Fan Expo Boston 2025: Advice From Indie Authors
by Tito W. James
At Fan Expo Boston 2025, local indie book authors gave their advice on crafting and publishing original stories. The author panel was sponsored by Lovestruck Books, Cambridge’s first-of-its-kind romance bookstore celebrating love in all its forms. Here are some of the key takeaways from the conversation.
The point of the first draft is just to exist, it doesn’t need to be perfect — you only learn from the writing you finish. Even professional authors can dislike the sound of their own writing. Aspiring authors can utilize a writing coach or development editor to make sure their writing is working.
There are benefits and drawbacks to both traditional and indie publishing. Traditional publishing has more structure but it takes longer for a book to come out. Indie publishing gives you more creative freedom but you also have more responsibility. You need to know what you want out of a creative career. Find the path that works best for your working routine and your book.
When it comes to creating your own stories, focus on writing about what you love. Create a “Freudian Id” list of things that bring you joy and jam-pack them into the book. Many new genre authors are creating a shared-universe of stand-alone novels. Readers can jump in at any point but they are also rewarded with a greater understanding of the fictitious world by reading more books.
Finally, connect with your local communities of authors and aspiring authors. Research book series and authors that you can model your writing career after. In a world of book bans and AI-slop, people need to hear your original voice — so never be afraid to put yourself out there.
