The Self Publishing Show

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca have a packed episode of indie publishing news, starting with a significant change to Amazon's preorder rules. Authors can now set up preorders up to 18 months in advance and postpone them twice without penalty – enough to tempt even preorder-phobic James into considering one for his next book.
They also discuss a legal case involving Amazon Ads, Cissy's plans to test a Goodreads giveaway for her upcoming release, and the opportunities for indie authors in the Italian market following James's conversation with the team behind Indieverse in Milan.
Later, Cissy shares an experiment using ChatGPT and Claude to create an interactive, visual experience around the world of her historical romance series. This leads into a wider conversation about AI, reader-facing marketing and the pressure some romance authors feel around using AI in their businesses.
Key Talking Points
Amazon's new 18-month preorder window
Authors can now postpone a preorder twice without penalty
James considers setting up a preorder for his next book
The North Carolina Attorney General's case involving Amazon Ads
Cissy's Goodreads giveaway experiment for her September launch
Goodreads Giveaway Month and whether giveaways are worth testing
Tracking launch data with Claude
The Indieverse conference in Milan and the Italian indie publishing market
Opportunities for English-language indie authors publishing in Italian
An upcoming SPS conversation about the Italian market
Cissy's AI-created interactive world-building experience for readers
Using ChatGPT to create historical inspiration images
Using Claude to build interactive marketing experiences
AI as a tool for launch preparation, data and book marketing
The debate around reader-facing AI use in romance
Authors deciding their own boundaries and approach to AI
Links & Resources Mentioned
ProWritingAid: https://prowritingaid.com
Indie Writers Club / SPS Support: https://learnselfpublishing.com/support
Down Under Mystery Club: https://ajblythe.com/podcast
Cissy's: Walk the Border  Password: vivian

Big news this week, the first two speakers for SPS Live London 2027 have been announced! Melanie Harlow and Theodora Taylor will be joining us in London.
James and Cissy share the news and talk about when tickets will be going on sale, with Patreon supporters getting first access.
James is also back from his travels in New Zealand and Australia, and there's plenty to catch up on. They talk about the latest changes to Meta advertising and what losing some of the usual targeting and placement options could mean for authors running Facebook ads.
They also return to the conversation around RARE London and its AI policy, look at the growing importance of newsletters for book discovery, and Cissy shares what she discovered after digging into the preorder numbers from her own books.
Key Talking Points
SPS Live London 2027 – Melanie Harlow and Theodora Taylor announced as the first speakers
When SPS Live 2027 tickets will be available
James's New Zealand writing retreat and trip to Australia
RARE London and its AI policy
Changes coming to Meta/Facebook advertising
Losing some targeting and placement controls
What the Meta changes could mean for author advertising
The importance of strong ad creative, blurbs and book pages
Newsletters and how readers are finding books
What Cissy learned from looking back at her preorder numbers
Whether longer preorders actually result in more sales
Links & Resources Mentioned
ProWritingAid: https://prowritingaid.com
SPS Patreon / Support: https://learnselfpublishing.com/support
SPS Live London 2027 ticket information will be live in September: https://www.learnselfpublishing.com

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch checks in from his final day in New Zealand while Cissy Mecca takes us behind the scenes of her upcoming historical romance launch. They discuss realistic launch goals, building an ARC and influencer team, setting a marketing budget, and choosing advertising strategies that have actually worked for you rather than simply throwing money at launch day.
James also shares insights from Written Word Media on how authors at different stages of their careers are approaching AI, plus plans to test different Facebook ad setups and share the results with the SPS community.
Key Talking Points
Cissy's strategy for launching her upcoming historical romance
Setting realistic goals and expectations for a book launch
Building ARC, street team and influencer support
Finding and approaching relevant book influencers
Deciding when to send physical books to creators
Creating a launch budget that feels sustainable
Facebook versus Amazon advertising
Why proven strategies matter more than simply spending more
James's upcoming Facebook ads testing and challenge/webinar
Written Word Media's findings on author attitudes towards AI
James's plans for another writers' retreat in Florida in 2027
Links & Resources Mentioned
ProWritingAid: https://prowritingaid.com
SPS Patreon / Support: https://learnselfpublishing.com/support

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch checks in from New Zealand with Cissy Mecca to tackle the increasingly complicated relationship between authors and AI. They discuss AI watermarking and detection, the problems authors could face when AI is used for editing or research, and the strict anti-AI rules appearing at romance reader events.
James also reports back from his New Zealand writing retreat, while Cissy shares how she is using AI to build and manage her new reader ambassador hub.
Key Talking Points
AI watermarking and what it could mean for authors
The problems with AI detection and false positives
Using AI for proofreading, research and author business tasks
RARE's strict rules surrounding AI use
The growing risk of authors being wrongly accused of using AI
Research into whether readers can distinguish AI from human-written fiction
James's New Zealand writing retreat and Facebook ads session
Using book reviews and AI to identify marketing hooks
Cissy's new Border Ambassadors reader hub
Using AI to manage ARC readers, assets and launch teams
Links & Resources Mentioned
ProWritingAid: https://prowritingaid.com
Indie Writers Club / Patreon: https://learnselfpublishing.com/support

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca conclude their two-part conversation with Michael Evans, founder of Creatorwood. They delve deeper into how AI is transforming books into cinematic experiences, discussing the practical realities of creating feature-length films, the current limitations of AI video, and how authors can use visual storytelling to reach new audiences. Michael also shares his vision for the future of AI-powered entertainment and how authors can position their intellectual property for the next wave of publishing innovation.
At the start of the episode, James also announces that SPS Live 2027 tickets will be launching soon and reminds listeners about the exclusive Creatorwood giveaway, with 1,000 free viewings of the AI feature film adaptation of David Viergutz's Scare Mail.
Key Talking Points
Part 2 of the interview with Michael Evans, founder of Creatorwood
Turning books into feature-length AI-generated films
The opportunities and limitations of AI filmmaking today
Choosing which stories are best suited to visual adaptation
Building new revenue streams from your intellectual property
The future of AI-powered entertainment for authors
Why story remains more important than technology
Creatorwood's vision for connecting authors directly with audiences
Announcement of SPS Live 2027 dates and ticket launch
Creatorwood giveaway: 1,000 free viewings of Scare Mail
Links & Resources Mentioned
ProWritingAid – https://prowritingaid.com
Creatorwood: https://www.creatorwood.tv/homepage
Free Scare Mail viewing giveaway: https://www.learnselfpublishing.com/creatorwood