When I'm writing a book - say I'm going to write a parenting book. I'll go out and buy the 100 top parenting books and I will read those, not so I can copy them for sure.
I write titles that are confrontational. I write titles that make people want to pick up a book and find out more about it. I write good books; I write great titles though.
I think you have to read a lot. I think if you're going to write about something you better have read at least 100 books on that topic.
I've been very fortunate at having good titles but I just think in terms of titles. I'm doing a workshop now where people write books and they come and I name their books for them. I'm good with titles.
You can't write a book and just expect it to sell itself, you know. We're not building that better mousetrap and waiting for the world to beat a path to our dear. You've got to build a market for your book.
I think it's more helpful to keep your books sort of a singular focus. Get it said, get it said well, fascinate people with your words and then write another book.
The premise, to me, is the most important thing that you have to know going in. It's the problem as you see it. So I write down the problem as I see it. That is the premise for my book.
I think shorter books are going to become more and more of the trend. So I don't think you have to write big, big, long books.
If you're selling information - and I have a lot of friends who write a lot of bestselling books and they're selling information. They don't need to have a picture on the cover at all because they are not important. They're secondary to their information. To me, the information is secondary to me.
