Stewarding the Story: A coaching conversation on branding, marketing, and calling with Dan Atkins | Ep. 2

How do you handle it when a massive publishing house releases a book with your exact title and character name—after you’ve poured four years into your story? That’s the challenge Dan Atkins is facing. He’s a high school teacher, former pastor, and first-time author whose debut fantasy novel, The Light Seekers, just wrapped a successful Kickstarter campaign. But now he’s navigating the high-stakes world of self-publishing, branding, and book marketing—all while holding onto the conviction that this story was God-given. In this real-time coaching conversation, we talk through: * How to build a grassroots marketing strategy without social media savvy * What to do when your creative work overlaps with someone else’s * The power of word-of-mouth and creating fans who feel like family * How to position your product as a solution, not just a passion project If you’re building something meaningful and facing uncertainty, this episode will give you both practical strategy and gospel-rooted encouragement. Resources: Pre-order Dan’s book: https://gofr.me/lightseeker-series Apply to be coached on the podcast: https://smallbizsurthrival.com/podcast Subscribe on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@smallbizsurthrivalhttps://www.youtube.com/@smallbizsurthrival Subscribe to Podcast: https://smallbizsurthrival.com/podcast