Ulysses Grant’s personal memoirs are a classic. Historian Ron Chernow described them as “The foremost military memoir in the English language.” I read the memoirs several years ago and I’ve dipped into them from time to time since. But it was only recently that I learned the story of how they came to be » Read More
Tag: Making Money
What are the odds of writing a bestseller?
“Can you help me write a bestseller?” Not every prospective client asks me that out loud. But anyone who writes a book wants it to be a bestseller. What are the odds? Not very good. Depending on who’s counting there are 600,000 to 1,000,000 books published in the US in a year. Only a vanishingly small fraction makes » Read More
The staying power of a great product
I love “The Shawshank Redemption,” and so do a lot of other people. It’s number one on IMDB’s list of the top 250 films. But as much as I love that movie, the studios and the actors love it even more. The product that keeps on giving Shawshank is still paying residuals to the performers, after more » Read More
What’s a niche?
I own a Volvo. When it’s time for service, where will I take my car? I can take it to any number of service shops. Some are generalists. Others specialize in “foreign” cars. And a few specialize in Volvos. If I can, I want to take the car to a Volvo expert. That Volvo expert has a niche. The expert knows » Read More
Your book is a blasting cap
Dynamite can create a huge explosion, but it’s hard to ignite dynamite all by itself. So you use a device called a blasting cap. It’s a small explosive that sets off a big explosion by igniting something like dynamite. Your knowledge is like dynamite Your knowledge is powerful stuff, but it’s like » Read More