Ideas, Influence, and Income: Write a Book, Build Your Brand, and Lead Your Industry
Year: 2018
Author: Tanya Hall
Length: 214 pages
***THIS BOOK WAS RECEIVED FROM A GOODREADS GIVEAWAY***
I’ll admit that I initially thought this book was for all kinds of writers, to include fiction authors. I was looking for a few good ideas to push my brand out of the mires of obscurity, and this book seemed like it would help. While Ideas, Influence, and Income is focused mainly on those people who might not even consider writing a non-fiction book, there’s still plenty of advice for authors of all stages. The insight the author brings to the table here is a little intimidating, though, and not for the weak of will.
As far as I could understand it, this book caters towards individuals who are “trendsetters” or “influencers” who could turn their original idea into a brand that could support a book, speaking engagements, and other social media content pieces. Because of this, I didn’t find much use in these sections from the perspective of a fiction writer. I’m not selling ideas on how to change people’s lives, but rather ideas to entertain the masses. A few tidbits here and there were useful, but mostly just highlighted that I’d need to sink a lot more money and resources into my books if they are ever to be successful.
One could fault this book for its frank and honest look at the publishing business. It could potentially scare away writers who might find their idea of publishing a book (especially the traditional way) requires many more people and timelines that are usually ignored in the stages before actually writing the book. As I’m going about and querying one of my manuscripts for traditional publication, after reading this book I’m not sure I want to go down that path anymore. At this point, I’m content with self-publishing because the alternative seems like a day job that I don’t have the time for.
An honest look at publishing a non-fiction self-help book, I give Ideas, Influence, and Income 3.5 stars out of 5.
