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The Creative Penn Podcast For Writers

Finding Your Voice, Writing Across Genre And Loving Book Marketing With Betsy Lerner

The Creative Penn Podcast For Writers

Joanna Penn

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

4.8745 Ratings

🗓️ 16 June 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary


How can you find your voice through writing in different genres and mediums over the years? How can you shift your mindset around book marketing, whatever your age? Betsy Lerner shares her experience of writing and books over decades in the publishing industry.



In the intro, Going Local: Authors on the payoffs and pitfalls of hometown sales and promotion [Self-Publishing Advice]; Selling Books in Person at Live Events; Artist = Entrepreneur [Steven Pressfield]; Ecosystems come and go [Seth Godin]; 1000 True Fans [Kevin Kelly].



Plus, Exeter Cathedral, Death Valley, a Thriller; Successful Self-Publishing Fourth Edition; and The AI-Assisted Artisan Author webinar.







This podcast is sponsored by Kobo Writing Life, which helps authors self-publish and reach readers in global markets through the Kobo eco-system. You can also subscribe to the Kobo Writing Life podcast for interviews with successful indie authors.



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






Betsy Lerner is an award-winning editor, literary agent and the author of fiction, non-fiction and memoir. Her book for writers is The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers.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




* The publishing hierarchy—and the love of books that brings us together



* Tips to overcome your perception of writers vs. your own potential



* Balancing the desire for success and the fear of failure



* How writing can help one cope with grief



* Balancing editorial feedback and maintaining creative confidence



* Why publishers want their authors to have a pre-existing platform



* Embracing TikTok and BookTok at any age



* Navigating the current publishing industry




You can find Betsy at

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.

0:14.7

You can find the episode show notes, your free author blueprint, and lots more at thecreativepen.com.

0:22.5

And that's Penn with a double N.

0:25.0

And here's the show.

0:26.3

Hello, creatives.

0:27.4

I'm Joanna Penn, and this is episode number 814 of the podcast, and it is Saturday,

0:33.1

the 14th of June 2025 as I record this.

0:36.9

In today's show, I'm talking about finding your voice,

0:40.3

writing across genre and loving book marketing with Betsy Lerner, who has worked across all

0:46.3

areas of the publishing business over a long career. Now, I loved this interview and Betsy is a

0:51.5

real character with a blend of the creative writer and the

0:54.7

business-minded agent and marketer perspective. So that's coming up in the interview section.

1:03.7

In writing and publishing things, well, self-publishing advice has an article on Going Local,

1:10.4

authors on the payoffs and pitfalls of

1:13.0

hometown sales and promotion. They say going local often provides the surest path to meaningful

1:19.6

publicity. Standing in front of a library audience, chatting at a farmer's market store or

1:25.2

fielding questions on community radio transforms a distant byline

1:29.5

into a neighbour that readers can root for. That face-to-face connection sparks genuine word of mouth.

1:36.6

Local coverage also offers built-in story angles a national outlet would miss. A novel set in town,

1:43.2

a book launch at the historic theatre or a

1:45.6

workshop at the high school gives reporters and event planners an immediate reason to say yes.

...

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