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Artwork for The Self Publishing Show

The Self Publishing Show

James Blatch
Indie Publishing
Prowritingaid
Artificial Intelligence
AI In Writing
Bookbub
AI In Publishing
Self-Publishing
Creatorwood
Etsy
Amazon KDP
Publishing Industry
Superdraft
Meta Ads
Historical Romance
Amazon
AI Translations
Draft2digital
AI (artificial Intelligence)
Artificial Intelligence In Publishing
Artificial Intelligence In Self-Publishing

Join James Blatch has he navigates the fast changing world of indie publishing. With the biggest guests in the industry and tips on how to stay ahead of the crowd.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes471Founded11 years ago
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Listen to this Podcast

Artwork for The Self Publishing Show

Latest Episodes

Black Friday is approaching, but is it a golden opportunity for indie authors or a time to rethink your advertising strategy?

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca share their advice for navigating the busiest shopping... more

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This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca are joined by Hollywood screenwriter and author Thomas Dean Donnelly to discuss his new book, Superdraft, and how writers can improve their writing process to produce better books, f... more

YouTube

This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca tackle a growing concern for indie authors: is the flood of AI-generated books making it harder for genuine authors to get noticed and earn a living?

James shares some worrying fin... more

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This week on The Self-Publishing Show, James Blatch and Cissy Mecca are joined by Stuart Grant to talk about author discoverability in the age of AI and why your author website might be more important than ever.

Stuart explains how the way readers ... more

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Recent Guests

Thomas Dean Donnelly
Hollywood screenwriter and author of Superdraft
Episode: SPS-471: Finish Your Book, Superdraft with T.D. Donnelly
Stuart Grant
Author website builder and discoverability specialist
Episode: SPS-469: Are you Visible?
Cissy Mecca
Author; launch-focused guest
Episode: SPS-467: Amazon KDP Is Changing – Are You Ready?
Sky McKinnon
Prolific author and promoter, active in author communities
Independent author; active in White for the Win group
Episode: SPS-465: Does BookBub Still Work?
Lucy Score
Author of Things We Never Got Over
Lucy Score Author
Episode: SPS-464: Romance Tropes That Work For Everyone
Tim Score
Partner of Lucy Score and guest at the wedding discussed in the episode
Lucy Score team
Episode: SPS-464: Romance Tropes That Work For Everyone
Michael Evans
Interview guest discussing Creatorwood and AI-driven film/TV adaptations
Creatorwood / Beyond The Book Studio
Episode: SPS-459: Your Book As An AI Movie (Part 2)
Jack Williamson
Author of Stolen Moments and Stolen Romance Series, rock star romance writer
Self-published author/rock star romance author
Episode: SPS-455: Lessons From Rock 'n' Roll
Adrian Wills
Volunteer coordinating backstage and registration
The Self-Publishing Show Live team
Episode: SPS-451: Live at The Self Publishing Show

Hosts

James Blatch
Host focused on practical advice and industry insights for indie publishing.
Cissy Mecca
Co-host and frequent guest; brings branding, PR, and indie publishing experience.

Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars from 512 ratings
  • Sloptivism

    Seems to be mainly just shilling for the AI slop that is ruining indie lit markets. Wouldn’t trust these authors’ books.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    F37568S
    United Kingdom2 months ago
  • Promotes AI slop

    If you are a writer look elsewhere, this show promotes AI and does not care about the craft (or any other creative craft for that matter).

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    Rev. Fitz
    United States3 months ago
  • Excellent Information

    Great show, lots of useful industry information and insider tips. Nice hosts too.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Happy_Doc
    United Kingdom6 months ago
  • Literary Idiots

    Ostensibly, this is a podcast about self publishing—and maybe they would not prove themselves to be such philistines if they stuck to their topic.

    After this last episode (April 2026) I had to give up and run for cover.

    One admitted he didn’t understand em-dashes, saying he thought they were called hyphens.

    The other went on to say she always skipped prologues, saying they were a sure sign the writer was a novice and not worth reading. Quite the opposite, obviously.

    If this is what self ... more

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    richard-at-large
    New Zealand7 months ago
  • Out or Order!!!

    I’ve followed James Blatch for several years, bought his courses and always viewed him as an authoritative voice for indie publishing.

    But I’m very concerned about his comment suggesting there is an underlying race issue about the book that was pulled by Hachette for AI content.

    Is there a race element to this? Is there anything to support the accusation that this was racism?

    There appears little else at this point to suggest this is nothing more than an author being criticised by a reader. I... more

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    K Chilts
    United Kingdom7 months ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Mixed banter with sharp insights; some listeners desire tighter pacing.
Helpful, actionable tips for indie authors.
Strong coverage of AI, marketing, and community-building for authors.
Guests frequently bring practical, real-world case studies.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

SPS-471: Finish Your Book, Superdraft with T.D. Donnelly
Q: After you brainstorm, what is the next thing that you talk about in the book?
Donnelly says to move between creator-led and critic-led stages. After brainstorming, writers can make a brief outline with a few key story moments, using those points as guideposts without planning every detail.
SPS-471: Finish Your Book, Superdraft with T.D. Donnelly
Q: So where do you start, Tom? If you have a brand new project, where is the very first part of your process?
Donnelly recommends beginning with a brainstorming session led by the creator voice. Writers can generate multiple ideas about plot, character, and theme without judging them, then choose what to develop. Experienced writers should experiment with only a few new techniques over more than one book.
SPS-469: Are you Visible?
Q: Blogging, is it helpful now in the age of Geo or not?
Grant says research shows blogging can increase authors' visibility. Short posts answering common questions or describing an author's work can give readers, AI tools, and search engines more useful information.
SPS-469: Are you Visible?
Q: What are the principle changes that have happened since generative AI started to dominate our landscape?
Grant says AI creates another discovery channel for authors. SEO foundations remain useful, but websites and online profiles should be current, consistent, and structured so AI can verify an author's identity and work.
SPS-465: Does BookBub Still Work?
Q: Can you share concrete data on how deals have performed for your books over time?
Historically, deals boosted sales into the top 100 and provided a quick payoff, but recently the extra sales per deal have dropped from about 1,600 copies to roughly 620 copies for similar promotions, indicating a substantial decline in direct effectiveness.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

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Frequently Asked Questions About The Self Publishing Show

What is The Self Publishing Show about and what kind of topics does it cover?

The show centers on indie publishing, marketing, and author entrepreneurship, with a strong emphasis on practical tactics for self-publishers. Recent episodes balance hands-on workflow guidance—launch planning, metadata optimization, and AI-assisted tools—with broader industry shifts like AI's role in discovery, author branding, and community-building. A notable strength is the duo's candid banter and real-world experiments (budgets, tests, and reader engagement) that offer listeners repeatable strategies, plus occasional conference and live-event coverage that adds actionable context for audience growth and direct-sales tactics.

Where can I find podcast stats for The Self Publishing Show?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for The Self Publishing Show. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to The Self Publishing Show and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does The Self Publishing Show get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for four million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for The Self Publishing Show, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for The Self Publishing Show?

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How many subscribers and views does The Self Publishing Show have?

To see how many followers or subscribers The Self Publishing Show has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

How many episodes of The Self Publishing Show are there?

The Self Publishing Show launched 11 years ago and published 471 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact The Self Publishing Show?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for The Self Publishing Show?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for The Self Publishing Show from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

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How do I access podcast episode transcripts for The Self Publishing Show?

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What guests have appeared on The Self Publishing Show?

Recent guests on The Self Publishing Show include:

1. Thomas Dean Donnelly
2. Stuart Grant
3. Cissy Mecca
4. Sky McKinnon
5. Lucy Score
6. Tim Score
7. Michael Evans
8. Jack Williamson

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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