Do you have a plan for your writing one year, two years, five years down the road? If not, you need a creative calendar. Guest host Jamie Davis shares his creative calendar planning tool with the Smarter Artists listening out there.

You see this story type a lot in fantasy and sci fi: the Grand Quest. Lord of the Rings is probably the best example of this, but did you know Stand By Me is also a Grand Quest story? Today, Sean takes a fresh look at this story type,

Just because there aren’t rules in self publishing doesn’t mean you shouldn’t follow the guidelines. Sure, you can publish literally anything, but if you want a real, long-lasting career in self publishing, there are conventions you should heed.

In this episode of The Smarter Artist, guest host C.Steven Manley talks about imperfections in your characters and provides three actionable tips to help make them more realistic and relatable. It’s possible to find the perfect elixir of traits for you...

So how much will that billionaire vampire romance book make? There are a lot of factors to consider, so there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. Today, Johnny talks about some of the things you need to consider when projecting potential profits for your bo...

“What if I’m not creative?” We get this question all the time, and we always shake our heads. Today, Sean talks about his belief that everyone is creative to some extent, and how creativity can be developed.

Struggling with how to relate your story to your readers? Try adding a little authenticity into the mix and see what happens. In this episode of the Smarter Artist Podcast, guest host Jamie Davis shares his experiences in his real-life medical training...

Want to turn readers into fans? Acquisition is always first, and next comes the autoresponder. Finally, broadcasts. Today, Sean talks about autoresponders (welcome emails to someone new on your list) and broadcasts (list-wide emails for everyone).

Some people who will never have the problem of beginning a new book while editing drafts of another. But others who want to churn out books more quickly, it becomes an issue to swap back and forth between your ‘mental muscles.

Show don’t tell; odds are very good that if you’ve been writing for very long at all then someone has given you that piece of advice. What does it actually mean, though, and how do you get it done? In this episode of The Smarter Artist, guest host C.