Some people dream of writing a book their whole lives. Marissa Malson wrote her first three chapters in her phone's Notes app after a yoga class and never looked back. This week we sit down with the author behind the cozy-adjacent Average Jane PI series to talk about writing on instinct, building an author business from scratch, and why indie publishing is so much more than finishing the manuscript.

Marissa's debut, The Not So Average Life of Average Jane, introduced Jane Smith, a private investigator whose greatest asset is being completely forgettable. Book two, The Consultants, is out now and sends Jane and her team to Spain to crack a cold case. Think Ocean's Eleven meets Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, with a mostly female cast and a whole lot of twists.

In this episode:

• How a book she never planned to write became a series (with a third now in progress)
• Starting Just A Good Book Publishing with her cover-designer sister, Nicolle
• What she wishes she'd known before her first launch, from finding editors to building an ARC team
• Why author events and curated markets became her secret weapon (101 books sold in a single day)
• Free writing vs. plotting, and where her best ideas actually strike
• The bonus wine pairings, recipes, and book club kits she builds for every book

About Marissa: Marissa Malson is a marketer turned mystery author and the owner of Just A Good Book Publishing, where she helps indie authors learn to self-publish and market their work. She also writes the Plot Twist newsletter on Substack, sharing practical marketing ideas for authors.

Find Marissa:

• Instagram: @marissamalsonauthor
• Website: justagoodbook.com
• Substack: Plot Twist https://substack.com/@marissamalson 
• Books: The Not So Average Life of Average Jane and The Consultants

Books featured on the podcast are sometimes provided free by publishers or authors.