No Sugarcoating the Author Business ft. Bestselling Romance Author Elizabeth O’Roark (EP554)

The indie author realities no-one talks about (much). Bestselling romance author Elizabeth O’Roark joins us this week for one of the most refreshingly honest conversations we’ve had on the show — covering everything from her Random House deal to the indie strategies she’s quietly walked away from.

In this episode we chat about:

• Going from medical writer to indie romance author in 2013
• The Devil series breakout and working with publicist Nina Grinstead at Valentine PR
• Pantser writing, rewriting every book 30 times, and writing scenes out of order
• The honest truth about special editions, direct sales and Amazon ads for romance authors
• Landing a two-book Random House deal — how it happened and what surprised her
• Why KU is “like doing heroin” and the realities of going wide as a romance author
• Cover changes, branding decisions, and learning to take feedback from other authors
• The biggest challenge after 23 books: staying inspired
• Voice dictation as a game-changer for writing faster

ABOUT ELIZABETH O’ROARK

Elizabeth O’Roark has a bunch of degrees she does not use and gave up working as a medical writer to craft grumpy, alpha heroes and the flawed women who love them.

When not writing, she likes to spend time with her three kids, who are now teenagers and wish she’d find a different way to spend time. She can be found on Facebook feverishly debating whether or not “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie and telling people to read “The Hating Game”, which she did not write but wishes she had.

Website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com

📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• Elizabeth’s website: https://www.elizabethoroark.com
• Nina Grinstead / Valentine PR: https://valentine-pr.com
• Natural Readers (text-to-speech for self-editing): https://www.naturalreaders.com
• Romance Author Mastermind (RAM)
• Entangled Publishing (Devil series print deal)
• Whitney G — author who gave the cover feedback Elizabeth credits
• CliftonStrengths / Gallup Strengths assessment
• Book Lovers by Emily Henry (mentioned re: trad publishing process)

🔗 CONNECT WITH THE SPA GIRLS:

🌐 Website & free self-publishing resources: http://www.SelfPublishingAuthorsPodcast.com

🎧 Subscribe to our weekly episodes on your favourite podcast app — search “SPA Girls Podcast”

💗 This podcast is supported by our amazing Patreon community! ⭐ Join at the $10 tier for access to our private Self-Publishing Mastermind group where we discuss marketing, writing, and answer your burning questions: http://www.patreon.com/spagirlspodcast

#SelfPublishing #IndieAuthor #RomancePodcast

Watch the recording on You Tube

📌 IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 — Introduction & welcome

01:15 — From medical writer to indie romance author: how it started in 2013

04:21 — Finding her stride: the Devil series breakout

06:13 — Branding, reader expectations & not bait-and-switching your audience

09:37 — Writing process: pantser life, writing scenes out of order, 30 rewrites

14:52 — Editors, beta readers & last-minute drafts

17:34 — The honest truth about special editions and direct sales

21:10 — “I’m very bad at my job”: on outsourcing what you’re not good at

23:24 — Building the brand: covers, website & finding a designer

26:12 — TikTok, Instagram & the viral video she didn’t plan for

27:46 — Working with a publicist (Nina Grinstead, Valentine PR)

30:48 — The Random House deal: how it happened and what surprised her

36:00 — Audio, translations & wide vs KU

39:10 — What readers actually love about her books

40:02 — Reader events, signings & the real cost of being “on”

45:40 — Cover changes: why they matter and how to use them

49:27 — The biggest challenge: staying inspired after 23 books

52:06 — Final advice: voice dictation as a game-changer

54:15 — Wrap-up and where to find Elizabeth