Your backstage pass to the world’s most prolific authors

JD Barker
Christine Daigle
Kevin Tumlinson
Jena Brown

What does it take to succeed as a writer? Join hosts J.D. Barker, Christine Daigle, Kevin Tumlinson and Jena Brown as they pull back the curtain and gain rare insight from the household names found on bookshelves worldwide.

Want to ask your favorite author a question? Click here!

Join hosts J.D. Barker, Christine Daigle, Jena Brown, and Kevin Tumlinson as they discuss the week’s entertainment news, including stories about Pizza Hut, folding e-readers, and The Great Gatsby. Then, stick around for a chat with Joanna Penn!

I’m Jo Frances (J.F.) Penn, Award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers, dark fantasy, and crime. My stories blend my love of travel with adventure at the edge of the supernatural. They all deal with the theme of good vs evil.

I live in Bath, England with my husband and two British shorthair cats, Cashew and Noisette.

When I’m not traveling for book research, I enjoy walking by the canal, and a nice gin and tonic.

You can find me on Instagram @jfpennauthor and Facebook @jfpennauthor.

I share my travels and interview other authors about the places that inspire them on my Books And Travel Podcast.

I love reading, and my favorite authors include John Connolly, Jonathan Maberry, and Stephen King. I also read a lot of non-fiction for book research, which I share in the Author’s Note at the back of my books/stories.

If you want to hear about my latest book launches, or learn about special deals on my stories, or get behind the scenes research and photos — or if you’d like to be part of my Reader’s Group, the Pennfriends, then click here to sign up for my email list.

Check It Out!

Joanna Pennhttps://jfpennbooks.com/

Death Valley: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecreativepenn/death-valley-a-thriller

Scamming Pizza Hut Was My Family Traditionhttps://www.foodandwine.com/pizza-hut-book-it-scam-6405471?

The first folding e-reader is smaller than a paperbackhttps://www.theverge.com/news/650922/readmoo-e-ink-mooink-v-color-folding-screen-ereader?

I’m Not a ‘Gatsby’ Scholar. I’m a ‘Gatsby’ Weirdo.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/12/opinion/great-gatsby-on-repeat.html?

Author Anchor: https://authoranchor.com/

BookTrib: https://booktrib.com/promote-your-book/#

International Bestseller J.D. Barker Launches Co-Authored Book Linehttps://www.morningstar.com/news/globe-newswire/9204301/international-bestseller-jd-barker-launches-co-authored-book-line
International Bestseller J.D. Barker Launches Co-Authored Book Linehttps://www.8newsnow.com/business/press-releases/globenewswire/9204301/international-bestseller-j-d-barker-launches-co-authored-book-line
‘Flatliners Resurrection’ Poised To Test Genre IP Frenzy With J.D. Barker Novelhttps://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/flatliners-resurrection-poised-to-test-genre-ip-frenzy-with-jd-barker-novel/ar-BB1qd2An?ocid=BingNewsVerp
Flatliners Will Spring to Life Yet Again, as a Bookhttps://gizmodo.com/flatliners-resurrection-novel-jd-barker-2000476608
J.D. Barker Rewrites the Rules of Publishing, Signs with Simon & Schusterhttps://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/j-d-barker-rewrites-the-rules-of-publishing-signs-with-simon-schuster-1033286176
One Underrated ‘90s Sci-Fi Movie Is Suddenly Getting A Weird Reboothttps://www.inverse.com/entertainment/flatliners-reboot-book-movie
BESTSELLING AUTHOR J.D. BARKER TO PEN NOVEL CONTINUATION OF ICONIC FLATLINERS FRANCHISEhttps://ritzherald.com/bestselling-author-j-d-barker-to-pen-novel-continuation-of-iconic-flatliners-franchise/
The Genre-Defying Works of Literary Powerhouse, J.D. Barkerhttps://foxinterviewer.com/entertainment-2/the-genre-defying-works-of-literary-powerhouse-j-d-barker/
International bestselling author J.D. Barker takes bold career step with collaborative projectshttps://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-13908105/International-bestselling-author-J-D-Barker-takes-bold-career-step-collaborative-projects.html

Show Links:

Writers, Ink on YouTube! – ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@jdbarker_author/podcasts⁠⁠⁠

J.D. Barker – ⁠⁠⁠https://jdbarker.com/⁠⁠⁠

Christine Daigle – ⁠⁠⁠https://www.christinedaiglebooks.com/⁠⁠⁠

Jena Brown – https://www.⁠⁠⁠jenabrownwrites.com

James Blatch – https://www.jamesblatch.com/

Kevin Tumlinson – ⁠⁠⁠https://www.kevintumlinson.com/⁠

Dick Wybrow – https://www.dickwybrow.com/

BookTrib: https://booktrib.com/promote-your-book/#

Joanna Pennhttps://jfpennbooks.com/


TODAY’S SPONSOR:

AutoCrit – https://www.autocrit.com/jd (click this link to take advantage of our Writers, Ink special offer!!!)


Other Links

Best of BookTok – ⁠⁠⁠https://bestofbooktok.com/⁠⁠⁠

Booktrib – ⁠⁠https://booktrib.com/author/writers-ink/⁠⁠

Music by Nicorus – ⁠⁠⁠https://cctrax.com/nicorus/dust-to-dust-ep⁠⁠⁠

Voice Over by Rick Ganley and recorded at Mill Pond Studio

Website Design by Word & Pixel – ⁠⁠⁠http://wordandpixel.com/⁠⁠⁠

Contact – ⁠⁠⁠https://writersinkpodcast.com/contact/⁠⁠⁠

Transcription: https://app.castmagic.io/share/2ffd7459-4a4c-440b-a4cd-32e0cface870?tab=transcript&ai_content=true&magic_chat=true

*NOTE: Some of the links are affiliate links.

Designing a Career as an Authorpreneur with Joanna Penn

Joanna Penn spent the last ten years designing a career as an authorpreneur. As a self-published author, business owner, and podcaster, she thrives on self-investment and brand recognition. Penn is most known for her international and award-winning podcast, The Creative Penn. She has written many titles for independent writers including How To Market a Book and Successful Self-Publishing. In addition, Joanna publishes a unique brand of dark fiction under the name J.F. Penn. When she isn’t writing, she runs Curl Up Press and speaks professionally around the world.

From Amazon.com:

Joanna Penn is a bestselling author, international speaker and award-winning entrepreneur based in Bath, England. Her site, www.TheCreativePenn.com helps authors with creativity, writing, publishing, book marketing and creative entrepreneurship. It has been voted one of the top 100 sites for authors by Writers Digest. Joanna has a popular podcast, The Creative Penn, and a YouTube Channel.

Whether you’re traditionally published or indie, writing a good book is only the first step in becoming a successful author. The days of just turning a manuscript into your editor and walking away are gone. If you want to succeed in today’s publishing world, you need to understand every aspect of the business – editing, formatting, marketing, contracts. It all starts with a good book, then the real work begins.

Join international bestselling author J.D. Barker and indie powerhouse, J. Thorn, as they gain unique insight and valuable advice from the most prolific and accomplished authors in the business.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

  • How to find an enjoyable career
  • How to establish a brand
  • Why time comes before money
  • How to scale a product
  • Why to invest in yourself

Links:

Joanna Penn – https://jfpenn.com/

The Creative Penn Podcast – https://www.thecreativepenn.com/

Books and Travel Podcast – https://www.booksandtravel.page/listen/

Successful Self-Publishing by Joanna Penn – https://books2read.com/PennSelfPublishing

How To Market a Book by Joanna Penn – https://books2read.com/HowToMarketABook

J. D. Barker – http://jdbarker.com/

J. Thorn – https://theauthorlife.com/

Music by Nicorus – https://cctrax.com/nicorus/dust-to-dust-ep 

Voice Over by Rick Ganley – http://www.nhpr.com and recorded at Mill Pond Studio – http://www.millpondstudio.com

Contact – https://writersinkpodcast.com/dev/contact/ 

*Full disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links.