Episode 129 of the Gratitude Geek Podcast features a conversation with dark fantasy author J.V. Hilliard — creator of the Warminster series. Joe started writing during COVID with zero expectation it would become a business. A few years in, he had a publisher, an audiobook, a cover artist, a marketing budget, and a growing reader community.
Here’s what he learned along the way — and why it applies to any solopreneur building something creative.
1. You Are the Brand. Your Work Is the Product.
Joe says it plainly: “Being an author is your own business. You are the brand and your books are the product.”
That reframe changes everything. It means you don’t get to stay invisible and hope the work sells itself. It means you show up on podcasts, at events, on social media — not because you love performing, but because that’s how any business owner builds awareness. For solopreneurs, especially those of us who tend toward introversion or who are used to doing work behind the scenes, this is the mental shift that unlocks everything else.
2. Invest Real Capital in Your Work
One of the first things Joe learned was the actual list of what it takes to bring a book to market: development editor, copy editor, cover designer, blurb writer, and then decisions about publishing paths, royalties, and platform building.
“I’m investing in my business the same way I would invest in any other business,” he said. “It’s sunk capital.”
Not every investment pays off immediately — Joe is the first to acknowledge that. But treating your creative work like a hobby means funding it like a hobby. Treating it like a business means making smart, intentional investments and learning from the ones that don’t go as planned.
3. Show Up Even When the Crowd Is Small
Joe went to an event and two people showed up. Three, if you count the librarian. He did it anyway.
“Was it the best use of my time? No. But it was the right use of my time.”
One of those two people had a son who worked at Twitter. The other joined his writing group. The point isn’t that every small event leads to something big — it’s that you simply cannot know in advance which room will matter. Small events are also where the people who run the bigger events get to know you. As Joe put it: that’s where the magic happens.
4. Make It Muscle Memory
This is Joe’s Tip #1 for aspiring authors, and it applies just as cleanly to any solopreneur building something over time: make it a daily habit, not a motivation-dependent event.
“If you let it slip, it goes away. It’s like missing the gym — and the day you miss the gym and actually feel guilty about it, that’s what you need to feel about your writing.”
You don’t have to knock out three chapters. You don’t have to have a perfect session. Showing up to do the work is enough. The creative muscle — whether it’s writing, content creation, client outreach, or building your offer — gets stronger when you use it consistently, not when you wait for inspiration.
5. Get Good Beta Readers (a.k.a. an Honest Outside Perspective)
Joe’s Tip #2: find beta readers who will tell you the hard truth — not your mom.
“You’re too close to it to see it.” A good beta reader isn’t just someone who likes your work. They’re someone who understands your genre, will poke at the holes, and can offer honest constructive criticism without tearing you down. Joe recommends fellow creatives specifically — people who can get inside the work and think about it the way a real audience member would.
For solopreneurs, this is your test audience, your trusted peer group, your “does this landing page make sense to someone who isn’t me” person. Build that circle intentionally.
6. Be Open to Constructive Criticism — Even the Hard Kind
Tip #3 from Joe: share your work and genuinely listen to the feedback you receive.
“You can share with your mom and she’s going to say it’s the greatest thing she’s ever read. That’s not the credit you need.”
What you need is someone willing to give you a 3-out-of-5 and explain why. Joe talked about getting a two-star review from a reader who said the cover was stunning but they couldn’t finish the book. His takeaway? “The cover did its job.” He didn’t spiral — he extracted the useful information and moved on. That’s the skill. Learning to hear hard feedback without letting it stop you is as important as any technical skill you’ll develop.
7. Niche Your Work — Not Everyone Is Your Reader
“You have to niche,” Joe said. “Not everything you do is going to be for everybody.”
He talks about this in terms of book covers — they have to scream the genre so the right readers recognize themselves immediately. If your cover (or your website, your content, your offer) is trying to appeal to everyone, it ends up resonating with no one.
The people who loved Joe’s work found it because it was clearly, unapologetically theirs. The people who didn’t? They moved on — and that’s fine. Your real audience is out there, and they are actively looking for something that feels made for them. Your job is to make sure they can tell, at a glance, that you’re it.
About Joe
Note: Some of the links here are affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission, at no additional cost to you, if you choose to purchase.
J.V. Hilliard is the dark fantasy author behind the Warminster series, including The Last Keeper and Vorodin’s Lair. He’s been building his author business from scratch since COVID — and he treats it exactly like the micropreneur venture it is.
Hear Joe more recently:
Connect with J.V. Hilliard:
- Website: https://jvhilliard.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jvhilliardbooks
- Amazon Author Page: https://amzn.to/4t7AYAy
Also Mentioned
- The Tender Bar staring Ben Affleck and directed by George Clooney
- The Running Man by Richard Bachman (Stephen King)
- Diana Botsford sci-fi author interview
- Jaina Solo, the greatest Star Wars character who will never be in a movie
- Joshua Dazelle, sci-fi author interview
- Larch Gallagher cover artist
If this conversation got your wheels turning, you might be ready for more than a podcast. The Gratitude Geek Lab is where Gen X women solopreneurs take ideas like these and actually put them to work — experimenting, iterating, and building businesses that fit their real lives. Come see what we’re working on.
Stay Groovy!
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