Welcome to a new season of the award-winning Hill Country Authors Podcast, sponsored by Stoney Creek Publishing. In this podcast, Hill Country resident Tom Fox visits with authors who live in and write about the Texas Hill Country. Today, Tom welcomes Author and President of Local Authors Only, J. E. Warr.
Warr talks about helping writers overcome publishing gatekeepers and the “non-writing” work of selling books and describes his own obstacles (agents, editing costs, limited marketing) and argues publishers mainly distribute rather than market. Local Authors Only places local-author books in high-traffic, non-interruption settings—kiosks in grocery stores and locations like Lowe’s, plus coffee shops, waiting rooms, and author signings—to drive impulse discovery and community loyalty, while using QR codes that link buyers to Amazon or other seller pages without taking royalties. He encourages writers to start “bird by bird,” avoid premature self-criticism, use AI tools to correct mechanics ethically, and leverage audiobooks as a growing channel, including voice-cloning options and direct-to-consumer sales that capture audience data. He outlines membership pricing and provides contact details and web/social links.
Key highlights:
- Why Local Authors Only Exists
- Selling Books Without Gatekeepers
- From Draft to Published
- Audiobooks Are the Future
- Membership and Author Support
Resources:
J.E. Warr on LinkedIn
Podcast Cover Art
Tom Fox