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Zeitgeist: Davy Crockett King of the First Turning
I’ve been pondering a lot about the return of King Arthur in the new zeitgeist. I am starting to wonder if Arthur will return, and specifically, if he will return to America. America has had two kings and neither of them were Arthur. Our kings were Davy Crockett, King...
The Mary Poppins Zeitgeist: From Grimbright to Nobledark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W0VEjeVm7w This conversation unpacks how stories reflect cultural “turnings” in the zeitgeist, using Mary Poppins, Winnie the Pooh, Marines in wartime, and superhero tales as case studies. The Thomas Umstattd Jr. and Jonathan Shuerger...
17 Days Left: How to Claim Your $3,000+ From Anthropic’s $1.5B AI Copyright Settlement
This week’s highlights: Authors have only 17 days left to claim up to $3,000+ per book in the $1.5B Anthropic AI copyright settlement. YouTube’s revenue now surpasses Disney, confirming the creator economy’s dominance, a trajectory indie authors are mirroring. Amazon ended its Book Club and excluded authors from new AI ad tools.
How I Fight Off Copyright Trolls Targeting My Blogs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrM68ayZhSk This article walks through several real-world encounters with copyright trolls targeting my blogs, how their schemes work, and the practical defenses I used to fight them off without paying. It also shows how DMCA...
Iranian Drones Destroy Amazon Data Centers, Amazon.com Goes Down
Week Ending March 6, 2026 In this week’s Author Update, we unpack how world...
Reader Magnets Are Dead? Why Most Reader Magnets Fail
Discover strategies to create a good reader magnet that will engage readers and boost your newsletter subscriptions.
Your Author Toolbox: Part 2
Discover the best tools for writers to streamline your author business, or turn podcasts into optimized blog content with the powerful Novel Marketing Patron Toolbox suite.
The Indie Whale Reader: How to Reach Readers Who Devour 100 Books a Year
Traditional publishing posts a December surge in the latest AAP StatShot, even as the broader market stays flat. We unpack new 2026 reader data, major AI-driven layoffs at Block, Spotify’s audiobook charts, Julia Quinn’s Kickstarter success, podcast growth, and key AI updates from Google and Cloudflare.
Platform
Platform
How I Fight Off Copyright Trolls Targeting My Blogs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrM68ayZhSk This article walks through several real-world encounters with copyright trolls targeting my blogs, how their schemes work, and the practical defenses I used to fight them off without paying. It also shows how DMCA...
Reader Magnets Are Dead? Why Most Reader Magnets Fail
Discover strategies to create a good reader magnet that will engage readers and boost your newsletter subscriptions.
How to Get a Professional Email Address
Your email address might be the first thing an agent or editor sees. Learn how to make a good first impression with your email address.
Networking for Authors with Dale L. Roberts
12 tips for networking with other authors to create mutually beneficial, long-term relationships.
A Nonfiction Author’s Guide to Substack
Learn how nonfiction authors are using Substack to reach audiences and convert them into paying subscribers seamlessly.
Thomas’s Office Tour & 4th Wall Breach
Get the much anticipated tour of Thomas’s office, complete with a run-down of the books on his shelves that best absorb sound.
When to Ignore Your Editor
Discover 7 issues authors must beware of when getting editorial suggestions from humans or AI and when to ignore or accept the feedback.
How to Get Started with Author School Visits and Make Your Book Playground Famous
Selling books for kids is a challenge. Discover how you can connect with young readers, positively impact schools, and sell more books.
Publishing
Publishing
Your Author Toolbox: Part 2
Discover the best tools for writers to streamline your author business, or turn podcasts into optimized blog content with the powerful Novel Marketing Patron Toolbox suite.
How to Become a Professional Writer With Joanna Penn
Learn the mindset and approach to create a sustainable professional author business that appeals to readers and builds your career.
Why Your Book Isn’t Selling: Metadata
Discover how metadata for books can significantly improve your book sales and visibility in online stores like Amazon.
How to Format a Book With Vellum
Learn how Vellum can save you money, time, and headache when formatting your next book or reader magnet.
Author Taxes – A 2026 Guide to Avoiding Jail & Overpaying
Taxes for authors don’t have to trigger panic. Discover rules for bookkeeping and taxes and what common mistakes to avoid.
Productivity Secrets from Bestselling Author Jerry B. Jenkins
Productivity tips for writers that will help you finish your book and find a sustainable writing pace for your career.
The Five-Year Plan to Become a Professional Author
Discover a five year plan for writing a novel and how it helps aspiring authors build their craft, finish the book, and become a professional author.
The Savvy Author’s Guide to Picking an LLM
Discover which LLMs and AI tools are best for your writing and marketing processes, and how the tools compare to one another.
Promotion
Promotion
The Indie Whale Reader: How to Reach Readers Who Devour 100 Books a Year
Traditional publishing posts a December surge in the latest AAP StatShot, even as the broader market stays flat. We unpack new 2026 reader data, major AI-driven layoffs at Block, Spotify’s audiobook charts, Julia Quinn’s Kickstarter success, podcast growth, and key AI updates from Google and Cloudflare.
How to Become a Professional Writer With Joanna Penn
Learn the mindset and approach to create a sustainable professional author business that appeals to readers and builds your career.
Will OpenAI Claim Ownership of Your Royalties?
AI shocks publishing and tech: Claude 4.6 vs GPT-5.3 spark a $285B selloff, layoffs hit a 2009 high, Amazon cuts 30,000 jobs, Spotify expands into ebooks and print with Bookshop.org, indie ebooks arrive, a massive Substack breach, new KDP download options, and OpenAI’s controversial IP revenue-sharing idea.
The Five-Year Plan to Become a Professional Author
Discover a five year plan for writing a novel and how it helps aspiring authors build their craft, finish the book, and become a professional author.
Author Taxes – A 2026 Guide to Avoiding Jail & Overpaying
Taxes for authors don’t have to trigger panic. Discover rules for bookkeeping and taxes and what common mistakes to avoid.
The Five-Year Plan to Become a Professional Author
Discover a five year plan for writing a novel and how it helps aspiring authors build their craft, finish the book, and become a professional author.
Should You Create a Premium Hardcover Edition of Your Book?
Learn whether a premium book edition is the right choice for your book and how it can set you apart from all the AI-written content.
Amazon Algorithm Secrets That Separate Bestsellers from the Slush Pile
Explore the Amazon Book Recommendation Algorithm and learn how it impacts your book sales and visibility in the market.