What if you could turn a monthly writing challenge into a successful book collaboration—all while recording the entire creative process as a podcast? What if hand-selling locally sells more books than online marketing? Clay Vermulm talks about his creative and business processes.







In the intro, Spotify’s new ‘Follow Along’ Feature for some audiobooks [Publishing Perspectives]; and thoughts on special edition vinyl or tapes for audio, like Harper Collins special edition example; AI-Assisted Artisan Author webinars; Hindenburg Narrator for audiobook mastering; Canterbury Cathedral; CreativePennBooks.com new theme; The Buried and the Drowned.













This episode is sponsored by Publisher Rocket, which will help you get your book in front of more Amazon readers so you can spend less time marketing and more time writing. I use Publisher Rocket for researching book titles, categories, and keywords — for new books and for updating my backlist. Check it out at www.PublisherRocket.com







This show is also supported by my Patrons. Join my Community at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn 













Clay Vermulm is a horror novelist and short story author, co-author of Rain Shadows: Dark Tales from Washington State along with Tamara Kaye Sellman, and a podcaster at Fermented Fiction and Beneath the Rain Shadow.







You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below. 







Show Notes









* How a chance meeting at a sci-fi critique group led to a successful horror writing collaboration







* The unique podcast-to-book model: using monthly prompts and live critiques to create Rain Shadows







* How they've sold more books by hand than online—plus specific tactics for face-to-face selling







* Essential tips for being a better critique partner without destroying someone's confidence







* The business side of co-authoring: 50/50 splits, paying contributors, and why royalty tracking is a nightmare









You can find Clay at RainShadowStories.com and on <a href="https://clayvermulmfictionhorror.substack.