Episode 68: Chris Brogan’s Author Journey

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Welcome to Season 2 of The Book Marketing Action Podcast with Becky Robinson, where we give you information that you can immediately implement to increase your influence and market your books more successfully. In this episode, we are joined by Chris Brogan  — Writer and Strategic Advisor at Chris Brogan Media.

Today’s episode is continuing the “Author Journey” series, based on Becky’s book, which is scheduled for release from Berrett Koehler publishers in April 2022. The book is called Reach: Creating the Biggest Possible Audience for Your Message, Book, or Cause.

Key Points From This Episode:

[01:13] Chris gives some background about himself and his work in the world.

[02:49] Chris provides context for how long he’s been showing up online and working to establish an online presence.

[04:48] “You have to add value before you can extract value.” Find out if Chris actually said this popular quote.

[07:31] How can you understand if you’re offering value through your online presence or not?

[09:05] Chris explains the role consistency plays for him in building the reach of his work.

[11:32] Chris talks about his famous Sunday newsletter.

[12:59] Chris started blogging in ‘98 and podcasting in ‘05. What has this longevity done for him?

[15:31] Discover how the nine books that Chris has written have affected his career.

[18:29] Chris reveals his favorite book that he has ever written. 

[22:59] Generosity has played a major role in Chris’ life and career. Find out why.

Action Steps:

1. Write before you’re ready to write. Don’t wait around to be good at writing — you only get good at it by doing it. So write before you’re ready to write, and you’ll be a lot better off in the process.
2. Write messy. It’s okay not to know how to say something and return to it later. You either have to be a great upfront writer or a great outback editor.
3. Write something useful, always useful. Many people write books to please themselves that aren’t going to be useful to the world. You have to be helpful.
4. Write something that you want people you love to read. Write as if you’re writing to someone that you really care about, and if they have this information, it might make things better.

Resources:

• Check out Chris’ website to learn more about him, his work, and the services he offers.

• Sign up for Chris’ Sunday newsletter here.

• Get in touch with Chris by emailing him at chris@chrisbrogan.com. 

• Watch Chris’ video about how it took him 10 years to become an overnight success. 

Tweetables and quotes:

I think the inbox is the most powerful social network in the world. And that’s where I put most of my energy to connect professionally. – Chris Brogan

I always say quit but never surrender. – Chris Brogan

If you kind of just go out and do your little marketing campaign and then vanish, you’re a bad person, because you’re not there. You’re not part of the community. – Chris Brogan

There’s a plus and a minus on longevity. The plus is that people go, “Man, that guy’s been around.” The minus is that people love shiny and new. – Chris Brogan

A lot of times people plant the seed in the ground, and the minute they see the green little tiny leaf pop up, they go, “Oh, here we go.” And then they pull everything out of the ground, and then it doesn’t really grow anymore. – Chris Brogan

This process is that people have to feel comfortable with you. They have to kind of feel into it a minute, you know, it’s not the length of a Tik Tok. It’s the length of a real old timey book with, like, 260 pages. – Chris Brogan

If you found value in today’s episode, we hope you’ll take a moment to share it with someone else who might benefit from it. If you have any questions or topics you’d like us to cover, please email Becky Robinson here.

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