Episode195

Writers, Ink Podcast: Episode 195 — The one where NYT bestseller Riley Sager explains why the best twist needs a twist and how all good stories are the sum of their parts.

Join hosts J.D. Barker, Kevin Tumlinson, and Patrick O’Donnell as they discuss the week’s publishing topics, including their thoughts on the legacy of the inimitable Cormac McCarthy, who passed away on June 13 at the age of 89. Then stick around as Christine chats with return guest Riley Sager!

Riley Sager is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels, most recently Survive the Night and The House Across the Lake. His first novel, Final Girls, has been published in 30 countries and won the ITW Thriller Award for Best Hardcover Novel. His latest book, ⁠The Only One Left⁠, releases tomorrow, June 20 from Dutton Books. [⁠source⁠]

Check It Out!

Cormac McCarthy (1933-2023) – ⁠https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/cormac-mccarthy-author-dead-obituary-1234770586/

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/⁠⁠⁠

JP Rindfleisch IX – ⁠⁠⁠https://www.jprindfleischix.com/⁠⁠⁠

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

Patrick O’Donnell – ⁠⁠⁠https://www.copsandwriters.com/⁠⁠⁠

Riley Sager – ⁠https://www.rileysagerbooks.com/⁠

TODAY’S SPONSORS:

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

MasterWriter – ⁠⁠⁠https://masterwriter.com/⁠⁠⁠

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 – ⁠⁠⁠http://www.nhpr.com⁠⁠⁠ and recorded at Mill Pond Studio – ⁠⁠⁠http://www.millpondstudio.com⁠⁠⁠

Show notes & audio production by Geoff Emberlyn – ⁠https://twitter.com/horrorstoic ⁠⁠⁠

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

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

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

Episode149

The House Across the Lake with NYT Bestseller Riley Sager

Bestseller Riley Sager’s new book, The House Across the Lake, puts an inventive spin on a classic. Dubbed “Rear Window on a lake” by Sager himself, he uses personal experience and complex character building to create a gripping mystery thriller. Riley is an NYT bestselling author known for his hit book Final Girls, and makes his third appearance on the podcast today. To purchase The House Across the Lake, follow the link below.

Episode90

Simplicity Is Key with NYT Bestseller Riley Sager

A girl, a killer, a car– the premise for bestseller Riley Sager’s latest novel, Survive the Night, feels dauntingly simple, but by focusing on solid character development and intense dialogue while omitting needless setting changes and extra characters, he allows the simple brilliance of the story’s concept to shine through. Riley, a returning guest on the podcast, is the international bestseller of Final Girls and is known for other bestselling novels like The Last Time I Lied and Lock Every Door. To purchase Survive the Night, follow the link below.

From Amazon.com:

Riley Sager is the pseudonym of a former journalist, editor and graphic designer. Now a full-time author, Riley’s first thriller, FINAL GIRLS, became a national and international bestseller that’s been translated into more than 25 languages. His subsequent novels, THE LAST TIME I LIED, LOCK EVERY DOOR and HOME BEFORE DARK, were instant New York Times bestsellers. His newest thriller, SURVIVE THE NIGHT, will be released in June. A native of Pennsylvania, Riley now lives in Princeton, New Jersey. When he’s not working on his next novel, he enjoys reading, cooking and going to the movies as much as possible. His favorite film is “Rear Window.” Or maybe “Jaws.” But probably, if he’s being honest, “Mary Poppins.”

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 powerhouses, J. Thorn and Zach Bohannon, as they gain unique insight and valuable advice from the most prolific and accomplished authors in the business.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

The cons of using too much nostalgia
Why different mediums impact the feel of a story
How to pace yourself when writing
How to keep your readers off balance
The importance of a good title

Links:

J. D. Barker – http://jdbarker.com/

J. Thorn – https://theauthorlife.com/

Zach Bohannon – https://zachbohannon.com/

J.’s Vella project – https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B0994PXSP1

Riley Sager – https://www.rileysagerbooks.com/

Survive the Night – https://mybook.to/SurviveTheNight

Story Rubric – http://storyrubric.com

Nonfic Rubric – http://nonficrubric.com

The Career Author Summit 2021 – https://thecareerauthor.com/summit2021/

Proudly sponsored by Kobo Writing Life – https://kobowritinglife.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.

Episode35

Writers, Ink Podcast: Episode 35 – The Science of Pen Names with NY Times bestseller, Riley Sager

The Science of Pen Names with Riley Sager

Riley Sager understands the importance of a good pen name. By using a pseudonym to detach himself from his early writing career, bypass editing bias, and increase reader relatability, he quickly found success as a reborn author. Riley is renowned for his international bestseller, Final Girls, an unsettling thriller that won the attention of Stephen King. His other bestsellers include Lock Every Door and The Last Time I Lied, the latter of which has a film in the works. Sager’s latest publication, Home Before Dark, is available now.

From Amazon.com:

Riley Sager is the pseudonym of a former journalist, editor and graphic designer. Now a full-time author, Riley’s first thriller, FINAL GIRLS, became a national and international bestseller and was called “the first great thriller of 2017” by Stephen King. Translation rights have been sold in more than two dozen countries. His second book, THE LAST TIME I LIED, was a New York Times bestseller. His latest novel, LOCK EVERY DOOR, was an instant New York Times, Publishers Weekly and USA Today bestseller. A television adaptation is being developed by Paramount TV and Anonymous Content. A native of Pennsylvania, Riley now lives in Princeton, New Jersey. When he’s not working on his next novel, he enjoys reading, cooking and going to the movies as much as possible. His favorite film is “Rear Window.” Or maybe “Jaws.” But probably, if he’s being honest, “Mary Poppins.”

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.