Book marketing broke him, so he rebuilt. In this episode, I down with author and SFFAddicts podcaster Adrian M Gibson to talk about what it actually takes to build a sustainable author career after burnout.
After launching his debut Mushroom Blues into thousands of sales, awards attention, and a grueling year-long SPFBO run, Adrian hit a wall. This conversation is about the way back: how he rebuilt a writing routine around two young kids, time-boxed social media, funded a $50K Kickstarter, and fell back in love with the craft while writing his new release, A Murder Most Fungal.
If you're a writer trying to turn your books into a long-term career without burning out, this one's for you. We dig into practical author-career strategy, sustainable writing habits, the genre-blending "training wheels" trick that hooks any reader, worldbuilding across a shared timeline, and how food and culture shape great fiction.
🍄 Adrian's new book, A Murder Most Fungal, is out now. A Michelin-star tragedy in six courses. Links below.
Timestamps 0:00 My kids are my writing sprint partners 1:19 Welcome + what to expect this episode 5:16 Meet Adrian M Gibson 7:00 Two wild years: awards, a $50K Kickstarter & a new publishing role 13:39 Building a writing routine around two young kids 20:19 Book marketing broke me: burnout & SPFBO pressure 23:28 Falling back in love with writing (sustainably) 26:11 Inside A Murder Most Fungal: a fungal chef & a murder 33:30 Worldbuilding across a shared timeline 43:27 The training wheels trick to hook any reader 51:41 Food, Anthony Bourdain & connecting through cuisine 1:14:14 Release date & where to get the book
Podden och tillhörande omslagsbild på den här sidan tillhör
Herman Steuernagel. Innehållet i podden är skapat av Herman Steuernagel och inte av,
eller tillsammans med, Poddtoppen.
