Our Product is Explanation
All posts for “book”
We're approaching a new phase in getting The Art of Explanation into the world. Now that the writing is 99% done, we need to think about marketing and promotion. Soon I will have a meeting with Wiley (the publisher) and start putting together a marketing plan. In preparation for this phase, I hope to learn as much as I can.
I would love your help. If you have written/promoted a book, worked in publishing, marketing, PR, or simply have ideas, I'd love to hear your thoughts. I am a first time... Continue Reading
Get Out the Red Pens - Page Proofs are Here!
Posted by: leelefever on July 25, 2012- 9:32am
Categories: Art of Explanation, author, book, editing, Explanation, publishing
The march towards publishing The Art of Explanation continues on swimmingly. The publisher recently sent over "page proofs" which are hard copies of the book as it will appear in the real thing. Reviewing the proofs is our last chance to make any corrections and changes before the book gets printed. When I send these puppies back, my work (in writing at least) is pretty much done. Phew. The book comes out in print and ebooks on October 8th.
Here are some photos of the proofs...
The book has... Continue Reading
The Art of Explanation Cover
Posted by: leelefever on May 9, 2012- 11:38am
Categories: Art of Explanation, book, cover, Explanation, publishing
Well, The Art of Explanation book is getting a lot more real. A few days ago we finalized the cover for the book:
What do you think?
If you'd like to track our progress, check out the Art of Explanation website.
Art of Explanation Book Update
Posted by: leelefever on April 25, 2012- 9:59am
Categories: Art of Explanation, book, Explanation, publishing, writing
Over the past month, Sachi and I have been neck-deep in ideas surrounding explanation, and it has been one of the most creative times in our lives. As you may remember, I'm writing a book called The Art of Explanation that will be out in October of 2012. To make our deadlines with the publisher, we took time this month to focus almost solely on the book - and that we did. I've written and Sachi has edited almost 60,000 words in the last month or so, which is much more than will appear in the... Continue Reading
I'm Writing a Book About Explanation
Posted by: leelefever on March 7, 2012- 7:50am
Categories: announcement, Art of Explanation, book, Explanation, news
It’s true. The book is called “The Art of Explanation” and it should hit the shelves in the fall of 2012, published by Wiley & Sons.
The Big Idea:
The Art of Explanation is built on the very simple idea that explanation is a skill that can be learned and improved. The book is designed to help people rethink how they communicate and learn to package ideas into simple explanations that make people care, whether it’s at home, work or school.
Background:
For many years, I’ve been a... Continue Reading
Book Review- Friends with Benefits: A Social Media Marketing Handbook
I'd like to start with a disclaimer. Darren Barefoot and Julie Szabo, the authors of Friends with Benefits: A Social Media Marketing Handbook, are friends. While I may be biased, knowing them for years also means I know the depth of the their knowledge and experience. And that's the big point of my review of their book - these people know what they're talking about because they live in social media every day and have for years. I've asked myself in the past - What would Darren and Julie do?... Continue Reading
Two Quotes on Simplicity
The first is by Antione de Saint Exupéry, author of The Little Prince and a pioneer in aviation:
Perfection is not when there is no more to add, but no more to take away.
The second is by William of Occam (1288-1347) You might know the name from Occam's Razor.
It is vain to do more with what can be done with less.
These quotes mean a lot to me and were found, most recently, at the beginning of Chapter 5 of Tim Ferriss' book The 4-Hour Workweek. More on that later.
Managing Online Forums - A New Book By Patrick O'Keefe
Posted by: leelefever on April 8, 2008- 5:00pm
Categories: book, commmunity, CommunityManagement, friends, recommendation
Patrick and I go way back in web terms, but met for the first time this year at SXSW. We've always connected around managing online communities - something we were both doing back in 2000 or so. That was when Patrick was teenager. Since that time he's grown his iFroggy Network of community sites and gone through just about everything you can imagine in terms of managing discussion boards.
Patrick recently put these experiences into a new book called Managing Online Forums - "everything... Continue Reading
I while back, I posted an entry about an excerpt I read from Guy Kawasaki’s new book: Art of the Start. I just finished the book this week and thought I’d give you some of my thoughts.
I liked Guy’s irreverent style and simple delivery. In looking at the market for my services, the book made me ask myself these questions:
What is the pain that my market is experiencing? How can I help them alleviate that pain?
Who in my market has money in their pockets and how can I get that money... Continue Reading
I just read (and recommend) this .pdf from Guy Kawasaki's book, Art of the Start. For folks thinking about starting a company, I think it's good and somewhat non-conventional advice.
I thought this was an interesting this "key principle":
POLARIZE PEOPLE. When you create a product or service that some people love, don't be surprised when others hate you. Your goal is to catalyze passion�??pro or anti. Don't be offended if people take issue with what you've done; the only result that should... Continue Reading