Behind the Fantasy: Creating Magic and Monsters with Brittany Ranew

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Oh, hey, it's Victoria from Victoria Jane Editorial and your host of Bookshop Chats.
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This podcast is all about authors, writing and the magic that goes into storytelling.
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We cover all of the things that go into writing a book, from the creative process, from taking your idea to a first draft, creating and cultivating community within the author space, marketing all of the fun things.
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If you are a reader, a wannabe writer or an author, you will find tips and tricks that suit whatever level you are at.
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So I hope that you enjoy and you are, unfortunately, or fortunately, going to find many more books to add to your TBR, so I will invite you to sit back and listen to the episode.
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Welcome back to Bookshop Chats.
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In today's episode, I am chatting with Brittany Renew.
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Welcome to the podcast.
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Thank you so much.
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I'm excited to be here.
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Me, too, I'm excited to chat.
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It's like the sun is coming out, so it feels like it's going to be a good, a good day.
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We're, and it's Thursday also, so that's exciting because it's almost Friday.
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Yes, for sure I love it.
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So I would love to hear all about your books, because you are writing a series and one of them is out now and yeah, so I would love for you to share all of the details that you can.
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That kind of doesn't give the whole thing away, but you know enough that people are like please let me have this book to intrigue people yes.
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Yeah, so I have a new adult romantic series.
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Book one is currently out.
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The series is Riley Jordan and the fire prophecies.
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Book one is Lion of Fire and book two will be out in the fall.
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Don't have a date set for that firmly, but it'll be probably in November.
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So, yeah, mine is Slow Burn Romance.
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So you're gonna book two is gonna be closed door and just to kind of give like a little a tagline that I give that gives you like the essence.
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It's like Percy Jackson meets Narnia, but for grown-ups.
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So there's college-age characters.
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Like I said, slow burn romance, elemental magic, portal hopping magic and dragons.
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I mean all the fun things that we love about fantasy.
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I love it, I love it, I find, yeah, connecting with fantasy authors is just so fascinating to me because it feels like a whole other world right, like you know you have to create a whole other world.
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So I would love to hear, like, what pulled you into like writing fantasy, or was it this book that just sort of kind of came to you on its own?
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Yeah, I would say like came to you on its own.
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Yeah, I would say like, yes, the last part you said is true, but I was always writing.
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I've always been the creative arts.
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I went to school for music, so, like music, writing, all that stuff was just like my life as a kid, becoming a young adult, and so, you know, I always wrote creatively and I loved.
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I just remember when I was reading I always was drawn to fantasy and like magic and just kind of the fantastical nature of things.
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So I guess it's like no surprise when I really did get serious about writing some like writing a book, it was in that world.
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So I had, I had the idea for this series in 2009.
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I literally had a dream about the two kind of main characters, riley jordan and emma clark.
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Um, and the premise was what are the natural like conflicts that would arise from two people from two different worlds, like starting to kind of form a friendship and eventually like fall for each other.
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So we have a wizard and a human, and so that was the premise of it, and when I just started brainstorming, the whole series just kind of, you know, came to life for me because I had just graduated college two years prior with a degree in music, a minor in writing, and I had even, like, went, did one semester in a master's program for creative writing and I was just, I felt so lost and I'm like, I'm graduating, I'm supposed to be an adult, I'm like I had this dream of pursuing music and writing and I'm like, what am I supposed to do with myself?
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And that was, that was the place I was coming from, even like two, like I said, two years removed from graduating and like being, like you know, in the corporate world at that point.
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So I just kind of that was kind of the callous for me.
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It's like what if I wrote a series that was for that age group of college characters where you're really feeling that that is a feeling that you have.
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So Riley Jordan is a senior, about to graduate college.
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It's his last, you know.
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He's starting his senior year at the beginning of the book and every wizard, by his age, is supposed to have figured out his special path of magic, the gift that he's been given to protect the human race.
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And so, like I said, they're two different races and humans don't know that wizards exist.
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But the problem, riley, is that he's about to graduate and he doesn't know what that gift is.
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So he's feeling like a loser, he's feeling totally lost, so that that's kind of the the premise for the story.
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And then, of course, from there he has a chance meeting with Emma, who is the poor human girl that gets pulled into a world of magic and monsters, all because Riley has a vision of a dark wizard trying to kill all humans, and he finds out Emma him himself and Emma are at the center of it all.
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Wild.
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That's so fascinating to me.
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I love I love that and I love that you weave in that very like real thing that so many of us navigate.
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I feel like it's just like you do the things you go to school, you, you know, get a job.
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And then I feel like so many of us are like but is is this?
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It Like this is I'm stuck here.
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For the rest of like this doesn't feel right and I feel like that's such a cool way of like showcasing that.
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And I feel like, especially at that age too I mean, obviously, with fantasy being so popular now it might be a little bit different, but I feel like there's like sort of this pull of like getting away from that magic and imagination and play when you hit your like you know adult years right Like it's be realistic kind of.
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So I'm so excited to see that the fantasy is like back in the populace and everybody's like obsessed with it now and then we get to like imagine and play and like embrace that creativity.
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I think that's so important for us.
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It's so fun, I love being creative is just like it's what keeps me going, you know, because, like, I have a day job, as they would say.
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I'm a real estate agent, I run a real estate business, and it's like and I love my job, but it's like having that creative outlet.
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It just really grounds me and makes me feel like I'm like truly myself and then I'm able to, like you know, show up the best I can for everyone around me, and so it's just yeah, I love, I love the creativity.
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It's really important.
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A hundred percent, yeah, and I feel like it just infuses it's, it's sort of essence into like daily life too.
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When you, when you give yourself that space of just like, it just helps you see the world a little bit different which is always a bonus right.
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Like.
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Can we find the magic?
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in the best please.
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Yes, I totally agree with that this book was going to be just a standalone versus a series.
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That's something that I always find really fascinating to me.
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Obviously, a lot of like I'll read a lot of like romance, so they're like they're.
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They're in a series, similar characters, but you can read them independently versus an actual series where it kind of builds on each other.
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So I would love to hear a little bit about that process for you.
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Yeah, I mean, when I had the idea and I started brainstorming it, really it was clear to me that this was a series from the get go.
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And I really like, once I once I had that inciting incident, you know, like I said, the vision about a dark wizard trying to kill all humans I then could see the actual end.
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So, like as I created, I kind of built, ok, this is kind of the cast of characters, and then I could really see the very end of the story.
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I was like, okay, this is definitely at least three books, and so that's kind of how I started outlining, because I could see that end.
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So I was able to keep some of those like bigger points in play for like an outline.
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But of course the story really does write itself.
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So you kind of have to, you just kind of have to trust that process.
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And so I had like a full outline for book one, as I wrote that of course, and only had like bits and pieces for book two.
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So when I actually sat down to write book two and for me actually there's a there was a big gap in between which I can share all that.
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But so it was me trusting myself of like okay, I know this story and I know these characters and they're going to tell me where we need to go.
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So I love that.
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That's such a great way of explaining it.
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Like it's to know people that maybe haven't started writing their book is that it really is like each story is its own unique energy and it really like it asks you to write it in a very specific way and you just kind of really have to learn how to trust yourself.
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I feel like that's the beginning of kind of the writing journey, is like that self-trust that you can tell the story because if it came to you, there's a reason for it.
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So I think, yeah, it's, it's that's, I feel like such a simple thing, but it's one of the hardest parts of writing.
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Yeah, I mean, I think it's just like, in a nutshell, it's like you become the vessel for this great story that I was gifted, like that's kind of how I feel about it.
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I love that.
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I think that's so fascinating to me, and just to see these ideas that were like in your head come to life and to meet the characters and like really get to know them is such a really like.
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It's such a wild experience because they become a part of you and then you're like arguing with these like characters that exist in your head and stuff like that.
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I promise we're all sane right I?
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swear Right, it's totally.
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It's totally fine, it's totally fine.
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But people love it, right, and that I think there's a reason why books are have always been so like important to like humans, and then now just to see how, like massive like people are getting back into reading, uh, thanks to like book talk and uh bookstagram and stuff like that.
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So I think it's amazing and just hearing you know my, my 14 year old, is like obsessed with books, which is really cool to see that sort of like translate into like the teenagers and really like being pulled to that because it's such a great thing, even if you don't end up writing, like reading is such an important thing, I feel like it's for keeping that sort of imagination and creativity flowing yeah, absolutely yeah.
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I mean, I read a lot.
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I know you know writers are readers too, yes, and I think it's easy to some people forget that you know.
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But, like, yes, we read a lot because that's, you know, it's all to me, it's all inspiring, so it helps me, kind of like, and it makes you a better writer.
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That is one of the main things.
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It makes you a better writer.
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The more you read, especially in like all, all genres, is a great idea, but especially if you're reading in the genre that you're writing, it's definitely going to improve your writing 100.
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I think that's such a great thing that I didn't realize was so powerful.
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When it comes to to writing is reading.
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Obviously you're reading because you enjoy the book, but there is that element of like reading from the perspective of a writer and like looking at what they do and how they structure it and and just what is working in that genre and what you're like.
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Oh, I wish that this, this, was more of a thing.
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So I think that that's a really cool way of yeah, like you said, growing as a writer and just seeing how maybe your favorite author evolves too, is really neat as well, because they they also, you know, we think that they're amazing and perfect, but they grew too and they had crappy first drafts, just like we did.
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So I think, it's a really great reminder yes, it is.
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Yeah, I think having some that's what I've learned a lot in the past like a couple years, um is, I said I had a big gap.
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So I finished the first draft of Lion of Fire in 2013.
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And I it published I independently published it in October of 23.
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So that's 10 years and you know, I obviously there's a lot of life between there and I queried agents and all that kind of stuff.
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I kind of got frustrated with the whole process.
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I had started my real estate business, so life took over, and then that's when I kind of decided, all right, I'm tired of waiting for permission, I'm going to publish this.
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So.
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But, like I said, that's a big gap.
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So I didn't start writing book two until probably like six months before book one actually came out, you know, so I was like I got to dive back into this world, and so I think for me that's been a big learning curve of like trusting myself and like knowing that I've grown as a writer and that that's okay.
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It's okay that I'm a better writer at this stage than I was when I wrote book one.
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And then of course I it went through edits and all that stuff too.
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So I think that's like definitely advice I give to writers.
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It's like you got to remember that you're always growing as a writer and every writer is doing that.
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So, like what you just said about you're reading your favorite authors and you're like, oh, this is so amazing.
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And it's like remember, yes, they're growing from a book to the next as well.
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So kind of giving yourself permission to to grow and keep growing as a writer.
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Yes, that's such a great reminder and I think even just like picking up on that like gap of time that you had from writing the draft to like revisiting it, I think that that's something that I feel like there's often sort of a lot of writers feel like they're behind, like that seems to be a theme that I've noticed with a lot of like oh, I should have, you know, finished the draft and publish like a like a very strict timeline or whatever.
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But I think it comes down to like the time of the book, like I feel like to even just with what is going on, with what is popular too in books, like I feel like fantasy is like, so, like in right now.
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So it's almost like the book kind of knew that, which is really cool.
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So there's that element of like it wait, like I feel like there's something about that as well, like that it's the time when it's the time and it's not always the time that we want and sometimes you have to give it that space so that you, like you said, can grow as a writer and really give the story just like the full magic that it deserves.
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I think as well, and it's cool to look back at your old writing and be like wow, just to see that I know a lot of people are like.
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Well, that's embarrassing, but I think I like it.
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I like to see, I'm like, wow, I didn't understand this concept before and look, I can do it now.
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So I find that that's really neat and it just it shows that you are growing as a writer.
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Because it's hard.
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Sometimes you're like am I even getting better?
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Like, is this even like anything?
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that's true, that, um, like I cringe sometimes when I'm like reading something Cause I'm like, well, I would have written that differently today, you know, yeah, but it's a good, that's a good like reminder of it does show you the growth, so like you're going to see that, you know, cause it's easy to forget that you're growing.
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So, yeah, I makes it obvious from one book to the next.
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At that point, yeah, definitely.
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So I would love to hear how like the marketing side of things has been for you and publishing like that is often the part that I find a lot of the authors I chat with are like do I really have to do this part, like I have to tell people about my book but, yeah, I would love to hear how you kind of make that work for you, or if you have any like tips to make it like enjoyable and fun.
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I would love to hear that as well For sure, let me ask you can you hear the lawnmower stuff in the background?
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Okay, no, because the next door neighbor is happening and I'm thinking hope that's not really loud.
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Okay, no, I am good, we are good, and yeah, it's, I am, I am.
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Yeah, I don't even hear it, so it's fine okay, cool, all right, yeah.
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So marketing, yeah, uh.
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I think that I will say, uh, some writers might view this as an unfair advantage, because I have a background in sales, like I said, having a real business.
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I'm super used to doing tons of marketing, being in front of the camera, like all of that kind of stuff.
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So that all comes very naturally to me, and I mean even honestly, just for my background in music.
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You know I'm used to being on stage, so you know all that stuff kind of comes naturally to me, which I'm really thankful for.
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I think, like the biggest thing for me is finding something, creating content that is fun for you.
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I think it's.
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It's easy to get caught up into, like you're seeing what other people are putting out and you feel like you just have to make the same exact type of content and it might not be something that resonates with you.
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So I think now it's cool, it's good to like pay attention and see trends and that kind of thing, but I think it's most important just to like sit sit down and brainstorm and be creative and just figure out the type of content that you would want to make and just have so that you can have fun with it, cause that's going to come out with the content if you're having fun, but it's honestly, it's just consistency.
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Consistency is the is the number one key to success in anything in life.
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You just have to commit to being consistent, and sometimes it sucks, like it just does, yeah, but you just got to keep doing it.
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Consistent.
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And sometimes it sucks, like it just does, yeah, but you just got to keep doing it.
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I mean, there's, I think so so often in life where I mean I do it too.
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It's like you're, we're looking for that like silver bullet, the magic, you know, the magic pill or whatever, and it doesn't exist.
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You just have to keep keep doing the thing, and it doesn't exist.
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You just have to keep doing the thing.
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And I have.
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I've stolen this quote from.
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I believe Jasmine Starr is the one who said this originally.
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She is like this amazing businesswoman that I follow online.
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She has a podcast, it's awesome and she's so I credit this to her.
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But the quote is you can't lose if you don't quit.
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And if you think about that like there's so much truth in that because you know we obviously we can never control the outcome, but the idea is that if you simply don't quit.
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You're just.
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You're going to keep growing, you're going to keep building and you're going to keep going forward and it's going to get you closer to whatever.
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That end result is that you're going for anyway going forward, and it's going to get you closer to whatever.
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That end result is that you're going for anyway.
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Yes, that's such a great one, that is such a great reminder, especially if you are like playing the long game.
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I think we can sometimes get stuck on that sort of like, like you said, that that quick fix, instant gratification, which kind of social media does feed a little bit, and this sort of like obsession with like going viral or whatever, and I think like consistency really is what matters and I often use like obviously Rebecca Yaros is having like her moment right now with her books but she wrote, like I think, at least 10 books before more than that, more than
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that, like so many, and like I hadn't heard of her until these, like fantasy books started to be like everywhere.
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So I think that that's something that can be easy and she was like they were all like they did.
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Well, I think they were all traditionally published and stuff like that.
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So I think it's just it's it's the time when it's the time and then, yeah, like you can't you can't control that stuff.
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So I think really trusting that process and, like you said, having fun with it and doing what works for you is going to be the best Cause I think that's really what sells on social media is you being authentically you?
00:20:48.202 --> 00:20:50.574
Yes, and that's what people want to see.
00:20:50.574 --> 00:20:58.201
Is that sort of stuff behind, like your humor, your personality, your writing process, like all that stuff is really cool and that's what I appreciate.
00:20:58.201 --> 00:21:00.976
And, yeah, just keep it simple.
00:21:00.976 --> 00:21:02.296
That's what that's my approach.
00:21:02.296 --> 00:21:06.715
I'm like, if it's overwhelming, like just don't do it Like it's too much.
00:21:09.789 --> 00:21:10.271
Yeah, Keep it simple.
00:21:10.271 --> 00:21:17.794
That is definitely a good thing to to keep in mind with with a lot of things, but especially with, like marketing stuff and making content.
00:21:19.056 --> 00:21:21.602
And it can be hard to just with the sort of like.
00:21:21.602 --> 00:21:26.019
Obviously I love like an aesthetic video and I love that it looks amazing and beautiful.
00:21:26.019 --> 00:21:26.971
I'm like how do you do that?
00:21:26.971 --> 00:21:58.976
And then I just don't, I don't have the time or the end, like it's just not feasible as much as I'd love to do it, it's just not part of my life and that's often what I tell writers that I work with is just really that like you need to find a routine for either writing, marketing, all that stuff that works for you in your season of life, because your season of life might look different, like if you're working full time, if you have kids, if you have all of this, like it's going to be very different than somebody who is single and works from home Right, so it's, it's very different.
00:21:59.016 --> 00:22:03.472
So really honoring that is important and I know that they say comparison is the thief of joy.
00:22:03.472 --> 00:22:05.497
It's hard not to compare yourself.
00:22:05.497 --> 00:22:09.203
It's hard, but it really is true of like your.
00:22:09.203 --> 00:22:20.118
That's why people read your books is because it's your unique spin on things, your unique worldview and stuff like that that you infuse into the stories and stuff.
00:22:20.118 --> 00:22:22.403
So yeah, but it is.
00:22:22.403 --> 00:22:25.055
It is a lot and it is hard sometimes.
00:22:25.817 --> 00:22:49.682
Well, I think what you said about being authentic, I think that's definitely a really big, a really big component of it too, and I feel like we've kind of made the shift in social media in the last I mean, maybe it's been like 10 years, I don't know where the authenticity has become an important part of like it's what people are seeking online.
00:22:49.682 --> 00:23:15.773
So I think, just, yeah, being consistent, like creating some kind of a schedule, some kind of a rhythm with it, so that you can be consistent because it feels good to you and being authentic to yourself, and then just trust that you know you're going to find the people those people are going to, you're going to attract the right people to you because you are staying true to yourself, and that just takes all of the you know.
00:23:15.773 --> 00:23:19.021
I think that can take a lot of fear out of it when you kind of just focus on that.
00:23:20.510 --> 00:23:21.271
Yeah, definitely.
00:23:21.271 --> 00:23:22.796
I've just trusted it.
00:23:22.796 --> 00:23:26.282
It will reach the readers that it needs to, and it does.
00:23:26.282 --> 00:23:27.855
It does take time, that's the thing.
00:23:33.789 --> 00:23:35.636
Um especially with just the amount of um books that are getting put out into the world.
00:23:35.636 --> 00:23:47.881
Um, every year, it's like I think I read somewhere it was like anywhere from like I don't know like two, like well over 200 to like 500,000 a year, which is like truly insane.
00:23:47.881 --> 00:23:59.421
Um, so, yes, there is a lot of books, but that does that's not a bad thing, and I think there's a lot of people on this, exactly Right, and we love to read.
00:23:59.421 --> 00:24:00.263
So I think that's a really great reminder.
00:24:00.263 --> 00:24:06.616
Is that, like you, if you wrote this book, if you love it and and you wanted to read it, I guarantee someone else probably wanted to read it too.
00:24:06.616 --> 00:24:10.522
So it's just a matter of, yeah, just slow and steady wins the race.
00:24:10.522 --> 00:24:16.121
That's what I'm constantly reminding myself with, like, just, we're just going to keep going, we're just going to get back up again.
00:24:17.109 --> 00:24:19.394
Yes, a hundred percent, totally agree.
00:24:19.414 --> 00:24:21.700
Awesome, amazing.
00:24:21.700 --> 00:24:28.281
Well, I would love for you to share where people can connect with you and where they can find your books.
00:24:29.049 --> 00:24:41.122
Yeah, so I am on Instagram and Tik TOK and Facebook and threads, so like wherever you can find me, and it's Brittany Renew, author, everywhere, so that's easy to find my handle.
00:24:41.122 --> 00:24:51.051
And I have a website, the fire propheciescom, and that's where, of course, I've got links to everything you can.
00:24:51.051 --> 00:24:54.621
You know it's, you know it's available online anywhere so you can order it.
00:24:54.621 --> 00:25:06.362
You know you can do Kindle unlimited, um, you know Barnes and Nobles online, all that kind of fun stuff, um, but I also have a square site, so if you're wanting a signed copy, you can definitely order that and then we'll ship to you.
00:25:06.362 --> 00:25:08.224
So some fun stuff like that.
00:25:08.549 --> 00:25:09.613
But yeah, that's where you can find me.
00:25:09.613 --> 00:25:12.872
Amazing, awesome, well, everything will be linked in the show notes.
00:25:12.872 --> 00:25:16.121
It'll be super easy for you to for people to click through and find you.
00:25:16.121 --> 00:25:18.073
And this was amazing.
00:25:18.073 --> 00:25:19.256
I love chatting with.
00:25:19.256 --> 00:25:22.853
I love chatting with you and just hearing about your, your writing process.
00:25:22.853 --> 00:25:29.652
I always find it really fascinating to get into the minds of other authors and how they create their worlds and stuff like that.
00:25:30.295 --> 00:25:31.057
Yeah, me too.
00:25:31.057 --> 00:25:33.084
So, yeah, thank you for having me on.
00:25:33.084 --> 00:25:36.795
It was really fun and yeah, I mean I could talk about this stuff all day, so it's great.
00:25:37.979 --> 00:25:40.792
Thanks so much for listening to today's episode.
00:25:40.792 --> 00:25:50.776
I would love if you would leave a review and also, if you love the author that we chatted with, go find them on social media and hype them up, comment on their stuff, share their work.
00:25:50.776 --> 00:25:58.550
Even if you can't buy the book, these kind of things are great ways of supporting indie authors and getting their book in front of new readers.
00:25:58.550 --> 00:26:04.542
And if you are a writer or author in need of a developmental editor, please reach out.
00:26:04.542 --> 00:26:05.811
I would love to chat.
00:26:05.811 --> 00:26:14.217
Everything is linked in the show notes and it would be an absolute honor to be able to get eyes on your novel.
00:26:14.217 --> 00:26:18.284
So thanks again and listen to the next episode.