In this episode we try to answer that honestly, which means we have a lot of tangents, some strong opinions, and at least one story involving foot fetishists and a witch on a broom.

We start with the basics: what “platform” even means, why the term feels borrowed from influencer culture, and why fiction authors are not nonfiction authors and should probably stop treating themselves like they are. From there we get into how many platforms are actually realistic to maintain, why the newsletter beats all of them in the long run, and the one painful truth neither of us want to admit about TikTok.

We also walk through the major platforms one by one: what Facebook is actually good for, who Instagram is and is not suited for, why Threads is where you go to complain and not to sell books, and what we both think of Pinterest (short answer: not much. Sorry). We touch on Facebook groups, the real cost of spreading yourself too thin, Becca Syme’s author types, and whether grayscale mode on your phone is actually a productivity hack or just a sad gray cell screen.

One caveat: we had a little technical difficulty toward the end. Please bear with us! This is our first podcast and we hope you all are enjoying! As always, if you leave a note in the comments we will respond (and possibly address your question on an upcoming show!

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Support the Show - Buy Our Books!

• Shop Tara’s books on Amazon

• Shop LL’s books

Show Notes

People/resources mentioned

• Becca Syme’s author type framework (the Sandbox/Platform/Series breakdown)

• Noelle Ely’s TikTok (she was cited as a good example to watch)

Paid promotion services mentioned

• BookBub

• Fussy Librarian

Tools mentioned

• Freedom app (a site-blocking app helpful for focus)

What we’re reading/listening to:

• The Wasp Trap by Mark Edwards - a mystery set at a dinner party

• The Epicenter of Forever by Mara Williams - a contemporary romance set in California with lots of family drama

But once you sort that out, a much different question shows up. Should it be a series? But wait — then you learn about “serial fiction.” Or maybe, you think your book is a one-off, a standalone. Hmm.

In this week’s episode, we talk about what those choices actually mean once you’re a working writer. Series can be powerful because readers fall in love with the world and keep coming back, which can mean more visibility (and money) from readers and platform algorithms.

But writing the ninth book in a series feels very different from writing the first, and at some point you need to decide whether to continue because the world still excites you and the readers — or if one (or both) are getting burned out.

Standalones offer the opposite experience. You get the satisfaction of finishing a complete story and moving on, but they are notoriously harder to market in indie publishing where readers often want a long runway of books.

And then there are serials. You’ve probably heard of platforms like Wattpad, or maybe you’ve read a serial on Substack. We talk about writing fiction in installments, the adrenaline of publishing chapters as you go, and the strange mix of creative freedom and terror that comes from solving story problems in real time.

We also dig into world building, reader expectations, creative burnout, and why some genres naturally lean toward series while others do not. We talk about “whale readers,” the difference between TV-style episodic stories and serialized storytelling, and what happens when you try to force a series out of books that were never meant to live together.

If you’re trying to decide the shape of your next project, this episode explores the creative and business tradeoffs behind the options. As always, please leave us comments and questions — we would love to answer them here or on a future podcast!

Also, an addendum: the photo on this post is LL and Tara ten years ago, on LL’s birthday, back when the podcast wasn’t even a glimmer in our fertile imaginations.

SUPPORT OUR BOOKS

• Find Tara’s books on Amazon:
  https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tara-Lush/author/B00O5M5T5G

• Find LL’s books (available everywhere):
  https://llkirchner.com/books

Platforms & tools discussed

• Wattpad — A serial fiction site that can be wonderful for exploring serial fiction, getting feedback, and meeting new author friends (Disclosure: Tara Lush is published by an imprint of Wattpad Books)

• Patreon — Used by authors for serial fiction projects, one that can be easily monetized

• Ream — Another serial platform that allows authors to upload books and content and monetize. This one is especially good for authors with especially steamy content.

What we’re reading / listening to

Conviction — Denise Mina

When Things Fall Apart — Pema Chödrön

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What questions do you have about balancing marketing and writing time? Drop them in the comments!

Leave a comment

Support the Show - Buy Our Books!

• Shop Tara’s books on Amazon

• Shop LL’s books

Show Notes

Episodes referenced:

• Episode 10 on BookBub (last week)

Platforms & tools discussed:

Book Promotion Sites

• BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/partners - Featured deals that move the needle (mentioned as the gold standard)

• E-Reader News Today - https://www.ereadernewstoday.com

• - Works well for cozy mystery, less effective for historical fiction

• Written Word Media - https://www.writtenwordmedia.com

  - Parent company of Freebooksy, Bargain Booksy, NewInBooks

• Book Rebel - https://bookrebel.com

• The Fussy Librarian - https://www.thefussylibrarian.com

Advertising Platforms:

• Facebook Ads - https://www.facebook.com/business/ads

• Amazon Ads -

https://advertising.amazon.com

• Amazon Attribution https://advertising.amazon.com/solutions/products/amazon-attribution

• Facebook Ads - Both hosts run ongoing campaigns

• Amazon Ads - LL testing to reach higher purchase-intent traffic

• Amazon Attribution Links - For tracking ad performance

Social Media Platforms:

• TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com

• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com

• Substack - https://substack.com

What we’re reading/listening to:

• Tara: Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy (dark, graphic fiction about a 16-year-old and her teacher—thought-provoking, compared to My Dark Vanessa)

• LL: Conviction by Denise Mina (to be discussed next week)

Coming next: Next week: Are You Ready to Publish Part 2—your Amazon page, metadata, and the stuff that makes people actually click ‘buy’

This week on You Should Totally Write That, Tara and I break down BookBub’s entire ecosystem: featured deals, international promotions, newsletter ads, chirp audiobook deals, and the newer offerings like Free Reads. We talk real numbers—what we paid, what we earned, what actually moved the needle—and share the strategic mistakes we made so you don’t have to.

If you’ve ever wondered whether BookBub is worth the investment, or how to navigate categories to pay less while reaching the right readers, this episode gives you the blueprint. We also cover the compounding effect of follower counts, the also-bought targeting strategy that’s changing how we advertise, and why breaking even on a BookBub might actually be a massive win.

What questions do you have about BookBub or other advertising platforms? Drop them in the comments!

Leave a comment

Support the Show - Buy Our Books!

• Shop Tara’s books on Amazon

• Shop LL’s books

Show Notes

Episodes referenced:

• Episode 9: KU vs Wide Distribution (timestamp: 23:39)

Platforms & tools discussed:

• BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com

• Chirp (audiobook deals) - https://www.chirpbooks.com

• AZS Downloader - for scraping Amazon also-bought data

BookBub offerings covered:

• Featured Deals ($110-$4,093 depending on category/price point)

• International Featured Deals (lower cost, UK/Canada/Australia focus)

• Newsletter Ads (CPC and CPM options)

• Free Reads ($330+ depending on category)

• Pre-Order Alerts (requires 1,000+ followers)

• New Release Announcements (free, BookBub selects)

• New Releases for Less (paid promotion)

• Chirp Audiobook Deals (free to apply, 30% royalty share)

What we’re reading/listening to:

• A Nest of Magic by Kate Moseman - sapphic cozy fantasy set on a Florida nature preserve

• Matador by Kathryn Dodson - gritty crime thriller with fierce female detective (Book 3)

Coming next: How much time do I really have to spend on marketing???

In this episode, we break down how free days, Kindle Countdown Deals, and Prime Reading nominations actually work and when each one makes sense.

We explain where to find them, what they are designed to do, and how to use them strategically to support your goals as an indie author. These tools are not miracles, but they can be powerful amplifiers when used with intention. Bookmark this episode for the next time you plan a launch, a backlist push, or a series promo.

These tactics are especially helpful if you are writing a long series, like Tara.

As always, if you have questions or comments, leave them below and we will answer!

Read our books

• Find Tara’s books on Amazon:
  https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tara-Lush/author/B00O5M5T5G

• Find LL’s books (available everywhere):
  https://llkirchner.com/books

Episodes referenced

• Episode 2: Publishing terminology

Platforms + Tools Discussed… and for further reading

• Kindle Unlimited

• David Gaughran (Author, ads expert, and all-around interesting take on all things publishing, especially Kindle Unlimited)

What we’re reading / listening to

• Doll Parts by Penny Zhang

• The Paradise Proposal by Tara Lush

Coming next

Episode 10: Bookbub: what it is, and how authors can make it work for them

Have questions about Bookbub? Drop them in the comments—we’ll address them in the next episode!

In this episode, Tara and LL break down what Kindle Unlimited actually is, how authors really make money from page reads, and why KU works well for some writers and not for others.

We explain how exclusivity works, what the KENP system means for royalties, and how rankings, downloads, and reader behavior interact behind the scenes.

We also talk honestly about social media pressure, and the psychological impact of watching dashboards fluctuate. This is a practical conversation about strategy, experimentation, and long-term career building.

If you’re an indie author who is trying to decide whether Kindle Unlimited fits your books, your genre, or your goals, this episode gives you the context to make an informed choice and the permission to change course when needed.

Subscribe now

SHOW NOTES

The Deb by LL Kirchner — A free book in the Queenpin series

Draft2Digital — Website that allows indie authors to easily upload their books to several platforms, including libraries

Kindle Direct Publishing — Where you can upload your books directly to Amazon

Tara’s weekly read: Secondhand Spirits by Juliette Blackwell

LL’s weekly read: Author Unleashed by Robert Ryan

Metadata might be invisible to readers, but it’s doing an enormous amount of work behind the scenes. In this episode, LL Kirchner and Tara Lush break down what metadata actually is, what parts authors can control, what parts they can’t—and why treating it like clerical busywork is one of the easiest ways to let a good book quietly disappear.

We talk candidly about keywords, categories, pricing signals, print logistics, and why being “unclear” is worse than being imperfect. This is not a hacks episode. It’s a reality check.

YOU SHOULD TOTALLY WRITE THAT

The unfiltered truth about DIY publishing.

By LL Kirchner

Support our books

• Find Tara’s books on Amazon:
  https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tara-Lush/author/B00O5M5T5G

• Find LL’s books (available everywhere):
  https://llkirchner.com/books

Episodes referenced

• Episode 2: Publishing terminology

• Episode 4: Publishing numbers (ISBNs, ASINs, BISAC, etc.)
  Essential background for understanding how metadata works across platforms.
  

Platforms & tools discussed

• Amazon US Help Center
  How keywords, categories, pricing, and page count affect discoverability.

• Barnes & Noble
  Different category structures and keyword logic than Amazon.

• IngramSpark
  Print metadata, bookstore ordering, returns, trim size limits, and margins.

• Draft2Digital
  A practical place to update metadata post-publication for wide authors.

• BookBub
  Used for testing comps and reader behavior through ads.

• Publisher Rocket
  Discussed with skepticism and curiosity; helpful for some, confusing for others.

What we’re reading / listening to

• Write to Riches by Renee Rose

• One of Us Is Dead by Geneva Rose

Coming next

Episode 8: Kindle Unlimited — the 800-pound bear

Have questions about KU? Drop them in the comments—we’ll address them in the next episode.

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The market hit $2.2 billion last year, and everyone’s saying you must get in on the action. Award-winning authors LL Kirchner and Tara Lush reveal what actually happens when you take the audiobook plunge.

In this episode, we decode the confusing world of audiobook production—from ACX’s seven-year handcuffs to support you can rely on, weird stuff—like the fact that narrators are called “producers” on ACX (f you don’t know what ACX is, you might want to have a listen to Episode 2, publishing terminology)—and the real cost of professional narration, Virtual Voice (AI), and the one genre that absolutely shouldn’t bother with audio. Plus, we share the stomach-dropping moment when you realize your narrator owns your series for the better part of a decade.

Whether you’re trying to decide between royalty share and paying upfront, or wondering if you should just read the damn thing yourself, this episode cuts through the hype to help you make the smartest decision for YOUR author business.

Plus, hear why LL refused to narrate her own fiction despite having broadcast experience, and Tara’s confession about which beloved audiobook she couldn’t actually finish—even though it was narrated by Meryl Freaking Streep.

Listen now by clicking the photo above, and leave any comments here. Or, if you have any questions for us, we’re happy to take requests!

SHOW NOTES:

Support our books!

Find Tara’s books on Amazon

Find LL’s books here (available everywhere)

The providers listed are not affiliates; we only talked about the particular services we used. Most offer more services than we have tried.

• ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange) - Amazon’s platform for finding narrators

• Findaway (now inAudio) - Wide distribution platform, now part of Spotify

• Dreamscape Audio - Audiobook distributor (LL’s distributor)

• Positron - AI quality checking for audiobook files

• Reaping Audio - Professional audiobook production services

• Voices.com - Narrator marketplace

• Voice123 - Another narrator platform

• Bunny Studio - Voice talent marketplace

• Virtual Voice - Amazon’s AI narration (beta)

• Eleven Labs - AI voice cloning

• Hidden Gems - Beta reader services

What we’re listening to:

• Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

• Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

Resources:

• LL’s Ill-Behaved Women Substack - includes DIY audiobook production guide

• Libby - Library audiobook app

Leave a comment

In this episode, we dig into why covers can make or break a book before a reader ever reads a word. We talk honestly about covers we loved that failed, covers we did not personally like that sold extremely well, and the hard truth that your book cover is not art or self expression. It is a marketing tool.

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Spoiler alert: Tara doesn’t love all of her book covers. And that is OKAY.

We get into genre signaling, reader expectations, ego traps, budget realities, when to hire a designer, when not to, and how to actually look at what is working in your category without losing your mind.

If you are an indie author who has ever stared at your cover and thought, I love this but no one is clicking, this conversation is for you. If you’re a new author and wondering where to begin with covers, this is a great starting point.

Services mentioned:

The providers listed are not affiliates; we only talked about the particular services we used. Most offer more services than we have tried.

K-Lytics: Genre-specific reports showing tropes, ranks, keywords and book covers of the top selling books on Amazon

Canva: A low-cost option for ebook covers and reader magnets, with caveats for print and audio.

PicMonkey Sometimes easier than Canva for handling multiple cover formats.

WHAT WE’RE READING
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It
A masterclass example of a cover doing its job. Bought on sight, sets tone and expectations perfectly.

Stranger Things: One Way or Another
Official Stranger Things mystery novel written by a screenwriter from the show, discussed in the context of cover expectations and audience.

We walk through what authors actually need to understand about copyright, ISBNs, BISAC codes, metadata, and publishing platforms — not in theory, but in practice. We talk honestly about when these things matter, when they don’t, and how much of this is dependent on your genre, your goals, and where you plan to sell your work.

Along the way, we unpack common points of confusion:

• Do you really need to register copyright?

• When should you buy your own ISBNs—and when is it fine not to?

• Why publishing on multiple platforms can accidentally create chaos

• How bookstores, libraries, and retailers actually find books

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We also share hard-earned lessons from our own mistakes. Yes, we’ve made mistakes! Duplicate listings, split reviews, rushing platforms, and learning the importance of slowing down before you hit publish. The big takeaway? You don’t need to know everything at once, but you do need to be intentional.

This is not a checklist episode or a one-size-fits-all rulebook. It’s a realistic, grounded conversation about treating your writing career like a business without losing your mind or your creative momentum.

Grab a notebook. Take it slow. And remember: not knowing this stuff yet doesn’t mean you’re behind.

SHOW NOTES

The providers listed are not affiliates; we only talked about the particular services we used. Most offer more services than we have tried.

Bowker (ISBNs in the U.S.)

BISG / BISAC codes site

Draft2Digital

IngramSpark

BOOKS

Shirley Jackson, We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Elin Hilderbrand and Shelby Cunningham, The Academy

Find Tara’s books on Amazon

LL’s website has links to all the platforms for her Queenpin Chronicles trilogy and memoirs

Leave a comment

In this episode we talk about what each type of edit actually does, why a developmental edit might not be right at this point in your author career, and when it is (and tips for spending way less than LL did). You’ll learn about hiring the right people for your genre. Plus, discover why Tara asks her editors to be grammar sticklers while LL learned the hard way that “grammatically correct” can still sound ridiculous. Whether you’re trying to figure out the difference between a copy edit and a line edit, or wondering if you really need to pay for beta readers, this episode cuts through the confusion.

Plus, hear about LL’s childhood survival kit obsession and why Tara spent her youth spying on neighbors Harriet-the-Spy style—because apparently that’s just how Gen X rolled.

Leave a comment

SHOW NOTES:

Buy our books!

Find Tara’s books on Amazon

LL’s website has links to all the platforms for her Queenpin Chronicles trilogy and memoirs

Services mentioned:

The providers listed are not affiliates; we only talked about the particular services we used. Most offer more services than we have tried.

Editing Services:

• Red Adept Editing - Copy editing and proofreading services

• The Author Buddy - Mentioned for copy edits and beta reads

Beta Reader Services:

• Hidden Gems Books - Beta reader service

• Spun Yarn - Beta reading service

ARC Distribution:

• NetGalley - Platform for distributing ARCs

• Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op - Affordable NetGalley option

In this episode, we tackle one of the most confusing parts of an author’s beginning journey: publishing terms.

We break down the major publishing paths — traditional publishing, independent presses, hybrid publishing, and self-publishing/DIY — and explain what each scenario involves. Control, royalties, rights, timelines, distribution, validation, and risk all come into play, and no option is inherently “better” than another. The right path depends on the book, the genre, the author’s goals, and where they are in their career.

We also dig into the gray areas that trip writers up: why “hybrid” can mean two very different things, how small presses differ wildly from one another, and why terms like “indie” are often used inconsistently. Along the way, we talk honestly about advances, earning out, bookstore distribution, and the math behind traditional publishing —numbers that are rarely discussed but deeply affect author outcomes.

On the self-publishing side, we discuss what it really means to be the publisher: owning the timeline, the costs, the decisions, and the responsibility.

Throughout the episode, we return to one core truth: there is no single right answer. Many authors move between paths over the course of their careers, or mix them strategically. Our goal isn’t to tell you what to choose, but to make sure you understand the language well enough to choose intentionally.

If publishing terms have ever made you feel behind, confused, or quietly panicked—this episode is for you.

Buy our books!

Find Tara’s books on Amazon

LL’s website has links to all the platforms for her Queenpin Chronicles trilogy and memoirs

Do you wake up thinking about your stories? Are you okay with juggling ten balls in the air while learning on the fly? Are you willing to let yourself be wrong and keep going?

In our first full episode, award-winning authors LL Kirchner and Tara Lush dive into the biggest question every aspiring indie author needs to answer: do you have what it takes to DIY publish?

Forget the fantasy of uploading to Amazon and watching the sales roll in—those days are long gone. LL and Tara get brutally honest about the mindset shift required to go from writer to small business owner, sharing their own spectacular mistakes (like accidentally uploading the wrong book to the wrong listing) and why having your own back is more important than perfection. From former journalists who’ve published everything from witchy cozies to historical noir, this conversation strips away the gatekeeping and gives you the unfiltered truth.

Listen now by clicking the photo above, and leave any comments here. Or, if you have any questions for us, we’re happy to take requests!

Leave a comment

SHOW NOTES:

Buy our books!

Find Tara’s books on Amazon

LL’s website has links to all the platforms for her Queenpin Chronicles trilogy and memoirs

Services mentioned:

Publishing Platforms Referenced:

• Wattpad - Serial fiction platform (Tara mentions using for romance)

• KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) - Amazon’s self-publishing platform

• Kindle Unlimited (KU) - Amazon’s subscription service

Concepts:

• NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month, an annual November writing challenge where participants attempt to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days (though they say “whose name we shall not mention”)

• ABSR - Amazon Best Seller Rank, a metric on your book’s page that shows how well a book is selling in its categories; updated hourly (lower numbers = better sales)

We want to share what’s great and what’s not so great about DIY publishing to help you get a realistic idea of what to expect on your publishing journey.

Why are we doing this? Because we’re both obsessed with books. Reading them, writing them, buying them, and selling them. And in this podcast we’re going to talk about all those things.

Have a listen to get your first publishing tip!

Then join us on Tuesdays to discuss the ins and outs of what it takes to be an independent author.

Coming in January…

Tara Lush is the author of the Crescent Moon Mystery series, where the bodies are fictional, but the weird Florida vibes are very real. She’s also written steamy romance and one of her books is currently being made into an Amazon Prime movie in Germany.

L.L. Kirchner is a screenwriter, author of two memoirs, and author of the historical thriller series, The Queenpin Chronicles, where showgirls take on the Tampa mafia in postwar Florida. She currently lives in Florida with her favorite husband.

Anything you want us to cover? Let us know!

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