Author and Building a Strong Author Platform

In addition to writing bestselling novels and cofounding a viral podcast (THE BESTSELLER EXPERIMENT), Mark Stay also spent many years working with bookstores and publishers, gaining great insight to all sides of the industry. We chat to Mark about his varied experiences, and reflect back on the seven years he spent recording his groundbreaking podcast. This one is fun and quite eye-opening for behind-the-scenes stuff.00:00 Introduction and Podcast Origins01:09 Mark Stay's Background and Bestseller Experiment02:45 The Impact and Pressure of Bestseller Experiment03:10 The Success and Community of Bestseller Experiment04:05 Lessons Learned from Bestseller Experiment05:17 Disillusionment and Quitting While Ahead06:12 Finding the Right Tone for Bestseller Experiment07:31 Defeatism in Traditional Publishing08:12 The Empathy and Doom Scrolling of Creatives09:25 The Challenges of Self-Publishing10:34 The Importance of Loving the Process11:49 Mark Stay's Journey from Bookseller to Author13:35 The Experience of Traditional Publishing15:49 The Unconventional Paths in Publishing19:00 Self-Publishing the Bestseller Experiment Book20:33 The Challenges of Selling a Genre-Bending Book22:44 Takeaways for Authors to Give Their Books a Good Shot28:29 The Impact of the Podcast on Scott Drakeford's Publishing Journey32:42 The Reception and Impact of the Podcast35:16 Challenges Faced by Publishers37:06 Focus on Brand Authors38:04 Neglecting Growing Authors39:03 Ineffective Advertising Campaigns40:00 The Mistake of Becoming Bigger42:21 Digital Publishers and Genre Preferences43:18 Preference for Tangible Books44:09 The Importance of Book Covers45:37 Amazon's Dominance and Publishers' Reliance46:31 Amazon's Control and Negotiations47:02 Amazon's Focus on Other Ventures48:31 Visibility and Impact of Amazon on Authors49:28 The Influence of Nielsen BookScan53:41 Diversity in Publishing55:05 The Future of Publishing and Concerns56:02 American Cultural Imperialism01:03:19 Smallest Hill to Die On: Americanization of British English01:09:06 Plugs: Bestseller Experiment, Witches of Woodville

Our final show of the season! This week, we talk frankly about author leverage--what it means, and how to use it. We also discuss when and how to pitch new books on proposal, the impact of past sales on that process, and why Scott is (probably) walking away from writing trad fantasy as a result. Other topics: we reflect on regrets and highlights across the past year, do a quick summary of where we are, why we've slowed down, and what's going on, AND our plans for Season 2 (there will be one!) and how it will be different from Season 1. Finally, Scott introduces a new shiny thing we've been working on: the Author Data Project, an adult-fiction version of the YA research that Dr. Kerry Pray conducted and discussed in an earlier episode. Links to the other 2 podcasts we mentioned and recommended: The Failing Writers Podcast, featuring Jon Rand, Tom Turner, and Dave Baird: https://www.failingwriterspodcast.com/ Great fun, honest conversations, fantastic guests!Cover Meeting, with Steve Leard: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cover-meeting/id1706806306 A side of the industry authors normally don't see!

Does Twitter sell books? Do book tours improve sales? How do readers actually find authors in the first place? Across a fifteen-year-career, NYT best-selling author Gail Carriger talks about hitting list, collecting data on her readers, and walking away from bad book/film deals. Check the show notes to gain access to a wealth of info and author assistance, via her incredibly detailed blog. ###Show Notes And Links (written by Gail herself!)Website = gailcarriger.comResources tab for authors on Gail's websitehttps://gailcarriger.com/resources/#writersA book option does not a movie make:https://gailcarriger.com/2015/09/28/on-the-unlikelihood-of-options-becoming-films/The discoverability data blog post (psw = backdoor) https://gailcarriger.com/2023/05/11/new-reader-discoverability-data/Gail uses data and experience to predict Amazon's behavior around books for the next 3 years (psw = backdoor)https://gailcarriger.com/2023/02/27/amazonchanges/How to use Wordpress plugin Redirection to track your activities online so you know if your promo efforts are effectivehttps://gailcarriger.com/2016/12/09/redirection/##See website for full notes!

This week, we chat with Anika Scott, an international bestselling author of historical fiction. After years of writing, querying, and revising, Anika's debut novel was snapped up amidst a whirlwind of interest and buzz--only to then launch a week before COVID shut the world down. On one continent, her book flourished, while on another, it tanked. We discuss the European scene, including the Frankfurt Book Fair and what it means to be a Frankfurt book, as well as being editorially orphaned, different genre readerships, recovering from a devastating COVID launch, and more.

If you've ever been curious about alternate or adjacent writing careers, this episode is for you! David "D.V." Bishop got his start 30 years ago writing for comics and IP franchises, before later moving to tv/film scriptwriting. These days, he's back to books and is now an award-winning historical crime novelist. Bringing to bear years of varied experience, he walks us through the trenches and pitfalls of an industry that makes trad pub look like child's play--including the kind of working conditions you can expect, and the kind of money you might be able to earn. Oh, and Scott gets to ask his burning question at the end: why do some big-budget tv franchises turn out so crappy?! ###Full notes:· 30+ year career. Started out writing for comics, then moved to tie-in novels, then wrote for film and television· Is currently an award-winning historical crime novelist· David has worn a LOT of hats· How do you get started as a screenwriter? David talks about the paths into that field for television versus film.· Explanation of a brutal, competitive, cut-throat industry· How does film and TV compare to trad publishing? Much harsher!· Limited negotiation and power in script writing / IP work· Rights and creativity and anything created is signed over forever· How has the landscape of publishing changed in the past 30 years? Mostly good or mostly bad?· The advent of self publishing, the rise of electronic submissions, the accessibility of information· The financial side of script-writing: what does it make, what can you expect?· Wait…. You guys make HOW MUCH?! O.O· Good pay if writers can endure the crushing pressure and difficult environment· If you want to break into film, you need an agent, and probably also a lawyer, and a manager.· Tie in novels: how much they earn (enough to support you, not enough to retire or quit)· Novelisations of films: Tough gig, potentially good money· ALWAYS sign a contract first· The pitfalls of trying to learn screenwriting / doing your own book adaptations as an author· Scott’s burning question: why are some big budget shows SO awful? What went wrong?· And finally: Why David is happy to be back writing novels, why he enjoys it, and why he genuinely aspires to be a well-supported midlist writer.· “Either you're the skyrocket and then the hope is you can sustain that thereafter, or else you have to be the little engine that could and you just have to keep chugging away and putting out the books and raising the quality and raising awareness and getting out there and pimping your book and hustle, hustle, hustle.”