Getting started as an author
For authorsUpdated 2 min read
The first hour with an author account: what Studio is, its sections (Catalog, ARC, Reach, Posts, Invite readers, Settings), the order that works (pen name, first book, sample and buy link, campaign, readers) and where the numbers come from.
The short answer
Studio is your workspace
An author account opens in Author Studio, the private side of your public author page. Readers never see Studio; they see your pen name's page, your books, your Journal and your campaigns.
The Overview shows one thing at a time: your active project (the book you are working on, with its health: cover, sample, buy link, ARC slots filled, followers), Your growth (new followers in the last 30 days, readers waiting) and Needs attention (time-bound work, most pressing first). Until you add a book it says so and offers Add your first book.
The sections
- Catalog › Books and Series: your titles by status (All, Published, Coming soon, Drafts, Archived) and the order they are read in. See Publishing your first book and Series and reading order.
- ARC › Campaigns and Applications: advance-copy campaigns, the readers who applied, and the protected files you deliver. See Running an ARC campaign and ARC delivery and tracking.
- Reach › Audience (followers, and readers who chose to share their e-mail), Promotions (price promotions and events), Circles (your Official Circles) and Analytics (Monthly Readers, reach, followers, profile visits; honest "not enough data" states). Live appears when the deployment has a video provider connected.
- Posts: your Journal entries as your pen name. See The Author Journal.
- Invite readers: your five reader invites during the beta. See Inviting your readers.
- Settings: your pen name, author profile, verification and external links. See Your pen name.
An order that works
- Check your pen name under Studio › Settings: the name, bio and photo readers see.
- Add your first book (Catalog › Books › Create book): title, cover, blurb, genres, status. A draft is invisible; coming soon shows the page without a buy link; published is on the shelf.
- Give the book a sample and a buy link so the page has something to read and somewhere to buy; the Overview's health chips tell you what is missing.
- Run an ARC campaign for a book that has a file to deliver: readers apply, you approve, the file goes out through protected links.
- Bring your readers: your five invites, and a first Journal entry so the people who follow you have something to read.
Where the numbers come from
Studio's analytics count significant reading actions (shelving, progress, finishing, reviewing), never profile visits or post views, and the counters agree with the reading activity they are built from. When there is not enough data to say something honestly, the screen says "not enough data" rather than guessing. See Author analytics.
Where this lives
Related
- Creating your account and profile: Sign up with an invite code, an e-mail address and a password; pick reader or author once; then fill in the profile readers see (name, username, photo, bio) under Settings › Profile.
- Your pen name and public page: Your pen name is your public identity; books, series, campaigns and Journal entries attach to it. Edit its name, bios, avatar, banner, the genres you write, the languages you publish in and external links under Studio, Settings. One pen name per author account in the beta.
- Publishing your first book: Create a book from Studio, Books, New book, with its synopsis, up to three genres and six tropes, content level and warnings, language, page count and a cover (uploaded, or a pattern with the title drawn on). It starts as a draft only you can see; set it to Coming soon (with a date) or Published when ready. Add a sample and buy links from the edit page; archiving takes it off the catalogue without deleting anything.
- Running an ARC campaign: Studio, Campaigns, New campaign walks through the book, dates and reader spots, ideal readers (genres, tropes, languages, regions, requirements), delivery (formats, files, your message) and how to launch (draft, scheduled, or now). Applications gather under Applications with each reader's match and reliability; approve or decline one by one or in batches, and every decision notifies the reader.
- Inviting your readers: Every author account holds five reader invites during the beta: one link, five uses, from Studio › Invite readers. A reader who arrives through it is counted as yours.
- The Author Journal: New entry opens the Journal composer with fourteen formats in four groups (General; Book and Story; Launch and ARC; Community), each asking only for what it needs, an audience (Public, Followers, Only me), an optional content note that hides the entry behind a spoiler warning, and a preview. Entries can be saved as drafts under Studio, Posts, and one can be pinned to your page.
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