What happens when a full-time financial services professional, father of three, and history lover decides to chase a dream? You get Peter Gibbons, indie author, Viking saga master, and winner of one of the biggest indie publishing prizes out there.
Peter Gibbons didn’t start out with a book deal or a writing degree. In fact, he started with a full-time job in financial services, three kids, a global pandemic, and a dream.
During lockdown, Peter discovered Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), a service that allowed him to bring his epic Viking tales to readers around the world. What started as early-morning writing sessions and a lot of caffeine quickly turned into a powerful debut, a growing fanbase, and a life-changing win at the Kindle Storyteller Award.
📺 We interviewed Peter live at The Writing Community Chat Show to hear how it all happened.
We spoke about:
His journey from “just trying something” to full-blown author life.
What writing before work taught him about discipline and drive.
His favourite historical characters to write (spoiler: they’re bloody and brilliant)
Why self-publishing with KDP was the best decision he made.
What winning the Kindle Storyteller Award & £20,000 really means for indie authors.
This interview was made possible thanks to Amazon KDP, who proudly sponsor this episode. You can watch the video version of this interview at the bottom of the page.
Can Your Book Win £20,000 This Year? Enter the Amazon Kindle Storyteller Award NOW!
Exciting news for authors! The Amazon Kindle Storyteller Award 2025 is offering a chance to win £20,000 for those who choose to self publishing with amazon kdp.
This is a great writing contest for any author looking for recognition.
The Amazon Kindle Storyteller Award 2025 is officially OPEN — and it's your chance to get your story seen, read, and rewarded in a huge way.
🔹 Must be written in English and be un-published.
🔹 Any genre, fiction or non-fiction.
🔹 No entry fee – just publish between 1 May – 31 August 2025.
🔹 Must be enrolled in KDP Select.
🔹 Available in both eBook + Print format (min. 24 pages)
🔹 Judged by publishing experts, and 2024 winner, and recent guest JD Kirk!
We’re proud to promote this opportunity as part of a paid partnership, but we genuinely believe in it, it’s exactly the kind of career-changing moment The Writing Community Chat Show CIC exists to support. We're a social enterprise created to help YOU, the author.
We will support you all the way! Read our full article on it here: Substack article: https://open.substack.com/pub/thewccs... 📚
Whether you’re on your debut or your tenth title — this is YOUR moment. Let’s go, storytellers!
👉 ENTER HERE: https://amazon.co.uk/storyteller
👉 Watch our full with Peter Gibbons on YouTube now:
📬 If you enjoyed this, please like, share, and comment, we’ve got many more inspiring stories to come.
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