Real Authors In Real Time

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 yo...

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 clari...

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 di...

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 nich...

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 relation...

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...

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 crea...

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 laun...

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 chang...

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...

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 pe...

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...

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 differ...

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 wri...

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....

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 encoura...

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 al...

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 alread...

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 p...

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...

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 ov...