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This was a sobering tale for me, and my hat's off to Mr. Allsopp for being willing to share it. As someone who dreams often of the day when I'd get an offer to write a "real" book, this post really presses me on what price I'd be willing to put on the integrity of my work.
Thanks Mark. Surprised to see this here :)
This was a really well written blog post. I didn't learn anything new particularly but it re-inspired me to stick to my guns. Keep up the great work
Really TAGFEE and a great reminder to do things you're invested in IFF you're doing them because you love them. Anything else leads to poorer work (and, through it, poorer communities).
I agree with doing what feels right... but there's a lot of ego tied up in Glenn's decision to cancel the book simply because he doesn't like that style of writing. Who is he?---Jonathan freakin' Franzen? It's a "For Dummies" book. Did he expect to put Chaucer to shame with it?
What is the big problem with writing in a "For Dummies" style when those very books help millions of people learn to do valuable things better, faster and for less money? Such books are meant to be educational resources for the masses. Is it below Glenn to help people, who are not at his oh-so advanced level, learn? Are bullet points that offensive?
I think it's okay to only want to write for advanced audiences, but I agree with your point that Glen should have known this going in. The book is called "for dummies". It can be hard to see that, I'm sure, when the offer to write the book initially comes across your desk, which is probably the issue he faced.
Well, first of all I'm honestly surprised to see this here. I didn't think it was Inbound.org material at all.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with it. In the comments and in the post I said I was very grateful to be offered (did you read the post? :)) the deal and that I own multiple books on the subject. But I had assumed I wouldn't have to fit into their exact formula when writing my article.
I think I actually lost my ego when I decided not to do it. There's a nice boost from saying you're a published author, I'm sure.
Maybe it makes more sense to people who have followed my writing for a long time, but I like to flow (that's not allowed in Dummies books -- chapters are not allowed to flow or mention each other) my content and generally have a beginning, a middle and an end.
You're more than entitled to your opinion though :)
Thanks for the discussion.
Just wanted to add Joanna that when I was emailing Glen a few weeks back about the decision, something he mentioned was that he wanted to write it just like all of his blog posts - in a creative manner. For Dummies books are at the opposite end of that spectrum. Sure, you can say he should've known, but is it bad that I tried to break the norm and produce something different? I mean, if a guy was trying to teach me viral marketing, would I want no enthusiasm, creativity, and heart in his material? Wouldn't that seem a little hypocritical of the subject matter?
But at the end of the day, I respect Glen even more because he's willing to turn down a book deal from a widely known publisher so he can stick to what he believes in and loves doing. And looking at what he's done, if a for Dummies publisher came to him, there will definitely be more opportunities down the road.