For those of you who celebrated yesterday, today might be a day for nursing a sated belly, enjoying leftovers, and picking up parcels from outlying acquaintances. It’s also the perfect context for reflecting on my favorite stories of the year. Here, while you look for something light to mix into your post-celebration haze, is the first of three interconnected stories that brought me joy this year. Stay tuned for the other two next time.

This week on the Self-Publishing with ALLi podcast, Campaigns Manager Matty Dalrymple talks with USA Today bestselling mystery thriller author Pamela Fagan Hutchins. Pamela shares strategies for structuring novels to meet reader expectations, including the importance of a strong midpoint to maintain engagement. She discusses how indie authors can leverage flexibility to adjust content based on reader feedback, connect directly with fans, and plan future books in a series while balancing continuity and adaptability.

It’s the time of year when new news starts to dry up, especially in an industry like ours that shifts focus to best-of lists, stocking fillers, and resolutions. However, the ever-present shadow of AI remains, this time with significant developments in AI narration. A few days ago, the audiobook industry introduced new guidelines to label AI-narrated audiobooks, following similar steps taken by the advertising and food industries to provide greater transparency to consumers.