Self-Publishing with ALLi

Are you struggling to reach readers on TikTok? In this episode, Dale Roberts sits down with Marvin Wey of AuthorScale.com to explore how authors can use slideshow content to turn browsers into buyers. Discover why volume matters more than perfection, how storytelling trumps flashy production, and what metrics really define virality. Marvin breaks down the slideshow strategy that's helping authors drive engagement, build curiosity, and sell more books, all without burning out or breaking the bank. About the Host Dale L. Roberts is a self-publishing advocate, award-winning author, and video content creator. Dale's inherent passion for life fuels his self-publishing advocacy both in print and online. After publishing over 50 titles and becoming an international bestselling author on Amazon, Dale started his YouTube channel, Self-Publishing with Dale. Selected by Feedspot and LA Weekly as one of the best sources in self-publishing of 2022, Dale cemented his position as the indie-author community's go-to authority. You can find Dale on his website or YouTube. About the Guest Marvin Wey brings over ten years of experience in book publishing and growth marketing. In 2016, he joined one of today's most successful publishing startups and fiction reading apps as one of its earliest employees. Now, with his new company AuthorScale, he and his team are developing cutting-edge tools to help indie authors leverage technology to revolutionize their book marketing.

In this episode of the Self-Publishing with ALLi Member Q&A podcast, hosts Michael La Ronn and Sacha Black discuss how a debut author can promote a first audiobook without an existing platform. Other questions include: How can an urban fantasy with an unrequited-love subplot be marketed without signaling it's a romance? Can authors obtain a tax exemption when purchasing author copies on KDP? Where should a charity's endorsement logo go on a children's book cover, and what permissions are required? What's the best ebook format and software—and how do ISBNs factor in? Any practical tips for generating usable AI images for author projects? How do ALLi members find the current IngramSpark revision code? And More! Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-Publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. About the Hosts Michael La Ronn is ALLi's Outreach Manager. He is the author of over 80 science fiction & fantasy books and self-help books for writers. He writes from the great plains of Iowa and has managed to write while raising a family, working a full-time job, and even attending law school classes in the evenings (now graduated!). You can find his fiction at www.michaellaronn.com and his videos and books for writers at www.authorlevelup.com. Sacha Black is a bestselling and competition winning author, rebel podcaster, speaker and casual rule breaker. She writes fiction under a secret pen name and other books about the art of writing. When Sacha isn't writing, she runs ALLi's blog. She lives in England, with her wife and genius, giant of a son. You can find her on her website, her podcast, and on Instagram.

On this episode of the Self-Publishing News Podcast, Dan Holloway previews October's conferences, including Frankfurt and ALLi's Self-Publishing Advice Conference, with themes from page-to-screen rights to BookTok trends. He reports that TikTok is set to avoid a U.S. ban, a new class action targets Apple over use of the Books3 dataset, and a study suggests AI is changing language by spreading common buzzwords. Sponsor Self-Publishing News is proudly sponsored by PublishMe—helping indie authors succeed globally with expert translation, tailored marketing, and publishing support. From first draft to international launch, PublishMe ensures your book reaches readers everywhere. Visit publishme.me. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. About the Host Dan Holloway is a novelist, poet, and spoken word artist. He is the MC of the performance arts show The New Libertines, He competed at the National Poetry Slam final at the Royal Albert Hall. His latest collection, The Transparency of Sutures, is available on Kindle.

ALLi nonfiction adviser Anna Featherstone interviews Catherine Bilson, who writes in multiple genres across four pen names, about the practicalities of updating and rebranding books. With more than 60 titles published and hundreds of translations under her belt, Catherine explains how indie authors can approach everything from refreshing blurbs and covers to managing keywords, metadata, and back matter. She also shares how to avoid common pitfalls, keep files organized, and treat updates as part of an author's long-term business strategy. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-Publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. Sponsor This podcast is proudly sponsored by Gatekeeper Press — your partner in premium independent publishing. Empowering authors with expert guidance, 100% rights, 100% royalties, and global distribution. From editing to marketing, their all-inclusive services help you publish professionally and confidently. Gatekeeper Press — Where Authors Are Family. About the Host Anna Featherstone is ALLi's nonfiction adviser and an author advocate and mentor. A judge of The Australian Business Book Awards and Australian Society of Travel Writers awards, she's also the founder of Bold Authors and presents author marketing and self-publishing workshops for organizations, including Byron Writers Festival. Anna has authored books including how-to and memoirs and her book Look-It's Your Book! about writing, publishing, marketing, and leveraging nonfiction is on the Australian Society of Authors recommended reading list. When she's not being bookish, Anna's into bees, beings, and the big issues of our time. About the Guest RUBY-award–winning author Catherine Bilson writes in multiple genres across four pen names and also co-authors books with Ebony Oaten. Born and raised in the UK, she was once a rocket scientist before falling in love with an Australian and moving halfway around the world. Still married to her Aussie husband, she now lives in sunny southeast Queensland with their two teenage romance-heroes-in-training and two rescue cats.

My guest this episode is Mo Fanning, a novelist whose work blends humor, heartbreak, and hope while exploring themes of identity, loss, and chosen family. His stories often center LGBTQ+ lives but treat them with the same depth and complexity as any other. He also creates original music to accompany his books. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of 2,000+ blog posts, and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. We invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. About the Host Howard Lovy has been a journalist for 40 years and now amplifies the voices of independent author-publishers and works with authors as a developmental editor. Find Howard at howardlovy.com, LinkedIn, and X. About the Guest Mo Fanning writes darkly comic LGBTQ+ fiction that tackles serious themes with heart and humour. His novel Husbands won the 2025 IndieReader Discovery Award, while The Armchair Bride was nominated for Arts Council Book of the Year. He has featured as a finalist in both 2024 and 2025 in the Page Turner Awards.

On this episode of the Self-Publishing News Podcast, Dan Holloway highlights the launch of ALLi's Author Income Survey, a vital tool to track how indie writers earn from their work and strengthen industry advocacy. He also reports on the judge's rejection of the proposed Anthropic settlement, which had offered $3,000 per pirated title, and notes that James Patterson has awarded $50,000 each to 12 authors to support their writing. ALLi Author Income Survey 2025 Sponsors Self-Publishing News is proudly sponsored by PublishMe—helping indie authors succeed globally with expert translation, tailored marketing, and publishing support. From first draft to international launch, PublishMe ensures your book reaches readers everywhere. Visit publishme.me. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. About the Host Dan Holloway is a novelist, poet, and spoken word artist. He is the MC of the performance arts show The New Libertines, He competed at the National Poetry Slam final at the Royal Albert Hall. His latest collection, The Transparency of Sutures, is available on Kindle.

ALLi Campaigns Manager Matty Dalrymple talks with editor Gale Winskill about the craft of editing children's books and picture books. Winskill discusses age-appropriate language and content, the author–illustrator collaboration, structural and developmental editing, marketing considerations, and the role of beta readers, while emphasizing the importance of challenging young readers and creating stories that appeal to both children and adults. About the Host Matty Dalrymple podcasts, writes, speaks, and consults on the writing craft and the publishing voyage as The Indy Author. She has written books on the business of short fiction and podcasting for authors, and her articles have appeared in Writer's Digest magazine. She serves as the campaigns manager for the Alliance of Independent Authors. Matty is also the author of the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers, beginning with Rock Paper Scissors; the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels, beginning with The Sense of Death; and the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts, including Close These Eyes. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and Sisters in Crime. About the Guest Gale Winskill is an editor at Winskill Editorial with more than thirty years of in-house and freelance experience in the UK and abroad, working across both adult and children's fiction and nonfiction. She provides a full range of editing services, book coaching, and some ghostwriting, and she works with both traditionally published and self-published authors. Her writers have won or been shortlisted for a variety of prizes. Winskill also creates and delivers training for several publishing bodies and teaches the fiction stream of the HarperCollins Author Academy. She believes the editor's role is to empower authors through constructive advice, collaboration, and a good sense of humor. She can be found on her website and on LinkedIn.

On the Self-Publishing with ALLi Podcast, Orna Ross and Joanna Penn focus on business models and ethics for indie authors. They look at how "windowing" releases and short KU stints can fit into a publishing strategy, and why managing cash flow is critical for crowdfunding and direct sales. They also examine the collapse of Unbound/Boundless, highlighting the importance of rights-reversion clauses in contracts, and discuss issues of reader trust in memoir. The conversation extends to pen names, ghostwriting, and AI, emphasizing the need for transparency in building lasting relationships with readers. About the Hosts Joanna Penn writes nonfiction for authors and is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author as J.F.Penn. She's also an award-winning podcaster, creative entrepreneur, and international professional speaker. Orna Ross launched the Alliance of Independent Authors at the London Book Fair in 2012. Her work for ALLi has seen her named as one of The Bookseller's "100 top people in publishing". She also publishes poetry, fiction, and nonfiction and is greatly excited by the democratizing, empowering potential of author-publishing. For more information about Orna, visit her website.

On this episode of the Self-Publishing News Podcast, Dan Holloway reports on Libby's new Inspire Me discovery tool, which promises to boost book discoverability but has raised concerns among librarians. He covers Threads' rollout of long-form text, giving authors new ways to share excerpts and engage with readers. The main story is the settlement in the Anthropic AI copyright case, where avoiding a trial leaves fair use questions unanswered and could shape the future of licensing deals between tech firms and authors. Sponsors Self-Publishing News is proudly sponsored by PublishMe—helping indie authors succeed globally with expert translation, tailored marketing, and publishing support. From first draft to international launch, PublishMe ensures your book reaches readers everywhere. Visit publishme.me. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. About the Host Dan Holloway is a novelist, poet, and spoken word artist. He is the MC of the performance arts show The New Libertines, He competed at the National Poetry Slam final at the Royal Albert Hall. His latest collection, The Transparency of Sutures, is available on Kindle.

In this Self-Publishing Advice Conference highlight, Martin Cavannagh of Reedsy moderates a panel with editor Rebecca Heyman, designer Danna Mathias Steele, and marketeer Ricardo Fayet. The session examines the role of professional services in the success of self-published books, focusing on how expert editing, design, and marketing can increase sales and long-term profitability. The discussion also outlines how Reedsy's marketplace connects authors with established industry professionals and includes case studies of authors who improved their publishing results through professional partnerships. This is a post from SelfPubCon (The Self-Publishing Advice Conference), an online author event run free twice yearly in association with the Alliance of Independent Authors. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. And, if you haven't already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. You can do that at http://allianceindependentauthors.org.