An insiders look at how I help writers reach their readers

How collaboration leads to results

I end each post here with the words, ‘Thank you for being here with me,’ and today that is especially true. I am deeply thankful to you reading my words, supporting my work, and sharing your own journey as a writer, artist, or creator.

Today I want to give you an inside look into how I help writers reach their readers. This post will talk more about the process, and why each step matters deeply. I will share my own journey to getting to this point — working nearly 15 years full-time offering this work, collaborating with thousands of writers, and 25 years of working with writers overall.

I also want to invite you to a free event I’m running in December: “The 10 Traits of Writers Who Reach Their Readers.” In this workshop, I’ll share key insights I have learned working directly with writers for all these years, focusing in on the differences between those who truly make progress in reaching their readers vs. those who seem to spin their wheels, stuck in the mud, never reaching their goals. The live Zoom event is Friday December 13th at 1pm ET. If you can’t make it live, a recording will be sent to all who register. You can register here!

Okay, let’s dig into today’s post…

My Story

I will soon be celebrating 15 years of my business, WeGrowMedia, spending my days with writers and creators. I can hardly believe that this is my actual life, that I get to always be in conversation with those who inspire me, and doing meaningful work to ensure their unique voices are heard. This is truly the work I love.

I work out of my private studio here in New Jersey, surrounded by books and typewriters:

Running a business is this fascinating blend of being exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. My days are filled with the craft I have dedicated myself to, and the opportunities that come with that. But they are also filled with risk.

I worked in a small gray cubicle for years at a large publishing company, always aware that at any moment I could be swept up in the next round of layoffs. For years, my boss would count how many of those cuts we “survived” inside the company, until the number got so big that it felt meaningless to keep counting.

My days are spent with creativity and connection, and for that I am grateful. But I’m also keenly aware that this is the work that supports my family. I started WeGrowMedia back in 2010 as my wife and I were expecting our first child. It was a big risk at the time, but I knew I wanted to be close to home as we welcomed a new phase of our lives. Now our kids are 7 and 14, and I’m rarely more than a mile away from every member of my family.

This studio is a special place for me, one where I immerse myself in the craft of how we communicate and share. I do this work because I believe:

• Everyone can be creative, and that your unique creative voice should be heard.

• When we share what we create, the world becomes a better place.

• How we share is a craft, one that can be filled with joy and deep purpose.

You can read more about my journey here.

Growing up as an artist and writer, I believe that the creative work comes first. We then explore the concepts of “marketing” or “reaching readers” as a way of fulfilling that intention of why we write. Our work is complete when it moves someone, inspires them, teaches them, helps them understand themselves or others better, or feel more connected with the world.

The Milestones Writers Hope to Reach

In working with writers for so long, something I am often helping them navigate is how to move from the place they are, to the experiences they hope to reach. Sometimes we define that via commonly used phrases:

• Build an author platform

• Launch a book

• Create a book marketing strategy

• Grow a newsletter list

• Gain followers on social media

• Get more podcast appearances

…and so much else.

People work with me because they are hoping to see that their work matters to readers, and that they have new opportunities each day to live as a writer, however they define that. This is an investment in not just their writing, but their identity, their daily experiences of what it means to be a writer, and their aspirations.

This may involve getting absolute clarity on where to focus their work, and how to develop an author platform. Or on doing the research to firmly identify who their ideal readers are, and where to find them. Or it could align to a book launch, knowing that they want to give their writing the best possible chance to reach readers.

So often our culture defines these things as numbers: sales, reviews, mentions, follows, subscribes, etc. Those metrics are useful and I help writers with them every day. But this is also about the feeling that each writer hopes to have. To wake up knowing what to create and how to share, having a keen sense of who you are as a writer and how to integrate that into your everyday life, and that our lives are filled with the moments and conversations around the themes that inspire you as a writer.

The Importance of Collaboration

Writers have incredible access to information that those in previous generations never could have dreamed of. But in some cases, they are drowning in information: endless articles, interviews, and advice. They find that each of those resources gives slightly different advice, saddling writers with a sense that no matter what they try, they must have just missed the mark.

This is why I believe in collaboration to cut through the noise. My days are spent in collaboration with writers because I feel that is a rare and special thing. To not just share information in a stark format, but to integrate that with the goals, style, and context of each writer’s life.

When I’m working with a writer, I focus on ensuring I am accessible. Beyond the long phone or Zoom calls we have, I try to respond to every email immediately, and will sometimes reply back with a video so they can see me walk through whatever strategy or idea we are working on.

Being a writer can feel so isolating at time. Yet, when I study how professional writers and creators manage their weeks, I often hear about the small — sometimes secret — collaborations they have. This is a critical difference in finding the right strategy, but also feeling truly supported as a writer.

My System for Reaching Readers

All of this has lead me to develop a system for how a writer can reach their readers. If you have followed my work for a while, you may have seen me mention the Creative Success Pyramid. This is meant to give you a clear structure to find a strategy that works for sharing your work, and how it can lead to being fulfilled as a writer.

Every now and again, someone will tell me that the pyramid feels too ominous. They feel crushed under the expectations that they have to do all these steps, and climb this big mountain. I have empathy for that.

So what I focus on is starting with the values of each person I work with — to start where they are. Then we customize how we move through this, and always do so in a clear step-by-step manner.

One of the tools I use is a 20-tab spreadsheet, where each tab tackles a critical element of what it means to develop your platform in a meaningful way, find your readers, and truly engage them.

If that sounds scary — SPREADSHEETS!!!! — it isn’t meant to. I want each writer I work with to have a clear and concise plan, not a laundry list of unending ideas with no path to follow. So the spreadsheet generally follows the steps of the pyramid, filled with instructions and videos — but more importantly — a straightforward process do the work from, and turn it into a cohesive strategy. Over time, this becomes a living document, one that is refined and grows over time, as you as a writer grow.

Not all writers love spreadsheets, so there are plenty of times that we instead focus on other ways of collaborating.

There is no one-size-fits all plan for an author to reach their readers. So here is where we look for specific interests that a writer has, opportunities that are buried just beneath the surface, and ways to infuse this process with a deep sense of joy and fulfillment.

Week by week, we identify specific tasks that move things forward, but are also small enough to actually get done amidst their otherwise busy lives.

I love this work, and appreciate all of the support you have given me. Thank you!

Please let me know in the comments: What are you most proud of accomplishing in 2024? What are your goals as a writer in 2025?

Reminder to register for my free workshop on Friday December 13th: The 10 Traits of Writers Who Reach Their Readers — register here!

And if you are looking to reach your readers in 2025, learn more about working with me here. That page shares not only more details about my process, but also case studies of my work with writers.

Thank you for being here with me.
-Dan

Kids of the Week: The little fella is starting a new book series, of course about his stuffed cat named Puppy.