The Profitable Writer

What label would you use to describe what you do? Would it be writer, editor, designer, author, creative, artist, ghostwriter, publisher, entrepreneur, or maybe something else? Most of us would gravitate toward one or more of those terms. But I’ve never heard anyone in the writing and publishing world use the term “sales professional” or perhaps “salesperson” to describe what they do. Which is a bit funny if you think about it, since if you have a business, you are definitely in sales! That’s why I’m excited to feature this conversation with Phil Whitebloom, who is here to help us handle objections better and close more sales—no matter how you make your living as a writer. Phil has been a sales professional for more than 40 years. His employers and customers have included Sony, the White House, the Department of Defense, NASA, professional sports teams, universities, Fortune 500 companies, communication giants, small and medium-sized businesses, and startups. Phil is also the co-host of the “Been There, Sold That” podcast with Brianna Hendley. I have gotten to know Phil over the last couple of years since we have both been members of Honorée Corder’s Empire Builders Mastermind. During that time, I’ve come to know Phil as not only a great conversationalist and consummate expert in sales, but a genuinely kind and thoughtful human being as well. In this conversation, we dive into some themes from Phil’s excellent book, Handling Objections: Clues for Closing the Sale. You’ll learn how to start embracing idea of selling by shifting your mindset, how to address some common objections to pricing, lots of practical tips on sales, and much more. You’ll want to grab a pen and paper to take plenty of notes because Phil is such a wealth of knowledge! You can find out more about Phil’s book, Handling Objections, his podcast, and services by visiting his website, https://beentherecs.com.

I’ve never done a poll on this, but I’d venture to say that most of my listeners have books, blog posts, social media, and newsletters as their main writing outlets. That includes me as well! But as I’m sure you know, there is a whole wide world of opportunities out there for writers. That’s why I’m excited to bring you this interview with Tim Carter. He is not only a novelist, but has also done extensive writing for feature films, video games, and other mediums. Tim always wanted to tell stories since he was a kid. After years in corporate writing and magazines, he jumped into film and TV in 2004, selling his first television pilot to CBS. He produced the groundbreaking digital series MORTAL KOMBAT: LEGACY for Warner Brothers and later wrote and produced the DEAD RISING movies for Legendary Pictures and Sony. As a lifelong gamer, he started writing for Computer Gaming World in 1991. Soon after breaking into film, he began to do double duty writing games. To date, he has written or consulted for more than a dozen games of all sizes. He is best known for writing the award-winning AAA game SLEEPING DOGS. Tim is also the author of Majordomo: A Novella as well as the novel, Jester, which was released this past Spring. In this conversation, I get to ask Tim all my nerdy questions about what it’s like to write for films and games, how to get started in that career, how stories are developed, and more. Make sure to check out Tim’s books and projects at https://timbcarter.com.

If you’re like me, you probably have a shelf full of books on the craft of writing and storytelling. Yes, I admit it, I’m a junkie for books that dissect and analyze how to tell better stories. Whether you write blog posts, books, material for clients, and of course, novels, you can always learn to become a better storyteller. Today we’re going all the way back to one of the most important sources for learning how to tell stories better: the original teacher of story, Aristotle himself. My guest is Doug Vigliotti, author of Aristotle for Novelists: 14 Timeless Principles on the Art of Story. He the author of three additional books, including Tom Collins: A ‘Slightly Crooked’ Novel, which is available to listen to on, Slightly Crooked: Good Stories, Told Well, a podcast that also features his raw and unorthodox poem collection mini heartbreaks (or, little poems about life). Doug is also the host of Books for Men, a weekly podcast to inspire more men to read. He lives in New Haven, Connecticut. Aristotle for Novelists is, of course, based on Aristotle’s classic work, Poetics, which lays out the timeless rules of drama. Doug has done every writer a huge favor by distilling these principles down into an easy-to-understand format for every storyteller. In our conversation, we talk about how these principles apply to nonfiction writers, the six components of story, the three big questions a writer must answer in order to write their story, and much more. This was a fun conversation filled with creative tips for every kind of writer. Make sure to check out Doug’s books, podcasts, and more at https://douglasvigliotti.com/. Doug has generously agreed to give away a copy of Aristotle for Novelists. You can enter the drawing by visiting https://douglasvigliotti.com/kent.

If there is one word I keep hearing over and over again in conversations right now, it’s the word “stuck.” I’m not sure if it’s just a function of my age (I’m 50, by the way) and the fact that most of the people I talk to are in the middle-age range, or maybe it’s something going on in the culture at large. Who knows, maybe it’s just writers! We are a bit of a crazy group, after all! Whatever way you slice it, the fact remains that a lot of people right now seem to be spinning their wheels, paralyzed by all the options before them in life. That’s certainly true of writers. Today, we have more options for how to build a business than ever before. We have all had those moments when we have to stop and assess our situation, take a breath, and then figure out the pathway forward. That’s why I’m honored to feature this conversation with Carol Enneking. She is the author of the book The Rebalancing Act: Wisdom from Working Women for Success That Matters. Carol’s journey to “have it all” led her to interview over seventy men and women of all ages, uncovering common challenges that hold back working women from true fulfillment. Her book blends these insights with her personal experiences to provide practical strategies for restoring balance in our busy lives. Even though she wrote this book for women, I have often found that books written for a niche audience often have great insights for people outside that niche—that’s certainly the case with Carol’s book. In addition to being an author, Carol Enneking brings years of deep experience as a senior executive specializing in talent management, coaching, and leadership to her clients. Carol’s career has spanned major corporations, entrepreneurial ventures as a business owner, and collaborations with over 100 companies. Her passion is helping businesses leverage talent, learning, and culture to deliver excellent results through their people. Carol’s greatest joy is her family: her husband Eric, children Bradley, Bethany, her bonus daughter, Alyssa, and the world’s best dog, a Great Pyrenees named Molly. Some of her favorite things include live music, chocolate, G70s and 80s song lyrics, ice cream, traveling, trivia, faith, and history. What a great list! In this conversation, Carol and I talk about how writers can frequently get stuck, and how to start moving forward by addressing the seven archetypes, the traps that hold us back. The reality is that all of us have to face decision points in our complicated, fast-paced world today. I know you’ll enjoy Carol’s insights just as much as I did. Be sure to check out Carol’s book, The Rebalancing Act, and her website, https://carolenneking.com/. Here’s our conversation.

I don’t know about you, but many times I’ve had this experience when listening to interviews on podcasts: I love what the guest is talking about, and it’s cool to hear about all their wins and successes. But then I relate what they are saying to my own experiences, which by comparison don’t seem so successful. There’s a clear reason we feel this way sometimes when listening to interviews. It’s because in public settings, people generally only share their wins, their successes, the things that make them look good. Everybody has good AND challenging times in their business. But we don’t often hear about the challenging times. That’s why we’re turning the tables a bit today. My good friend and fellow ghostwriter, Alice Sullivan, actually suggested the topic of this episode. We had talked before about how we handled it when client work goes wrong for various reasons. She thought it would be fun to make an episode about it, and I completely agreed. So in that spirit, what you’re about to hear is two ghostwriters sharing crazy stories about what happens when things go off the rails with clients, and how we have handled it. These situations include clients who take a long time to pay (or don’t pay at all), getting fired from jobs, dealing with a client’s personal crisis, clients who hate what you’ve written, how to deal with tricky situations with publishers, and much more. Just to be clear, in my experience these kinds of crazy situations have been pretty rare. Most the clients I’ve worked with have been amazing and delightful, and it was a pleasure to work on their books. But just like in real life, sometimes things don’t go according to plan. I hope this episode will not only be a fun listen, but will also give you some strategies for handling future tricky situations with clients. Before we get into the conversation, let me tell you a bit about Alice Sullivan. She is a #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling ghostwriter, New York Times bestselling editor (11 times over), collaborator, and speaker. A natural-born storyteller, she has written nearly 70 books and edited over 1,300 titles since 2001. In addition to her NYT and WSJ bestsellers, other books have achieved Amazon bestseller status and won several awards, such as Readers’ Favorite, Living Now Book Award, and Nashville’s Best Local Children’s Book Award. Alice has written for Forbes, Hay House, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Abingdon Press, Made for Grace Publishing, and many more publishers and outlets. Alice specializes in memoir, self-help, personal growth, and leadership because she loves personal stories and practical advice. Her favorite projects challenge her point of view, expand her knowledge, and add meaning to her life. Alice is not just a consummate storyteller and writer. She's also one of the most kind and down-to-earth people I know. Make sure to connect with her at https://alicesullivan.com.

I’m thrilled to share this conversation with Dennis Pullin. He is the President and CEO of Virtua Health, an academic health system in New Jersey which offers a full continuum of preventative, primary, ambulatory, acute and tertiary care across more than 400 locations. Virtua Health is a $3B organization with more than 16,000 employees. As a recognized thought leader, published author, and advocate for health equity, Mr. Pullin was named one of the Top 10 Healthcare Leaders in the U.S. by Healthcare Digital in 2024. The year before, Modern Healthcare selected him as one of the 25 Top Innovators in Healthcare and one of the 100 Most Influential People in the industry nationwide. Prior to that, Modern Healthcare recognized him as one of the nation’s Top 25 Diversity Leaders in Healthcare on three occasions. Since 2020, Mr. Pullin has hosted the award-winning Here for Good podcast, where he engages in meaningful conversations with transformational leaders and Virtua colleagues about how they create a positive impact on the world around them. Nearly 100 episodes have been recorded and released to date. Today, Dennis joins me to talk about his new book, Suited for Leadership: How to Show Up with Purpose to Have a Lasting Impact. The book compiles two dozen of the important life lessons he has learned in his years of leadership. The book is not just for people in healthcare: every leader, at every level, will benefit from the book, which is a fun, practical read. It was an absolute blast to collaborate with Dennis on his book, and I’m thrilled to share this conversation with you! We talk about several topics, which include: - What Dennis’s day-to-day life looks like as a healthcare CEO - How to deal with imposter syndrome - How to reconnect with your purpose when you’re feeling stuck - What he learned as a healthcare leader going through the Covid crisis - His advice for writers who want to stand out as an expert in a crowded space This conversation was an absolute blast, and I encourage you to check out his book, Suited for Leadership. There are lots of great lessons for writers and leaders of all kinds.

  I can say in all honesty that today is a momentous occasion here on the podcast! Why do I say that? Because today is the culmination of a nearly 20-year journey to hold a very special book in my hands. It’s titled, Carson the Magnificent, and it’s the long-awaited biography of one of my entertainment heroes, the late Johnny Carson. For those who aren’t very familiar with Johnny Carson, he was the host of NBC’s Tonight Show for 30 years, from 1962-1992. They called him “The King of Late Night” because he ruled the late-night airwaves for decades. When Johnny Carson retired from the Tonight Show in 1992, at the top of his game, he famously went into his retirement cave and rarely came back out except for a few public appearances in the years afterwards. That’s why it was such a big deal when the writer and journalist Bill Zehme was able to score an interview in Esquire magazine in 2002, ten years after Carson retired. It was the only formal interview that Carson had granted since his retirement. A few years later, Carson agreed to let Zehme write his full biography. The book was announced, and he went to work on it. Then the years crept by and the book never came out. Zehme got cancer, which obviously stalled progress on the book. Then he passed away last year with most of the book written, but still incomplete. Over the years it had become known as one of the great unfinished biographies, almost achieving legendary status, but not for reason that Zehme or the publisher wanted. But then earlier this year, nearly 20 years after Zehme started work on the Carson biography, Simon & Schuster announced that Chicago writer Mike Thomas would be taking up the reigns of the book and completing Zehme’s work. This was the perfect match because Thomas was a well-established entertainment writer, as well as a friend and former research assistant of Bill Zehme. You have to understand how excited I was to see this announcement earlier this year. This is no exaggeration: for the last 20 years, every 6-8 months I would try to find some little scrap of news about the book. That’s how excited I was. So when I saw that Simon & Schuster was still going to release the book, I was over the moon. Which brings us today. I knew the book was coming out on November 5, so a few weeks ago I got in touch with Mike Thomas to see if he’d be interested in talking about the book here on the podcast. He graciously agreed, and with the help of Anne Pearce, the Associate Director of PR at Simon & Schuster, we arranged this conversation. So that’s how this conversation came about. It’s more backstory than usual, but I thought it might be interesting for listeners. Let me tell you a bit about my guest! Mike Thomas is the author of two critically acclaimed books, The Second City Unscripted: Revolution and Revelation at the World-Famous Comedy Theater and You Might Remember Me: The Life and Times of Phil Hartman. He spent more than fourteen years as an arts and entertainment features writer at the Chicago Sun-Times and is a regular contributor to Chicago magazine. He lives in Chicago with his family. In this conversation, we dive into all sorts of topics related to Mike, his writing career, and of course the book that brought us together, Carson the Magnificent. Our conversation topics include: How he knew he wanted to be a writer. How he became acquainted with Bill Zehme in the 1990s. Why Bill struggled to finish the Carson book. Mike’s process of taking Bill’s work and seeing it to completion, and what it was like to pick up the writing mantle from someone else. Mike’s advice for people who want to begin or expand their career as a writer. Many thanks to Mike Thomas for an engaging and inspiring conversation! If you love Johnny Carson or entertainment biographies, you'll love Carson the Magnificent. And if you’re a ghostwriter, editor, or biographer, you'll love the book even more because it's a perfect example of telling someone's story without getting in the way. In this case, Thomas had the double task of telling two stories: Caron's life story, and the story of Zehme's journey to complete the book. My hat is off to a job well done!

You probably didn’t know this, but I recently turned 50—on July 26, to be exact. And while I don’t feel 50 in my mind, in my body I’m definitely starting to feel it a bit! 50 is an interesting age: a watershed moment when many people re-evaluate their lives. Over the last few years, I’ve started paying more attention to how different people deal with this important transition in life. I’ve noticed that people generally make one of two choices when it comes to middle age. When you enter this period of life, you stand before two objects: a ladder and a recliner. You have the choice of whether you are going to sit down in the recliner and focus on being comfortable … or whether you’re going to accept the challenge to keep climbing up the ladder of personal success. Most people choose the recliner. At this point in life, many people are tired, beaten down from life, and have no interest in new challenges. So they sit down in the recliner with no intention to grow and learn as a person. On the other hand, a much smaller percentage of people realize that life isn’t about being comfortable. It’s about growing into your full potential and using the challenges of life to propel you to new heights. So instead of turning away from the challenges and checking out of life, they take a good, long look at the ladder … and they start climbing. Which brings me to my guest on this episode, my friend Laura Venecia Rodriguez. Laura is an author, researcher, and speaker dedicated to helping individuals over 50 regain or discover their mojo and “shine” with renewed purpose and passion after reaching an impasse or experiencing a major upheaval or change in their lives. She shares information on ancient and contemporary tips, techniques, and wisdom that enhance the body, mind, and spirit. You can find her inspiration and wisdom in her weekly newsletter, “Shine After 50:  Regain Your Sparkle” as well as her “Shine After 50” Youtube channel. Laura is also the author of Gentle Yoga After 50: Get Fit, Flexible, and Feel Fantastic!, where you’ll learn information and insights about yoga that Laura has learned since starting yoga at age 15. You can find out more about Laura and her writing at her website, https://shineafter50.com. I’ve asked Laura to be a guest on today’s episode to especially help those of us 50 or older (or who are approaching that age) to understand what we can better to shine and succeed as writers. You’ll learn about some of the key challenges we face in this period of life, how to navigate life transitions, lots of insights about how yoga can help you be more healthy and centered, and much more.

One of the most common questions people ask me about ghostwriting is, “Where do I get clients?” It’s a natural question, of course, because all writers who are doing client work would probably like to increase their income and have more consistent work. My answer to these friends is sometimes a little disappointing because almost all of my clients have come to me via referrals from colleagues, friends, and previous clients. A great network takes time to build, but it’s worth it because those relationships are the foundation for a client-based business over the long haul. However, there are other sources for client work as well. One of the most popular ones is Reedsy, a marketplace for writers, editors, marketers, and designers. I've asked my friend, Alice Sullivan, to join me for a conversation about Reedsy since she's had a lot of success connecting with ghostwriting clients there over the last few years. Alice Sullivan is a #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling ghostwriter, New York Times bestselling editor (11 times over), collaborator, and speaker. A natural-born storyteller, she has written 64 books and edited over 1,300 titles since 2001. In addition to her NYT and WSJ bestsellers, other books have achieved Amazon bestseller status and won several awards, such as Readers’ Favorite, Living Now Book Award, and Nashville’s Best Local Children’s Book Award. She has written for Forbes, Hay House, Thomas Nelson Publishers (Harper Collins), Abingdon Press, Made for Grace Publishing, World Net Daily, Changing Lives Press, Carpenters Son Publishing, Clovercroft, and KN Literary Arts. Alice specializes in memoir, self-help, personal growth, and leadership because she loves personal stories and practical advice. Her favorite projects challenge her point of view, expand her knowledge, and add meaning to her life. Alice is not just a consummate storyteller and writer. She's also one of the most kind and down-to-earth people I know. In this conversation, I get to ask Alice all my burning questions about getting started on Reedsy. We talk about: Alice’s experience on Reedsy. How to connect with clients and be successful there. Alice's income from Reedsy projects. How to get started on Reedsy. How the platform is different than going to clients directly. If you want to expand your client base as a ghostwriter, editor, or designer, you'll love Alice's advice! Make sure to connect with Alice at https://alicesullivan.com.

No matter what your product or service, and no matter what type of books you write and publish, you need to grow your audience. Why? Because ultimately, your business depends on people and their willingness to buy from you. That’s why I’m excited today to feature this incredible interview with Bryan Harris, CEO of Growth Tools, a monthly coaching and done-for-you partner matching service that makes it nearly impossible to fail at getting more customers. They combine proven growth playbooks, 1:1 coaching, peer support, and matching you with your best fit partners who will promote your offer, so you’re never overwhelmed, stuck, or left wondering what to do next. On this episode, I had a chance to talk to Bryan about an innovative and very successful method of growing your audience, which is borrowing other people’s audiences. He’s had great success with this method, and he shares which audiences to borrow, how to borrow them, and what to do afterward. Bryan and I also talk quite a bit about ghostwriting. He gives some fantastic advice for connecting with clients and dealing with some of the problems that can come up with client work. I was blown away not just by Bryan’s strategies, but also by his humility and honesty. He shares some of his own mistakes and disappointments in business—which we can all relate to. Bryan and his team have also been kind enough to put together a very cool page of resources he mentioned during the conversation. This is not a static page on their website—it’s an actual list he made while we were talking, so it’s completely customized for Profitable Writer listeners. You can grab it at https://growthtools.com/kent. You can also learn more about Growth Tools by visiting https://growthtools.com.