In this candid, practical session, New York Times bestselling author Madeline Martin (The Last Bookshop in London, The Secret Book Society) shares what it really takes to become a full-time writer while managing financial, professional, and personal responsibilities. Drawing on her sixteen years as a business analyst and over two decades of publishing experience, Madeline covers the challenges and strategies behind building a sustainable writing career across small press, traditional, and self-publishing.

You’ll learn how to:

• Transition from a day job to full-time writing while maintaining financial stability

• Build early writing routines in small windows of time and maximize productivity

• Understand the business side of publishing, including advances, royalties, taxes, and side income

• Create and maintain a platform, including newsletters, social media, street teams, and early reviewers

• Navigate self-publishing realities, platform dependence, and unforeseen glitches

• Balance drafting, research-heavy historical fiction, marketing, travel, and family life

• Understand genre, marketability, and reader expectations to position your work effectively

• Handle constructive and destructive criticism while protecting your voice

• Make strategic decisions about agents, editors, book coaches, and ongoing professional development

• Ask essential questions about your goals, priorities, and long-term creative and financial sustainability

Whether you’re considering leaving a day job, seeking practical publishing insights, or simply want a realistic view of a professional writing life, this session provides grounded guidance, actionable strategies, and candid advice for sustaining a long-term career in historical fiction and beyond.