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Reader,Apparently y’all didn’t hate last week’s rant. I’ve never heard from so many readers in one week – thank you! I loved every response I got. Based on what I’m personally seeing in the industry, I’m thinking of ranting about whether AI will kill books or not in an upcoming newsletter. Let me know if you’d like that? 3 Secrets1. What AI doesn’t do well (and can’t replace) Stories to teach. Think about a recent memory of yours. Was it something dull and mundane? Or was there something…

Reader, I’m currently on a flight from San Diego, CA to Leesburg, VA to celebrate my adorable niece’s one-year birthday. Happy birthday Elouise 🙂 I just woke up from a quick nap…. (don’t tell my team as I told them I’d be working the whole flight but there’s something about an airplane seat that puts me out before we’re even in the sky) and for some reason the following (hopefully useful) rant popped into my head which I’m going to share with you now. It’s a rant the summarizes the most…

Reader, Today, we’re focusing on the relationship side of being an author. 3 Secrets 1. The Giving Hour The two biggest sales days for Before The Bestseller (so far) came from 2 book marketing influencers endorsing my book in their newsletters (Ricardo Fayet, and Dave Chesson). 300 sales in one day. $0 in ad spend, $0 admin fees paid, $0 in any type of payment to either of them… In fact I made money that day. Yes, no money was exchanged to make it happen… It was paid for with 5 years of…

Reader, Any other serious Catan players out there? A quick shot of how I spent my Saturday with my good friends Kate and Jonathan. 3 Secrets1. Let’s get real about Editorial Reviews For those that are newer to the publishing world, here’s a secret (is it really a secret?): most editorial reviews are written by the author of the book being reviewed. We don’t have to pretend that’s not what’s happening. An author reaches out to a notable friend or colleague and asks for a review. The bigger the…

Reader, “Did you know your book is a favorite in the Marine Corps?” Steven Pressfield had no idea until a friend told him. How did he do it? Steven says it was luck. I say it was the 27 years he spent writing and perfecting his craft before his first hit, The Legend of Bagger Vance, was discovered. Steven gives us a lot of marketing tips, but after our interview it became VERY clear that Steven spent so much time becoming a great writer that it’s really his books that sell themselves. 3…

Reader, Last week, we had Eric Ries of The Lean Startup (2,000,000+ copies sold), on Before The Bestseller. He thinks of book marketing like a startup. 3 Secrets1. Kickstarter can benefit you in more ways than one. Eric’s kickstarter was record breaking. That was over a decade ago. Is kickstarter dead? This author doesn’t think so. If your book is a movement and you have a strong network, Kickstarter is the way to go. Interview with Jayson Gaignard out in September but here are a few notes to…

Reader, The Strathdee cheering squad watching my dad win Gold at the Maryland Pickleball Senior Olympics this weekend. Dad, me, mom, sister and my new niece Eloise 🙂 3 Secrets1. Get mentioned in other people’s books A sneaky way to get a trusted source to recommend your book. What better way to convince a reader your book is worth it than a recommendation from an author they already trust? In fact this is the #1 way I build my bookshelf. This takes time, someone has to read your book, then…

Reader, Thank you for the awesome discussions that came from last week’s newsletter. I want to highlight 2, one on each side of the fence. If you want to catch up on last week’s monologue on how books are now video games you can do so here. Jeremey Madsen is the Operations Manager for BK publishers: My thoughts on your opening question: Responses from an AI chatbot are very different from those of an interactive video game Authors could try making their own custom chatbot, trained on their…

Reader, Today, a question for you: We’ve already begun to see the sales of some books drop off as a result of how people learn about a topic. Prescriptive how-to is losing traction as people can instead get customized instructions on how to do anything (based on our own sales data for how-to books). Why buy a book on composting IF your AI-of-choice can simply walk you through applying knowledge to YOUR specific situation? On the other hand, maybe there’s an opportunity for authors in the…

Reader, Tell everyone about your book and your vision for it! Dr. Shefali, author of The Conscious Parent, constantly told people that Oprah needed to hear about her book. Eventually, someone she spoke to had a connection, leading to a Super Soul Sunday appearance. Consistently sharing your vision creates unexpected opportunities through extended networks. 3 Secrets1. Focus on word-of-mouth marketing by creating transformative content readers feel compelled to share Books that genuinely solve…

Reader, We fear what we do not know. And for those of us with OCD (the uncertainty disease), the fear is more like terror 🙂 No one knows the future… but here’s my attempt at simply explaining a few of the potential paths we take from here based on the “AI camp” you’re in. Knowledge = power, and those who understand the paths from here (and are willing to change) will have a much higher chance of thriving in this new “scary” AI world. Again, I’m a bogan (look it up) from a sugar-cane farm…

Reader, BUT I’m not 🙂 Anyone else optimistically terrified about where this is all heading? 3 Secrets1. Your podcast just became extremely valuable to you To date, we’ve released 180 episodes of Before The Bestseller. That’s 180 treasure troves of data. All those podcasts transcribed (cost us around $60). “What are the most common ways authors see success?” “Pull every little method or tip related to getting on big podcasts into a PDF” Before, I had to personally take notes during each…