The Paper Rats deconstruct some common writer stereotypes. About: Authors  R.J. Keller and Kristen J. Tsetsi like to make videos when they should be writing. Their show is called “Inside The Writers’ Studio.” They are Paper Rats.

People are impressed with anyone who has completed the task of writing a whole book. There are thousands, if not millions, of people who have sat down to a keyboard to start writing a book but never finished it. Those who do go the distance make a commitment that goes beyond the first writing session.

Yes…it’s finally here! Inside The Writers’ Studio Episode IV, “Self-Promotion FAIL” with special guest star Caroline Leavitt. (And if you want to post it on your own blogs or Facebook accounts, or Tweet it, we will surely not complain.) Three authors illustrate why maybe – just maybe – self-promotion doesn’t always work.

Life is short, and the business of self-publishing, while completely joyful, can also make you want to stab yourself in the throat – but in the end, what’s most important is to remember why we write. Or rather, why we don’t.

Non-blooper version here.

The American Psychological Association estimates that each year thousands of writers suffer from delusions of inflated worth, knowledge, and identity. In our latest episode of “Inside The Writers’ Studio,” we visit one such author, R.J. Keller, as she is interviewed by a hair-obsessed reporter.

“Inside the Writers Studio” is a video blog series created by R.J. Keller and me. You can find “Inside the Writers Studio” (a PaperRats production) on its YouTube page, be a friend on Facebook, and/or follow on Twitter. Watch the first episode, “Raving Reviews” (or, “How Writers REALLY React to Negative Reviews”):