Casting A Wider Net: Author Brand And The Writing Business With JD Barker

The Creative Penn Podcast For Writers

Joanna Penn

Self-improvement, Arts, Books, Entrepreneurship, Business, Education

4.8 • 745 Ratings

🗓️ 9 June 2025

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How can you ‘cast a wider net' and reach more readers with your books? How can you embrace the best of publishing options for your work? JD Barker explains how his publishing business works.

In the intro, How Authors Measure Success [Self-Publishing Advice]; Creating through Grief [Go Creative]; Death Valley; Successful Self-Publishing, Fourth Edition; Gothic Cathedrals; AI-Assisted Artisan Author webinar.

Today's show is sponsored by ProWritingAid, writing and editing software that goes way beyond just grammar and typo checking. With its detailed reports on how to improve your writing and integration with writing software, ProWritingAid will help you improve your book before you send it to an editor, agent or publisher. Check it out for free or get 15% off the premium edition at www.ProWritingAid.com/joanna

This show is also supported by my Patrons. Join my Community at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn

J.D. Barker is the New York Times and international bestselling author of thrillers and horror. He co-writes with James Patterson, as well as other authors. He's also the co-host of the Writer’s, Ink Podcast.

You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below.

Show Notes

* Weighing up what is worth licensing, and what is worth doing as an indie author

* The importance of making connections in the publishing industry

* Why traditionally published authors are more open towards the indie framework

* Co-writing with James Patterson and others

* Writing across different genres and mediums to “cast a wider net”

* Tips for effectively pitching podcasts

* Benefits for an advanced author coming to Author Nation

You can find J.D. at JDBarker.com.

Transcript of Interview with J.D. Barker

Joanna: JD Barker is the New York Times and international bestselling author of thrillers and horror. He co-writes with James Patterson, as well as other authors. He's also the co-host of the Writer’s Ink Podcast. So welcome back to the show, JD.

JD: Hey, Joanna. It's great to be back.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Welcome to the Creative Pen podcast. I'm Joanna Penn, thriller author and creative entrepreneur,
0:08.0	bringing you interviews, inspiration and information on writing craft and creative business.
0:14.6	You can find the episode show notes, your free author blueprint, and lots more at the creative pen.com. And that's Pen with a
0:23.7	double N. And here's the show. Hello creatives. I'm Joanna Penn. And this is episode number
0:30.2	812 of the podcast, and it is Friday the 6th of June 2025 as I record this. In today's show, I talk to J.D. Barker about casting a
0:41.3	wider net in terms of writing craft, author brand and author business. So you might know J.D. from
0:48.7	the Writers Inc. podcast and I always enjoy talking to him. I think partly because he is so open about being autistic
0:55.6	and is so frank and open about what he's doing. He tells it how it is. And his ability to try things
1:02.8	and fail and move on and try other things and win big is always inspiring. And the things he does
1:09.0	are mostly outside my comfort zone. So always make me think.
1:13.5	And I hope you find it thought-provoking. That is coming up in the interview section.
1:21.3	In writing and publishing things on the self-publishing advice blog, how authorsors Measure Success, Income, Fulfillment and the Joy of Storytelling.
1:32.1	So I really think that deciding on your definition of success is so important,
1:37.5	as the most disappointed authors are often those who thought they wanted one thing
1:41.6	and then later realised that wasn't what they wanted. So the article
1:46.3	first tackles personal fulfillment and growth. And this I think is the most important one. Your book may
1:53.1	never reach the great heights of external success, but writing a book is a wonderful way to learn
1:58.9	more about yourself, learn new skills, meet more people.
2:02.2	And I thought my first book would change everybody's life.
2:05.9	That was the book that started out as how to enjoy your job or find a new one.
2:10.5	I later rewrote it as career change.
2:12.3	But I really thought it was going to hit the big time and everyone be like, wow, now we can do everything we love.
	...

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