[00:00:00] Vanessa Barrington: This is the Vanessa Barrington Show. Hello? Hello everyone. Oh my gosh, it has been a hot minute. In fact, it's almost been 12 months since my last episode. And firstly, if you are here, I want to say thank you so much for sticking with me and for hanging out whether you have listened to the podcast in the past.
[00:00:23] You're brand new in 2026. It is so good to be back in your ears, guys. Doing this podcast, to be really honest, is probably one of my most favorite things to do. Being able to just. Flick the mic on and spitball with you guys and share meaningful insights and things that are going on in my world and life that are gonna help you in yours, especially for those of you who are looking the right or publish or sell your books in 2026.
[00:00:46] It just honestly gives me no greater joy. And looking back on 2025, and I make no apologies for this, but I just wanna call out that for me personally, I think one of the main reasons why the podcast needed to take a bit of a sabbatical. Was last year was actually my biggest year of growth in business I and professionally for me last year, you know, everything just really exploded in terms of the book Doula brand and the Healing House publishing brand.
[00:01:16] And for me personally, as, as much as I love doing this podcast, something really did have to give, and sadly it was the podcast, but you guys will be really pleased to know that. This year, I have made a commitment, and I'm sharing it here for accountability with you guys, my listeners, to confirm that in 2026, I am committing to one weekly episode of this podcast no matter what.
[00:01:42] Now, why am I doing this? A, because I love it. I love, I love podcasting. I used to work in radio. Some of you might, may or may not know that. Started my career as a journalist and I love radio. I could talk until the cows come home. I made a living outta telling stories. So for me, being able to be here in your ears is just, yeah, it just lights me up.
[00:02:02] The other thing is that this year I have got, and this is really exciting for me, after supporting literally hundreds of authors and publishing. Many, many books and helping many authors also self-publish their books. 2026 is the year that I finally, finally, finally release my debut memoir, and for me, this is such a massive deal and it's super exciting, but I also know that I really wanna grow my audience this year in the lead up to letting.
[00:02:30] Book, go out into the world and find the people it needs to find. So you are gonna find in the show notes a link to get on the, like get notified of when the book comes out. It's going to be this year. I don't have a date yet, but I will share that in the coming weeks. And. I really wanted to use the platform of podcasting to grow my audience this year.
[00:02:50] So I would love your help and the way that you could help support this. It obviously, it takes a lot of a time and effort, believe it or not, to produce a weekly podcast, and I would be so grateful if you could just take a minute or two of your time if this episode resonates with you, or another episode that you've listened to, resonates with you.
[00:03:11] I would love if you could please take a moment to share it on your socials. You can tag me or share it with a friend that you think would benefit from it. And I, you know, I'm just so grateful for you guys being here and for giving me this time in your ears, whether you're out walking the dog or you're on the beach or you're commuting to work.
[00:03:30] Uh, it's just such an honor and privilege to be able to hold this space for you, and I hope that. This year, my intention is I am gonna give as much value as I possibly can to you guys to help you be able to really tune into your own authentic voice and share your story and connect with the world.
[00:03:48] Because if you are here listening to this podcast, there is something I know about you. And it's that your voice is meant to be heard on a global level, and you have a unique story within you, or stories that are really here to help heal humanity. And my mission is to heal the world through stories. I think that stories are how we connect to each other.
[00:04:08] It's how we build community. And it's how we can collectively make a difference in the world. So if you resonate with that, I'm so glad that you are here and I just can't wait to serve you, to help you get your books and your stories out in the world, whether that is through a published book or it's through some other medium in 2026.
[00:04:26] This episode, I'm gonna say to you guys, whether you are looking to publish a book this year, or you are also working in the creative industries, take note, because this one affects coaches, healers, creatives, artists, anyone that is looking to put any sort of creative content out in the world is gonna benefit from this episode.
[00:04:43] Alright, let's dive in. Hi, I'm Vanessa Barrington, also known as the book doula, founder for Healing House Publishing, psychic Medium, and a woman on a mission to heal the world through stories. If you're a healer, coach, creative, or expert, I help you turn your story into a published book and a global movement that builds authority, impact, and legacy.
[00:05:07] This is not a writing podcast, it's a show where I ex. Explore voice, truth, spirituality, and what it really takes for you to trust yourself and share your story with the people who most need it. This is the Vanessa Barrington Show.
[00:05:25] Okay guys, so here we have a 2026 publishing predictions. What have I got for you guys? So before we dive into the specifics, I've got eight publishing trends. That I think we are really gonna see explode this year. But before we talk about those, I really wanted to like talk a little bit about what's happening at a global consciousness level and whether if you're in business as a creative or a coach or a healer.
[00:05:51] Uh, if you're a high achieving business owner, I think that all of us, um, have noticed that over the last four or five years, a lot has changed globally. And you know, I think people now, more than ever before are really becoming a lot less trustful of. Institutions and governments and systems and are really starting to question things that in the past they would've just automatically assumed were fine.
[00:06:20] And I think we've seen this trend like this decrease in trust of systems globally across the world for quite some time. And really, I, I would say coming into 2026, I would say people are becoming and are going to become even more discerning about who they listen to. Who they accept in their world, who they follow and what information they take as gospel.
[00:06:45] And in fact, I would say very little will be taken as gospel in 2026. I think that our bullshit radar is well and truly finely tuned and that, you know, with the economic as. Instabilities that we're seeing across the globe, the mistrust in the dollar. We won't mention any names, but I think we all know there's some very, very questionable people in very, very powerful roles in different countries.
[00:07:11] And all of that is training people to become more cautious, more intentional, and more emotionally protective, not only of what they consume, but also of um, who, what they believe. And I think when we overlay that with ai. Artificial intelligence and what is happening in that space. I think that as we enter into this, you know, number one year, 20, 26 year, we're gonna see some very interesting kind of things going on.
[00:07:39] If we think about AI, just in the last, you know, let's say three or four years, AI is really accelerating at a pace and rate of change that we have never seen before. Like I don't think, I can't think of myself, not in my lifetime or in any of the industrial revolutions that I've learned about all those years ago, back when I was in high school.
[00:07:59] I don't think we have ever seen the pace and rate of change. Of a particular movement or technology improvement. Like, like ai, AI is moving so fast, AI is moving faster than regulation. Uh, like in terms of how governments regulate the tools, um, that are being created. I think, um, we're gonna see much more focus on that in 2026.
[00:08:21] And to be really honest, I think what we're seeing at the moment is governments and systems and, uh, policy makers are scrambling really to keep up with the changes that are happening with ai. I think that in 2026 we're gonna see a lot of jobs replaced by ai, and I feel like that's really gonna continue through to 2028.
[00:08:40] So I do feel that there is gonna be a lot of loss of jobs. I don't say that to create fear. I say that because I really wanna invite you to consider. Depending on what your like niche is and where you work and, and what your world is. If you are not thinking about how AI may change your area of expertise and you're not thinking about the industry that you are currently in and how that is going to be influenced by AI and what parts of that are going to be automated and replaced by AI and getting, keeping one step ahead of that, um, you're gonna be left behind, especially if you're an entrepreneur.
[00:09:20] I think as well that we are really going to see some very interesting trends in terms of identity with regards to ai. And what I mean by that is I feel like over the last few years on a global consciousness level, what, what I have observed as a psychic medium and felt into 'cause I feel a lot in terms of energies and I know that sounds really odd, but movements of energies and how things are shaping around the world and.
[00:09:47] A lot of, um, people myself included, had, uh, you know, maybe through ancestral lines or Lineage, had psychic mediumship ability their whole life, but that didn't really come online until 2022. And I think, uh, we are going to see a lot more people really returning to their awareness and knowledge and understanding of what they've always known in their life.
[00:10:12] And almost like a, a retraction from AI as a result of that understanding because. One of the incredible things, and also one of the challenging things I think about AI is it is increasingly becoming more difficult for people to be able to comprehend what is reality versus what is ai. And we are seeing that in terms of imagery online.
[00:10:36] We're seeing that in terms of video content online. We're seeing that in, you know, in terms of a whole range of different things, even like with customer service supports and uh, how organizations. Engage with community and customers and all of those sorts of things. And I think with that, there is a lot of people and myself included, that are embracing AI and we have to move with the times.
[00:10:57] But I think there's also gonna be this kind of, almost like a, an aversion that is also gonna like, you know, if you imagine like a rubber band pulling back and then it goes to flick, it's almost like a revert, uh, like people reverting back to before ai, I am really leaning much more into frequency energy.
[00:11:15] Their own understanding because we have a different level of awareness. We are, I think, more than ever on a global scale, people are much more open now to understanding that possibly we aren't alone. And you know that there is a four D, there's a five D reality and, and you know, there could be 12 dimensions that we're not aware of yet.
[00:11:37] And. Could there be other civilizations, I suppose, and other entities and other planets and all of those sorts of things like we, I just think there is a much greater openness and understanding of all of those possibilities. And with that there is going to be a lot more discernment and mistrust of things that are inauthentic, things that are not, that are constructed without the right energetic frequency and basing, if that makes sense.
[00:12:06] I think the other really important global context thing to call out here is that, you know, attention is very fragmented and. Attention is really currency. I think over the last few years our content has been currency and information has been a currency, but with ai. That like having not, you know, the old saying like, knowledge is power, knowledge is no longer power, knowledge is the baseline.
[00:12:32] Everyone has access to knowledge. We have had it for years with like the likes of Google, with ai, that knowledge is now becoming, uh, even more accessible and questionable as well in terms of accuracy. What the currency is going is really going to become is attention, and I think our attention is becoming much more fragmented and people are becoming quite exhausted by the constant noise in our daily life with social media.
[00:13:01] And with, um, you know, how we live our lives in terms of our phones and all of those things. And so I do feel that in 2026 being a new beginning year and being even just like with the shift that we've got going on astrologically at the moment, I think there's going to be. A real return to grassroots in a lot of ways.
[00:13:23] And I think there's a collective craving for authenticity, for coherence, and for meaning and for something real. And so what I mean by that is, you know. What's gonna become so much more important in 2026 is not just what you say, um, or how you grab people's attention. It's also gonna be a lot about is you, the energetic being of you, the soul of you in the same alignment of the content that you put out or the books that you're writing, and are you in the same frequency and are you in coherence?
[00:13:58] Like are your behaviors and actions and habits in coherence with what it is that you say you stand for? And so I think there's gonna be a lot greater scrutiny on brands and on personal brand businesses I'm talking about particularly, which includes authors and artists and creatives. I think there's gonna be a lot more scrutiny on that, more so even than we've had in the last few years.
[00:14:20] And I think people are really gonna be chasing. Like reality, they're gonna wanna know, are you real? Are you really who you say you are? And that trend that we've seen of curated content and you know, everything being really polished, we've seen for the last few years that people have been leaning much, much more into authenticity.
[00:14:38] People are much more interested in, you know, are you say. Are you who you really say you are? And can we see that behind the scenes version of you on the likes of social media and all of that? I think we're gonna see that at an even greater level of scrutiny. So people wanting you to go much deeper than that.
[00:14:56] So like for example, if we think about a few years ago, like crying on Instagram, people like everyone was bloody crying on Instagram. That's just not gonna cut the mustard these days. Like there's got really going to have to be. A greater awareness for personal brand businesses. Are you who you say you are?
[00:15:12] Do you have the results to prove it? And are those results really the align, like in alignment with the kind of brand or person that I wanna be associated with? And that's where I think we're gonna see consumers making decisions based on those kinds of things. And I'm just speaking like generally here, I think as well that people are gonna value depth over.
[00:15:33] Quantity in 2026. And what I mean by that is I feel like we're gonna have like a little bit of a slowdown in some ways in terms of how we consume information. And people are going to return a lot more to like wanting longer form content, wanting more authentic in-person experiences, uh, fewer voices that are really, truly trusted.
[00:15:54] And those that really are aligned and have that coherence and frequency are the ones that are really gonna. Come forward and expand, uh, in terms of their audience and their platform and all of those sorts of things. I think over the last five years, particularly, and thinking about this as someone who is an online personal brand business and a course creator and all of those things, I think that, you know, just thinking about my little neck of the woods and, and the world that I operate in.
[00:16:22] I have heard and had so many stories of people that have been screwed over by things they bought online that weren't delivered to the standard they expected, and you know, all that kind of stuff. And I think people are just being a lot more discerning as well this year in terms of where they spend their money and how they choose to invest.
[00:16:40] I think that we are gonna see a lot of abundance this year, and I think there's huge opportunities. You know, if I think about last year as well, like the financial growth my business had was exponential, and I expect the same this year, and I think for a lot of businesses there's huge opportunities there.
[00:16:55] However, I think that also, like personal brand businesses need to be really aware that people are going to be a lot more discerning about their consumer behavior and they will be spending, but they will be spending on things that truly align with what matters to them. And I think that we'll also see a real retraction in terms of fast, what I would call like kind of disposable consumer spending.
[00:17:18] So yeah, that's, that's some of the like macro trends that I think that are kind of gonna influence a lot of the staff. And I wanted to talk about those first before I went into my 2026 publishing predictions, because I feel like all of those things are really relevant to all of us, especially for those of you that also run a business online.
[00:17:36] Let's talk about publishing predictions for 2026. So my first prediction for 2026 is that books are no longer gonna be seen as products. They're really gonna be seen as a credibility anchor. And to be really honest, this isn't necessarily a new thing, but I think that we are just going to see the dial turned up on this in a big way this year.
[00:17:59] As I mentioned before, I think. Before the age of AI con, like knowledge was really seen as power. But in this day and age where anyone can pump out a crappy book using Chatty GI think that where, where authors are going to, and leaders really that are looking to release a book and build a personal brand business or leverage a book to get on stages and go global and all of that sort of stuff.
[00:18:25] People are really going to be connecting with those that are creating a movement. So like not just. Putting a book out into the world, I think a book is no longer be gonna be seen as a product. It's really a credibility anchor, and I think we're gonna see this like just generally with everything, because in the past we've really connected with companies and with brands, and with that loss of trust that we're seeing in institutions, it's gonna be so much more about the person behind the brand than it ever has been before.
[00:18:57] And. The decisions we make as a consumer of like whether we buy things or not is gonna really depend on do we like that person? Do we really align with them? Do we agree with their ethics and morals? Like I think we're gonna see decision making on a much greater level like that this year, like on a level we've never seen before.
[00:19:16] And those people that are really tuned into that and are, and are genuinely here to help others and are genuine about. What they're creating with their books and have put in the time and effort and, and really genuinely wanna help other people or inspire other people or move other people with their words through the format of a book.
[00:19:36] They're gonna see the results and really, we know and have known for a long time that a book. Really helps create a global brand. It can. It has the opportunity when done well to create a movement on another level. However, it's an intangible return on investment Publishing a book is not always directly, okay, I published the book and I'm gonna make x, y, Z money.
[00:19:58] Like you get the return in terms of your royalties, but really. The biggest benefits of a book is it differentiates those from like of who's just, who is just an expert in their field and those who are actually a global leader in their field. And I think that's where the concept of the book is going for business owners and for those that are looking to write books this year.
[00:20:18] The second prediction that I have is, I think that we, and I've kind of touched on this before, is I think we're gonna have a real return to long form thinking and long form content. And I feel that the reason people are gonna want to go back to long form content and long form thinking and depth over like quantity is really that.
[00:20:41] Antidote to the cognitive overload that we have from all the constant information, the 24 7 news cycles, the, you know, all of that, that continued demand for long form content I think is really gonna continue this year. We've already seen that, uh, in the global market over the last couple of years, particularly with the number of books that are now being, um, translated into TV series and movies.
[00:21:05] And this is all really great news for authors because I think now more than ever before. With so many people consuming, uh, stories through video, long form content platforms such as your Netflix and your stands and your Paramount and all of that. Those streaming services only exist through the creation of long form content.
[00:21:27] And so I think we're gonna see a much greater demand for great writing, and we're gonna see a much greater demand and a much greater opportunity for writers to be publishing books that then go on to be. Created into movies or TV series. I think we're, we're gonna see more of that. That trend has already started and I think it's only gonna continue in 2026.
[00:21:47] Piggybacking off that, I also think that, you know, authors are gonna be more closely collaborating. With those creative industries as well. So we're gonna see authors playing a much more active role in those creative industries and really elevating the author status. I guess if we think about movie production, for example, and, um, other industries like.
[00:22:12] It's never really about the writers of those, uh, stories, very rarely, but I think that as more books kind of hit the streaming market and are converted, I think we are gonna see authors from a personal brand perspective elevate a little bit more, and those that are. Able to navigate that space and are able to create stories that really, really tap into the hearts and minds of their audience are going to step into that elevated status and need to then obviously navigate those whole range of new problems because we know like.
[00:22:48] Generally speaking, authors kind of hang out. They're not really, you know, usually on the center stage and navigating all of that sort of stuff. So I think that's gonna be a really important skill for authors to be able to kind of work with other creative industries as more content comes into the streaming space.
[00:23:06] My third prediction is that I really do feel that we will continue to see growth in the nonfiction space. And I think over the last couple of years particularly, you know, nonfiction is an area that you know, always consistently does well, where there's a personal brand attached to the author. And in the last year or so, two years, we've seen a huge explosion of romantic and fantasy books and fanfic and that whole space is like its own kind of kettle of fish.
[00:23:37] But I wanna talk particularly about memoir and nonfiction, 'cause that's kind of my wheelhouse. I think that the books that are written in nonfiction that will do well in 2026 and beyond will really be anchored into. There'll be movement led rather than topic led. So if we think about, uh, I'm thinking about a really big one, but I don't wanna talk about it 'cause it's kind of controversial.
[00:24:01] But I'm thinking of the let the, let Them theory. And the reason it's controversial is 'cause there's been questions around where the original content for that book was. Like originated from, but I don't really want to go into all of that. But if I think about, uh, the movement that that book has created and the conversations that that book has created, love it or Hate it, that is a really good example.
[00:24:23] Uh, and release last year of a book that is movement led. Not just topic led. Okay. And so more of that I think is really what's gonna do well in 2026. My fourth prediction is I think there is going, and this is really, you know, anchors into the ethos that I have as a publisher with Healing House Publishing.
[00:24:43] You know, I think that there is going to need to be a much greater transparency and focus on. The publishing industry generally what I have always, if I can be so bold to say what I've always hated about this industry, um, even though I love it and I love being a part of it, is that it's so shroud in secrecy.
[00:25:04] And I think, um, that is just unacceptable for creatives because first and foremost, I am a creative myself more than I am a book doer, more than I'm a publisher and. I think that, um, you know, for too long there has been. A lot of misinformation, a lot of secrecy, a lot of really shitty behavior to be frank in the publishing industry.
[00:25:30] And I just, I don't think that that is going to continue to wash. I think in the last three years we've already seen that authors are really sick and tired of feeling screwed over not not being supported effectively. Um, I think that there's a lot of romanticizing that comes. With publishing a book that a lot of authors kind of are looking for the old days where the publisher would organize the PR tour and the book launch and you know, all of those things and the industry's changed like that, that just does not happen anymore.
[00:26:01] Very rarely. And um, you know, with the. Increase with AI and with different software tools available to authors. I think that we're gonna see a lot stronger pull towards self-publishing and it's kind of linked to the loss of industries. You know, I think we'll see a lot of hybrid publishers die that kind of popped up and have not.
[00:26:26] Um, being able to deliver in terms of ethics and transparency and trust and reputationally, so they have not built a reputable brand and being known for, um, being ethical. I think we're gonna see a lot of those small indie publishers die. I think that, um, we're also gonna see a lot more authors continuing to reject the traditional route in term, like in terms of, you know, going with your larger publishers because they're gonna want great, greater creative control and they're also gonna want more royalties and more transparency over royalties and the financial returns than they've had before.
[00:27:06] I think, um, to that end, my fifth. Prediction, and this is really why Healing House Publishing, why my business decided to do the model that it is doing. I think that this year, um, and beyond, we are gonna see authors wanting greater control over distribution channels. The way the old way of working for publishing is that we needed distributors to distribute books to bookstores, and I think we are already starting to see increasingly publishing houses handle distribution and cut out that DISTRI distributor line.
[00:27:41] The unfortunate thing is a lot of those publishers that are doing that are not passing on that 30, 40% of savings that they're having by bringing the warehousing in. They're not passing that on to authors. And I think that we are gonna see, uh, greater scrutiny from authors around them wanting, uh, to ensure that they're not.
[00:28:02] Like carving out sections of their hardened work in terms of a royalty payment for a service that's not actually really giving them much at all. So to that end, I think we'll see a lot of publishers bring distribution back in house. I think distributors will eventually die in the publishing industry.
[00:28:20] It's kind of like another part of the wheel that. Takes 30, 40% of, uh, the margins and I just don't think it's going to, uh, be sustainable. I think we'll see publishers building greater relationships direct with bookstores and I think as everything is, you know, so online, and we're seeing that with purchasing behaviors.
[00:28:41] Bookstores will be looking at how they can create more elevated in-person experiences to be able to entice consumers back into bookstores and really nurturing that local community element as opposed to just relying like, I'm a, I'm a bookstore, so of course people are gonna shop here because we are seeing a much greater demand for online purchasing than we have in the past.
[00:29:06] Um, the other thing that I wanted to share in terms of publishing predictions, and I think this really goes for every creative industry to be honest, um, but I think those authors that are social media driven. Like as in they are really investing in building a community and showing up on social media.
[00:29:30] We'll continue to outperform traditional visibility pathways like we've already seen this with the book Talk. Community in the last few years and how now book sellers, um, and even publishers to some extent are making decisions about like, acquisition of titles or stocking books based on book talk, uh, statistics.
[00:29:54] I think that's only gonna continue. And I know that that is painful for a lot of, uh, creatives and authors and you know, I think that's why my focus this year is, and it always has been, to be honest, is really helping authors know that like, you don't have to build. An audience just on social media, like you can actually call in your readers and you can find a platform that works for you.
[00:30:22] It does not always have to be TikTok or like, I hate TikTok, for example. Um, or Instagram or LinkedIn or Facebook or whatever. But if you are not thinking about how you're gonna build a personal brand. In 2026 and you're not seriously like doing something that you love in that, like I know that it can feel really uncomfortable for writers to be front and center in terms of putting themselves out there.
[00:30:49] That's okay. It doesn't have to be that, but if you are not present online in some capacity and thinking about how you can. Be more visible online, whether that's through social media or substack or whatever. I think that you're gonna struggle this year. So I think that's definitely something that people should be thinking more about and it's gotta feel good for you.
[00:31:12] And you know, that's why I teach what I teach as well. If you're not choosing a platform, if you're not showing up in a way that's authentic to you and really connecting with your soul brand essence and what your, like what is the through line to everything that you create and write. If you're not connected to that frequency, people are gonna feel it in terms of your social.
[00:31:32] So I think that's gonna become really important. So my sixth prediction is that audio books I think are gonna continue to explode this year. There's a few different reasons for that. Funnily enough, I'm pretty sure in Australia we have like the highest per capita of audio book listeners and podcast listeners that like in the world.
[00:31:53] That was a few years ago. I don't know if that statistic is still correct, but I think that audio books are gonna continue to be a big area of the market and a much more growing section of the market, particularly as people seek more avenues to dive into books without having to actually sit down and read a book because.
[00:32:11] As consumers, our attention span is reducing so much, but also we are increasingly becoming more, uh. Naturally inclined to multitask, rightly or wrongly. Not saying I agree with it, but just saying that I think that audio books are gonna continue to be a big area of growth this year. So if you're not thinking about an audio book as part of your strategy as an author, uh, that's definitely an area you should be thinking about.
[00:32:37] Um, I've got two more publishing predictions for you, and honestly, these two are going to be. Game changers. I think if you can apply them. So the first one, I think if we think about the next generations to come, and I know many of you that listen to this podcast are also parents. I think that we are going to see a very conscious effort in terms of parenting with the advent of so much.
[00:33:04] Increased connectivity and you know, devices and socials and all of those things. Overlaid with the fact that certainly here in Australia we're seeing more legislative measures in place to protect kids and their childhood and trying to keep them off devices longer and all of that sort of stuff. I think we're gonna see parents really making some pretty bold decisions to return.
[00:33:29] Childhoods to kids and really looking at how they can encourage their kids to read more. With that, I think we'll see a greater demand in the children's book market, but specifically with children's books. I would say children's books that are suitable for kids, but also really connect with adults. And you know, we see adults that love the children's book and therefore want to bring it into their child's life.
[00:33:54] So kind of sharing their own childhood stories like. For example, a classic one that I'm thinking about. The magic far away tree, so I'm pretty sure that comes out. It might be this year or next year on film or streaming. I can't remember, remember which. And so this is like a classic story from my own childhood, right?
[00:34:15] And so I think we are gonna see a lot of parents of a certain age, like really reconnecting back to those childhood stories like we saw last year with The Wizard of Oz, for example. We're gonna see more of that continue this year. And finally the, the final publishing prediction that I have for this year is that I think we are going to see much more scrutiny around AI usage of creative, um, works.
[00:34:44] So last year, this has been a really controversial one in the industry in terms of ai, uh, stealing. Uh, creative work, stealing books, you, uh, books being fed into large language models like chat, GPT for example, to be able to train those models, to write books and do all of those things. I think that we will see, um, and it will take a little bit, but I feel like in the next six months we will start to see legislative measures.
[00:35:15] Put in place for how royalties get handled and how licensing works in an AI connected world. I think that that overlaid also with this trend I was sharing earlier in this conversation about people almost retracting from ai. You know, I think. Everyone's kind of jumped in and been using ai, but I think like people are starting to realize like AI is not all, you know, and there's, there are definitely, you know, the people that are going to do well in 2026.
[00:35:52] Aren't using AI for knowledge. It's like that's the baseline. That's where everyone is. It's the people that are focused on building a movement and building a brand and also being super discerning about and transparent about where they're using AI and where they're not. Um, and I think we'll see that combined with greater licensing controls around AI and how ai.
[00:36:16] Is using artists and creative works, uh, in 2026. So there you have it. That is my publishing predictions for 2026. Now, let's just sum up a couple of themes here because I wanted to make sure. That these do not get missed. Okay. So we have talked about a whole bunch of different things about the global kind of market and the context in which we find ourselves as creatives and as business owners in 2026.
[00:36:48] And I've also talked about the publishing path, like my publishing predictions and where I think the publishing pathways are gonna go. There are some through lines with all of this and some distinctions that I really wanna bring to the forefront for you as you go into your planning for 2026 and thinking about what can you do, whether it's as an expert, a coach, a creative, a healer, to really make yourself shine in 2026 and allow others to see all your beauty and everything that you have to offer the world.
[00:37:20] Number one, authenticity. Okay? This is no longer optional. This is the baseline, okay? So if people feel misalignment. They are going to disengage very quietly, but coherence in terms of your values, what you say and how you behave is going to matter more deeply today than it ever has before. So I really want you to be thinking about your frequency and fortifying your frequency in terms of how you show up.
[00:37:50] Number two. The other really big theme here that I wanna pull out, the distinction is around personal brand, personal brands. And I've said this for like 10 years. This is my 10th year in business. I've been saying this for 10 years, and I feel like the reality is finally catching up with what I have been banging on about for a long time.
[00:38:08] People don't do business with brands, people do business with other people. Personal brands are going to outperform faceless businesses in 2026. People want to do business with humans that they trust. So your presence, your values, and your lived experiences are gonna matter more than you being polished.
[00:38:29] If you, um, if you are not being visible, and that doesn't mean oversharing, you are not going to succeed in 2026. The next, uh, really big theme here is AI and differentiation. Okay? AI is going to take jobs for sure, okay? If you are not thinking about how the transformational elements of AI are going to affect your industry and what you are doing in 2026, then you are already behind the out eight ball, okay?
[00:38:59] So. Stop using AI to create all of your content. Stop using AI as your coach, okay? Make sure that you are making decisions based on your own energy, your own frequency. Use it as a tool to support you. AI is not here to replace you, okay? And if you are making every single decision in your life based on an AI tool, you've got a problem, okay?
[00:39:23] And you really need to start thinking about that. I think a lot of people have jumped on AI and they're also gonna retractably pull back from ai. So make sure that your frequency, your energy, your magic is included in everything that you do. The other thing as well, we didn't really touch on this too much, but I think in-person experiences are gonna be really, really big this year as well.
[00:39:44] I think with AI saturation and just also everything kind of being online, I think that humans are gonna really crave in-person events, stages, retreats, activations in terms of retail as well is gonna continue to rise and people really will crave those in person and those kinds of experiences. That allow them to feel witnessed and felt and regulated together.
[00:40:10] So while digital is convenient, I think the human element is so nourishing and I think we'll see a real swing back towards that space. And more than anything, you know, in terms of your social, whether it's social media or how you're building your brand and all of that community, and I know this sounds cliche, but it's so true.
[00:40:29] Community is gonna be more important than ever before. Okay. Your primary relationship layer can be on any platform, whether it's substack, social media, whatever. Make sure it's something that feels authentic to you, and also understand that being authentic is really going to be key with all of that. So I hope that you have found this conversation helpful.
[00:40:54] I hope that as you start 2026, that you will take a moment just to think about how can you consider some of these changes that are happening in the market and in the industry, and how you can then weave that into your strategy about how you wanna call in your community and create a movement in 2026.
[00:41:13] And finally, I want to just say to you. That if you are someone that I in 2026 is really serious about building a global brand and putting yourself out there, and finally finishing that book, I want you to head over to Instagram book doula au. Come and say, good day. Hang out in my dms. Drop me a voice note.
[00:41:39] I would love to hear what resonated from this episode for you and where you're at in terms of your own author journey. I hope you have a beautiful year ahead, and I will see you back in your ears. Next week. See you guys. Bye.
