Michael walks through 25 of his 100 ideas for authors who want to make money beyond just selling books. Drawing from his time at Mr. Beast and his CreatorWood platform, he covers things like Kickstarters, merch, fan communities, AI movies, and story letters. He also stresses the importance of knowing your audience before spending a dime on marketing — and wraps up with a fun live Q&A helping an attendee with their book marketing. Join the beta of the Creatorwood platform: https://www.creatorwood.tv/ Read the Creatorwood book, all about building a movie business with AI, for free: https://www.blog.creatorwood.tv/subscribe Join the Creatorwood Discord: https://discord.gg/tTmWv23C9q Join the Six-Figure Film Accelerator: https://learn.creatorwood.tv/ EPISODE CHAPTERS: 00:00 Beyond Books Mindset 01:00 Webinar Welcome Chat 02:13 Origin Story Creatorwood 04:00 Beyond Book Examples 05:35 AI Movies Vision 07:00 MrBeast Business Lesson 10:48 Business Problems Solved 20:46 Three Stages Framework 22:20 Fun Examples Kickstarter 27:15 Ghost Listing Validation 30:10 25 Ideas Speedrun 31:23 Merch Newsletters Community 35:03 Special Editions Events 38:29 Consulting And Products 43:25 Genre Hacks Interactive 46:34 Behind The Scenes That Matters 47:37 AI Character BTS Marketing 48:28 Build A Genre Hub 50:13 Seasonal And Subscription Ideas 50:18 Patreon Horror Case Study 52:28 Reader Rewards Street Team 55:04 Shared Worlds And Book Clubs 55:55 Digital Bonuses And Affiliates 58:01 Wrap Up And Q&A 59:38 Do You Need An LLC 01:02:32 Marketing Without Market Fit 01:05:53 Finding Audience And Validation 01:08:40 Funding Films With Fans 01:10:13 Reaching Kids And Schools 01:13:01 Fixing A Mystery Book Launch 01:21:50 Short Form Video Playbook 01:26:58 Hard Earned Marketing Lessons 01:29:02 Final Thanks And Sign Off ABOUT MICHAEL: He has published 12 sci-fi novels, helped authors make $1 million+/year in memberships, and even worked on the Strategy Team for MrBeast. ABOUT CREATORWOOD: Creatorwood is the home for storytellers to turn their writing into films, discover new viewers, and run a film business. The Movie Machine by Creatorwood integrates with the top AI video, image, audio, and storytelling models to help transform your writing into immersive worlds, incredible characters, and gripping films with significantly less time and cost. Creatorwood also makes it easy to make money from your films inside our Streaming Platform. Specifically, Creatorwood allows you to upload your episodes, set them as free or paid (any price you’d like). Creators keep 80% of the revenue they earn on Creatorwood, and we pay out to creators in 130+ countries and accept payments from viewers globally. You can join Creatorwood here: https://creatorwood.tv/

What if the secret to unlocking your creativity isn’t about working harder, but doing just one thing?

In this episode, I sit down with Peter Dudley — engineer turned writer, fundraiser, and life coach — who shares a surprisingly simple framework that could save you from creative burnout for good.

Join the beta of the Creatorwood platform: https://www.creatorwood.tv/

Read the Creatorwood book, all about building a movie business with AI, for free: https://www.blog.creatorwood.tv/subscribe

Join the Creatorwood Discord: https://discord.gg/tTmWv23C9q

Join the Six-Figure Film Accelerator: https://learn.creatorwood.tv/

EPISODE CHAPTERS:

00:00 Creativity Without Burnout

02:14 Meet Peter Dudley

03:28 From Engineer to Impact Work

05:19 Giving Yourself Permission

07:05 Writing Across Genres

10:45 Protecting Creative Energy

13:51 One Shoe Momentum

17:22 Time Blocking and Accountability

18:34 Impact Beyond Big Numbers

20:20 Why Create and Self Publish

24:03 AI and the Messy Middle

27:03 Unpredictable AI Future

27:37 Adaptability Wins

29:33 Resilience Origins

30:49 Compassion Fatigue Tools

32:53 Creativity Builds Resilience

35:21 Detaching From Outcomes

38:04 Nature And Regulation

41:21 Sound Baths And Safety

44:03 Creative Needs Framework

45:57 Community And Risk Taking

49:13 Where To Find Peter

51:07 Final Reflections

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

Here’s Peter’s website: https://graybearpublications.com/

Get the free download on resilience from Peter: https://graybearcoaching.com/11-paths-to-personal-resilience-3/

ABOUT MICHAEL:

He has published 12 sci-fi novels, helped authors make $1 million+/year in memberships, and even worked on the Strategy Team for MrBeast.

ABOUT CREATORWOOD:

Creatorwood is the home for storytellers to turn their writing into films, discover new viewers, and run a film business.

The Movie Machine by Creatorwood integrates with the top AI video, image, audio, and storytelling models to help transform your writing into immersive worlds, incredible characters, and gripping films with significantly less time and cost.

Creatorwood also makes it easy to make money from your films inside our Streaming Platform. Specifically, Creatorwood allows you to upload your episodes, set them as free or paid (any price you’d like). Creators keep 80% of the revenue they earn on Creatorwood, and we pay out to creators in 130+ countries and accept payments from viewers globally.

You can join Creatorwood here: https://creatorwood.tv/

An introduction to the five core rules of AI filmmaking — embracing randomness, experimenting often, maintaining consistency through start frames, working with the technology rather than against it, and letting post-production work its magic.

Join the beta of the Creatorwood platform: https://make.creatorwood.tv/ Read the Creatorwood book, all about building a movie business with AI, for free: https://www.blog.creatorwood.tv/subscribe Join the Creatorwood Discord: https://discord.gg/tTmWv23C9q Join the Six-Figure Film Accelerator: https://learn.creatorwood.tv/

EPISODES CHAPTER:

00:00 Five Rules Overview 00:51 Rule One Embrace Randomness 01:24 Rule Two Experiment Often 02:09 Rule Three Build Consistency 03:01 Start Frames And Control 04:23 Rule Four Work With Tech 05:44 Rule Five Post Is Magic 06:40 Movie Machine And Future 07:39 Wrap Up And Resources

ABOUT MICHAEL: He has published 12 sci-fi novels, helped authors make $1 million+/year in memberships, and even worked on the Strategy Team for MrBeast. ABOUT CREATORWOOD: Creatorwood is the home for storytellers to turn their writing into films, discover new viewers, and run a film business. The Movie Machine by Creatorwood integrates with the top AI video, image, audio, and storytelling models to help transform your writing into immersive worlds, incredible characters, and gripping films with significantly less time and cost. Creatorwood also makes it easy to make money from your films inside our Streaming Platform. Specifically, Creatorwood allows you to upload your episodes, set them as free or paid (any price you’d like). Creators keep 80% of the revenue they earn on Creatorwood, and we pay out to creators in 130+ countries and accept payments from viewers globally. You can join Creatorwood here: https://creatorwood.tv/

Go behind the scenes of the AI short film Saturn’s Rings with director Mia Salsi as she reveals how the entire film was created using the Movie Machine for just $600.

Watch Saturn’s Rings here: https://youtu.be/NZqkz6Trylg?si=P5fpeBh_C_49kyIO

Join the Creatorwood Discord: https://discord.gg/tTmWv23C9q

Join the beta of the Creatorwood platform: https://creatorwood.tv/

Read the Creatorwood book, all about building a movie business with AI, for free: https://www.blog.creatorwood.tv/subscribe

Join the Six-Figure Film Accelerator: https://learn.creatorwood.tv/

EPISODE CHAPTERS: 00:00 Meet the Director: Breaking Down the AI Short “Saturn’s Rings” 00:46 Project Budget Reveal: Coins, Costs, and Where the Money Went 03:16 Production Timeline: 5–6 Days, 200+ Shots, and the AI Filmmaking Workflow 06:02 Watching the Film: Opening Walkway Shot & Continuity Headaches 10:32 Prompt Troubleshooting: The One-Word Fix (“Left”) and Iteration Strategy 13:41 Sound Design Deep Dive: Drones, SFX Layers, and Editing in DaVinci Resolve 21:33 Action Sequence Breakdown: Music Cues, Pacing, and Audience Emotion 24:00 Hardest VFX Shot: Debris Impact, Model Switching, and Continuity Fixes 31:07 Scene Two Begins: Dialogue, Telemetry, and Shifting the Tone 31:58 Why She’s Crying: The Cut Love Story & Story Intent 33:36 Directing AI Performances: Emotion, Facial Expressions & Future Video-to-Video Acting 36:47 Consistent Character Voices: Using the Juan Dialogue Model (and Current Limitations) 39:21 Green Screen Tricks: Matching Locations & Compositing Corridor Shots 41:49 Blocking & Continuity: Eye Lines, Camera Moves, and the 180° Rule 46:38 Keeping Faces Consistent: Zoom/Angle Pitfalls and the “Do It Backwards” Hack 51:18 Endgame VFX: Prompting Disintegration, Warp Speed, and Iterating on Shots 54:41 Workflow & Takeaways: Start Frames, Frames View, Learning Fast, and Funding Your Film 01:02:10 Crowdfunding + What’s Next: New Films, Community Breakdowns, and Final Thanks ABOUT MICHAEL: He has published 12 sci-fi novels, helped authors make $1 million+/year in memberships, and even worked on the Strategy Team for MrBeast. ABOUT CREATORWOOD: Creatorwood is the home for storytellers to turn their writing into films, discover new viewers, and run a film business. The Movie Machine by Creatorwood integrates with the top AI video, image, audio, and storytelling models to help transform your writing into immersive worlds, incredible characters, and gripping films with significantly less time and cost. Creatorwood also makes it easy to make money from your films inside our Streaming Platform. Specifically, Creatorwood allows you to upload your episodes, set them as free or paid (any price you’d like). Creators keep 80% of the revenue they earn on Creatorwood, and we pay out to creators in 130+ countries and accept payments from viewers globally. You can join Creatorwood here: https://creatorwood.tv/

A deep-dive presentation on viewer retention in AI filmmaking — covering how screen size, viewing context, and story pacing determine whether audiences finish your film, and how to test and validate your story with real viewers before committing to a full production.

Join the beta of the Creatorwood platform: https://make.creatorwood.tv/

Read the Creatorwood book, all about building a movie business with AI, for free: https://www.blog.creatorwood.tv/subscribe

oin the Creatorwood Discord: https://discord.gg/tTmWv23C9q

Join the Six-Figure Film Accelerator: https://learn.creatorwood.tv/

EPISODES CHAPTER

00:00 Storytellers Win Today

00:51 Meet Michael Evans

02:36 Stories Worth Finishing

04:16 Why Viewers Drop Off

08:26 Hook Pace Stakes

10:22 Format And Context

15:42 Quibi And India Lessons

21:41 Test With A Pilot

22:57 Kids Show Case Study

27:19 Distribution Via Parents

32:32 Validate Before You Build

34:05 Community Shoutouts

36:10 Creator Dinners Idea

37:12 Retention Benchmarks

39:54 Retention Drives Profit

42:21 Pilot Over Features

44:03 Netflix Data Lesson

46:34 Retention Point Concept

48:29 AB Test Everything

51:25 Lowering Release Fear

58:49 Training Marketplace Updates

01:00:16 Platform Overview Q&A

01:04:55 Book Club And Wrap

ABOUT MICHAEL:

He has published 12 sci-fi novels, helped authors make $1 million+/year in memberships, and even worked on the Strategy Team for MrBeast.

ABOUT CREATORWOOD: Creatorwood is the home for storytellers to turn their writing into films, discover new viewers, and run a film business.

The Movie Machine by Creatorwood integrates with the top AI video, image, audio, and storytelling models to help transform your writing into immersive worlds, incredible characters, and gripping films with significantly less time and cost. Creatorwood also makes it easy to make money from your films inside our Streaming Platform. Specifically,

Creatorwood allows you to upload your episodes, set them as free or paid (any price you’d like). Creators keep 80% of the revenue they earn on Creatorwood, and we pay out to creators in 130+ countries and accept payments from viewers globally.

You can join Creatorwood here: https://creatorwood.tv/