Business books are made of stories. Where do they come from? Here’s today’s question: Dear Dr. Wobs I am writing a business book and want to supplement my own experiences with relevant business anecdotes. (Google is virtually useless, although maybe I’m just doing it wrong.) Any suggestions? — Jack Finding stories We’re hard-wired to remember…
If you’re fortunate enough to afford a book publicist, the chances of your book succeeding go way up. Publicists are experts at language that persuades reviewers, bloggers, and influencers to write about your book. But I’m convinced that you, and not they, should write the first draft of the marketing copy. Marketing activity for a…
I just read my favorite sales strategy book of all time: The Transparency Sale: How Unexpected Honesty and Understanding the Buying Brain Can Transform Your Results, by Todd Caponi. When it comes to B2B sales strategy, fashions have been shifting for decades. But whether we’re supposed to form relationships, challenge people, sell solutions, or always…
A great business book will be full of magic words that reflect new and crucial concepts. What’s the best way to explain those? Here’s how to make a glossary that works without drowning in jargon. If you’re writing a business book, you’ll inevitably face a difficult problem with language. Some of the unfamiliar words you’ll…
Words make pages, which make books. Behind that simple statement is the rich history of the mechanisms of printing. My personal history is a thread in the the broader history of the methods by which words reach the eyes of the reader — a narrative that came to life for me when I recently visited…
There’s a simple, ironclad chain of logic that tells you everything you need to know about writing a business book. Start with why. Why are you taking on the challenge? It’s going to take a lot of your time and effort. It will require an incredible commitment of creativity and energy. So why bother? The…
I was privileged to work with the authors of an amazing book last year: Data Leverage: Unlocking the Surprising Growth Potential of Data Partnerships, by Christian Ward and James J. Ward. The reason I call this book amazing is that it answers a fundamental question I’d never considered before: What is the value of all…
This is the year! 2019. Are you going to write a book this year? If all you have is burning desire and willpower, you will fail. You need a plan. This is that plan. (While this plan is designed for non-fiction, much of this advice may help fiction writers as well.) Here’s what not to…
I write business books. Every chapter is a 5,000-word package full of stories, detail, statistics, insights, and recommendations. You don’t just sit down and write one of those at random. Here’s what it takes to create one. In the last 10 years I’ve written, cowritten, or ghostwritten six books. Five of them were case-study powered business…