When You Know Better, Authors, Serve Others with a Re-Direct
“I can do that, but I shouldn’t”
I last wrote about by getting noticed by going a little farther, doing the surprising things that make you as an author memorable.
It reminded me of the following article I first published on Medium, May 22, 2021.
My friend Mary once said that the best talk on self-publishing she ever heard ended with the line, “If I have convinced most of you to not do it, I will have done my job here.”
Years ago my dad told me that one of the most gratifying ways he helped people was by changing their minds: “They tell me they want the light switch on one wall, and I say, ‘No, you don’t. You’re having a hard time getting in and out of bed. I’m going to put the switch by your bed so you can reach it.’”
Recently an author asked which company I used for short-run print jobs — his mom wanted to print 200 copies of a book she had written and he knew I would know who did the best job at the best price. I did. But that’s not the information he needed. His mom lives in Alabama and so the additional cost of shipping that print run from the Midwest down South would override any savings from my preferred vendor. Instead, I helped him help her find the best company at the best price near her.
Over the years, I have helped many authors who pitched their book projects to me by saying some version of, “I would love to publish this book, but I would be doing you a disservice. There’s a better publisher for you and your book.” Many balked and only took it as another rejection. Others appreciated the candor.
Sometimes I believe in a book so much, and know that another publisher would too, that I make a personal intro to another publishing company for an author. One that comes to mind is The Ragged Edge: A U.S. Marine’s Account of Leading the Iraqi Army Fifth Battalion by Michael Zacchea and Ted Kemp. Chicago Review Press does a beautiful production and promotion job with memoirs like this one and I also suspected they would want to work with authors like Zacchea and Kemp who not only had a riveting, well-told tale to share but wide and varied networks and platforms from which to personally market their book.
Here’s the big idea: If you’re a writer, an author, a solo professional, or a small business owner (or all of the above)—or if you happen to be a human being who’s lived on Earth for some time now—you know things and have a perspective that others don’t. One way of helping others, surprising them, and making yourself memorable is by not giving them the help or answers they think they want.
Give them different information that better addresses their need.
Ready to Go Farther?
Going a little bit farther in the right places—that 5–10% extra effort that makes you stand out—signals something important: you’re ready to treat your author work as a real business. If you’re done with revenue plateaus and ready to build strategically—to develop multiple revenue streams, create sustainable income, and design the author career you actually want—my Author’s Business Accelerator program is designed for exactly that. This 1:1 intensive is for published authors who are done with doing just enough and ready to go farther with intention. In 8 sessions (with a flexible schedule to work around the rest of your life), we’ll develop your customized business plan, pricing strategy, and income diversification approach based on who you are, what you want, and what will actually work for your life. This isn’t group coaching or generic advice—it’s a strategic partnership to build your author business with the consistent follow-through that gets results. Learn more about the Business Accelerator.