SPA Girls Podcast

What if you could make more money selling audiobooks direct than on Amazon and Audible combined? In this episode of the SPA Girls Podcast (EP556), USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Hefner returns for a third time to break down exactly how she’s doing it — and how indie authors can market audiobooks wide, build a direct store that converts, and stop relying on a single retailer. Rebecca walks us through the Facebook ad strategies, Pinterest funnels, newsletter excerpt formula, and bundle pricing that now drive the majority of her author revenue from her own Shopify and Payhip stores. We also dig into the rapidly changing audiobook landscape — Spotify, YouTube audiobooks, Kobo Plus, and why repackaging your existing catalog into box sets is one of the smartest moves you can make right now. Whether you’re brand new to direct selling or already running a wide audiobook strategy, this episode is packed with practical, no-fluff advice from someone testing it all in real time. watch on YouTube 👤 ABOUT REBECCA HEFNER: USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Hefner grew up in Western NC and now calls the Hudson River of NYC home. In her youth, she would sneak into her mother’s bedroom and read the romance novels stashed on the bookshelf, cementing her love of HEAs. A huge Buffy and Star Wars fan, she loves an epic fantasy and a surprise twist (Luke, he IS your father). Before becoming an author, Rebecca had a successful sales career. After launching her own indie publishing company, she is now a full-time author who also helps coach authors especially on publishing Wide strategies and direct selling. Rebecca’s author website is rebeccahefner.com and visit https://indieauthorvault.com for a free listing of curated resources for authors. She is also the admin of the Marketing Audiobooks Wide group on FB (https://www.facebook.com/groups/marketingaudiobookswide) and Buy Direct From Authors (https://buydirectfromauthors.com/) which we highly recommend you join. 📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED: Indie Author Vault: https://indieauthorvault.com Indie Audiobook Deals: https://indieaudiobookdeals.com Buy Direct From Authors: https://buydirectfromauthors.com Wide & Direct Autthor Substack: https://wideauthormarketing.substack.com Book a Consult with Rebecca: https://payhip.com/b/L6XMI 🔗 CONNECT WITH THE SPA GIRLS: 🌐 Website & free self-publishing resources: http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com 🎧 Listen on your favourite podcast app — search “SPA Girls Podcast” 💗 This podcast is supported by our amazing Patreon community! ⭐ Join at the $10 tier for access to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group where we discuss marketing, writing, and answer your burning questions: http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast Subscribe so you never miss an episode! #WritingCommunity #WritingPodcast

The indie author realities no-one talks about (much). Bestselling romance author Elizabeth O’Roark joins us this week for one of the most refreshingly honest conversations we’ve had on the show — covering everything from her Random House deal to the indie strategies she’s quietly walked away from. In this episode we chat about: Going from medical writer to indie romance author in 2013 The Devil series breakout and working with publicist Nina Grinstead at Valentine PR Pantser writing, rewriting every book 30 times, and writing scenes out of order The honest truth about special editions, direct sales and Amazon ads for romance authors Landing a two-book Random House deal — how it happened and what surprised her Why KU is “like doing heroin” and the realities of going wide as a romance author Cover changes, branding decisions, and learning to take feedback from other authors The biggest challenge after 23 books: staying inspired Voice dictation as a game-changer for writing faster ABOUT ELIZABETH O’ROARK Elizabeth O’Roark has a bunch of degrees she does not use and gave up working as a medical writer to craft grumpy, alpha heroes and the flawed women who love them. When not writing, she likes to spend time with her three kids, who are now teenagers and wish she’d find a different way to spend time. She can be found on Facebook feverishly debating whether or not “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie and telling people to read “The Hating Game”, which she did not write but wishes she had. Website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com 📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED: Elizabeth’s website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com Nina Grinstead / Valentine PR: https://valentine-pr.com Natural Readers (text-to-speech for self-editing): https://www.naturalreaders.com Romance Author Mastermind (RAM) Entangled Publishing (Devil series print deal) Whitney G — author who gave the cover feedback Elizabeth credits CliftonStrengths / Gallup Strengths assessment Book Lovers by Emily Henry (mentioned re: trad publishing process) 🔗 CONNECT WITH THE SPA GIRLS: 🌐 Website & free self-publishing resources: http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com 🎧 Subscribe to our weekly episodes on your favourite podcast app — search “SPA Girls Podcast” 💗 This podcast is supported by our amazing Patreon community! ⭐ Join at the $10 tier for access to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group where we discuss marketing, writing, and answer your burning questions: http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast #SelfPublishing #IndieAuthor #RomancePodcast Watch the recording on You Tube 📌 IN THIS EPISODE: 00:00 — Introduction & welcome 01:15 — From medical writer to indie romance author: how it started in 2013 04:21 — Finding her stride: the Devil series breakout 06:13 — Branding, reader expectations & not bait-and-switching your audience 09:37 — Writing process: pantser life, writing scenes out of order, 30 rewrites 14:52 — Editors, beta readers & last-minute drafts 17:34 — The honest truth about special editions and direct sales 21:10 — “I’m very bad at my job”: on outsourcing what you’re not good at 23:24 — Building the brand: covers, website & finding a designer 26:12 — TikTok, Instagram & the viral video she didn’t plan for 27:46 — Working with a publicist (Nina Grinstead, Valentine PR) 30:48 — The Random House deal: how it happened and what surprised her 36:00 — Audio, translations & wide vs KU 39:10 — What readers actually love about her books 40:02 — Reader events, signings & the real cost of being “on” 45:40 — Cover changes: why they matter and how to use them 49:27 — The biggest challenge: staying inspired after 23 books 52:06 — Final advice: voice dictation as a game-changer 54:15 — Wrap-up and where to find Elizabeth

Ever wanted to create an audiobook but been scared off by the price tag? Phil Marshall, founder of Spoken.Press, built an AI-powered platform specifically for indie authors who want professional-quality audio without the professional-level costs. In this episode we chat about: Phil’s path from surgeon to tech founder and sci-fi author What “ethical AI narration” means — consenting voice actors who are credited and compensated The difference between text-to-speech (TTS) and speech-to-speech (STS) and when to use each How Spoken analyses your manuscript to recommend voices matched to your characters Creating multi-voice and full-cast audiobooks on a self-publishing budget Where you can distribute AI-narrated audiobooks (spoiler: more places than you think) About Phil Marshall Phil Marshall is the founder and CEO of Spoken (spoken.press), the AI Audiobook Company. With a background in medicine and 25+ years in technology — including founding a conversational AI company in healthcare — Phil built Spoken after experiencing firsthand how expensive and complicated audiobook production was for his own debut novel. Spoken now serves thousands of authors worldwide, from first-time self-publishers to New York Times bestsellers. Website: https://www.spoken.press/ 📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED: Spoken.Press: https://www.spoken.press/ Spoken Ethical AI page: https://www.spoken.press/ethicalai Voices by InAudio (distribution): https://www.voicesinaudio.com/ BookFunnel (direct audiobook sales): https://bookfunnel.com/ Author Republic (distribution): https://www.authorrepublic.com/ Taming the Perilous Skies by Phil Marshall (debut novel, June 2026) 🔗 CONNECT WITH THE SPA GIRLS: 🌐 Website & free self-publishing resources: http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com 🎧 Subscribe to our weekly episodes on your favourite podcast app — search “SPA Girls Podcast” 💗 This podcast is supported by our amazing Patreon community! ⭐ Join at the $10 tier for access to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group where we discuss marketing, writing, and answer your burning questions: http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast

“The hardest part is the first step – be brave enough to reach out!“ A lot of us are introverts and the idea of “networking” gives us chills (and not in a good way). Historical Romance author, Celeste Barclay, recorded this show with us a few years ago. Her advice is just as relevant now, as building your author community will help ride out the ups and downs of this wild self-publishing ride! Celeste Barclay books combine history and heat. She has a created a connected world that brings all her series together, so readers never have to say goodbye to their favorite characters. Before becoming a full-time author, Celeste was a Social Studies and English teacher. She holds degrees in International Affairs (BA), Teaching Secondary Social Science (MAT), and Political Management (MPS). She channels that knowledge into creating rich historical romances that bring the steam. She also a speaker and teaches writing and publishing as well as working with with aspiring and emerging authors to bring their publishing goals to life. It was the third book in her first series which really took off and she’s been incredibly successful ever since. Celeste says her Author Village “made her career” and today she talks to us about what that means to her, how to find and build your own village, and why it’s so important.  Celeste defines her Author Village as her own network of fellow author peers who lend friendship, support, feedback, writing and business advice. They’re like-minded people who she trusts and respects.  What a village offers:– anthology opportunities– increased business– newsletter swaps, Facebook group takeovers, etc Some ways to find your author village:attend in-person author events and signings and conferences Join author Facebook groups such as Millionaire Author Mastermind (https://www.facebook.com/groups/millionaireauthormastermind/), or Renee Rose’s – Abundance Mindset For Authors (https://www.facebook.com/groups/abundancemindsetforauthors/)To find more, search within Facebook for your own genre group Find Celeste at: https://www.celestebarclay.com/ 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your burning questions. All the info is at http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info 😊Watch our weekly show on YouTube @‌spagirlspodcast Make sure to subscribe wherever you listen, so you don’t miss an episode!

Have you always wanted to write a cozy mystery but don’t know where to start? This classic replay we recorded a few years back with Nancy J. Cohen will get you going!Cozy Mysteries are hugely popular with readers and authors alike, and Nancy J. Cohen shares her fantastic advice for writing the successful cozy. Alongside her fiction, Nancy has also written the acclaimed “how to” for cozies “Writing The Cozy Mystery”, so we’re thrilled she agreed to give us the scoop on all things cozy. ABOUT NANCY: Nancy J. Cohen writes the Bad Hair Day Mysteries featuring South Florida hairstylist Marla Vail. These books have won numerous awards along with her nonfiction titles, Writing the Cozy Mystery and A Bad Hair Day Cookbook. Active in the writing community, Nancy is a past president of Florida Romance Writers and Mystery Writers of America, Florida Chapter. When not busy writing, she enjoys cooking, fine dining, cruising and visiting Disney World. Visit her at NancyJCohen.com 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your burning questions. All the info is at http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info 😊Watch our weekly show on YouTube @‌spagirlspodcast Make sure to subscribe wherever you listen, so you don’t miss an episode!

Amira Alvarez is the founder and CEO of The Unstoppable Woman, a global coaching company helping entrepreneurs, empire builders, athletes, creatives, and rising stars in all fields achieve their dreams and goals in record time. This classic replay of an interview we originally recorded in August 2020 is just what we need to get our mindset right for the new year and how to be productive without burning ourselves out! As someone who has made a quantum leap (going from barely making 6-figures to making $700k in one year, then onto 7-figures) and has lived to tell about it, Amira knows exactly what tactical strategies and mindset shifts are required to get out of your own way, live life on your own terms, and master the art of achieving any goal you set your mind to. Learn more about Amira at: https://www.TheUnstoppableWoman.com 💗 The SPA Girls podcast is sponsored by everyone who supports us on Patreon. Thank you so much, we love our listeners and our patrons! ⭐ Join us at the $10 tier, and you’ll be invited to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group for authors, where we discuss all things self-publishing, marketing and writing PLUS answer all your burning questions. All the info is at http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast ✍️ Visit http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com for our FREE self-publishing resources, podcast episodes and info 😊Watch our weekly show on YouTube @‌spagirlspodcast Make sure to subscribe wherever you listen, so you don’t miss an episode!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the SPA Girls! It’s time to check off our 2025 Publishing Naughty or Nice list for what worked, and what really didn’t!