The indie author realities no-one talks about (much). Bestselling romance author Elizabeth O’Roark joins us this week for one of the most refreshingly honest conversations we’ve had on the show — covering everything from her Random House deal to the indie strategies she’s quietly walked away from.
In this episode we chat about:
Going from medical writer to indie romance author in 2013
The Devil series breakout and working with publicist Nina Grinstead at Valentine PR
Pantser writing, rewriting every book 30 times, and writing scenes out of order
The honest truth about special editions, direct sales and Amazon ads for romance authors
Landing a two-book Random House deal — how it happened and what surprised her
Why KU is “like doing heroin” and the realities of going wide as a romance author
Cover changes, branding decisions, and learning to take feedback from other authors
The biggest challenge after 23 books: staying inspired
Voice dictation as a game-changer for writing faster
ABOUT ELIZABETH O’ROARK
Elizabeth O’Roark has a bunch of degrees she does not use and gave up working as a medical writer to craft grumpy, alpha heroes and the flawed women who love them.
When not writing, she likes to spend time with her three kids, who are now teenagers and wish she’d find a different way to spend time. She can be found on Facebook feverishly debating whether or not “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie and telling people to read “The Hating Game”, which she did not write but wishes she had.
Website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com
📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED:
Elizabeth’s website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com
Nina Grinstead / Valentine PR: https://valentine-pr.com
Natural Readers (text-to-speech for self-editing): https://www.naturalreaders.com
Romance Author Mastermind (RAM)
Entangled Publishing (Devil series print deal)
Whitney G — author who gave the cover feedback Elizabeth credits
CliftonStrengths / Gallup Strengths assessment
Book Lovers by Emily Henry (mentioned re: trad publishing process)
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#SelfPublishing #IndieAuthor #RomancePodcast
Watch the recording on You Tube
📌 IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 — Introduction & welcome
01:15 — From medical writer to indie romance author: how it started in 2013
04:21 — Finding her stride: the Devil series breakout
06:13 — Branding, reader expectations & not bait-and-switching your audience
09:37 — Writing process: pantser life, writing scenes out of order, 30 rewrites
14:52 — Editors, beta readers & last-minute drafts
17:34 — The honest truth about special editions and direct sales
21:10 — “I’m very bad at my job”: on outsourcing what you’re not good at
23:24 — Building the brand: covers, website & finding a designer
26:12 — TikTok, Instagram & the viral video she didn’t plan for
27:46 — Working with a publicist (Nina Grinstead, Valentine PR)
30:48 — The Random House deal: how it happened and what surprised her
36:00 — Audio, translations & wide vs KU
39:10 — What readers actually love about her books
40:02 — Reader events, signings & the real cost of being “on”
45:40 — Cover changes: why they matter and how to use them
49:27 — The biggest challenge: staying inspired after 23 books
52:06 — Final advice: voice dictation as a game-changer
54:15 — Wrap-up and where to find Elizabeth
New Zealand