7 Transformative Books Every Author Must Read

Ever wondered how some authors seem to have a magic touch when it comes to plotting and character development? What if you could tap into those secrets and elevate your writing game? 

Join us on the Daring Author Podcast as we unpack seven transformative books that promise to revolutionise your writing craft, mindset, and author business. 

Let’s discuss the books that have shaped your author journey. 

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Website: https://thedaringpress.com/

Chapters

• 0:08 Building a Successful Author Business
• 12:03 Unlocking Universal Fantasy and Mindset
• 16:00 Sharing Book Recommendations and Growing Audience

Transcript

Jenna Lee: 0:08

Welcome to the Daring Author Podcast, the show that takes you behind the scenes of building a successful author business, bringing you inspiring interviews and information on writing and marketing ideas for your book so that you can build an easeful, empowering and profitable author business. I'm your host, jenna Lee, owner of the Daring Press, a virtual marketing and support agency where we help indie authors who are ready to take their author business to the next level with more ease, growth and time. You can find the episode show notes and a bunch of marketing resources at thedaringpresscom. Let's become daring authors by diving into today's episode. Hello and welcome back to another chapter of the Daring Author Podcast.

Jenna Lee: 0:57

Today I'm so excited because I'm going to be sharing seven of my favorite books when it comes to writing, writing craft mindset and running a business so running a author business. So that is what I'm going to share today. So let's get into it. Number one my absolute favorite book is Save the Cat Writes, a Novel by Jessica Brody. Now, this book literally has been a lifesaver for me in terms of outlining and plotting. Now, I know a lot of people are either plotters, pantsers, in-betweeners, whatever you want to call it, but this book, even if you are not a plot, even if you don't like plotting or anything like this, this gives you the exact structure to use to outline your book and I find, even if you are not a plotter, if you do not like plotting it out, it gives a really good base of breaking it down not only into Act 1, act 2, act 3, it really breaks it down in an easy, just fun way. So this book really goes into Act 1. We look at opening image, we look at theme, starter, setup, catalyst, debate, and then it even goes further into after debate. We then look into breaking it down even further, into break it into two, the b story, fun and games, midpoint, bad guys, close in all is lost, dark night of the soul. And I just really find it really, really great to go in to this breakdown and really have this information to really support us to outline our books. And then we also go into break it into three, the finale and then the final image.

Jenna Lee: 2:53

Now this book if you are watching on video, I have highlighted so much in this book and it was the first book that I actually was like I'm going to get a highlighter and highlight all of this stuff and to me I was like oh my God, I feel naughty for highlighting in a paperback, but this book has a lot of information I highly highly recommend. It breaks it down in an easy digestible way and even if you are not a plotter, this book will convert you into outlining and plotting, and it's really great. Once you know this structure, it's really, really great to use this to outline your books and to come up with your plots. And even when you watch movies. Now let me tell you, every time I watch a movie now, now that I know this structure, I pick apart like I can pick it every single movie in every single book and how it breaks into each of the plots, and it's really fun. I absolutely love it.

Jenna Lee: 3:53

They have also got a version of this, which is save the cat writes a young adult novel, so I also have this in paperback. I haven't actually read this yet, but it is a version. So it's exactly the same as Save the Cat Writes a Novel, but it's more targeted towards young adults. So if you do write young adult, I highly recommend reading this one as well.

Jenna Lee: 4:17

Now, the next book that I do recommend is Creating Character Arcs by KM Willand. Now, this book is definitely highly recommended. It's really it says the masterful author's guide to uniting story structure, plot and character development. Now this is really great. For once you've got your plot and your outline. I use this for really like building out the characters, building out the characters stories, what their motivation is, what their GMC is, their goal, motivation and conflict, and this really breaks it down into like working out what the character wants in the story and I think for me this is a really great.

Jenna Lee: 5:07

Second one I go into like outlining the novel with Save the Cat Writes a Novel, and then I'll go into this book which is creating character arcs. Then I can go into each character and really work out what their goal, motivation, conflict is throughout the story. You know finding out more about the characters, you know what's their wants, what, what their goal, motivation, conflict is throughout the story. You know finding out more about the characters, you know what's their wants, what's their needs, what obstacles might they come across. And this really goes in line with your outline and the overall outline and working out what your character actually wants, which is super, super helpful because you know, I think when we really outline this and when we really work out what our characters desires are, what their needs are, what they want, what the conflict is going to be that is going to, you know, be in the way of them actually getting what they want. I find that that's when you're going to really connect and create your characters, and for me, I always use this, and then I connect more with my characters when I actually am writing them as well. So that next step for me is when I'm actually in my character's minds and I'm writing. I get to develop them a lot longer, but I have got a structure with what their character arc is, what their journey is throughout the story, and I've got that as a guide and that really helps me to progress in the story and really create characters that are going to be emotionally connected to the readers that are reading it and really create characters that are memorable, and I think this book is definitely one that I absolutely love, and also, these authors have other books as well, so make sure you do check them out.

Jenna Lee: 6:41

Now we are going to go into while we're on, like outlining this book here is romancing of the beat. So this is a story, story structure for romance novels. So if you write romance, I absolutely love this book. It is by gwen hayes, um, and the tagline is how to write kissing books, which I absolutely love. So this really goes into basically like a story arc for romance specific books. So in the book like Save the Cat Writes a Novel, how we've got our structure for outlining this one is particularly pretty much the same, but it's for specifically for romance books. So it goes into you know, a meet queue and basically outlines all of the different things that you'll need in terms of writing a romance novel. So they've got beat sheets in here, which I absolutely love. So you have like your setup. You have your introduction to H1, introduction to which is based on Hero, hero 2. We have our meet queue and then they have the no way one and then they'll have a plot thrust and then it goes into falling in love and then it goes into more steps under that and then retreating from love and then fighting for love. So it's a really great structure for romance novels and a great way to, yeah, break it down into these beat sheets, which I love.

Jenna Lee: 8:11

Beat sheets and Save the Cat Writes a Novel does really great beat sheets and examples to to movies as well and some other books, and having a beat sheet is like having a structure there that you know it really works. With all of these books, all these romance books, whatever book you are writing, this is the structure that works and everyone uses it time and time again and your story obviously is unique to you and who you are as a writer. We all use the same structure, but where it's different is our imagination, our characters, how we develop. But we have this beat sheet and basically a structure that we can go off and I find that so, so helpful when we are building out and when we're in that plotting and outlining stage. So I absolutely love that. That book is Romancing the Beat. I love that one.

Jenna Lee: 9:01

Now, the next one that I really, really love is a book called Show Don't Tell. So this is when you're getting into the actual writing craft. So the books that I've shared to start with are really about the outlining, really looking at the outlining, plotting stage, and then when we actually get into writing, and more so maybe when we're in the editing stage, depending on how you like to draft. This book, show Don't Tell by sandra grief girth sorry, girth, um this book really helps you to write vivid descriptions. You know handling backstory and describing your character's emotions. Now, when I first started writing, something that my editor drilled into me is show, don't tell, and I'm sure so many writers have the same experience with this. When we first start writing, we're like telling the story, not showing it, and this book is a really great with having examples of like what's telling and then how to change into showing, and I find this is really great for writing craft. If you really want to, you know, get better with your writing, because every time that we do write a new book, our writing is better than the last book and our first book. So I really love this one for your writing craft and it really goes into a lot of examples that actually, yeah, show us how to you know what it might look like and then, without us realizing, and then how, like what to change and how to make it better, so that we show, don't tell essentially. So I absolutely love that book.

Jenna Lee: 10:34

Now we are going to get into more business marketing side of books that I do recommend, and the next one is seven figure Fiction by T Taylor. Now, this is all about how to use universal fantasies to sell your book to anyone. Now, I absolutely love T Taylor. We've had her on the podcast before and she really has created something that I find super, super helpful and it's essentially finding the butter and finding universal fantasies within your stories to help you market them. And this book really goes into what universal fantasy is, what the butter is. And then once you know the system and what she's created everything that you watch and everything that you consume you really look for that butter and you look for that universal fantasies and it's why people love your books, what that emotional connection is. And once you know that for your books, it makes it 10 times, 100 times easier to market your books and to use them as selling points. So when you get into the marketing phase, after we've done our outline plot and once we've done our writing, then going into the actual writing phase and then marketing, this book is definitely highly recommended to be able to sell your book.

Jenna Lee: 12:03

And there's some really great questions here of like universal fantasy is the answer to many of the questions you might have thought were unanswerable or simply up to luck, like will this sell? Why is? Why is that selling? Why did this sell? Will readers like what I'm writing? Why do I love tv, show, books, entertainments that I do? Why did I buy that thing I brought when I didn't intend to buy it. So really getting to the bottom of what that universal fantasy is and what the butter is. So really love this book.

Jenna Lee: 12:34

Seven Figure Fiction by T Taylor. You can get all of these books on Kindle. You can also get paperbacks. I love the ones that I have in paperbacks are ones that I go back to time and time again. I'll essentially read them on Kindle and if I really love them I'll get them paid back and then I'll be able to highlight and actually use it all the time.

Jenna Lee: 12:55

So the next one is Right to Riches by Renee Rose, and this is when we really come into mindset manifestation mindset when it comes to running an author business or any business in general. I absolutely love this book. We've had Renee on our podcast before. If you go back to, I think, one of the near the very start of our podcast, we had Renee on and she did a really great, great podcast interview with all things about right to riches. So this book really goes into mindset manifestation and it's really about creating a positive mindset, which is like 80% of business creating a really great mindset, creating that manifestation and really putting it out there and connecting with the universe and what you actually want, and you'll be able to achieve it. And I absolutely love this book when it comes to mindset and manifestation, so that one is Right to Riches by Renee Rose, so highly recommend that one and another one that I have picked up and I want to talk about is not necessarily for specific to authors and writing, so all the books that I've recommended so far are specific to your writing and specific to your author business. This one is more business focused, but we can use it in our writing career, our writing business.

Jenna Lee: 14:28

So this one is Building your Business, the Right Brain Way, by Jennifer Lee, and this is really about creating a business If you are a creative, which all of us writers are. This book is really about how to create a like and how to create and grow a profitable and lasting business on your terms when it comes to your creative mind and you know, when it comes to actually the business side of things, sometimes we just want to do all the writing, we want to do all the creative stuff, which me too, but I and I actually, I actually nerd, nerd out about the business side too. I'm very much the creative side of the brain, but I do love the business side too and I do nerd out about that which this book just really talks to us creatives of how to build a business with our creative brain. It's essentially the best way to sum up this book. So it's quite a big book. It's really colorful, which I really love about it, which really helps with that creative mind.

Jenna Lee: 15:35

She's also got a book which is the Right Brain Business Plan.

Jenna Lee: 15:39

So if you're looking at business planning and stuff like that, highly recommend this book and her business plan one and it just really helps you to get to know the business side of our author business and really how to grow that business side and how to create a business that we actually love and we can grow and sustain that growth as well.

Jenna Lee: 16:00

So they are my seven recommended books. If you've got any other books that you think are equally amazing, I would love to know. Make sure you comment, reach out to me on Instagram, tiktok, let me know what you're reading and what you recommend, and if you're picking up any of these books, let me know as well. I love to hear what books you absolutely love, what you're going to try out next and yeah, thank you so much for tuning into this episode and I cannot wait to see you in the next one. Thanks for listening to the Daring Author Podcast. If you love this episode, don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review, and if you are ready to grow your author business with the support of the Daring Press book in your free discovery call today. Before places fill up, we'll see you in the next Daring episode.