When I started my self-publishing journey I wanted to make the most out of my commute to work, so I set out to find the best writing & self-publishing podcasts possible so I could use those hours of downtime I had every day.
So, what are the best podcasts for writers and self-published authors? These are the 10 Best Current Podcasts for Writers and Self-Publishing Authors: Plus 21 other writing podcasts you should check out.
- The Creative Penn Podcast (General)
- Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula (Marketing)
- Fiction School (Writing Craft)
- The Story Studio (Writing Craft)
- Story Grid Podcasts (Writing Craft)
- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Marketing Podcast (Genre)
- Book Launch Show (Marketing)
- Sell More Books Show (Marketing)
- The Book Marketing Show (Marketing)
- Self-Publishing School (General)
I wanted to be clear on how I picked these top 10 over the remaining 21. Obviously, when it comes to podcasts personal tastes are really important when it comes to picking a favorite.
I in no way think you are going to agree with me, heck it took me a long time to agree with me because I think all of these writing podcasts have a lot to offer in their own way.
Ultimately, I elevated these top 10 based on the following criteria:
- Value Factor- How helpful are they?
- Entertainment Factor- How entertaining are they?
- New Content- Are they currently updating new episodes
- Audio Quality- Is the sound good enough that you can actually listen to them without going nuts
So keep in mind this is not a scientific study, I didn’t rank and weight everyone using some kind of double-blind methodology. In the end, I picked 10 of the podcasts I enjoy listening to the most because they are not only fun to listen to but they also provide a ton of value.
Overall these podcasts cover a lot of different topics that are crucial to writers and self-published authors. Some focus on the craft of writing and improving your overall writing skills, while others focus on building success in the self-publishing industry.
I’ve broken up these 31 writing podcasts by their area of focus. That’s not to say any of these shows are one trick ponies, but I thought it would be more helpful this way, so you can start with the shows that interest you most.
Hope you enjoy these podcasts as much as I do, and more importantly, they help you in your writing and self-publishing journey.
Article Topics
Top Writing Podcasts Focused on Improving Skills & Craft
This section focuses on writing podcasts that will help you improve your writing skills and development of writing craft.
This podcast really works on the craft of creating top-notch stories. Hosted by 25-year editor Shawn Coyne, author of Story-Grid, and Tim Grahl a new struggling writer.
The show is very entertaining since you are basically following along with Tim as he goes through the story grid process to write his book. I would suggest you start this one from the beginning if you aren’t familiar with the Story Grid Process, it will help you enjoy the show that much more.
This writing podcast is hosted by K.M. Weiland. The show helps writers muster up inspiration and improve their writing skills. If you are looking for a show that will help you with topics like character development, story structure, and plotting then this show is right for you.
The shows are well titled to help you find specific topics you are interested in so you can get help where and when you need it.
This podcast was hosted by Mikey Campling author of the Darkeningstone Books.
The podcast spends a lot of episodes on improving the craft of writing, unfortunately, the show is no longer being updated, but still, there is some good content here.
This podcast is hosted by three professors Baker Lawley, Jody Gehrman, and Tommy Zurhellen. They focus on improving your fiction writing with practical examples.
They keep the show fun and light despite dropping writing tips on every episode. It kind of has a coffee house feel to the show which makes it great for easy listening.
Winner of Best Education Podcast in the 2017 podcast awards. This show provides short quick-tips to improve your writing. Most episodes are around 15 Minutes which makes it great for short spurts of free time.
There is an additional backlog of shows on Sticher.com.
The Story Studio is hosted by Johnny B. Truant, Sean Platt & David Platt. These three guys are probably some of the most recognized names in self-publishing. They used to run The Self-Publishing podcast, but have since rebranded as Sterlin and Stone.
These shows can sometimes meander a bit, but it is always entertaining. These guys aren’t afraid to be themselves, and that’s the most endearing part of the show. You will get some great content and some good laughs out of this one.
Careful there is some swearing in this one.
J. Daniel Sawyer delivers a daily podcast that focuses on writing craft, discipline, publishing, and business.
This show is based on questions and runs 3 to 30 minutes per episode. The goal is to help you write 4 to 12 novels in one year.
Kristen Kieffer from Well-Storied.com hosts this podcasts. You will find quick episodes that offer tips on specific writing craft topics.
This is a great podcast to answer common writing questions and up your writing.
This isn’t going to be a listen for fun as much as it is a listen to learn podcast.
This is a unique show. It is hosted by writing teacher Andrea Askowitz and Student Allison Langer. You follow real-life students as they create and share their stories on the podcast.
It’s pretty lively and cool to hear different stories of the writers and from the context of their actual written stories.
This show is entertainment with a dab of writing craft.
This podcast is pretty awesome as it focuses on the craft of creative writing but comes from a different perspective.
The hosts work as writers in various industries. Stephen Bugaj (Pixar’s Brave, Walle, the Incredibles) Justin Sloan ( Telltale Games- Game of Thornes, Walking Dead, and Minecraft – story mode) Kevin Tumilson Citadel and Lucid.
This is a pretty cool podcast if you are a writer who just loves writing, but want’s some insight into another medium besides books.
Top Podcasts Genre-Specific Podcasts
This section of writing podcasts focuses on genre specific shows that are still great for any type of writer.
This is one of the best shows out there, I would recommend it even if you aren’t in the Sci-Fi & Fantasy genre. This podcast is hosted by 3 authors, Lindsay Buroker, Jefferey Poole, and Joseph R Lallo. They have over 30 published books between them so bring a ton of knowledge in a down to earth way.
They focus on helping authors establish their author brand, increase the size of their audience and sell more books. They are always interviewing other authors so it’s a great show if you are looking for motivation.
The This is Horror is a weekly show hosted by Michael David Wilson and Bob Pastorella. They interview writers, artists, publishers, and masters of horror every week.
This is a great podcast if you’re interested in writing and self-publishing horror or even if you write in a different genre but just enjoy horror and want to get a deeper look at the genre.
Odyssey is a 6-week intensive writing workshop for writers of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. This podcast is made up of excerpts from the guest lecturers from the workshop.
There is a real academic feel to this one, think kind of ted talks for writing. But definitely a bit different angle than most of the other writing podcasts on the list.
Writer & Self-Publishing General/Inspiration Podcasts
These are general writing podcasts that focus on general self-publishing tips and inspiration for aspiring authors.
Hosted by Sarah Rhea Werner, a writer, editor, and creative professional. The Write Now podcast delivers weekly inspiration for aspiring writers looking for work/life balance and honest advice on pursuing their passion.
Thriller author Amelia Hay covers writing and publishing topics that are really helpful for authors of all levels.
They are quick and meaty episodes that are usually under 15 minutes. Her podcasts episodes are also well titled, which make it really easy to find exactly what you’re looking for.
Amelia will provide quality answers with plenty of examples to make the concepts easy to understand.
This podcast carries writing lectures from the University of Iowa. The feel is very academic, but if you are looking for a good source of information presented in an academic podcast format. This might be the one for you.
I don’t listen to this one too often, but when I do the lecturers are pretty interesting, but maybe I’m just a nerd.
Hosted by Mitzi Rapkin as part of public access tv. It definitely has a public access feel to it, but you will get to hear different fiction and nonfiction writers discuss the art of writing.
Hosted by San Francisco author Mur Lafferty. This podcast covers how-tos and interviews. She has recently written a Star Wars book.
Has one of my favorite intros of any podcasts. It’s worth listening to a show just to hear the song.
Do wish Mur would title her podcasts episodes a bit better. They don’t really tell you anything, just a number.
This podcasts focus on productivity, creativity, and neuroscience. This is pretty cool if you want to avoid writer’s block and understand writers psychology.
They focus on improving productivity and innovation of improving writers habits.
She focuses on inspiration and helpful tips for writers of all levels. This podcast focuses on answering a specific writer question.
The format makes it easy to pick and choose specific episodes that answer some of the common questions you may have.
The listen is light and airy but informative. Most of the meat comes from the writer inspiration bucket which every author can use every so often.
Top Book Marketing and Promotion Podcasts for Writers
These podcasts focus on promoting and marketing your books once they are written.
Mark Dawson is a best selling self-published author on both Amazon and Kobo. His books have grossed over 1 million in revenue in the first 5 years, this is due to his breakthrough marketing strategy for marketing and selling books. Which he now shares in his course facebook ads for authors which has rave reviews.
His co-host is James Blatch who represents the first-time wannabe author. James adds a light mood to the show that really gives it a nice dimension. This show is a definite listen for writers and self-published authors.
Hosted by Jim Kukral and Bryan Cohen. This show focuses on marketing and selling more books just as the title suggests.
But if you are looking for weekly tips and tools that can help you increase your book sales then this show is for you. The show is presented in a friendly manner and really presents an easy listen.
International Best Selling Author and Publisher Tom Corson-Knowles interviews authors, editors, publishers, and self-publishing experts.
The show focuses on help writers learn how to turn their writing passion into full-time careers. This show is great for new authors or authors that have already published multiple titles but are looking to take their career to the next level.
Chandler Bolt the creator of Self Publishing School covers how to write a book, launch it, and build a six-figure income.
This show has had a lot of famous guests on it, like Gary Vanerchuck, Grant Cardone, Lisa Nichols, and Russel Brunson. This is a great show to listen to if you want to learn the ins and outs of self-publishing.
Hosted by John Andrews the Author Platform Rocket is focused on giving actionable advice in under 20 minutes – give or take a few minutes.
The focus of this writing podcast is focused on building your self-publishing author platform, gaining more fans, and sell more books.
Tip- if you are going to listen to this on a commute you may want to set up a playlist of a few episodes at a time, so you don’t have to keep playing with your phone trying to select a new episode every 20 minutes.
Hosted by Dave Chesson the creator of Kindlepreneur and KDP rocket. The show focuses on book marketing tactics to help increase your book sales. The show is a really great listen.
Dave has been a consultant for NYT best selling fiction and non-fiction authors. He has been featured on Forbes and Entrepreneur and tuning in will get you great insight into how to market your book more effectively.
Joanna Penn hosts the Creative Penn Podcasts and it will easily become one of your favorite shows. Joanna is incredibly likable and humble.
The interviews on the show are really informative and inspirational. This should be a weekly listen for any writer or self-published author who wants to supplement their own writing journey with Joanna’s supportive and informative tone.
This was one of my favorite self-publishing podcasts, unfortunately, Simon the host has since moved onto a new show. This show always delivered details and information in spades.
Simon easily has one of the best voices on iTunes, and it made the show a must-listen for authors. There aren’t any new episodes but I still recommend listening to the back catalog.
The Author Hangout ended in 2017 but Shawn Manaher delivered from 2015 to 2017.
This is another great show for quick lessons in self-publishing, marketing, and the author life.
The best part of this show is that the episodes are nicely titled and separated into specific self-publishing topics, making it easy to navigate. Some of the marketing tactics might be out-dated but a lot of the principles still apply.
Tim Grahl has worked with hundreds of authors. He goes through step by step tactics to launching a best-selling book.
This is a great show to listen to when you are putting the final touches on your novel, and really need to change your self-publishing hat from writer to marketer. That’s not an easy transition for a lot of authors, but it’s still something that needs to be done if you are going to have a successful book launch.
This is a new podcast by Carla King. The focus of this podcasts is interviewing a lot of people that create the tools self-publishing writers use.
So there will be a bit of marketing feel to this, but you can give it a listen to keep updated with news and tools that can help your author journey.
I hope you enjoy these 31 writing podcasts. They each can be valuable resources in your writer journey. But remember every minute you are listening to a podcast or watching youtube about writing, is another minute you aren’t writing.
Make sure you focus on writing if you want to be a writer. These shows can be a needed distraction or focused learning on the go. But make sure you are cognizant of your time. You should schedule the time to write and time to listen.
Time is your most precious asset, so use it wisely.
Thanks for reading and more importantly Writing.
