For the CEO Author | A Strategic Partner is for Your Business, A Checklist is for Your Groceries

If you’re an author, your online world is likely flooded with well-meaning advice. You see the "Top 5 Marketing Tips," the "7 Steps to a Perfect Plot," and the endless "how-to" guides promising to unlock the secrets of success. But perhaps you’ve tried them and found they didn't quite fit. Or maybe you've felt a growing sense that a generic checklist, no matter how good, can't possibly solve the unique challenges of your career. If so, this article is for you. I’m not going to give you another list of tips. Instead, I’m going to pull back the curtain on why that model often fails and offer a more powerful framework: understanding your specific "What" and "Why" before you ever get to the "How."

What Deanna Read #109: August 2025

August was a slightly better reading month but I think I can attribute it to a few rereads of favorite books, some duds which I skimmed very fast (we will not talk about those), and a few books that were on the shorter side. It was a very safe reading month. I did try to be slightly adventurous, but alas, that was not to be. I do explain below.

Work continues to be insane and I can only say that it went by in a blur. Somewhere in there, I got a new client and I'm thrilled to be working with her. I think we are in for some fun and exciting stuff.

In other news, if you haven't seen it, I've set up my very own Advance Readers team. For those of you who are in the know, that's an ARC (which stands for Advance Reader's Copy of an unpublished, but soon-to-be released book) team for anyone who is looking for some gems to read before release and for authors, it's a way to put your books in front of a new audience. Readers can join here. And I invite authors to check out submitting your books to review consideration.

Here's what I read in the last month.

Your next ARCs from Deanna's World are here | Romantic Suspense, Dark Fantasy Romance, Why Choose, Thriller

Hello, team!

Are you ready for another batch of awesome books for you to read and review?

Kicking things off, you'll find a special offering from one of our fantastic Deanna's World authors! This book is the prequel to the Cliffside world, which will be a familiar setting for those who read For Sale Baby Shoes Never Worn. Don't worry if you haven't read it, though—this prequel is the perfect introduction and stands completely on its own. Alongside it, I've curated three other wonderful books that I'm so excited for you all to discover.

If you are an author and would like to submit your book for review consideration, click here.

Your Book's Copyright Registration Could Unlock a Payout from the $1.5B Anthropic AI Settlement

A landmark copyright case has resulted in a historic settlement for authors. Here’s what you need to know to determine if you might have a claim.

In the ever-present storm of news about Artificial Intelligence, one story has just broken through that should have every single author sitting up and paying attention. AI company Anthropic, the creator of the model named Claude, has reached a landmark settlement agreement. And the number is staggering: $1.5 billion.