Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
LOVED this book. I must have stopped listening (to the audiobook) a dozen times to act on new ideas and epiphanies I was having. To me, that’s always the test of a great business book–how many times does it stimulate great ideas that I feel compelled enough by to stop and act on them before continuing. This is a book I’ll probably listen to again.


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I’m announcing it here.  I’m saying it now.  While commercial publishing will continue to work for mainstream authors, celebrities, and political figures with built in audiences, gone are the days of the new author being “discovered”.  Commercial publishers are spending less and less on new risks and pouring more and more into established platforms and celebrity writers, hoping they can put off their eventual demise a few more years. The reality is that, like the music industry, all of the rules are changing. With so many artists navigating their own way and building their own audiences, while maintaining the rights to their work, the old way of doing business will never return.  Now is the age of the artist who is willing to invest in the business of their brand. It takes longer to build your own audience, but the rewards are immense.  No longer do you have to share 90% of your profits with a distributor.  No longer do you have to rely on them to market your work.  In fact, if you do, Read the rest of this entry »

Treat Writing Like a Job

“When I get a minute”; “When I put the kids to bed”; “Any chance I get”; “When I’m on vacation”; “A couple times a week.” Sound familiar? These vague promises to write are the roadblocks to your success. No matter how crazy your schedule is, block out two to four consistent times each week that you will spend writing. Only writing. Maybe the house is pretty quiet from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturdays. Take those times, and stick with them like your job depends on it! (Because it does.)

Know Your Story—and Your Characters

Let’s say you’re building a new house. Would you hire a contractor who wanted to just “jump right in” and start construction without first researching the property, creating blueprints, and laying the foundation? Probably not. The same should be true of your writing. Many new writers are so caught up in their ideas that they want to immediately dive into the story, get to the exciting scenes, and start sending those pages out to family and friends at best, agents and publishers at worst. Bad move. Your first couple of months should focus on Read the rest of this entry »

It may seem like a small point, but before you sit down to record the events of your life, you should know: Are you writing a memoir or an autobiography?

In casual conversation, most people use the terms interchangeably. After all, both memoirs and autobiographies are written by you and about you—so how big a difference can there be? And what does it matter? Interestingly, knowing the correct term for what you’re doing can help you define your work, giving you an immediate advantage over the thousands of people who want to share their life stories with the world.

An autobiography Read the rest of this entry »

Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I enjoyed this. Had I read it closer to its release date, I think I would have found it more profound, however, I did pull some good ideas from it and have a blog coming out in the next couple of days that was inspired by the book. I do like how easily understood Godin makes the concept.


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Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I definitely enjoyed this and took away at least two actionable ideas that I have already implemented. Worth the read for sure!


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The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream by Barack Obama

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a perfect extension of Dreams From My Father. His first book painted the picture of who he was. Audacity of Hope was then a logical extension of Barack Obama’s philosophies. Poignant, honest, impressive.


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