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Novel Marketing

Thomas Umstattd Jr.
Novel Marketing
Latest episode

514 episodes

  • Novel Marketing

    Your AI Is Lying About Your Book

    07/10/2026 | 1h 6 mins.
    The chatbot told him his manuscript was brilliant. The humans gave his manuscript a C.
    That's what happened to one author who trusted AI as his editor. If you use AI to help with your editing, it's probably lying to you too, and not just once in a while.
    In this week’s episode, I talked with Matthew Bowman, a freelance science fiction and fantasy editor who has worked with authors for 16 years and runs the Novel Ninja blog. Matthew helped me develop many of the anti-flattery techniques behind the Patron Toolbox, and he's spent the past year testing which prompts actually get AI to tell the truth.
    Here's some of what we cover.
    What happens when you tell the AI someone else wrote your chapter?
    Which two-word phrase flips every major AI into a mode where it tells the truth?
    What's the one small fib that makes an AI ruthlessly critical of the work you show it?
    Listen in or read the blog post before your next draft goes out, so your first honest feedback doesn't come from a one-star review.
    Blog link: https://www.authormedia.com/ai-is-lying-to-you-about-your-book/
    Authormedia.social link:

    YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/htdXu0-xjR0
    Support the show
  • Novel Marketing

    How to Relaunch Your Book

    30/09/2026 | 1h 4 mins.
    Your book may not be dead. As Miracle Max would say, it might only be mostly dead. A book that flopped three years ago could sell better today than it did on launch day, but only if you fix what actually broke.
    This week, I talked with Julie Broad, founder of Book Launchers and host of BookLaunchers.TV. Julie is a #1 Amazon bestselling author, and her team has helped more than 400 authors write, publish, and market their books. When her clients publish second editions, her team moves their reviews over all the time.
    In this episode, you'll discover
    Whether a book that sold well at launch is a candidate for relaunch.
    The review pattern that tells you if a relaunch will waste your money.
    The one change that makes it impossible to keep your reviews when you relaunch.
    Listen in or read the blog version before you spend a dime on a new cover, so your relaunch doesn't repeat the mistakes that stalled your book the first time.
    Blog link: https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-relaunch-your-book/
    Authormedia.social link
    YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/0CjW9JmGAxI
    Support the show
  • Novel Marketing

    How to Write Short Stories with Joanna Penn

    23/09/2026 | 50 mins.
    The slowest way to write a novel is to start writing a novel.
    It sounds backward, but it’s not.
    In this week’s episode, you’ll hear from Joanna Penn of The Creative Penn. She’s spent years exploring short fiction as both craft practice and creative outlet, and she pushed back a bit on my claim about the slowest way to write a novel.
    You’ll learn
    What Joanna considers the main benefit of short stories
    Where and how she comes up with ideas for short stories (and novels)
    An unconventional way to start analyzing your favorite short stories (and where to find good ones!)
    Listen in or read the blog version so you don’t make rookie mistakes that end up baked into your 300-page novel.
    Blog link: https://www.authormedia.com/how-to-write-short-stories-with-joanna-penn/
    Social link: 
    YT Link: https://youtu.be/uufSPHkketQ

    YT Collab Link: https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCdug0jLfpkayiiRyU4WqPPQ/collaboration/UCT-0HmBAtZpaLX2liUNebiQ

    Support the show
  • Novel Marketing

    Should You Leave Kindle Unlimited in 2026? The Math May Surprise You

    16/09/2026 | 45 mins.
    Authors on KDP Select get access to $700 million a year in the Kindle Unlimited fund. One login, one dashboard, one algorithm, one company to deal with.
    But that same company won't let you talk to a human with authority when something goes wrong, and it runs an algorithm that can end your career without telling you why.
    So which is it? More money, or more freedom?
    In this week's episode, you’ll hear from Kris Austin, CEO and co-founder of Draft2Digital, to figure out the real answer, and it isn't the same for every author.
    Here's what you'll learn:
    Why the "safe" choice on Amazon can turn into the riskiest 
    How Draft2Digital can simplify every aspect of going wide
    A little-known change that lets KU authors do something that was off-limits until recently
    Listen in or read the blog version to find out which path is best for you and your book.
    YT Link: https://youtu.be/cPyv2iIztwo
    Support the show
  • Novel Marketing

    Get More Time to Write by Using a Grok Bot

    03/09/2026 | 25 mins.
    Authors have historically lamented all the administrative, technological, and marketing tasks that go along with being a writer. How many times have you sighed and said, “But I just want to write!”
     We have just gone through a massive transition in how authors use AI. You can now have AI agents do tasks for you, which means you can delegate all your non-writing tasks to a bot. You tell the bot what to do, and it does it! 
    It might sound like magic, but in today’s episode, I’m going to show you it is real. You’ll learn the step-by-step process of creating your own Grok Bot AI agent, and you’ll be shocked to find out how easy it is.
    This is a shorter episode and a bit different from our regular format. You’ll likely get the most out of this episode by watching the video on YouTube. You’ll see exactly what the screen looks like and how I prompt GrokBot. You’ll also be able to find the exact wording for each of my prompts in the blog version of this episode. 
    Let me know what you think of this episode in the comments of this post’s thread on AuthorMedia.social. If there is interest, I will make more tutorials to help you leverage AI agents to give you more time to write.
    Blog link: https://www.authormedia.com/get-more-time-to-write-by-using-a-grok-bot/
    Authormedia social link: https://authormedia.social/c/novel-marketing/get-more-time-to-write-by-using-a-grok-bot/
    Support the show
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About Novel Marketing
The longest-running book marketing podcast in the world. This is the show for writers who want to build their platform, sell more books, and change the world with writing worth talking about. Whether you self publish or are with a traditional house, this podcast will make book promotion fun and easy. Thomas Umstattd Jr. interviews publishers, indie authors, and bestselling traditional authors about how to get published and sell more books.
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