Brittney Joy on Backlist Building for Income, Writing to Market & Understanding Tropes

Episode 99: On Backlist Building for Income, Writing to Market & Understanding Tropes with Brittney Joy (Equestrian Author Spotlight Podcast)

2/24/2022

Episode 99: Welcome to the Equestrian Author Spotlight podcast! In each episode, you’ll hear inspirational stories from horse book authors, including writing advice and marketing tips to help you write your own horse book. If you are an author, aspire to be an author, or simply love horse books, then you are in the right place!

In this information packed episode, Brittney Joy, author of sweet stories full of hope, heart, and happily-ever-afters, returns to the show. You'll learn ...

What a sweet/clean adult romance includes (and doesn’t include), and why Brittney was inspired to write a sweet romance series for adults after writing for young adults with the Red Rock Ranch and Overruled series.
Why Brittney decided to write to market, how she infused tropes into the Maple Bay stories, and what she has done differently with this series to reach readers.
And MUCH more!

Watch Brittney Joy's Interview on YouTube!

Or listen to the audio version.

About Author Brittney Joy

.Author of sweet stories full of hope, heart, and happily-ever-afters… Brittney and her family live in their own piece of heaven in the Oregon countryside. They stay busy with their menagerie of silly horses, cackling chickens, wooly sheep, two very naughty goats, the cutest dog ever, and a very moody cat. When Brittney isn’t writing, she’s riding or reading. And she wishes she could do all three at the same time.

Saddle up for our conversation about writing to market, understanding tropes, building our backlists to increase income and the ins and outs of writing sweet romance.

Brittney Joy Interview Excerpt

Carly: You are the author of the Red Rock Ranch YA series and the OverRuled Fantasy series, which we discussed in-depth in your last interview. Now you have a new sweet romance series for adults called Maple Bay. Congratulations. Tell us about the new book series.

Brittney: Maple Bay is a small Midwestern town with heaps of heart—where family dinner is a must, and someone will always leave the light on for you. The new series will be enjoyed by fans of Debbie Macomber, Jenny Hale, and Elana Johnson.

Books in the Maple Bay series (each can be read as a standalone - happily-ever-afters guaranteed):

Starting Over in Maple Bay
Second Chance in Maple Bay
Country Stars in Maple Bay

Carly: Would you explain to listeners what a sweet/clean adult romance includes (and doesn’t include)?

Brittney: “Sweet” or “clean” romances emphasize the emotional intimacy between the hero and the heroine. They do not contain sex scenes—think of G to PG rated movies. Kissing is okay. Everything else is not shown on the page. The same thing applies to offensive language and violence.

These stories have internal and external conflicts, like any romance. The characters struggle and eventually find their happily-ever-after, and it’s done with an underlying clean theme.

Carly: I understand with the Maple Bay series you are writing to market. Would you explain to listeners what this means?

Brittney: When writing to market, a writer will look at the market, analyze current trends, use these trends (and tropes) to make an educated guess about what readers are looking for and then write that book.

(Make sure to listen in! Brittney dives deep on writing to market, tools she used to do her research, and understanding tropes in her interview.)

Connect with Brittney Joy

Website: http://www.brittneyjoybooks.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brittneyjoybooks
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brittneyjoybooks/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/brittneyjoydov
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/Brittney_Joy

Listen in for more from Brittney Joy!

In Brittney's first interview on the podcast, we discussed:

How Brittney discovered Cowboy Dressage and what the event entails for you and your horse.
About book cover best practices, including the truth about updating a book's cover on Amazon.
What it's like to work with fellow authors on a prelaunch/preorder campaign.
Why it's important to have the ability to update your own work and the advantages of independent publishing.
And MUCH more!

Resources and Books Mentioned in Interview

The Writing Gals: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheWritingGals
Six Figure Authors: https://www.youtube.com/channel/6figureauthors
KDP University: https://www.youtube.com/AmazonKDP/videos
K-lytics: https://k-lytics.com/

The Maple Bay series by Brittney Joy

Listen to More Equine Author Interviews!

Equestrian Author Spotlight Podcast Carly Kade

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About Your Podcast Host Carly Kade

Photo: Shelley Paulson Photography

Carly Kade is an award-winning author, horse owner, creativity coach, and the host of the Equestrian Author Spotlight Podcast. She helps fellow writers start, grow, and expand their author careers. Creative writing makes her spurs jingle!

Carly's In the Reins equestrian romance book series was written with horse lovers in mind, no matter which discipline they ride. The horses are as vital to moving the story forward as the human characters are.

These books are perfect for poolside reading, taking to the beach, or settling down with after a day of horseback riding.