Claim OwnershipThe WritersWeekly Podcast
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© 2026 The WritersWeekly Podcast
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From the creators of WritersWeekly.com, the WritersWeekly Podcast delves into everything involving professional writing. WritersWeekly.com has been helping and informing writers and authors for over 25 years. We cover book publishing, article writing, getting writing gigs, paying markets, writing technology, etc.
36 Episodes
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Traditional publishing? Self-publishing? Hybrid publishing? What's best for YOUR book? Is your manuscript even ready for publication? Who can help you determine that, ensuring a polished manuscript, and the best possible chance for future sales? The good news is, there is no need to walk the publishing path alone! In this episode, Angela and Brian explore the benefits of hiring an Author Coach to guide you through the publishing process. They go by a number of names: Publishing Coaches, Aut...
In this episode, we are joined by BookLocker.com author, Rickey Pittman, The Bard of the South! Rickey is an author, musician, storyteller, historian, and college professor. His major focus is on Southern America. He unearths and creatively covers old stories that tell of the South’s rich history, struggles, and unique identity. And, his fiction is AMAZING, too! (Read more about that under Episode 35 at https://writersweekly.com/podcast.) Rickey performs all around t...
Have YOU, too, received a bad book review that was all about you and not about your book at all? JOIN THE CLUB! In this episode, we share several real examples sent to us by authors who have been the victims of this type of vendetta online. We also share how you can respond to these personal attacks with maturity and class. And, by doing so, you can save your book sales! ======================================================= You’ve finally gotten your book published! With pride s...
In this week's episode, Brian and Angela welcome friendly and feisty Bob Wahl to the podcast! Bob is 91 years young, and is the author of five books. He contacted a company called Authors Hike / AuthorsHike.com to help promote his books. After paying them $4,000, he was shown a web page that had a graphic of more than 1400 (fake!) "orders" for his book. Author's Hike then tried to scam Mr. Wahl into paying to have those books printed. He reached out to WritersWeekly, which, of course...
Could this publisher be a scammer??? We keep receiving emails asking this exact question DOZENS of times every week. Now, in this Episode, using the examples of Ashbery.com, NYBookPublishers.com, and McGilliganpublishing.com, we SHOW you, step by step: WHERE to look for the evidence that an online publisher is potentially a scam.WHAT to look for to determine if an online publisher is potentially a scam.HOW to sort out the evidence you find and determine the likelihood that an online pub...
It was all coming together. His five-book series were going to become a movie! A "literary agent" had reached out to him via email just last month. Then, in emails shared with the author, that agent was negotiating between a “Fox Entertainment” executive, and a famous screenwriter (a member of the Writers Guild of America) who is currently in California, working on the next season of "NCIS." The names checked out. The Fox executive and screenwriter were real people. The auth...
We've heard it a thousand times: "I KNOW my mother (father, sister, brother, Uncle Cletus, Aunt Ethel, etc.) bought my book! Where are my royalties?!" And, a thousand times over, we've had to break it to an author: "We're sorry but your relative actually did not buy your book. They lied to you to keep the peace." And, we provide proof to the author that the sale never occurred. In every single instance, the author's relatives refused to send the author copies of their receipts proving they a...
Please excuse the audio quality on this episode. You can hear and understand the conversation perfectly, but we had a technical glitch with the microphones. As a result, our audio went through the computer microphone rather than our professional grade exterior mics. This is still a wonderful and VERY intriguing story and we know you will enjoy it. ****** The year was 1971. A young, twenty-something couple fresh out of college with their teaching degrees accepted a job at an international sc...
THIS IS PART 2. DON'T MISS PART 1! Please share the links to these episodes with your friends and family members. MORE IMPORTANTLY, listen to these episodes and then sit down with your children to educate them! We know it will be uncomfortable but The Yahoo Boys and other scammers are responsible for not only financial devastation, but also for deaths all over the globe. WE MUST PROTECT OUR CHILDREN! And, the way to do that is through education. In this episode, Part 2 of our YAHOO BO...
Facebook owner, Meta, projected $16B in revenues from SCAM ads – and it was POLICY. Reuters conducted an investigation covering 5 years’ worth of confidential documentation by Meta Platforms, Inc. (the parent company for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) that described the company’s attempts to figure out how much the company would PROFIT from advertising purchased by the scammers. According to Reuters' investigation, this year, an internal report by Meta’s safety staff indicated that ONE...
They started the original "Nigerian Prince" email scam, but have expanded into so much more! Join Angela and Brian as we slog through the grimy slums of Nigeria and Ghana - home of one of the oldest, most sophisticated, and most successful scamming organizations: The Yahoo Boys. In this episode, we discuss the broad diversity of scams these techno-theives are involved in, their extravagant and lavish lifestyles, scammer universities, and so much more. We also explore what may be the most dist...
Sorry about Brian's voice on this episode. He was in the preliminary phase of COVID, and now he's totally laid up and miserable. In this episode, we discuss a new scamming technique that combines the old with the new. Scammers are now using AI to create convincing-sounding "reviews" of authors' books, while using spamming software to send out these email scams by the thousands. We've been shocked at how many authors are fooled by these "cold call" emails - most of which are coming from ...
THEY VIOLATED THE FIRST AMENDMENT! That’s what we’re hearing about the suspension of the Jimmy Kimmel Live show from ABC’s lineup. Did they, in fact, violate the 1st Amendment? Who exactly are “they?” CAN “they” violate the 1st Amendment? Is our “democracy” in peril if we can’t watch Kimmel on ABC? What does the 1st Amendment actually say? What does the 1st Amendment actually protect? Whether you want to believe that Kimmel’s suspension is the first t...
Amazon KDP. Do you, like many other authors, believe that, for the best chance at sales, you need to use Amazon's KDP book publishing program? That's NOT true at all but there's something else you probably don't know. Have you read the fine print before clicking “I Agree?” Did you know that Amazon can shut down your account for anything they deem a “violation” of their policies? And, they don't even have to tell you exactly what you've done wrong! In many cases, authors have done noth...
She spoke to them on the phone. They sounded like publishing experts! They knew all the lingo! But, one year and $20,000 later, she discovered that they had been stringing her along, and scamming money out of her. Jennifer Westecott decided to let Brilliant Books Literary (AKA "Leap Write Literary") publish her book, Heartbreak Falls, after talking with their "representative" on the phone. They promised to help her with EVERYTHING: formatting, editing, cover design, distribution, and marketi...
Today, more than ever before, society is dependent on a fragile electrical grid, a vulnerable supply chain, and a delicate medical system to survive. All of these critical systems are plugged into the Internet, which has proven to be crawling with malevolent actors, constantly looking to disrupt civil societies and their ability to function. We’ve already seen how our systems fail when confronted with pandemics, civil unrest, or major natural disasters. Now imagine what would happen if a cyb...
*What disappointing truths shock authors today when they land a traditional publishing contract? Things aren't like they used to be! *What does the term "self-publishing" REALLY mean today? (There is lots of confusion online!) *What exactly is "hybrid publishing" and how have foreign scammers hijacked the term? In this episode, we delve into the details, and discuss the pros and cons of different book publishing methods. Most importantly, we expose the shocki...
Did you know that there is a whole generation of people who simply will not read books? But, they do LISTEN to books! Audio storytelling is a booming medium! Tens of thousands of people listen to audiobooks and podcasts while driving, working, exercising, cooking, and even just relaxing. For years now, converting a print book to an audiobook required either thousands of dollars to hire a professional voice artist (narrator), a hefty investment to purchase or rent quality audio equipment and...
Why do Chris Emery’s books sell so well? Because, he is not only warm and friendly to everyone, but he’s also HILARIOUS! If you want to crack up, don’t miss this episode! Here are a few teasers: - Chris Emery served under three presidential administrations, and was the only White House Usher to get fired in the 20th Century. Find out which first lady fired him, and why! And, find out how that first lady’s secretary tried to control the narrative to the media after he was let go. News crews we...
Think your family members will play nice once you kick the bucket? THINK AGAIN! TRUE STORY: A BookLocker author who earned more than $200K in royalties died. Extended family members then took his widow to court. More about that story is under this podcast episode on https://WritersWeekly.com/podcast. TRUE STORY: One author’s relatives went to court, and spent thousands, not even knowing the paltry amount of unpaid royalties that were due. We share that amount in this episode! T...
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