Welcome to Indie Author Notes
The honest, unfiltered account of building an indie author business from the inside.
Latest
Week Note: 17/8/26 to 21/8/26
Week note post for 17 August 2026 through 21 August 2026.
Week Note: 10/8/26 to 14/8/26
Monday On Monday, I revised the outline for my newsletter reader magnet, reducing it from 11 chapters and an epilogue to 8 chapters and an epilogue. When I first plotted it at 11 chapters I think I was being overly ambitious. The truth is that the reader magnet serves the
Automating My Book Ad Analysis in a Day
The answers were in six months of my own data all along. I just never had time to find them.
Design tools for indie authors: what I use and what I've learned
From 30 years as a designer to running a publishing business: the four tools doing most of the visual work.
The hidden cost of building an indie author business alongside another career
It's not just time. It's the mental load of running two businesses in parallel.
What design taught me about plotting novels
Thirty years of design thinking turned out to be exactly the foundation I needed to write fiction.
Using AI to analyse my Facebook ad performance as an indie author
The system behind the analysis, and why getting organised first is what makes it work.
The moment I decided to take writing seriously
It took a global pandemic, a lockdown, and a partner who knew me better than I knew myself.
Plotting versus pantsing: finding the approach that actually works for you
I spent years not finishing novels. Then I tried something different.
What building my own AI automations taught me about using AI properly
The tooling is the easy part. Everything before and after it is where the real work is.
Advertising tools for indie authors: what I use and what I've learned
An honest look at Bookbub and Facebook/Meta ads, the wins, the mistakes, and what I'd do differently.
Resources
The tools I use to run my indie author business
A starter list with the full breakdown available to paid subscribers.