thewritingcoach's podcast

Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work.

In episode 6 of The Writing Coach, I speak with Julia Tunstall of A Bar Above and Mastermind Finder -- a website Julia founded that helps online entrepreneurs connect and build useful and effective Mastermind Groups so that their businesses can grow and thrive.

During the interview, Julia describes:

    - how she became an expert in mastermind groups
    - why she founded Mastermindfinder.com
    - how to "gamify" a mastermind group
    - the specific benefits a writer can get from a mastermind
    - how support groups can move people towards things, not just away from them
    - the unique way mastermind groups can help writers overcome loneliness
    - the benefits and drawbacks of a free mastermind vs. a paid mastermind
    - and much more!

For the show notes to this episode, please visit: http://www.kevintjohns.com/writingcoach6

To learn more about The Novel Writer's Blueprint Mastermind Group visit: http://yournovelblueprint.com/blueprint-mastermind/

Direct download: The_Writing_Coach_Episode_6.mp3
Category:Literature -- posted at: 1:58pm EDT

Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work.

In episode 5 of The Writing Coach, I speak with author, writing instructor, and small press publisher Caroline Frechette.

Originally from Montreal, Caroline has been living in the Ottawa/Gatineau region for the past 9 years. She is a sequential artist and author, who has published several short stories, two graphic novels, and three young adult fiction novels. She was the editor and director for the French Canadian literary magazine Histoires à boire debout and is a founding member of Renaissance Press. She has been teaching creative writing and coaching authors since 2005.

During the interview, Caroline describes:

  • how she got started teaching writing by accepting donations in an empty yogurt container
  • how volunteer work led to jobs doing structural edits and teaching courses for the city
  • why doing work for passion, not profit, can actually lead to revenue
  • where she found the confidence to start teaching at such a young age
  • the huge impact a high school English teacher had on her writing career
  • how one of her students became a co-founder of her small press
  • and much more!

For show notes visits: http://www.kevintjohns.com/writingcoach5

Direct download: The_Writing_Coach_Episode_5.mp3
Category:Literature -- posted at: 11:53am EDT

Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work.

 

In episode 4 of The Writing Coach, I speak with author and online entrepreneur Jonathan Tilley.

Jonathan is the creator of The Sacred Space Sessions: a 28 day art journaling course designed to make you feel good on the inside and out, League of List Builders: a 6 week business course for creatives on how to develop long-lasting, deep, and powerful working relationships, and author of Voice Over Garden: winner of the 2013 Small Business Book Award for Start-Ups.

A former actor, singer, and dancer in past productions of A Chorus Line, Mamma Mia!, and Cats Jonathan felt it was time to start speaking his own words about The Creative Process in front of audiences. He has devoted his life to sharing his thinking in order to help other creatives and entrepreneurs take action with their own process and purpose.

During the interview, Jonathan describes:

  • how he was able to forge a successful career in stage acting, a vocation so many fail at
  • why he embraces rejection and encourages creatives to not let it stop them
  • the skills that actors are able to bring to writing and business
  • how mentors and coaches can help by giving you permission to create
  • the surprising experience that lead to the writing of his first book
  • and much more!

Show notes: http://www.kevintjohns.com/writingcoach4

Direct download: The_Writing_Coach_Episode_4.mp3
Category:Literature -- posted at: 10:43am EDT

Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work.

 

In episode 3 of The Writing Coach, I speak with author and book marketing expert Tim Grahl.

Tim is the head-honcho at Out:think, a marketing firm specializing in book promotion and author platforms. He has worked with hundreds of writers. His clients are New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-sellers in fiction and non-fiction, including authors like Hugh Howey, Daniel Pink, and Pamela Slim. He is also the author of Your First 1000 Copies: The Step-by-Step Guide to Book Marketing which has sold over 10K copies. Marketing and sales are often seen as a slimy task that writers hate, but Tim redefines what marketing is and shares how it can be a fun and exciting while also increasing profits.

During the interview, Tim describes:

  • the influence bloggers like Seth Godin and Hugh McCleod had on his early work
  • why he always maintains an experimental mindset
  • how he was able to put his own advice into practice to reach the 10K sales mark with his own book
  • the importance of building an audience that will cheer you on
  • how everyone can be relentlessly helpful
  • why he has decided to write a novel and what is was like working with a writing coach
  • how authors need to review their options carefully when choosing traditional and indie publishing
  • and much more!

For the show notes to this episode visit: http://www.kevintjohns.com/writingcoach3

Direct download: The_Writing_Coach_Episode_3.mp3
Category:Literature -- posted at: 7:12pm EDT

Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work.

 

In episode 2 of The Writing Coach, I speak with editor, publisher, literary agent, and writer Shawn Coyne.

Shawn has edited and published hundreds of books with a total gross revenue of over $150 million!  He has  worked closely with Stephen Pressfield, including editing The War of Art and Gates of Fire (two of my personal favourites!), and runs a literary agency that represents the likes of David Mamet and Robert McKee.  He's ghostwritten several best-sellers, and recently launched a new blog, The Story Grid.

During this spectacular interview, Shawn describes:

  • his early years in the publishing business and how he learned his craft
  • why today's authors need to learn to be their own editors
  • the two tracks (macro and mirco) an editor can take and how the story grid combines both
  • why authors must start their writing with a strong understanding genre
  • how experience in stage acting translates to writing
  • what separates the best of the best from everyone else
  • why a scene must revolve around a story value and move from one place to another
  • the importance of understanding surface language and subtext
  • and much more!

For show notes visits: http://www.kevintjohns.com/writingcoach2

Direct download: The_Writing_Coach_002.mp3
Category:Literature -- posted at: 7:01pm EDT

1