AI for skeptics
What does AI really “know?” Skepticism and truth The principles for searching out truth have not changed because of AI: AI plain-English prompts and AI-generated responses are easy to consume. Don’t swallow them whole.
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The cost of free advice
I give out a lot of free advice. Somebody thinks they might want to write a book. Or their boss does. So they contact me and we discuss how the book business works, and how it might work for them. What’s your objective? Who is your audience? What is your idea? How does ghostwriting work?…
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How to choose wisely from a menu of 100 book promotion tactics
What’s the best way to promote a nonfiction book? It seems like every expert I talk to has a different take on this. I asked ChatGPT. The list it came up with is, frankly, a reasonably good survey of everything you, as an author, might consider, including 100 different tactics. Platform & audience building Content…
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Network of trust; corporate BS corrupts; healthcare fix: Newsletter 29 April 2026
Newsletter 150. Why my list of trusted partners is so small. Plus, an ethically developed AI tool, Tulsi Gabbard’s password, three people to follow, three books to read, and one super-duper AI coach. My exclusive, closed partner network I recently got an unsolicited email. This is what it said: We know that high-caliber ghostwriters like…
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The Celtics’ Payton Pritchard in flow
Payton Pritchard is a solidly built 6-foot 1-inch guard on the NBA’s Boston Celtics. Nearly every time he appears in a game, he’s the shortest man on the court. In Sunday night’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers in Philadelphia, Game 4 of the first round of the playoffs, Pritchard scored 32 points in 35 minutes…
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Of course your CEO doesn’t really care. Ask the Red Sox.
The Red Sox fired their manager Alex Cora and a bunch of his coaches this weekend. Cora had previously won a World Series with the Red Sox in his first year as manager, but the firings happened after the team started this year with a losing record of 11 wins and 17 losses. This is…
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Honest criticism
If you ask me to work on your book idea and it’s crap, I won’t. And I’ll tell you why, too. Sure, it takes me time to do more than just say “No.” And it creates unnecessary conflict in my life, but that’s who I am. If you ask me to work on your idea…
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Navigating the continuum of publishing options
It’s easier than ever before to publish a book. But not all versions of “published” are equal. So let’s run through the continuum of options available to you, how hard they are to get access to, and how likely they are to accomplish your goals. (In creating this chart, I’ve simplified things enormously — there…
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Ghostwriting AI guidelines; bookstore explosion; shareholder AI tropes: Newsletter 22 April 2026
Newsletter 148. An AI negotiation tool for ghostwriters and their clients. Plus, resurgent indie bookstores, AI news regurgitation, three people to follow, three books to read, and one extremely worthwhile doppelgänger. How to talk to your clients about AI How should writers use AI? That is a far more complicated question than it first appears….
