Editing Push, Soft-Boiled Scandal, and QR-Code Swag | Ep 334

Jerry and Rich are back with another jam-packed week of writing talk, fantasy football updates, and a little DIY author branding gone mildly sideways. Jerry kicks things off with his latest fantasy football saga—three leagues, high stakes, and one borrowed draft strategy that’s paying off big. Then it’s on to the writing life: he’s now written or plotted eleven books and novellas across the Sam Norris Murder Mystery series, topping 355,000 words in two years. With Book 2 edits closing in on the finish line, Jerry explains why he wrote all the drafts first, how he’s planning his box sets and “.5” novellas to bridge them, and why December 14th looms like a midwinter deadline monster. Rich checks in from library land, sharing progress on his new thriller (13,382 words this week, nearly at his 200k goal for the year), recounting a dentist visit from hell, and proving that even a sore jaw can’t stop a word sprint. Between them: a conversation about fictional temptation (how far is too far for a protagonist?), using ChatGPT as a creative assistant, and turning writing-business ideas into real merch—like custom notebooks, bookmarks, and QR-coded golf balls that lead to Jerry’s “/next” mystery page. There’s golf in the cold, book swag brainstorms, ice cream interventions, and enough banter about football, YouTube habits, and Hallmark movies to warm any creative soul heading into November. 00:16 – Intro, camera chaos, and narrow video windows 02:17 – Fantasy football update: big-money leagues and borrowed strategy 05:09 – Jerry’s “why I wrote them all first” writing plan 07:24 – Joanna Penn guest idea & rapid-release vs. long-game strategy 09:16 – Weekly stats: Book 2 edits through Ch 31 (~84k words) 11:26 – Rich’s monster writing week: +13,382 words 13:15 – Golf video fail, mic whine, and Morse code jokes 15:00 – New clue brainstorming and past-Jerry tormenting future-Jerry 17:00 – The “dinner party” chapter and Truman Capote detour 18:52 – Romantic tension dilemma: what makes a hero cross the line? 23:28 – ChatGPT as writing therapist 25:01 – Saturday golf, Chick-fil-A editing, and small-world coincidences 29:53 – Notebook + bookmark merch brainstorm 33:15 – Fiverr adventures and pricing drama 35:33 – “jerryevanoff.com/next” – Jerry’s new favorite idea 38:08 – Book Marketing Tips podcast shoutout 39:15 – Football fatigue and fantasy frustration 40:25 – Rich’s case for baseball being better (Jerry disagrees) 43:33 – Hallmark movies vs. YouTube addiction 44:00 – Dentist horror story & post-Novocaine writing sessions 49:42 – Bingo nights, library chaos, and yellow umbrellas 51:38 – DIY office remodel & anti-glare experiments 55:52 – Weekend wrap-up: writing, chickens, and horror book displays 1:03:00 – Goals: Jerry’s nine-chapter sprint; Rich’s six-day writing streak 1:05:00 – New writers’ group plans and maybe a bookstore crush writing podcast, indie author, mystery writing, thriller writing, book editing, rapid release strategy, ChatGPT for authors, writing tools, self publishing, author marketing, fantasy football, golf, notebooks, bookmarks, fiverr design, writer productivity, Joanna Penn, ALLi, Paul Teague, plotting, indie publishing, library stories, Hallmark movies, book swag ideas Jerry Evanoff — [email protected] • jerryevanoff.com Rich Kacy — [email protected] • Bluesky @KacyHimself