The Written Word Podcast

This episode is a milestone; the Written Word Media Podcast just hit 10,000 downloads. To celebrate, Ricci Wolman and Ferol Vernon are answering three of the most common questions listeners have sent in: what DRM actually is and whether you need it, when the best time to launch a book really is, and how to get more KENP reads if you're in Kindle Unlimited.

What you’ll learn:
  • What DRM (Digital Rights Management) is, the difference between hard DRM, soft DRM, and no DRM, and Amazon's new policy change that lets you update your settings midstream
  • Why ALLi (Alliance of Independent Authors) recommends against DRM for most indie authors, and the key philosophical question to ask yourself before deciding
  • Why hard DRM is largely an illusion of protection (and what that means for your decision)
  • What WWM's data from thousands of book launches actually shows about the best day and season to launch, and why the answer is probably not what you're hoping for
  • The one exception to the "any day works" rule (genre-specific seasonality)
  • Why your marketing plan matters 100x more than your launch date
  • How running a promo (including a FreeBooksy free promo) drives KENP reads, not just downloads
  • Why there's a lag between a promotion and when you see the KU reads hit your dashboard
  • How WWM's promo emails call out "free on Kindle Unlimited" to prime KU readers before they hit the Amazon page

Plus: listener questions are how WWM products get built. Subscriber Surge Giveaways exist because authors asked for help building their email lists.

Want to learn more ways to reach readers? Visit writtenwordmedia.com for author resources, book promotion tools, and more.

The Written Word Podcast is produced by Heart Centered Podcasting.

© 2026 Written Word Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

Creators and Guests

Host
Ferol Vernon
Founder and COO of Written Word Media
Host
Ricci Wolman
Founder & CEO at Written Word Media

What is The Written Word Podcast?

A podcast for authors who want to build successful writing careers. Each episode explores the business and craft of being an author, with practical strategies for selling more books, growing your audience, and navigating the publishing world. Presented by Written Word Media.