Would you rather be smart or fun? Why not both?
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Would you rather be smart or fun? Why not both?

A small crowd of authors and prospective authors recently connected with me on LinkedIn. Based on their comments, apparently a highly respected publishing industry expert had mentioned me as a qualified nonfiction book expert during a workshop she gave and prompted them to connect with me. That’s very nice, and a gratifying reflection on my…

Why I often say yes — and sometimes no — to people who want to meet with me virtually

Why I often say yes — and sometimes no — to people who want to meet with me virtually

I’m in an unusual situation. I have a lot of accumulated knowledge, especially about books and publishing. I have plenty of work to do, but my time is mostly flexible; I’m not meeting people all day long. And I’m extremely curious about just about everything. This means that if you ask to meet with me,…

Election as gaming; Artificial dumbness; writing as a discipline: Newsletter 16 October 2024
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Election as gaming; Artificial dumbness; writing as a discipline: Newsletter 16 October 2024

Newsletter 66: Why polls captivate us; AI fails at reasoning; the valued discipline of writing, plus three people to follow, three books to read, and a free report on how business books generate revenue and profit. About that presidential horse race Why are we so fascinated with polls? Well, put that aside for a minute….

What I believe

What I believe

I have to continually remind myself that the rest of the world doesn’t operate on the same principles that I do. My principles are so entwined with who I am that I’ve internalized them. It’s “the curse of knowledge” but for business philosophy. So it’s a worthwhile exercise to write them down. My principles Do…

I contributed to book projects that generated over $20 million for their authors. How is that even possible?
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I contributed to book projects that generated over $20 million for their authors. How is that even possible?

The second line in my bio is this: “He has contributed to more than 50 book projects that have generated over $20 million for their authors.” A recent reader of this blog seemed skeptical of whether such a statement could possibly be true. Given all the exaggerated claims out there from people about their supposed…