The Relaxed Author

Do you want to be a more relaxed author? There are plenty of books and tips on writing faster, learning more marketing tactics and strategies, trying to maximize your ranking, hitting the top of the charts, juicing the algorithms, and hacking different ad platforms. While these are all important things - which the authors themselves regularly write and talk about - it’s also important to recognize that your author journey is a marathon, and not a sprint. Joanna Penn and Mark Leslie Lefebvre have been in the business long enough to see authors burning out and leaving the writing life because they turned what they love into a hamster wheel of ever more production and marketing tasks they hate. It doesn’t have to be this way. This book is a collection of tips on how to be a more relaxed author - and return to the love that brought you to writing in the first place. You will discover:Why the ’relaxed’ author?You are not alone. Why authors are not relaxed.Part 1: Relaxed WritingWrite what you loveWrite at your own paceWrite in a series (if you want to)Schedule time to fill the creative well and for rest and relaxationImprove your writing process - but only if it fits with your lifestylePart 2: Relaxed PublishingMake empowered publishing choicesUnderstand persistence, patience, and partnershipValue your work. You create intellectual property assets.Publish at your own pacePublish wide (or don’t)Sell direct to your audienceDon’t let piracy and plagiarism derail youDeal with cancel culture, bad reviews, and hatersFind a community who support your publishing choicesPart 3: Relaxed MarketingFocus on the basics firstSimplify your author brand and websiteSimplify and automate your emailFind one form of marketing you enjoy and can sustain for the long termPut book 1 in a series free or permafreeChoose social media that suits you - or don’t use it at allAdvertise in campaignsOutsource when you canEmbrace who you are. Double down on being human.Think global, digital, long-term marketingPart 4: Relaxed BusinessDo you really want to run an author business?Create multiple streams of incomeEliminate tasks. Say ’no’ more.Organize and improve your processesUse toolsFind voices you trust and tune out the restLearn about moneyLook after your physical and mental healthKeep a long-term mindset