- Woo hoo, let's celebrate.
You've written a book and now you're wondering
about endorsements, book forwards, and other final details.
I've got the skinny on book forwards for non-fiction books.
(rhythmic music)
Hey there, I'm Julie the book Broad,
founder of Book Launchers, a fantastic company that helps
entrepreneurs and professionals write, publish,
and sell a non-fiction book that will grow your business
and build your brand.
First things first.
Let me just get this out of the way.
There's absolutely no reason to pay someone to write
a forward for your book.
If you don't have anybody famous to write your forward,
your book is not doomed.
Let me repeat, your book is not doomed.
Most books do not need a forward.
It's kind of like the video I shot
on the book award scams to watch out for.
Don't worry, if you haven't seen that video,
you can watch it afterwards.
I'll put a link below.
Paying someone to write your forward isn't going to give you
a good return on investment.
I know some names out there that happily sell a forward
as part of their book publishing package, and they've
written hundreds of very similar sounding forwards,
and it's not worth it.
Hopefully you get the picture.
So here's to the important stuff.
What is a book forward?
It's an introduction to your book and to you, the author.
And it's written by someone other than you.
It does give you the author status and credibility
if the forward is written by a big name
and they know you personally.
For example, if you've written a book on entrepreneurship
and Tim Ferriss writes your forward, or if you have a book
on social media and Gary Vee writes a forward,
or a book on environmental tech in business and Elon Musk,
well, pre-pot-smoking Elon anyways.
Anyway, if he writes your forward, cha-ching.
This is a great way to establish credibility
and get attention for your book.
If the person writing the forward has worked with you
or can share a cool story that shines a really positive
light on your work, your expertise, your message, or even
the industry in the context with which the reader
might benefit from knowing what's going on in the industry
around your book, then it gives more background
than a basic buyer or book description ever could.
And that adds a lot of value.
If you can't get a forward to accomplish these objectives,
it's really just wasted space at the start of your book
that should be used to showcase the juicy stuff
your reader needs to know to decide to buy it.
Remember, the first 5% and first 20% of your book
are viewable to a reader without purchase online.
So make it content that sells your book.
Here's the thing, you can ask total strangers
to write a forward, but that's a tough sell.
It's much better to approach them to endorse your book
with a blurb.
A forward's very personal and it's really seen
as a personal introduction, like they're vouching for you.
It's why it can be really powerful from the right person,
but it's also why it's really tough to get someone to do it
unless you pay them, or you have
a long-standing relationship with them.
The big question: What if the book is not done,
or they're too busy to read my book?
The person writing the forward doesn't have
to read your book.
It's more like they're introducing you and your work
to the world.
So if they know you, it's really about that
and not so much about your book.
Essentially, you need someone to share who you are to them,
why you're unique and someone they respect,
and hopefully they're able to relate this back
to the subject matter of your group, and why they believe
the reader's going to benefit from learning about you
and your perspective on this subject.
That's the essence of what the forward should be
and what they're talking about.
They don't need to read the book to do that.
And it doesn't need to be very long.
We're lookin' at two pages in a book,
so less than 500 words ideally.
So let's recap what we learned here today.
Number one, don't pay someone to write a forward.
Number two, a forward should introduce you,
and the subject matter, to a reader
with a personal introduction by someone that knows you.
Number three, it should be short.
And number four, it's optional.
Better to have none than to have a mediocre one.
Cool, cool.
Now go ahead and tell me whether you even read forwards.
I'm curious.
I know my answer, but what is yours?
Do you read the forwards on books that you are reading?
And while you're postin' that in the comments below,
please subscribe to the channel, turn those notifications on
so we can hang out whenever a new video comes out,
'cause it's truly a pleasure to spend time with you.
Thank you.
Now, as promised, here's the video on award scams
that you need to watch out for, and you might enjoy this one
on how to get a celebrity endorsement for your book.
Go ahead, go watch those videos.
They're awesome. (laughs)
Go ahead, click, click.