Writing & Marketing Romantasy ft. J. Gabriel Gates (EP#568)

J. Gabriel Gates — who writes romantasy as G.J. Gates — has a full-time job he loves and a self-funded publishing business. He opens every book launch with a Kickstarter, and that money becomes his entire advertising budget. In this episode of the SPA Girls Podcast (EP568) he walks us through going indie after traditional publishing, writing a genre he’d never touched, and the ten-second video that reached 1.6 million people.

Whether you’re changing genres, growing a social account from scratch, or working out where an ad budget is going to come from, this one is practical tips packed in: BookTok and Instagram hooks that convert, why the simplest video wins, Amazon ads to train your also-boughts, feeding Kickstarter money straight into Facebook ads, and how Jacob writes seven days a week around a day job he genuinely loves.

About Jacob

J. G. Gates (who also writes as J. Gabriel Gates) is the author of fantasy, horror, and sci-fi books, including the Dragons and Aces, the Luck Gods Series, The Lamplighters, The Sleepwalkers, Blood Zero Sky, and more.

After receiving his B.A. in theater from Florida State University, Gates moved to Los Angeles, where he acted in a dozen national TV commercials and wrote screenplays that were optioned by Hollywood producers. He is an alum of Spalding University’s MFA in writing program, and has taught college writing at Kellogg Community College and Olivet College. He has also worked as a ghostwriter and editor.

Gates is a dad of three and a city council representative in his small Michigan town. When not writing books, he works as the executive director of a prominent regional arts organization. He also enjoys live storytelling and has appeared on stage at The Moth. Some of his other interests include, running, biking, playing music, and making dumb TikTok videos.

https://jgabrielgates.net

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📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED:

Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com

BookVault (special edition printing): https://bookvault.app

Monica Leonelle: https://monicaleonelle.com