Your Mom Writes Books

In today's episode, we discuss (AKA Charlie talks at Caitlyn) newsletters, ARC teams and street teams. A little bit of marketing 101 for trad and indie authors alike. This may or may not have been recorded in March. Whoops. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

Was this recorded two months ago? Yes. Listen, life happens. ;) Today Caitlyn and Charlie discuss reusing elements in a series, such as the same climax, same villains, and same premises between books. As a side note, Charlie doesn't understand ASMR videos. CHECK OUT CAITLYN'S NEW BOOK HERE . It's finally BIRTHED! (And spicy, be warned.) You can also scope out Charlie's nonficti...

Why is it that the most popular, well-loved books are also the most hated? Today Caitlyn and Charlie dig into why people criticize "bad" books and why we love them so much. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

WE ARE BACK! Not weekly, but we're making an effort. So where have we been and what have we learned? Tune in to find out! Charlie's 25th novel it out today! WIZARD OF MOST WICKED WAYS (Whimbrel House book #4): https://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Most-Wicked-Whimbrel-House-ebook/dp/B0D3S73Z8Q (Also Charlie did not edit this podcast. Andy the podcast gremlin did.) If you would like to donate to...

We're back for a quick hit commenting on the Penguin Random House trial! If you want more information, please click the links below! Novel Marketing Podcast's "Publishing Secrets Revealed at the Penguin Random House Trial:" https://open.spotify.com/episode/77hqgO67OUCpoDBg2cKBCe?si=9ZQ5bNRrT8ONReG_aZAEVA Jane Friedman's "The Hot Sheet:" https://hotsheetpub.com/ ...

SEASON FINALE! Charlie and a very raspy Caitlyn talk about querying first books in a series that can't stand alone, the submission process, theme, and Thomas Astruc's recent series of tweets on fan criticism. Thomas Astruc's Twitter thread: https://twitter.com/Thomas_Astruc/status/1672144706992586753 If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg...

While Charlie frolics through England, author James L. Sutter (Co-creator of Pathfinder) hops on the podcast to talk about his new novel, DARK HEARTS. On the way, he and Caitlyn talk about queer identity, querying (no pun intended), adequacy, and more. Secret: James wrote the podcast jingle for Brian McClellan's Page Break ;) If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to...

She's actually on vacation. Er, one of them is, but she took the podcast gremlin with her, so while no one is available to edit the podcast, Caitlyn will still be slaving away at her day job and recording next week's episode. Because she loves you the most. Today's away notice brought to you by the gremlin, who was let out of her cage for a whole three minutes to record it. If you w...

TENSION.  Today Caitlyn and Charlie talk tension. How to build it, how to release it, how to layer it, and so on. Your Mom Writes Books will be on vacation Tuesday, 6/20, but we'll return with a new episode the following week! If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

Burn out. It happens to the best of us. So what do we do when we run out of wick? If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

Today we share the major edits Spellbreaker (Charlie) and Soul of Smoke (Caitlyn) underwent after being accepted to publication, so be warned, there are spoilers! But before that, we talk about ghostwriters vs AI and whether or not an author is their work. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yo...

The release of Sudowrite has Caitlyn and Charlie discusses the future of computers and story. Links to tweets/sites referenced in this episode: https://twitter.com/dzweifler/status/1659219748486361089?s=20&fbclid=IwAR2TfuuwkQNSmsGIbU85kZAMPdSY0rTKwth6nXNaqk1UMyBMZXWq1MsqQPE https://twitter.com/jamesjyu/status/1658933765824192512?t=ahvHbBqoJvq-evzy3xuVqw&s=19 https://www.wired.com/story/fan...

What should you do when running into creepy people as an author? Should you use a pseudonym? When do you report unusual behavior at a convention? How do you keep the post office from selling your information? Today Charlie is solo (and apparently paranoid) and talks about protecting oneself as a public figure.  If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com...

How do you know which ideas to keep in a book, and which ideas to discard? Today Charlie and Caitlyn discuss reversals, outlining scenes, and perfectionism, all while Charlie struggles to understand the robotic filter on Caitlyn's voice that only she can hear. Also, it's release day! Caitlyn's novel, SOUL OF SMOKE, is out in the wild! Support her and the podcast by giving it a gande...

So we've talked magic. We've talked hard magic, and we've talked soft magic. But how do you choose which one to put in your book? Thus proceeds this week's episode. (And we're so proud of Caitlyn for doing a newsletter, which you can find at the bottom of her home page! https://witchoftheweald.com/) If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlie...

Today Caitlyn and Charlie review the recent author income survey run by ALLi (the Alliance of Independent Authors), which claims that indie authors' income is not only rising year after year, but is surpassing their traditionally published colleagues. You can read the survey here: https://selfpublishingadvice.org/incomesurvey/ If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to...

Releasing a book? Want to get it in front of faces without breaking the bank? Today Charlie and Caitlyn chat methods to use to publicize yourself, from social media to tours to newspapers.  If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

We watched the new Dungeons & Dragons movie! And we have thoughts! (Charlie also got a natural 1 on rolling for initiative for the end-of-episode pun.) Heir of Uncertain Magic is out today!  Amazon: amzn.to/3rhXic4 B&N: bit.ly/3Kv9IXo If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesboo...

While Charlie is off not seeing whales, Caitlyn unravels the wonders of folklore with Kristy S. Gilbert, former editorial manager at Pegasus (Charlie's company) and present editorial director at Dragonsteel (Brandon Sanderson's company). What IS folklore? It's more than just fairytales. Join Caitlyn and Kristy as they talk story, culture, motifs, and more. Also it's Charlie&apo...

Caitlyn and Charlie discuss the often easily fixable things that make then DNF* books. Because let's face it, if they talked about all the things they loved, it would be far less entertaining. There is no promise that Caitlyn and Charlie don't also write sucky books. *Did Not Finish If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check...

This week Charlie and Caitlyn discuss how to write stories that don't involve saving the world, while touching on how to escalate personal stakes to add oomph to any tale. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

How do you choose the best protagonist for your next project? Charlie and Caitlyn talk about choosing the right personality for a story and differentiating characters from book to book. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

Your book is drafted. Done. Great. Now what? Caitlyn and Charlie discuss options for diving into your first round of revisions. One of them doesn't use spellcheck.  Added bonus: a rant about movie sequels. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomwritesbooks).

All books need research, but where does one start? Join Charlie and Caitlyn as they talk primary vs secondary resources, juvenile nonfiction, and ChatGPT. Link to the colonial occupations website: https://homepages.rootsweb.com/~sam/occupation.html#S If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio @yourmomw...

Almost a part 2 to the "The Female Gaze and Fantasy" episode, Charlie and Caitlyn dive into the erasure of female characters over the age of 30 in [predominantly fantasy] fiction, age gaps, and female authors being relegated to the YA book category. If you would like to donate to Your Mom Writes Books, please go to charlienholmberg.com/podcast (or check out the link in our Instagram bio...