26 Prompts for Your Author Newsletter
I’ve written an author newsletter for almost fourteen years. It was sporadic at the beginning. Mostly, I was running on enthusiasm. Then there were the years I used an editorial calendar and everything was organized, tidy, and timed. After promoting two books, I pulled back and moved to a monthly cadence rather than weekly. Now I write when I feel like it, with long pauses in-between during certain seasons of the year.
If you’re committed to connecting with your readers long-term, you’re bound to experience moments of feeling like you have nothing to write, or wondering if you have anything else to say. Taking a break is always an option—no need to force anything! But sometimes a short prompt can get you started again.
26 Prompts for Your Author Newsletter
Share the stack of books on your nightstand (and a favorite quote from each one)
Do you have a favorite poem? Tell your readers what you love about it.
Your journaling process
Different ways you do research for stories, essays, or novels
A list of favorite podcasts, or recent episodes you enjoyed
What you learned from attending graduate school
Something you teach
Something you’ve overcome
Favorite books about a particular topic (e.g. gardening, parenting, organizing, etc.)
A nugget from your writing/editing process
Favorite literary journals
Favorite blogs to read
Something profound your toddler said
Reflections from a recent trip
How you got started doing XYZ (meditating, baking, etc.)
A common misconception about X
Advice you’d give to your younger self
10 things you’ve learned this year
Your writing origin story
Prompts: journaling, poetry, flash fiction
What’s your favorite writing tool?
Request feedback on something you’re working on (a book cover, a title, whether you should expand a trilogy into a longer series, etc.)
Your word for the year
A round up of your most popular blog posts
Behind-the-scenes of your publishing process
Photos of people and places that have inspired your book
