A self-published author's diary

If you're an indie author self-publishing wide, or specifically on Amazon KDP, and you're based in the EU, this episode is for you (or at least, it's for you to commiserate with me). I walk through my ongoing, unresolved, and occasionally maddening experience trying to figure out EU VAT reporting for my Amazon royalties as a Belgian-registered sole proprietor and US citizen self-employ...

This one's a numbers-and-behind-the-scenes episode. I share a full preorder update across all five of my current books, platform by platform, the good and the zero, and where I'm at ten days into a thirty-day TikTok experiment in 2026 (I know, I know). The BookTok part is genuinely interesting to me: one video crossed 2,000 views and somehow racked up more than eight hours of total watch time, whi...

I had different plans for this episode. And then I ended up in a Belgian ER at 6:45 in the morning with hives and a lip that decided to start swelling. So... change of plans. This week, I'm taking you behind the scenes of three days in my life as a self-published author: the writing, the taxes, and yes, the ER. I talk about: My ER stories as a writer (and former cancer patient) in three countr...

This One is About Amazon Blocking One of my e-books - one that had been up for ten years. In today's episode, I share how many returns that book got over years, the sales number, the reviews, what I decided to do. I also talk about moving a pre-order, and a little bit about craft - thinking about how to improve my books. Mentioned in this episode: - How to get your Amazon account back: https:/...

This episode is brought to you by: a shower, a hoarse voice from dictating, having grand and great plans I had to adjust due to fatigue. All of that got me thinking about ROMO. The Reality of Missing Out. Not FOMO. Not JOMO. The third thing. I thought I'd made up the term. Yes, really. I was really proud of myself. I Googled it. I had not. I talk about many things in this episode, including: d...

This is a numbers episode. I'm going back to the archives a little bit (back to the future, kind of) to talk about a book I released in 2015 that had 23 preorders and became one of my most read books. A Summer Like No Other launched at 99 cents. I had a whole plan — cover reveal with Xpresso Book Tours, NetGalley, YouTube videos, a blog series called The Making Of, emails to readers who had re...

This post is about grief. An update. Going back to write. An excerpt of my next rom-com. And a donkey.

My Self-Pub Weekly Diary: Some Wins, Some Wobbles, and Absolutely Zero Words (on My Manuscripts) This episode is a daily mashup of behind-the-scenes of my self-publishing life including: libraries buying my ebooks, regaining my B&N vendor account, releasing a book (YAY!), but no words on my manuscripts (I did write bonus scenes). Also: trying to invigorate my Goodreads profile: https://www.goo...

Writers talk a lot about the “Book of My Heart”: the story that feels deeply personal, the one you carry close. But there’s another book, too. The F***-It Book. The book where you stop worrying about what’s expected, or tidy, or “on-brand.” The book where you choose joy anyway. Or choose whatever you need to write because you’re ready to. Sometimes the F***-It Book and the Book of My Heart are the...

I'm releasing my next book on November 7th... Goodreads doesn't remember my name. Oh, and B&N decided to reject my vendor account? Everything is good. Everything is good. Behind-the-scenes and the ups and downs of self-publishing... Mentioned in this episode: - Nice Guys Don't Kiss Like That At Christmas - Anne Victory - NetGalley co-op - Wide for the Win Facebook Group: https://vi...

A quick update. I'm now in Belgium and thinking about thinking... No, thinking about my to-do list and whether to start a Patreon about my self-publishing... oh and I reached 1000 subscribers on my Patreon. And I have an Italian translation coming up and...and... and...

Welcome to my first audio AND video episode - yes, you can finally see my face (and probably my cat)! I'm diving into the messy reality of splitting my books into two pen names and why updating newsletter automations is a lot of work. I'll share how I create those bonus scenes readers love (epilogues, wedding scenes, even deleted diary entries), why I'm thinking about making Sweets for...

Have a coffee with me, this short self-publishing podcast episode is taking you my thought process on whether to put my Gavert City series in English in Kindle Unlimited or not... Also mentioned in this episode: Golden Angel's Presentation: Money Matters for Authors with Golden Angel You can sign up and watch it live online or for 90 days after here: https://marylandromancewriters.com/mrw-even...

This episode is NOT a how-to on how to get your Facebook Ads Account back as a self-published author... it's a lot of me venting and explaining what happened. Visit my website: www.elodienowodazkij.com (www.dasdog.net) or www.elodienow.com

My Facebook Ads Account has been restricted and, well, this hasn't been fun. As an author, I had been using Facebook ads to reach both KU readers in the US, Australia and UK and French-speaking readers who read on Kobo, Apple, Google Play and more... I don't know why my account has been restricted. Also mentioned on this episode: My YouTube channel (if you love audiobooks :-)): subscribe h...

In this episode, I open up and look back about navigating life with cancer back in 2017—receiving tough PET news, seeking second opinions, and finding support in unexpected places. I talk about how therapy really helped, how romance novels reminded me to escape into stories, and how creativity (not necessarily mine) brought moments of light during some of the hardest times. This episode explores t...

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