A self-published author's diary

Amazon announced on October 28th that it’s closing Kindle Vella. To quote their press release: “We’ve made the difficult decision to gradually wind down Kindle Vella in February 2025 as the program hasn’t caught on as we’d hoped…” Right when they announced it, I was in the middle of doing this huge analysis on what had been working for me—digging into my Facebook ad data, my reads, my bonus… espec...

In this episode: I'll talk about how anxiety and writing didn't prepare me for cancer. And for entering the Hospital World. The Patient World. First of all, how dare anxiety not prepare me for this? I thought we had a deal—you'd give me fears, I'd be anxious about them. I'd learn, become a Google MD. Heck, I'd even develop OCD—starting young because why not? And boom, when something happens, I'd k...

I think I finally found a writing/self-publishing goals tracking that works for me. In this one, I talk about my Gallup Strengths and how Becca Syme's helped me come up with ways to get more organized, my Sarra Cannon's HB90-inspired adapted board and more. I also share what happened in the past two weeks in my writing/self-publishing world, including my newsletters, Facebook Groups I joined and m...

This isn't your typical how-to guide, because let's be real—it’s more about the messy art of balancing (or not balancing) self-publishing, creativity, and cancer treatments. I’m publishing this episode on my fifth second birthday (my second birthday was the day I received my stem cells back during my autologous stem cell transplant). And I've been in remission for now five years after three years...

My writing and self-publishing love list (for those days, you know). Also an update on Kindle Vella, a local event and Claire Taylor's kickstarter... Get me newsletter directly in your inbox: https://elodienowodazkij.substack.com/ Kickstarter Claire Taylor: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ffsmedia/sustain-your-author-career Leave me a comment/share your own self-publishing/writing love li...

Today, I share my BookBub Featured Deal Results as well as my self-publishing ups and downs of the month. Get the posts per email: https://elodienowodazkij.substack.com/p/i-broke-tiktok-and-what-that-means

Today, I dive into my word of the year: Appreciate (well, our word of the year - since the Chemical Engineer chose the same one) and what it means for my writing and self-publishing. For the ups and downs of my week as a self-published author, some of my ups are my Kindle Vella bonus, DMARC, and more... For all links and images, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter here: https://elodienowodazk...

This episode is about my 2023 self-publishing ebook libraries sales data, including geographical data when I have it and an example for one of my books (when it comes to the different royalties structure). For the full data (including my full 2023 royalties analysis - retailers and more): https://elodienowodazkij.substack.com/ Thank you so much for listening.

Finding joy in resilience (and yes also, still a bit overwhelmed sometimes): My 2023 recap as a self-published author... For the full transcript and links: https://elodienowodazkij.substack.com/p/finding-joy-in-resilience-and-yes

This episode is about setting my Ream page: different tiers, welcome message and more. In addition, I share my ups and downs of self-publishing in the past two weeks, articles I found interesting, classes I'm taking. Edited transcript (with visuals) is available: https://elodienowodazkij.substack.com/ Also the full A Summer Like No Other is available for free on YouTube (and other eretailers):...

This is a mini-series about starting my subscription on Ream as an author: why Ream? How I started... get behind-the-scenes before I officially launch the page and don't hesitate to ask me questions. Also mentioned in this podcast episode: Subscription For Authors The Podcast: https://subscriptionsforauthors.com/podcasthome/ Erin Wright Coaching and Classes: https://erinwright.net/authors/ My ream...

Today's episode is about my latest author event at Park Books (in Severna Park - Maryland, click here to help them with an amazing endeavor). I'm sharing with you how a poster helped me gain more than 20 subscribers, the importance of communicating and connecting with both readers and authors, managing expectations and more... As always feel free to leave me a message or to ask me a questi...

Episode 77 explores the highs and lows of a new book launch under a pen name, adapted from a Kindle Vella story. This episode features several updates I recorded throughout the launch day, providing a real-time peek into the journey. We also revisit the launch two weeks later, examining key metrics such as rankings and pages read in the Kindle Unlimited environment. I'm also talking about TikT...

Today is about my author newsletter and how I added 84 subscribers in one week via TikTok and Instagram, Welcome Sequence and More... Also mentioned in this article: MRW June meeting (1pm to 3pm): 7 Figure Fiction Master Class with T. Taylor: 7 Figure Fiction—how to use Universal Fantasy to SELL your books to ANYONE. Why does T. Taylor call Universal Fantasies butter? What are Universal Fantasies...

Because sharing the downs of self-publishing is also important: a day without earning. Still: Vella is helping me earn a part-time income and making business decisions and writing progress.

Today, I explain why I won't be posting new episodes regularly, share great new about my latest biopsy (no signs of recurrence, YAY!), an update about the month of December (so many things: Vella, writing immersive videos and more) as well as three newsletters for writers. Oh and I have a new book up for pre-order # Most Eligible Scrooge (how awesome is that title?) Mentioned in the episode: Three...

Today is another episode about Kindle Vella. Now that I've been on the platform for more than nine months, I thought I'd do a recap. Mentioned in the episode: HB90 with Sarra Cannon: 90 day planning for authors - https://heartbreathings.teachable.com/p/hb90-bootcamp Becca Syme: https://betterfasteracademy.com/ My books: https://elodienowodazkij.com/my-books/ My direct store for personalized signed...

There are a lot of sites listing Black Friday deals for writers such as Kindlepreneur Black Friday Deals For Writers 2022 . The list below is made up of three Black Friday Deals I’m either going to use or am thinking about using. One Stop For Writers (40% for 6 month plan with BF2022): I’ve been using One Stop Writers for more than a year, I think, and it has helped me so much. I don’t use all the...

Today is all about business plans and building blocks and defining success as an author. Mentioned in the episode: Zoe York's Romance Your Brand series: https://romanceyourbrand.com/books/  MRW November meeting: Building Blocks for Success w/ Zoe York Wish I'd Known Then ... For Writers podcast with Sara Rosett and Jami Albright: Tammi Labrecque on What to Email to Newsletter Subscribers Self-Publ...

Today is all about my Kickstarter not getting funded for #TheLeftoverBride audiobook: what I would do differently, what I learned and what I did after it didn't get funded ... Mentioned in the episode: The Creative Penn Podcast: Kickstarter for Authors With Monica Leonelle: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2022/03/28/kickstarter-for-authors/ Why I used Kickstarter to fund my audiobook production: h...

Today, I'm sharing what happened since #SweetsForLove release day: the number of sold copies, how I already earned some money before release day, number of reviews and what comes next (marketing, ads and more). Plus, you get a peek inside my day on the actual release day.  Oh and you can get your own copy here: books2read.com/u/3Gwzpa As always: Ask me a question (per email: authorelodienowod...

Today, I share with you my new (to me) strategy to get advance book reviews, using TikTok, Instagram (and relying on my newsletter which I've always done) and contacting readers from Netgalley who have reviewed a previous book in the series and who mentioned they'd be interested in contacting with me. The first #SweetsForLove reviews are raving! :-) Oh and you can get your own copy here: https://b...

As I said last week I also have so many plans for this podcast. I want to work on the website which would include resources, the ups and downs of self-publishing, the A to Z shorter episodes, and do a few more interviews and tell you more about what works for me and my writing and self-publishing career. And to do this, a lot of things need to happen. And so this year, A Self-Published Author's Di...

I almost titled this episode: "How to achieve your self-publishing goals without feeling overwhelmed." But dear Diary that would have been false advertisement as while I'm trying to adapt my systems and plans to fit my goals, I'm still in the process and it does feel overwhelming from times to times. Do I have coping mechanisms when it does so thatI can nmake sure that it also doesn't take away fr...

Today is a replay of Episode 8: The Little Book That Could In this episode, I share how I became a hybrid author with my book A SUMMER LIKE NO OTHER (it involved an email from a French publisher :-)), the story behind the writing of A SUMMER LIKE NO OTHER and more...