Read and Write with Natasha
This podcast discusses writing life, reviews books, and interviews authors and industry professionals.
Read and Write with Natasha
Mastering the art of independent publishing with Bradley Charbonneau
Imagine spending nearly a decade dreaming about writing your first book, only to finally break through with a 30-day writing challenge.
That’s exactly what happened with our guest, Bradley Charbonneau, an author who has now penned 35 books. He opens up about his battle with procrastination and perfectionism, sharing how he transformed his creative process to produce work consistently for over seven years.
In this podcast, we explore the trials and triumphs of leaving traditional publishing behind, and how aligning life with true passions can lead to a balanced, fulfilling career.
We also discuss the importance of leveraging a personal brand and exploring additional revenue streams like courses or coaching.
We also highlight the value of authentic conversations, such as podcast interviews, in building a supportive community that sustains both creativity and financial stability.
****************************************************************************
➡️ 𝗣.𝗦: If you found my content useful, you might want to check out my newsletter, in which I share the ups and downs of the writing journey: https://natashatynes.substack.com/
Can I make money writing books and earn a living? And I think that's not going to work as well, because I think if your heart isn't in it, you're going to lose the fire, You're going to lose the power, the energy that's keeping you going. If you really want to make money, go into real estate or banking right or investment banking. You know there's a whole lot of other places to make a whole lot of money a lot more easily than writing books.
Speaker 2:Hi friends, this is Read and Write with Natasha podcast. My name is Natasha Tynes and I'm an author and a journalist. In this channel I talk about the writing life, review books and interview authors. Hope you enjoy the journey. Hi everyone, and welcome to another episode of Read and Write with Natasha. We have with us today Bradley Charbonneau, who has written 35 books. He spent nine years thinking and dreaming and hoping and not writing much on his first book, then spend the next nine years writing the next 34 books. He wants to save you those first nine years by helping you write your first book. Wow, what an amazing bio, bradley. So this is like one of the most fascinating bios I've read on my show. So, bradley, tell me why 35 books and what are these 35 books about?
Speaker 1:Yeah, natasha, it's so great to be here and, as we just talked about a little bit, we've been trying to connect for months and months. We have a popular show and I'm happy to be on here and I'm glad we finally got it worked out today. So thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 2:My pleasure yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I think I did a video the other day. I said something like you know there are. I wasn't talking about writing, I was talking about basketball and I said there are people who play, there are people who don't play and there are people who can't not play. Right, so basketball, writing, whatever it is.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And so I'm in the can't not write part. It's just, I'm going to do it, no matter what I have to do it, it's just like breathing or eating and so, but before that first book, I just, I was stuck, I was procrastinating, I was in perfectionism mode, I wanted it to be professional and the greatest book of all time. I had gigantic expectations. And so, because I made it all so big and scary and fantastic and wonderful, this big goal, it was so big that I was scared to do it, and so I never started.
Speaker 1:And so that's why I, for nine years, I I dreamt about it, I talked about it, I pretended I was doing it, I hoped I would someday do it, but I didn't do it. I wasn't doing it.
Speaker 2:What was the book about?
Speaker 1:My first book was about a world trip I did together with my then girlfriend, now wife. We traveled around the world for a year and so that book was. It's like a romance adventure story and so. But I was so fixated on the idea of it being perfect that I never did it. And it was frustrating and saddening and I went through all the emotions you know anger, guilt, regret, everything. It was awful and then finally I finally started writing.
Speaker 2:And it took you how long to finish it after the nine years.
Speaker 1:So what finally started me was a friend of mine gave me a challenge he was doing at the time. He did a 30-day writing challenge.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And he says, okay, you have to write for 30 days, and he was doing these things with other things like whatever, wake up early, or only you know, don't eat sugar, or something, and so, but this month was kind of it was November, or only you know, don't eat sugar, or something, and so, but this month was kind of it was November 1st 2012.
Speaker 1:I remember clearly, because it was such a big day for me and I, on that day, I started writing and I wrote for 30 days and I really wasn't writing before. And so once I finally, like broke through the dam, I finally like opened up the floodgates through the dam, I finally like opened up the floodgates. And then, of course, as he knows, it wasn't so difficult. I was really just making it difficult for myself. It was all in my head that it was so difficult. It wasn't so difficult, I just thought it was going to be difficult and I thought it needed to be perfect. And so once I started the 30 days, then I couldn't stop and then I wrote, I kept going. I wrote for 100 days, I wrote for 1,000 days, I wrote for, finally, 2,808 days in a row. It's like seven years every day.
Speaker 2:Oh, wow.
Speaker 1:And so, finally, I just I broke open the gates, and that only happened thanks to this friend who pushed me to finally start, and so then the book started just flowing.
Speaker 2:What's your writing routine, like, how do you write so much in such little time?
Speaker 1:So I think I had a lot to catch up on because I wasn't writing all those years. I was like holding it all in and then it was the opposite, then I was letting it all out. And I think you have to find if you're like a morning person, or brunch, or afternoon or night person, figure out what, when is your best, most efficient, effective time of the day and really focus on that. For me, it's morning, it's I wake up, meditation and then creating and writing. So that's the best time for me in the morning, every morning, every single morning.
Speaker 2:Is that your full time job?
Speaker 1:You know that's an interesting question. In the writer's world we all dream about the full time job being an author. Yeah, I have been full time. I recently took a part time job. Ok because I wanted to, because I wanted a balance. You know, writing the writer's world, if we're really just writers, writers, writers, then it can be very solitary.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:It can be very just we have our work, we have our laptops, we write our stories, we sell our books, and that's fine. But I don't. I didn't want that. It was actually too. It's weird, it's like. It's like be careful what you wish for.
Speaker 1:I was a full-time author and pretty soon I realized, you know, I don't want to be a full-time author, I don't want to be only writing. I want a balance, because I think writing is also. It's such, it's giving, it's pushing it out, and we need to take it in too. We need to hear the stories. Just like, you know, a car needs gasoline and then exhaust, or a sink, there's water come in and then there's a drain to let it out, right? Or our human bodies we eat and then we, you know, get rid of it. So we are similar and we need input to give the output. And so sure, I could be a full-time writer, but I choose not to be because I want more input in my life through other things, and my, my job, my part-time job, two days a week, is has nothing to do with writing, nothing to do with any of this stuff. It's just a totally different sort of fun, different job.
Speaker 2:Have you ever been a full-time author?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah For years. When I first moved to the Netherlands I now live in the Netherlands when I first moved here, yeah, I was full-time and I loved it for many years.
Speaker 2:Why did you move to the Netherlands?
Speaker 1:Okay, this is very related, because I wanted to write and it sounds weird, but there was a lot of dominoes that fell, and one was my father passed away in 2015.
Speaker 1:And when he passed away this is maybe if you haven't had family and passed away or people close to you passed away. For me it was really the first one, the first like really close, and it really freaked me out and I really thought my thought was actually wait a minute, we're all going to die someday. Wait a minute, we're all going to die someday. And it was so like childish or childlike. I thought wait a minute, that means me too.
Speaker 1:And at that time, back in 2015, I wasn't writing the books. I was starting to write, but I wasn't doing the books. I wasn't being an author. I wasn't yet the person I wanted to be and I felt stuck in where I was living, where I was working. I lived in San Francisco. I had my own sort of marketing company and on the exterior, life seemed great, but inside I wasn't yet living the life I wanted to live. I wanted to be a real writer, a real full-time writer, and I wasn't yet. So we moved out of San Francisco, I closed down my company and we moved to the Netherlands. So my wife is Dutch, we moved to her country and I really wanted my kids also to experience living in a different country, and so now we've been here for seven years and I've been writing for seven years.
Speaker 2:Now we've been here for seven years and I've been writing for seven years. Do you think moving to a Scandinavian country that ranks really high on the happiness scale helped you achieve your dream, and even financially as well, because to sustain a lifestyle in, let's say, an expensive place as San Francisco as a writer, it might be really tough unless you have other means or unless you're Stephen King, for example. So how did you manage to sustain this dream life? Is it because you moved out of an expensive city or, if you can, just Especially San Francisco?
Speaker 1:It's a really great question because I see it like you could call it a sacrifice. I sacrifice because people, people love San Francisco. It's a wonderful place, yeah, and people ask me wait a minute. You left San Francisco to live in the Netherlands, are you crazy? And I thought no, first of all, I love Europe and I love living here. So for me that was easy, but also San Francisco is. It's extremely expensive.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And so I could see it you could call it a sacrifice living in very expensive San Francisco where I have to make a lot of money, to living in a place where I don't need as much money as a sacrifice. Me, I see it as priorities. It was the priority was bigger for me to be able to write and I really wanted my kids to experience living in Europe, and my wife was good with living in Europe again, she's Dutch, right. But so it's the priorities. What? How can you balance your life so that you can, you know, get part of it that you want and yet still do normal things like pay rent and mortgages and pay the bills? And so I like the idea of balance.
Speaker 1:And again, I really my goal is not to become a full-time author. I have been, but my goal is weirdly changed into I love writing so much. But also, when you're a full-time author, some of the beauty of the love of writing goes away. If you, I've got to, I got to sell this book and I've got to make this much money, and it becomes more of a business and that's fine, that's awesome, I do that too. But a little bit of the love and passion can go away if you have that financial pressure. So my dream scenario is I'm writing and I'm doing something probably different and I, you know, make money in both and there's less pressure on both of them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's interesting. So, okay, I want to go back. So you, you got the writing down. What about the publishing? How did you publish your first book and the 35 other books which I still do not know what they're about? I'm just curious 35 books, I have like 35 ideas. I can barely come with one idea, but so let's talk about OK. So you did the challenge with your friends 30 days. You finished the book. How did you publish it?
Speaker 1:So the very first book I published was through a traditional publisher ah, okay, how?
Speaker 2:how did you luck out for the first time what was?
Speaker 1:that one about okay was. I think that was connections. I mean brutally honestly. I think that was somebody needed somebody talked to me, found me, found me, hey, great book published you. It was like about San Francisco or something through a Dutch publisher. I remember this it was a long time ago and I had the Dutch connections so weirdly, some sort of a connection thing. But that was the only traditional published book I've done.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:Ever since then, indie publishing for sure.
Speaker 2:Self-publishing. Self-publishing independent publishing On Amazon. On what? What did you use?
Speaker 1:Wide. So everything the Apple, google, kobo Barnes, noble, amazon, chirp. I do audiobooks as well. Findaway, voices, audible Storytel.
Speaker 2:Oh, so what it like. How do you print on demand? Do you use amazon, kdp or third-party publishers like what is it called that? The other one um the new book?
Speaker 2:fault the new one and there's which one book fault? There's also a book well, there's ingram, sparks and others. So how did you in on this podcast? We get technical um, because we, we just don't want to chat, we also want to help people. So, of course, uh, how how did you pop, like, what did you choose for each book? Or did you, did you keep experimenting? How did it work?
Speaker 1:so I I think the big question for new authors is do you you think you'll publish one book and that's it forever, and you're done, and you don't like technology or it scares you, or you just want to just do it and you don't want to deal with any of this stuff or marketing or publishing or any of that stuff. Because there are some very easy ways to do all of this. But if you're in it for the long term, like I am, then there are different ways to do it. So, for example, the absolute easiest way I think is through draft to digital and they there's like a distributor and you can publish to 34. I can't remember the number.
Speaker 1:A whole bunch of your book will be like everywhere Amazon, barnes and Noble, kobo, google Play, apple, everything and all you need to do is draft to digital, draft to digitalcom. That's all you need. So that's the easiest way. Like if I have a author client and they say Bradley, just tell me the easiest way. I never want to deal with this stuff, I hate this stuff. Just make it happen. Then I'm probably going to use Draft2Digital. It's the simplest, easiest. One place, one place to update your book and that's it and you're done.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:So I didn't do that because there's a lot of boring reasons, but it's kind of about control, but also about marketing.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:For example, going direct to Amazon, direct to Apple direct. So I go direct to Amazon, direct to Apple, direct to Google, direct to Barnes and Noble and direct to Kobo. So six. So yes, I have to upload my book six different times to six different places.
Speaker 2:And why is that? So you can control it, and how do you get it into Barnes Noble? Do you actually go contact Barnes Noble and tell them hey, I have a self-published book, take it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, barnes Noble has also a direct publishing department where an independent author can go direct to Barnes Noble. I think you might need to have an address in the States for that. I'm not sure, but I have an address in the States. I used to live in the States, so that's where also Draft2Digital again can take care of all this stuff for you, because then it doesn't matter where you live and you don't have to deal with any of that administrative junk.
Speaker 2:But you have to pay them a lot of money right For them to.
Speaker 1:Nope, nope, you have to digital all day. I think it's 10%, so it costs nothing. It can cost nothing actually to it sounds crazy, but but a lot. I say it because a lot of people don't know it. They think it costs all this money to do all this stuff. But I say it because a lot of people don't know it. They think it costs all this money to do all this stuff. And sure editors book cover designers book readers. Of course all that stuff can cost money.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Right. But if you don't have money or you don't want to spend the money or you're just not sure, you can do all this stuff at Draft2Digital and it's all free. So Draft2Digital, it doesn't cost you anything until you sell a book, and then I can't. I think it's 10%. So let's say your book is $10. They will take $1 and then well, it's not like you get nine. It depends on where it went right. Did it go to Amazon? Well, then you get 70%. So now, instead of getting $7, you would get 70% of $9. So, whatever that is, you know six something, but it doesn't cost you any money up front to do any of this stuff.
Speaker 2:Do you have access to the sales reports through Draft2Digital?
Speaker 1:Yeah, in Draft2Digital you have sales reports. It's pretty cool. You can see countries and distributors like what is selling where. Okay, there's also other tools like. My favorite tool is called scribe account and scribe count is a dashboard of your sales of all of these different places. So that's. I only go to scribe count to see how I'm doing. I don't, I don't go to all these different sites all the time to check my sales. I just go to scribe count to see how I'm doing. I don't, I don't go to all these different sites all the time to check my sales.
Speaker 2:I just go to scribe count okay, why did you opt for doing it manually on all these, on all these channels?
Speaker 1:basically to save 10 okay because the draft to digital takes 10, but then also because I'm real and if I think, I'm in this for the long game, right, I mean, I want to do this for decades.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And so if I think 10% of a really long time and a lot of money is a lot, but there are also certain things that you can't do, like Amazon, especially like I do a lot of Amazon ads, amazon advertising and you can't do that if you didn't publish directly with amazon I see so examples like that, or google, google play they have some uh promotions and marketing stuff that you can only do if you're direct in google ah, I see so yeah okay, I see, so I have a lot of questions for you sure this is fun.
Speaker 2:It's like free consulting. Uh, I'm gonna milk it, and so what are your 35 books about?
Speaker 1:uh, they started in different areas. They start, so. So, bottom line, nonfiction, self-help, personal development, habits, rituals, happiness, spirituality I love this stuff, okay.
Speaker 2:So, like like James Clear, yeah, okay so. And so you have self-help habits like how to beat procrastination. You know that stuff, okay, productivity, all of that, and and you're a living example of that, because you published, you published so many books, yeah, all right. So you have these books and how are you marketing them? How are you like? You know, that is one for me personally. My biggest challenge is not writing the book. Writing the book is is the easiest part. I used to. I used to dread writing the book and, oh my god, that's just the easiest. The hardest part is selling the book, and oh my God, that's just the easiest. The hardest part is selling the book. And what I found out is many people they would like, they're really excited when you say I'm publishing a book and they like and retweet and whatever, but when it comes to actually paying for the book, they don't do. And so you cannot depend on your existing audience, because many of them just clap and that's funny.
Speaker 1:Yeah, good job. Good job, natasha. Good for you high five.
Speaker 2:I'm telling you from my experience.
Speaker 1:I know I believe me, I have it too and the actual.
Speaker 2:You would be surprised who would actually buy your book. They would be like the silent followers who like don't say anything or and so you're right. How do you market the book? Like I want to know the secret sauce you like you know? You say that you actually lived a full life of your writing. How is that possible?
Speaker 1:the simple answer is that people aren't going to like this answer, but it's. It's hard. Okay, it's a challenge, it's, there's no. And the also difficult answer is that there's not one answer. Okay and so, but if you really want one answer, for me it's been Amazon ads, amazon advertising and Amazon advertising. I've taken, I think, three courses on how to do it and I feel I still feel like a beginner sometimes. I still feel like a beginner sometimes.
Speaker 2:And it is basically a part-time job.
Speaker 1:Amazon ads, yeah, if you let it be, and if you want to get good at it Because it's not set it, and forget it right. It's not just make an ad and come back in a month and make lots of money.
Speaker 2:It's not.
Speaker 1:It's not so it's really it's monitoring, but also it's it's a little bit like you said yay, you got the fan, rah rah go. Yay, natasha, fantastic job. But it's like you said, it's this maybe the silent ones who are going to buy, and so what's great about Amazon ads is that you learn. You can see right in there.
Speaker 1:They use the word 30 day habit. They typed into Amazon 30 day habit. Maybe they type in 30 day habit book, okay, and then I can see uh, I'll just make up the numbers, but a thousand people type in 30 day habit book. And so then let's just say a thousand people see my book and they'll add they see it, so it's an impression. By the way, you don't pay for impressions on Amazon, which is a big difference with Facebook. So a thousand people saw my book and just to be simple, let's say a hundred people click on it. And just to be simple, let's say a hundred people click on it, so a hundred people click on my book. And and now I'm learning, a thousand people see it. That's probably a good word.
Speaker 1:You know, 30 day habits book a hundred people click one out of 10, not too bad. And then, of the hundred people who click, maybe 10 people buy the book.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:So another 10%. I'm making the numbers really simple just for our example here. But so now I can see a thousand people see it, a hundred people click, 10 people buy.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:So then also, so I could stop there. But as a nonfiction author, maybe I have some bonus content, or you hire me as a book marketing coach or you buy a. I have courses, I have consulting, whatever. Maybe I have that in the book. So maybe out of the a hundred people, a thousand see it. A hundred click 10 by and maybe one hires me as a coach or buys my course or something Right. And so in the Amazon world, the only thing I pay for here is the clicks. So I just paid a hundred clicks times, for example, 31 cents, so I paid $31 and I but I also sold 10 books at whatever for 99.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So I'm, I didn't really make 50, but I made 70% of 50. So maybe I'm breaking even Right. Yeah, I paid 31 in ads, but I earned I don't know 35. But then, if so, if I'm breaking even, I'm already happy. I'm happy that a thousand people saw my book, a hundred people clicked on my book, 10 people bought it, and maybe one person hires me as a coach. Maybe they pay me a hundred dollars for an hour, or maybe they pay me a thousand dollars for a month. Great, I just spent $31.
Speaker 2:I see.
Speaker 1:But also what's important is the long-term. I get to see what were the keywords. They searched 30-day habit book. So then I know aha, that keyword is doing 1,110. One great. What about a different keyword called, I don't know, morning routines, happiness? I don't know, I'm making stuff up.
Speaker 2:Morning, miracle the Morning.
Speaker 1:Miracle Perfect. Yes, yeah, the Morning Miracle, that's the real book, right?
Speaker 2:I know Hal Elrod, I read it. Yeah, yeah, I love this stuff, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Hal Elrod an honorary quarter.
Speaker 2:Right, he self-published, by the way.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, recorder, right, he says published by the way. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so what? If so? There's a perfect example. I could also in amazon ads I could use the word miracle morning. Now maybe if they type in miracle morning and they find hal elrod and on a recorder's book and they say, oh, that's interesting. But then they see my book under there called every single day, maybe they check my book out and they say oh miracle morning. Oh, it's not really, I don't know about the morning. Oh, look at this guy.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's similar, let me check him out and there's no copyright infringement if you use an actual title for your search not in an ad.
Speaker 1:In an ad I can do pretty much anything. Ok, but I could do how Elrod morning miracle. And then I'm really targeting people who are looking for how Elrod morning miracle. But later I might think, yeah, but if they type in how Elrod's Morning Miracle, they probably want Hal Elrod's Morning Miracle book.
Speaker 2:So maybe on that one.
Speaker 1:I get a thousand views, but I only get 50 clicks, five purchases, and nobody buys my course. So then I would think, oh, okay, that's not as good as the other one. And just for example's sake, let's say, I have another keyword, that is, morning healthy happiness, and I have a thousand views, 10 clicks, and no one buys my book. So then I think, well, that's not a very good keyword. And now I know, though, and I'm going to turn that one off Right.
Speaker 2:So that's where the maintenance comes in.
Speaker 1:I see and checking and seeing, oh that, that works well, that doesn't work so well.
Speaker 2:Hey, let's try this one, right, let's try yeah morning because, like I haven't, I put an Amazon ad. I like I don't even check it, I just put it. And then was it other day. I just got a bill from Amazon and I was like, huh, I still have this running. So now you're encouraging me to go and play around with it. So I think the existential question here is is it feasible, is it sustainable, to be a full-time writer? If you, if you want to geek out on the technology, if you want to geek out on the marketing tips and tricks, if you want to get into the weeds like what you're doing, yeah, is it, can you make it? Can you raise a family office?
Speaker 1:I think the answer is yes, but I think the bigger question is are you doing this? So I I have in my book. I talk about decisions from the head, or the heart or the gut.
Speaker 2:Both.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Okay, but if the decision is purely head, so this is like mental and rational and brain power and logical right and rational and brainpower and logical right. Heart is feeling and love and passion.
Speaker 1:And gut is more. I just feel it, I should just do this. So maybe not so rational or logical. So I think, if it's really just an intellectual question, can I make money writing books and earn a living? And I think that's not going to work as well, because I think if your heart isn't in it, you're going to lose the fire. You're going to lose this, the power, the energy that's keeping you going. If you really want to make money, go into real estate or banking right, investment banking right. You know there's, there is a whole lot of other places to make a whole lot money a lot more easily than writing books correct, but I I'm not doing it for, like, I also love books, I love writing, I love you know.
Speaker 2:So I I think I got the three things. I got the heart and the gut and the brain. Awesome, okay, so I answered your question. So, if that is that, if I answered yes to it, are you saying yes because you, you're trying to be nice, or or is it? Are you saying yes because that is the reality?
Speaker 1:no, I'm saying yes, it's possible, okay, but that doesn't mean it's probable.
Speaker 2:Right and what would make it not probable? What would be the stumbling blocks?
Speaker 1:It would be kind of not knowing the industry, not doing your homework right, not listening to the audiences Like, what are they looking for, what do they want what? What are you you know? To find that that, like, here's what I'm good at and here's what people want and here's what I love doing, can you find the overlap of what you're good at and what people?
Speaker 2:want.
Speaker 1:And so, like I, one of my books. It's called decide and it's about making decisions and how important it is to make a decision, like in 2012, I decided to finally start writing. That was the most important part of any of this. I decided to do it. But this book, decide it's not very popular because it's difficult. Popular because it's difficult, it's not easy. Right, it's if you, if you like, if you say I decide for the rest of this year, 2023, I decide to spend one hour a day on whatever Amazon ads or book marketing or something, for, in my opinion, that is the like. I didn't decide for nine years of writing. I was, I couldn't make a decision, and that it costs me energy. All the time. I'm thinking about it, I'm wishing about it, I'm dreaming about it and talking about it, but I'm not doing it.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And finally, on November 1st 2012, I decided I'm going to do this, and that, for me, was the difference.
Speaker 2:What is your most popular book?
Speaker 1:It's called Every Single Day and it's about it's kind of about this I decided to write every single day and I did it for 2,808 days, which is a crazy person. I'm a crazy person, but, for example, I love crazy oh good, oh good.
Speaker 1:So, for example, decide to write for 30 days, decide to do Amazon ads for 30 days, and so that's where this book decide, but then every single day, and to make a real commitment, and then in 30 days, you can make another decision. This was the worst 30 days of my life. This was terrible. I hate this. I'm going to go work at a bank.
Speaker 2:Oh God, no Right. No, please no.
Speaker 1:Yeah, anything, but that, please, please.
Speaker 2:So, looking at your website, I noticed that you also monetize not only by books, but you offer other services, right? So I want to, which is, I think it's a very good balance because and I do the same as well it's I have client work, I have consulting in addition to that, and I think that somehow, for me, takes the pressure off. I want to just and plus, it's fun, it's fun to coach, it's fun to teach, it's fun and it makes it less lonely, as you mentioned.
Speaker 1:Yes, I completely agree.
Speaker 2:So I want to ask about monetization. So you monetize by giving courses correct? Yeah, so your courses are live or they're like self-paced?
Speaker 1:I have both. I live is more fun. I prefer live it's. I like having groups. Groups is really fun and I think they're a lot more effective for everybody okay, and also you have your podcast.
Speaker 2:Yeah, do you monetize your podcast?
Speaker 1:No, I'm terrible about it. Okay, okay, because I interviewed somebody, maybe you can help me.
Speaker 2:I interviewed someone last week and he lives on a boat. You love that. He's been living on a boat for years and he writes his books from the boat and he was using Starlink for the interview. Right, elon Musk, starlink to have the live interview.
Speaker 2:And he said that you know he's, you know he doesn't have to be a mortgage but he has to make a living. You know he has to stop somewhere and buy grocery and you know the boat, boat maintenance and all of that. And he said he monetizes his podcast using patreon. And he said, uh, a lot of his and he lives of his writing and his podcast on a boat and he fishes and he it's fascinating story. I still need to edit it and put it um and uh, but uh, so so there is ways of doing that.
Speaker 2:And just the other day I was um contacted by someone who wants to advertise on the podcast oh cool so yeah, so I think it's, it's starting, but yeah so these are some of the ideas, but I want to hear your ideas about monetization. So, in addition to selling the books and using Amazon ads, how do you monetize your work?
Speaker 1:My favorite way is through. I have another book of course called Share and the book Share the boring word would be called like marketing or whatever. But I like the idea of share because, for example, I have a course and my favorite course I'm offering right now. It's called Book in a Weekend.
Speaker 2:Okay. Now it sounds crazy, but the book we're going to write.
Speaker 1:The idea is, actually it's the opposite book that you think you're supposed to write and this kind of comes back to me and being stuck because I have this big, giant, crazy mountain of an idea and I'm going to be stuck for a long time because it's such a big idea. So I want to take the opposite idea of that idea and make a little funny book in one weekend. It's like a, it's like a parody, right? We're just making fun of my real idea. And the goal of this course program is for you to break through, just like I did on November 1st 2012, to break through all of your fears and write this little, tiny little book for fun, because then you're going to say, oh, that wasn't so hard, now I can go write my real book.
Speaker 2:So, monetization.
Speaker 1:So what I love is people who take the course, the book in a weekend course. It's right now it's $97, right, I teach you in there absolutely everything you need to know to format, publish, write, share your book, right. All this stuff it's all in there. And again we're talking about this opposite book. So I just published a book. It's called Procrastinate. It's actually a joke. The whole book is a joke about getting it done and just do it and all that stuff.
Speaker 1:I literally wrote the book in two hours because it was so fun in two hours. It's super short. It's like 32 pages or something I wanted to show. Look how easy this is. This is why is it easy? Because it's funny, because I'm making fun of something real, because what's my real thing? It's like you know, do it, uh, breakthrough all my normal real stuff, and so I'm making a joke about the book. So it's easier for me. I'm taking away the pressure, then I have my little funny book.
Speaker 1:So with this course, when you write your book in a weekend, what I will offer you is I will say hey, when you share your book, your opposite book, when you share your book with people and they ask you hey, wow, Samantha, I love your crazy book, your opposite book about your real book. That was so funny and I can't believe you wrote a book in a weekend. Wow, how did you do that? That's amazing. I am going to give Samantha a commission, an affiliate commission, when she shares my program with anybody who asks her. Okay, so it's it's share. I give back to share. I want to share her success, but I want to share it financially.
Speaker 1:So it will make again with simple numbers. Let's say it's a $100 program Samantha Book in a Weekend. Here's the book I just did. It was so fun and I got over my writer's block and my self-doubt and everything, and here's my crazy book. Ha ha ha. You also can take Bradley's program. Here's the link. So it costs $100. I will pay Samantha $40. I will pay her 40% of the hundred. I get 60, she gets 40. So not only did Samantha you know, is she having, hopefully, samantha had a great time writing her book, but I want to financially reward Samantha for sharing her story with whoever, with her people.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:So that for me is, I see it as win, win, win. Right, because Samantha's friend wins, because Samantha, her friend, recommended this thing. So that's a warm connection, right? Samantha tells her friend, her friend says, well, I trust Samantha. And then Samantha trusts me because she took my course and she wrote a book out of it. And so Samantha's friend wins. Samantha wins because Samantha looks good and smart and also makes $40. And I win because I have a new student in my course. But even better, I have a friend of Samantha's and I didn't have to do anything. Samantha is the one who told her about my program.
Speaker 2:So let's go back. How did you find Samantha, or how did Samantha find you? Like, I want to go back to the origin. How do people actually, how do you find the Samanthas, or how do the Samanthas find you? I mean, do you use social media? Do you use newsletter? How do actually people find you in the first place?
Speaker 1:One way and honestly I think this is my favorite way and I think it's one of the best is exactly doing what we're doing right now okay, because that's. Thing we're yeah, we're having two people having a real conversation, and we're real people.
Speaker 1:It's not just like a, you know, a graphic on instagram or something right yeah, yeah we're Real people having a conversation about this thing and if somebody's listening and says, like Whoa, that Natasha had this crazy guy, bradley, on the on her podcast and he was talking about booking a weekend and he said he was stuck for nine years. I've been stuck for years. I would love to break through my fears and write a book in a weekend. So, for example, natasha, we can have a special link for you right when you share this link and then also you are getting 40% right.
Speaker 1:Sure, yeah Give it to me Sure, but really, but this is exactly Give me five links. Yeah, but this is exactly how I like the win, win, win, right, because you have readers or listeners, and readers and listeners and followers and viewers and they've been watching you or, like you say, sometimes it's the quiet ones yeah who are the ones like?
Speaker 1:I've been listening to natasha's show for a year and I really like her stuff and she she had this guy Bradley on and they talked about this book on a weekend thing. I want to check it out. Wait, so we'll have a link in your show notes that's special to you, where you earn 40%. So that's the reason. So you're asking about monetization. My favorite word of that monetization is invite, invitation. I am inviting you to join me in sharing this program, right? So notice the words I'm using. I'm not saying, Natasha, sell my program. No, I'm saying I invite you, Natasha, to share my super crazy program with your audience.
Speaker 2:I see.
Speaker 1:I try to make it welcoming and come on in, it's fun.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay. When it comes to social media, do you use it much to market yourself, and what has been the most successful way for you? Which channel?
Speaker 1:youtube, youtube, yeah. Yeah, it's kind of kind of crazy. Yesterday I had a short.
Speaker 2:It had 10 000 views yesterday on instagram or what no, just youtube, okay, and what you, what do you say on YouTube?
Speaker 1:So it's. It's a lot about my content, it's personal development, self-help, but I find on YouTube what works is positive. So I'm motivation, inspiration. Uh, I'm in shorts. People like shorts, right, like YouTube shorts. Yeah, youtube shorts for me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they work better they work better than long form. You don't put them on Instagram.
Speaker 1:I forget to do it.
Speaker 2:Okay, your focus is interesting Because usually people put all their attention on one channel and you know you still do the others. But for me personally, lately I've been putting everything on the podcast, I think, although it's the hardest when it comes because a lot of work, but I enjoy it the most. I like this conversation.
Speaker 2:It doesn't feel to me like work. This is fun. We're just having coffee at Starbucks, right, and that is for me. That is why I like that format and maybe the, the. Probably the roi is the least of all of them, but it's just. You know I, I learn a lot, I enjoy it, I meet interesting people.
Speaker 1:So I don't know, I have to focus on something you asked about social media, and I wasn't thinking of podcasts, I was thinking of Twitter, instagram, facebook.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah. Podcast is not social media, you're right, but that's my favorite too.
Speaker 1:Podcast.
Speaker 2:Podcast it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because it's exactly like you said we're two people having a conversation. Yeah, casual, but also powerful.
Speaker 2:How often do you run your podcast?
Speaker 1:every week every week.
Speaker 2:Do you do the editing yourself?
Speaker 1:yeah, I'm, I'm actually a super techie, secretly a super techie guy okay.
Speaker 2:So yeah, I mean I can do the editing, I used to do it, but it's just a lot of time. I mean, like, how, like I, I did the math and it would be cheaper for me to outsource it because I can use that hour or hour and a half to invest on learning Amazon ads, for example or something like that, and plus I have three young kids. Actually the youngest his birthday is today. Oh happy birthday.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm going to go to six, oh fun years, oh exciting, that's great.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it's, but it's fun. So you said okay. So what have you been doing? Are they also print or only digital books?
Speaker 1:So e-book paperback okay hard hard cover and audio audiobooks okay, okay.
Speaker 2:And the audio do you record them yourself?
Speaker 1:because I'm a non-fiction author. Yes, okay, like fiction authors should probably not record themselves, but nonfiction authors, because if we want to be our brand and you know it's my story or whatever it depends on your brand, but my brand, I want to be the voice of my brand.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, I do the which format is selling the most these days? Audiobooks, cause I had an audio book. This is interesting, but it days Audiobooks, because I had an audiobook.
Speaker 1:This is interesting, but it's print, print still, yeah, and it's so weird because I'm not really a print guy. I like e-books. Well, no, my real favorite is audiobooks.
Speaker 2:Me too. My favorite is audiobooks.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's my first choice. For me it's audio e-book print, so print is my last choice. But especially for nonfiction, people like having you know they want to underline things, so I get it.
Speaker 2:So what are you working on now? What are your future plans?
Speaker 1:So I really am passionate about helping people save time and get over their fears.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And so very much like book in a weekend. Okay, so book in a weekend, the program, and then, which is sort of a funny silly book, right Like a short silly book, but that's. But I think that's important because then your real book, your next book, is going to be easier Once you get the short silly book done, your book number two. And I don't care if you take them a book, book number one and throw it out the window, because it's really just a catalyst to help make book number two easier. So I like helping authorpreneurs right Like authors, entrepreneurs and usually coaches, because coaches usually have like a real message they want to share with the world, or a methodology or a system or something, and I want to help them write a book to boost their brand, to increase their experience of who they are.
Speaker 1:So I like helping entrepreneurs write a short nonfiction book to boost their brand. But my real goal, like you said, big like big is let's go to Italy for a week and work on your books, that's, and a group group of I don't know 10 or 20 people.
Speaker 2:Like a writing retreat.
Speaker 1:Like a writing retreat yeah, but it's not like I've been on writing retreats, and some of them are drink lots of wine, eat lots of pasta, go to the beach and get a massage.
Speaker 2:And oops, we forgot to write today Right. I like that retreat and get a massage. And oops, we forgot to write today, right, I like that.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, maybe we'll do some days, but I want, I really want to have, we're going to get this thing done. Okay, right, I'm a totally fun guy. I am like I. I'm currently taking standup comedy classes, I'm doing improv comedy, I like theater and stage and speaking. I like having fun, but I'm also I like to say we're going to have fun and we're going to get it done. Fun and done, they're both good, but I want to get it done. So it's not just drink wine, eat pasta, go to the beach and get a massage We'll do that too, but we're going to get stuff done. And so my big dream is italy for a week. Let's get your books done okay, I'm in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, do you offer scholarships for starving artists before they monetize, right?
Speaker 1:right, sure, yeah, well, I also want to do. I mean I of course with corona I did a lot online and so you know zoom groups are fun too, but I do. I have you can do some of my programs. Do it yourself your own pace, you know, buy it, it's cheaper and do it yourself, that's great, and if you're like a go-getter and you're going to get it done, awesome. But the power of accountability and the power of a group doing it all at the same time and at the same pace, and you know this weekend or this week or this three weeks or whatever, then I think that power really helps you get it done. It really is the better together, the energy building each other up, and you know what, it's just more fun, yeah, it's just more fun together in a group. So ideally a group.
Speaker 2:Where can people find you if they want to reach out to you, take your courses, all of that?
Speaker 1:Yeah, the simplest. My brand is repossible R-E-Possiblecom. Repossiblecom.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:And that came from the idea of again regarding possible or possible, again and again and again, repossible.
Speaker 2:Oh, so it's the writing coaching. Okay, one-to-one non-fiction? Oh okay, nice yeah. And what about your website? How can they reach out? Okay, nice yeah. And what about your website, can they? Uh, how can they reach out? Email you as well, they can go to your website, yeah.
Speaker 1:They can find me on there. Find me on repossiblecom. My email address is Bradley at repossiblecom.
Speaker 2:Ah cool, this is great, yeah, any any conclude.
Speaker 1:We've been talking for an hour really. Oh wow, oh, wow, yeah, uh, any, yeah, my final words are just I mean from you said from my bio, you know I spent nine years dreaming and wishing and hoping and and, and it wasn't a fun nine years. No, I really I wasn't living the life I wanted to live and I want to save that. I want to save some years from people's lives of misery and suffering and depression, of not writing their book. And so I am happy, totally happy, to help you with that real book, like the booster brand, with the book like the real thing, but where I really where my heart we were talking about a heart earlier and stuff Like for me, it's book in a weekend, it's.
Speaker 1:I really want to write a silly book in a weekend because I can almost guarantee you it's going to give you a breakthrough and at the end of the weekend, on Sunday evening, you're going to say I've got this, I'm ready, let's go, I know what to do and I can do it evening, you're going to say I've got this, I'm ready, let's go, I know what to do and I can do it Fascinating.
Speaker 2:Well, this has been amazing, bradley. I had so much fun and I learned a lot, and I'm going to get in touch about that Italy retreat. So, for anyone who's watching this or listening to it, thank you for joining us for another episode of Read and Write with Natasha, and until we meet again.
Speaker 1:Thanks for having me. Bye everybody.
Speaker 2:Thank you for tuning in to Read and Write with Natasha. I'm your host, natasha Tynes. If today's episode inspired you in any way, please take the time to review the podcast. Remember to subscribe and share this podcast with fellow book lovers. Until next time. Happy reading, happy writing. Thank you.
