Becoming Sawyer Bennett, Episode #65
We all have dreams and sometimes we discover them without previously knowing that they even existed. Our guest on this episode is a New York Times, U.S. Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Her real-life experiences are used to create compelling stories that appeal to a wide variety of audiences. Her journey from trial attorney to best-selling author is an amazing story.
Her first book was published in January 2013 on Amazon as a “free” offer. She experienced 60,000 downloads the first day and her path was set. Readers began emailing about another book and she realized she had the ability to become a professional author. Her second book did even better and her third book hit the U.S.A. Today best-seller list. After a 6 month sabbatical from her law firm to try out the writing career, she made the decision to become a full-time author. Listen to hear Sawyer’s journey and learn some lessons about strategy, consistency, and doing great work.
You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…
- Sawyer’s path to becoming a best-selling author (she did it on a lark) [1:58]
- The obstacles in transitioning from lawyer to writer [6:40]
- Lessons-learned: writing, self-publishing, marketing [10:24]
- How Sawyer structures her day to write 10 books per year [13:06]
- Changes in the indie publishing industry [19:03]
- Advice for new or aspiring authors [21:01]
- The most memorable letters from readers [26:27]
- What Sawyer did today that put her in the right mindset for success [35:03]
Expanding her writing business through translation and narration
Sawyer Bennett was a successful trial attorney and partner in her own law firm. She had no reason to look for anything else because she was happy and doing what she’d always thought she would do. Her entire working life (since age 15) had been spent in the legal field and she couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Being a voracious reader, Sawyer decided that she’d like to try her hand at writing. Thinking it would be nothing more than a hobby, she wrote her first romance novel. After working with an editor to get it refined and self-publishing it on Amazon, the interest in her books convinced her she might have a chance as an author. Her partner in the law firm encouraged her to take a six-month sabbatical from the firm to try out the writing life full time. That experience showed her what could really happen and she never looked back.
Building a schedule and systems that empower 10 new books per year
Sawyer is one of the most prolific authors you’ll ever hear of. She strives to publish at least 10 new books every year. How is she able to keep up a pace like that and consistently produce books that readers want to buy and read? She says it has to do with her daily schedule and routine. As a full-time author, she sets a writing goal for herself each day. Based on her publication goal, she works to get a certain number of words written and she writes 7 days per week. She has also discovered that dictation software enables her to get her stories on paper while she’s driving and in her opinion, some of her best words come to her in the car. Add to all this an Associate who works on her book covers, formatting, and uploading to the various platforms and Sawyer cranks out the books at an amazing rate.
Advice for new or aspiring writers
Early in her career, Sawyer received some advice from a successful self-published author, so she has a heart for new writers and wants to serve them in a similar way. Her advice to aspiring authors is simple…
- Hire a professional editor and proofer
This is an expense that may not seem worthwhile at first, but the things you’ll learn and be stretched by the experience is invaluable.
- Make sure your book cover is fabulous
The first glimpse potential fans of your books get of your work is the book cover. It needs to be visually compelling and representative of your work.
- Write your next book
Sawyer recommends that authors NOT get caught up in marketing, social media, etc. at first. She says it’s important to create a body of work that potential readers can access once they are finished with their first book. Work hard and be patient. Organic growth is the only way to a successful writing career.
Connect with Sawyer Bennett
- The website: https://sawyerbennett.com/
- Sawyer’s Amazon Author page
- On Instagram
- On Twitter
- On Linkedin
- On Facebook
Guests on the Mitlin Money Mindset Show are not affiliated with CWM, LLC, and opinions expressed herein may not be representative of CWM, LLC. CWM, LLC is not responsible for the guest’s content linked on this site.
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