How to crush it at work without work crushing you, your teams, or your marriage.
Eradicate the self-defeating head chatter and self-destructive childhood beliefs that are hobbling your true, creative leadership potential.
Ended
Crushing it as a creative leader has never been more crushing. The pressure to generate genius-on-demand continues to rise as the resources to do so continue to dwindle: less time, less money, less brains to put on the job. You know the drill.
It's enough to make your want to jack-it-all-in and take a job in the post office. Only don't...
This is the survival guide to the creative battlefield you've been waiting for. The no-holds-barred, woo-woo-free leadership manual that will pressure-proof your brain, and reignite your passion for work, by giving you the tools, techniques and unflappable mindset you need to create a creative life you never want to escape from – no matter how much shit hits the fan.
From firsthand experience, Matt knows all too well the chaos and carnage an unpressure-proofed brain can inflict on your personal creativity and your ability to lead, love, and think straight.
He was in his mid twenties, at the top of his career, winning major international awards, and writing commercials for some of the coolest brands on the planet.
Until BANG!!!
His brain blew a fuse and his confidence took a bullet.
He didn't know what hit him. One minute he was creatively on fire, cracking briefs and coming up with the goods, and the next he was on fire mentally, emotionally and physically.
And not in a good way.
He had hit the wall behind the wall: burnout. But being a guilt-riddled creative in an industry obsessed with masochistic work ethics, he wasn't gonna let double lung pneumonia and an appetite for self-destruction stop his race to the knackers yard.
To show weakness was to turn up at work naked. Not allowed.
So he kept on soldering on until he unceremoniously crashed through the next great wall inside: Burnout 2.0.
And this one REALLY fucking stung.
In an effort to 'fix himself' he began drinking beer out of a coffee cup when others were eating cornflakes. Started detonating his securest of relationships, at both work and at home. And told anyone who’d listen that he was "just fine", and that it was they who were fucked.
As a high-achieving creative leader in a position of power, you probably also know what it feels like to have a spotlight on your front and a target on your back. You understand the monumental pressure that generating genius-on-demand puts on your brain, soul, and sense-of-perspective. And you know what happens if you step off the gas.
For years you’ve had it drilled into your skull that “You’re only every as good as your last piece of work”, and “Don’t think you're above being replaced." Because as you and your colleagues both know, your job is never safe – no matter how great you are, or how brilliant people say you've been.
This kind of angst and suffering, in an industry dripping with so much glitz, glamour, and public envy is completely and utterly unacceptable, and completely and utterly unsustainable.
But thanks to the science of sustainable high performance, and the psychology of building rock-solid creative flow, “suffering for your art” is the biggest piece of nonsense ever written.
After decades of firsthand experience as a leader, psychotherapist, clinical hypnotherapist and peak performance coach, Matt knows that the creative brain is far more anti-fragile than we sometimes give it credit for. But right out the box, as Mother Nature intended, it is not fit-for-purpose. Not for the ultra marathon that is a long and illustrious creative career.
To pressure-proof it (and you do need to pressure-proof it) you need to rewrite your ‘subconscious blueprint of life’. You need to rewire your default mode to pressure, from 'fight or flight', to 'flow and excel'. And you need to eradicate the neurological clutter and self-defeating childhood beliefs that are hobbling your true, creative leadership potential.
In other words, you need to flip the switch.
When you do this, and only when you do this, you can stop beating yourself up when the going gets tough. Stop pickling your liver in alcohol or Red Bull. And do the best work of your creative career, for as long as you choose, no matter how far along that path you are, or how demanding the industry gets.
The Dopamine Switch pressure-proofs creative leaders' brains by rewiring the way they view, think and respond to life on the creative battlefield, at both a conscious AND subconscious level.
The conscious work will be delivered through exercises that the reader will complete in their lunch break. And the subconscious work will be delivered as short and extremely powerful ‘subcongnitive-mind-recoding’ MP3's which they can listen to on their commute, or at night when they're finally alone.
PART 1: INTRODUCTIONS AND BEST PRACTICE
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
After 20 years working for and running some of the most exciting and innovative creative businesses in the UK and Australia, Matt retrained as a peak performance psychologist, psychotherapist, and clinical hypnotherapist at King's College London, before launching the creative leadership coaching company, Leading Left.
- FORWARD BY SEAN THOMPSON
As well as being an owner of a pressure-proofed creative brain, Sean Thompson is one of the most highly-awarded creative leaders in the world, and co-founder/creative director and commercials director at the the ad agency, Who Wot Why.
- ONLY GOT A MINUTE?
One page overview of The Dopamine Switch’s top 5 big ideas.
- GOT 5 MINUTES?
Three page overview of The Dopamine Switch’s top 5 big ideas.
- BURNT-OUT ADMAN TO CREATIVE LEADERSHIP COACH
How Matt Follows went from a multi-award-winning creative at the top of his career, to one of the world’s most in-demand creative leadership coaches: via a spectacularly public and incredibly painful creative burnout from hell. The scars he earned and the lessons he learnt, are peppered throughout this book, with no fluff, filler, or New Age woo-woo.
- SUSTAINABLE VS UNSUSTAINABLE HIGH PERFORMANCE
There’s a dangerous myth knocking around the creative industries: ’Pressure Creates Diamonds’. Whilst a certain degree of pressure is needed to "get up and get shit done", science has proven that it is not a sustainable way to run the creative marathon that is your life and career. Sustainable High Performers live a life in flow not fear, and as such, they're fuelled by a neurochemical cocktail of dopamine, serotonin, endorphin, anandamide and noradrenalin, not the immune-system-bashing-stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. This book will show you how to flip the Dopamine switch, and keep it switched on no matter how much shit gets flung at the fan, or how intense the external forces of your world become.
- HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
Sustainable high performance is not a spectator sport, and neither is it an exercise in mindful academia. Your brain is a neurocomputer as well as a muscle, which means it needs to be strengthened and reprogrammed from the unconscious mind out, not just from the prefrontal cortex down. So, to get the most out of The Dopamine Switch, you need to do both the cognitive exercises in each chapter, as well as the mindrecoding sessions which accompany them. You can complete this book solo or with a partner.
PART 2: "CREATIVE BRAIN” SCIENCE 101
- ONE SKULL. THREE BRAINS
How our three brains evolved over the past few million years, and what their main roles are today, through the lens of sustainable high performance for pressure-proofed creative leaders.
- PRE-FRONTAL, LIMBIC & AMYGDALA
Unpacking the three main brain regions we’ll be focusing on in order to pressure-proof the creative brain; how they work together; and what happens to your creativity, sanity, and sense of perspective when it all goes wrong.
- IN TWO MINDS
The difference between the brain and the mind and how the mind is divided into your conscious and subconscious.
- THE BLUEPRINT OF LIFE
“Until you make the unconscious conscious it will dictate the course of your life and you will call it fate.” — Carl Jung
Your subconscious Blueprint Of Life contains the empowering and disabling beliefs, core values, world-views, and self-image your brain defaults to a whopping 95% of your waking life. This blueprint dictates the course of your life, and was written before you reached the tender age of seven. So, you need to know what’s written on that gospel according to brilliant and bitter pre-conscious learning, and upgrade or delete what’s no longer working.
- BRAINWAVES
But there’s a problem. The bouncer at the door to your unconscious does NOT want you to add, modify, or delete anything from the blueprint; no matter how much grief, stress, or mindless head-chatter it may be causing you. But, you CAN change it when you know how to bypass the bouncer through brainwave modification.
- 4 TO 8-Hz
The brain frequency required to bypass the bouncer and rewrite the blueprint is the same brain frequency we call Flow, ‘The Zone’ or ‘The Pocket’: famously referred to as “the optimal state of human consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best.” It’s no coincidence that every mind-recoding track you listen to on this pressure-proofing program is compounding your creative brain’s ability to default to the flow-state under pressure and on-demand.
When put under pressure an anti-fragile creative brain defaults to ‘flow and excel’ not ‘fight or flight’. But what exactly is creative flow? Why is it so critical to creative leadership? How does it manifest chemically, biologically and electrically in the brain and wider nervous system? And how can you use your brain’s ability to reshape itself and grow new neurons to hardwire a Flow-Trigger in your creative brain? You'll find all the answers in this chapter.
As high-achieving creative athletes we need to work with our biology, not against it. We learnt this back in1905 and the business world has been blind to it ever since. In this chapter Matt unpacks The Burnout Model™ and gives you the science behind Ultradium Rhythms and the pressure-proofing framework you need to make dopamine-fuelled, sustainable high performance business-as-usual.
If you leave the structure of your days to chance you’re destined to live a life of full of frantic half-sketches, rather than back-to-back masterpieces. Building on the previous chapter, you will now be given the conscious and unconscious tools you need to fully-optimise your days by structuring them around your internal ‘flow clock’ and in alignment with your heart-brain’s on/off cycles and bio-rhythms.
All the negative head-chatter and self-defeating bulls**t that’s rattling around in the back of your head comes from a cluster-f**k of subconscious limiting beliefs; unhealed wounds; small T traumas; other peoples baggage; and if you’re like most people on this planet, a less than stellar self-image. Yes, it’s that Blueprint we’re talking about, and this is when we clear out the clutter, and bring it into alignment with the pressure-proof creative leader you want to be TODAY, not the scared little kid you were back at pre-school.
Less than 1% of the population knows what drives them at a deep unconscious level. Your Core Values are your most deeply-held beliefs. The unconsciously drivers that dictate where you invest your time, energy, and effort. They are the things that drive you forwards, or drive you up-the-wall. The things that make you feel ‘on purpose’ when met, or frustrated, angry or ‘lost’ when violated. Once we make the unconscious conscious you can stop leaving happiness to chance, and use your values as an internal compass to confidently set and attain goals that will energise and satisfy you, as you design a life you never want to escape from.
“If we have our own why in life, we shall get along with almost any how.” — Friedrich Nietzsche, Philosopher
Most people never reach their full potential because they don’t know what it is they actually want. Sure they know what they don’t want (stress, anxiety, overwhelm, fear, self-doubt, a steady slide into irrelevance etc.) but what they want, that’s something they’ve not thought about since high-school. In this chapter you’ll get crystal clear clarity about your ‘wildly important goal’ and be given the mind-recoding session you need to program it into your brain’s subconscious SatNav. And why is this important for sustainable high performance? Because it puts your wildly important target on auto-pilot, and stops you going round a round in ever-decreasing circles of anxiety-inducing unfulfilment.
Change doesn’t happen in a day, it happens daily. So now you know what you want, why it’s deeply important for you to have it, how it’s driven by your core values (critically important!) and what a pressure-proof life will look, feel, and sound like, it’s time to switch your focus from ‘outcome driven’ to ‘process driven’ by hardwiring new power-habits which will help you automatically achieve your ‘step’, ‘stride’ and ‘stretch goals’.
“A part of me wants X, but another part of me wants Y.”
Different parts of our identity have different beliefs, motivations and motives — we all have them written on our blueprint. And as well as leading to frustration, confusion and procrastination, ‘parts conflicts’ are the fastest way to self-sabotage your dreams and burn yourself out; with no clue as to why it’s happening. Problem is, how do you negotiate with parts of you that are unconscious? In this chapter, eliciting and aligning these parts is exactly what we’ll be doing, so that you can be confident that all parts of you are in agreement with your target, and will propel you towards it, rather than pull you off course.
As you know from the brainwaves chapter, the alpha/theta border is the mental platform from which you’ll consistently and effortlessly generate creative genius on-demand. So, for the next few weeks, we want to keep grooving that switch into the architecture of your brain so that it becomes the hardwired state you automatically drop into when you’re creating the work, evaluating the work, or improving the work. We'll do this through an extremely powerful mind-recoding process I call F.A.S.T.E.R. THETA™.
Now you’ve completed all the exercises in this book you have everything you need to continue leading and loving the creative life you never want to escape from: a pressure-proof life, full of sustainable courage, confidence, and ferocious curiosity. So as a bonus for all the work you’ve done, I’ll now give you the mind-coding secret to making ANY further changes you want, or feel you need to make, to your vastly improved blueprint of life; the M.A.G.I.C. B.U.L.L.E.T.S.™ formula.
MOVING FORWARDS
Acknowledgements
References
Index
Copyright
The Dopamine Switch is aimed at creative leaders and those on their way: the bold, brave and brilliant brains who work in film, TV, music, advertising, marketing, fashion, design, publishing and tech.
Let's look at the size off that market:
The people who lead this magnificent charge are in their 30/40's and are looking for a robust and reliable way to dramatically increase their creative firepower; regain their sense of personal purpose and perspective; and sustain peak levels of creative excellence: on demand and under the ever-increasing pressure the creative battlefield puts on them — and they on themselves.
Growing up, these leaders battled their way through the trenches on a cocktail of adrenaline, cortisol, and caffeine at best, and alcohol, nicotine, and class-A at worse.
But over time, the side effects of those stimulants has caught up with them, and they know that living on the edge, is no longer a desirable or sustainable way for them to hold the creative fort together: either inside their head, or outside in their world.
"SO WHAT IS???", they ask.
Something needs to change, because the pressure to “be on and always on it” is driving them insane...
Earlier this year a study by NABS revealed that a quarter of workers in the creative and media sector find their working environment overly stressful most of the time. Two-thirds said they'd reached points in their career where they felt so stressed they were unable to cope. And 84% of advertising and media employees say demands on them have risen over the past year, with one in seven now working more than 55 hours a week – and that's the lucky ones.
Couple that with the fact that a report by the World Health Organisation recently warned that workplace stress is the health epidemic of the 21st Century, and maybe like Matt you see the Jupiter-sized elephant sitting in the room. Especially when you drop the socially acceptable name tag called 'workplace stress' and call it for what it truly is, FEAR!!!
Professional problem-solvers, artists, authors, designers and entrepreneurs know all too well what happens to their creative confidence and emotional stability when the fog of war moves into their head; they know where courage goes when doubt creeps into their trigger finger; and they know the negative impact fear and frustration has on their personal and professional relationships, not to mention their health.
As every neuroscientist, psychologist, therapist and stressed out creative will tell you, fear and creativity go together like electrical sockets and tiny hands. They don't mix!
Not good when we know we need creativity more than ever.
But the reality is this: the pressure-cooker's not coming off the boil anytime soon. Business competition is rising. Audience expectations are rising. And clients are more demanding than they’ve ever been before. And this is an accident waiting to happen inside our creative leaders brains.
They've got mortgages to pay, kids to put through school, a car or two in the driveway, and they’ve been on the frontline long enough to have seen friends, colleagues and heroes buckle, bend, or break in two under the pressure (if they haven't done so themselves).
Quite simply, our reader can't afford to go off the boil or burn themselves out. And that post office job, is most certainly not an option. So they want change fast, they want change permanent, and they're sick to death of reading self-help books which promise so much, but deliver so little.
Our reader wants, and deserves, a step-by-step pressure-proofing system that will lead them out of their fear and back into their flow. With courage, confidence, ferocious curiosity, and the unbridled sense of possibility, hope, and swagger that they had when they were started out.
Matt is the founder, CEO and head coach at Leading Left, and you can find out more about him and his work at: leadingleft.com
Over the past few years he's travelled up and down the UK and flown all over Europe speaking about the creative brain, sustainable high performance, and the science and psychology of breakthrough thinking at numerous industry events, companies and conferences; including D&AD, Creative Social, The How To Academy, The Hospital Club, the School of Communication Arts (SCA 2.0) and The Berlin School of Creative Leadership.
And he's also had articles in Forbes, Campaign Blog, Creating Genius and Scamp — which at the time was the most read creativity blog on the face of the planet.
Over the past 18 months Matt has trained over 300 employees at Toyota and Lexus (from the President and board of directors to the greenest of interns), and most recently began coaching the management team (Directors and VP’s) at Fox Networks Group.
In June 2018 he will begin training high-potential global leaders at Twinnings. Needless to say, at these workshops and group coaching sessions he talks about the impending arrival of the Dopamine Switch at all opportunities.
This summer (June) he did a sellout Ted style talk on sustainable high performance for the creative brain at the Cannes Festival of Creativity with former Wieden + Kennedy colleague and friend Sean Thompson (Chief Creative Officer of 180 Amsterdam turned founder, CD and director of the ad agency, WhoWotWhy).
To support that talk they also had an article about the Creative Brain in the last ever print edition of SHOTS magazine, which was heavily publicised and distributed at Cannes.
https://www.shots.net/features...
Following this print article Matt and Sean will be writing a monthly piece for the online edition of SHOTS, and this will be another opportunity for him to raise awareness of the book.
Other opportunities for publicity will come from tapping into Matt’s long and illustrious list of current and former corporate and creative clients. These run into the hundreds and each one also has their own global network of thousands.
His highly targeted LinkedIn connections currently stands at 2,319 (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattfollows/), with over 95% of them directly involved in the creative industries at extremely high levels: founders, CEO’s, and chiefs of creativity, strategy, and operations etc.
He can also be found on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/mattfollows/) with 296 followers and Twitter (https://twitter.com/mattfollows) with 2,072 followers
Matt doesn’t currently have any corporate sponsors but he will seek to secure one, and will also ask his contacts for a PR company to help out.
These books are all awesome, no doubt about it. But the Dopamine Switch is very different and much more practical.
Points of difference:
Fusing 20 years of creative leadership experience with a decade's worth of training in psychotherapy, performance psychology, and clinical hypnotherapy, Matt Follows is a leadership coach with teeth.
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
Chiado Books specializes in the publication of contemporary English-language authors, from celebrated names to the most promising emerging talents of our time. Our publication policy has, at its heart, a vision for the democratization of the world of publishing, offering Authors the best opportunities, and offering Readers wonderful works, from a huge range of genres, at a fair price and free from prejudice.
250 copies • Partial manuscript • Looking for more spiritual books, yoga and physical fitness alternatives, literary fiction and non-fiction of social or environmental value, especially international, political, literary, sci-fi, fantasy, utopia, and dystopia.
Harvard Square Editions (HSE) is a publishing house run by Harvard alumni that grew out of the Harvard Alumni Association group, Harvard Writers and Publishers. Our mission is to publish books that transcend national boundaries. We appreciate the aesthetic value and constructive social or political content, especially manuscripts related to climate change, deforestation, and conservation.
500 copies • Partial manuscript • Looking for motivational, inspiration and the lighter side of business.
Sourcebooks is an independent vision. We are a company bound together by the idea that Books. Change. Lives. For us, it means a passion for books and a dedication to the belief that books change lives. It means innovative publishing, where every book is personal and every author’s voice has a place. And it means not being afraid to say “I don’t know” and forging a new path when we have to. We are a group of passionate, energetic and enthusiastic book lovers, and we are committed to helping readers experience each book. Thank you for being a part of our story.
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Sunbury Press, Inc., headquartered in Mechanicsburg, PA is a publisher of hardcover, trade paperback, and eBooks featuring established and emerging authors in many categories. Sunbury's books are sold through leading booksellers worldwide. We are a traditional royalty-paying trade publisher.
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
Atlantic Publishing has been providing millions of readers information to jumpstart their careers, start businesses, manage employees, invest, plan for retirement, learn technologies, build relationships, and live rewarding, fulfilling lives. Our award-winning authors and publication staff strive to make our products the best and most up-to-date available. We go further than most publishers to get our customers the best products.
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Ballast Books is a full-service hybrid publisher that handles all aspects of book creation, design, publishing, marketing, distribution, and platform building. We help our authors sell more books, secure more keynotes, do more consulting, earn more customers, and book more media appearances.
We want to work with the best of the best: Former Special Operations Forces, CEOs, big thinkers, industry-leading experts. Top-performing people with experiences worth sharing and skills that translate into a larger message and goal.
We've seen particular success with military memoirs, but we've also recently hired a children's book specialist, so we run the spectrum of genres. We're a small but growing team and take pride in dedicating more time and energy to all our authors than traditional publishers.
500 copies • Complete manuscript.
Blooming Twig is an award-winning boutique publishing house, media company, and thought leadership marketing agency. Based in New York City and Tulsa, we have represented and re-branded hundreds of thought leaders, published more than 400 titles in all genres, and built up a like-minded following for authors, speakers, trainers, and organizations with our bleeding-edge marketing strategies. Blooming Twig is about giving the people with something to say (“thought leaders”) a platform, walking its clients up to their own influencer pulpit, and making sure there is a like-minded crowd assembled to hear the meaningful message.
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
Boyle & Dalton was founded in 2014 and publishes works of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. The world of publishing is changing, we're changing with it. Our founder Brad Pauquette, conceptualized a hybrid model that balances the financial and rights model of self-publishing with the quality controls and production excellence of a traditional publisher. Our designers and editors produce exceptional books that are distributed in both print and digital formats to all major retailers, including Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. Boyle & Dalton carefully consider all submissions for publication, based on manuscript quality. We do not accept erotica or children's books.
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Cranthorpe Millner operates a hybrid publishing model. This means, should an author pass our editors’ strict filtering system, we can offer different kinds of agreements depending on the author and the manuscript. With some authors, we work under a ‘traditional’ model, whereby we cover the full cost of publication and the author is offered industry-standard royalties (8-10%). To some authors, we offer what we call a partnership or contributory agreement, whereby the author is asked for a financial contribution so that we may share the risk and enter into a partnership together to publish the author’s book. In this case, the author receives around 60-75% royalties.
250 copies • Partial manuscript • Looking for entrepreneurial women leaders, coaches, and experts.
AMJ Productions and Publications (AMJP2) helps entrepreneurs fulfill a lifelong dream or business goal in sharing their message with the world by becoming highly recognized and credible authors in their field, brand, message, and business. We provide one-of-a-kind full publishing services that support authors in seeing their books become a reality within a short period of time. We’re a proud member of IBPA: Independent Book Publishing Association, the largest publishing agency in the US allowing us to offer more marketing and promotional services to all our authors.
Elite Online Publishing is based in Utah & Texas, and will help put your self-published book out into the world to grow, become a #1 bestseller, and give you a foundation of credibility, powerful marketing appeal, and new contacts. We have been in business for over 6 years and have helped over 150 authors become bestsellers.
500 copies • Completed manuscript.
Emerald Lake Books is a hybrid publishing company that provides a unique blend of business coaching with publishing to help its authors succeed, whether it’s their first book or their fiftieth! Emerald Lake Books specializes in working with positive people who have an engaging, exciting, or entertaining message to share with the world. Using a unique, goal-oriented approach to publishing, we combine our business and publishing knowledge to help our authors set and attain goals for their readers, their brands, and their books. And many of those books have gone on to win international awards and recognition.
Greenleaf Book Group is a publisher and distributor specializing in developing independent authors and thought leaders. We designed our publishing model to support the independent author and to make it possible for writers to retain the rights to their work and still compete with the major publishing houses. We have the capability to take your book idea through full project development and production all the way to bookstore shelves. Our award-winning team works with you to create an exceptional book and design a custom-built strategy to ensure its success in the retail market.
Thousands of projects later and with over 50 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers, our award-winning editorial and design, robust marketing, and expert distribution capabilities have led to partnerships with some of the most influential thought leaders and independent publishers worldwide. Greenleaf’s hybrid publishing model is uniquely positioned to offer the benefits of both traditional and self-publishing. We provide you with unmatched publishing and distribution services; you keep creative control, intellectual property, and most of the royalties.
When we accept a title for publication or distribution, we assign it to one of our imprints. Though production work is the same for all imprints, our imprint recommendation determines our distribution and marketing strategies based on genre, author platform, and demand-generation plan. Our world-class imprints are Greenleaf Book Group Press (our flagship imprint), River Grove Books (our digital-first imprint), Fast Company Press (our imprint partnership with Fast Company Magazine), An Inc. Original (our print partnership with Inc. Magazine), and BrainTrust Ink (our imprint partnership with BrainTrust).
500 copies • Completed manuscript.
HigherLife allows authors to retain all your publishing rights and you pay no publishing fee. Your only cost is to purchase at least 2,500 copies of your book from the initial press run, and this cost typically amounts to a 60%-80% discount off retail. You benefit from a full publishing team of experts: editors, designers, publishing and marketing strategists, copyeditors, copywriters, who know how to take your message and craft it as well as any New York Times best-selling publishing house would do.
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Hybrid Global Publishing is a full service Hybrid Publishing Company dedicated to helping authors, speakers, and entrepreneurs get their message out by writing and publishing a book. We offer developmental editing, publishing, distribution, and marketing services for independent authors who are interested in speaking on stage, becoming more visible in the media, and establishing more credibility. The team has a combined 80 years of experience in publishing and has held editorial, management and marketing positions at major publishing houses, including The Free Press, Crown, Random House, and Avon.
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
Isabella Media Inc is a Rhode Island-based, family-owned, mainline publishing organization with a mission to discover unknown stories. We combine unknown or little known authors’ undiscovered potential with Isabella Media Inc’s unique approach to publishing to provide the highest quality books to readers about stories they may not find anywhere else. It’s our desire to find unique stories that drive us.
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
Koehler Books is an Indie publisher based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Our team of dedicated professionals promises you a holistic publishing experience where you'll receive our full attention, collaboration, and coaching every step of the way. We offer two publishing models: a traditional non-fee model for the highest quality work, as well as a co-publishing model that includes creative development fees for emerging authors. Our titles are broad-based and include nearly every major non-fiction and fiction genre.
Mascot Books is a full-service hybrid publisher dedicated to helping authors at all stages of their publishing journey create a high-quality printed or digital book that matches their vision. With comprehensive editorial, design, marketing, production, and distribution services, our authors have the support of an experienced publishing team while still retaining one of the highest royalty percentages in the business.
Why Publish with RJPP?
The book business is a difficult pursuit. Especially for an Independent writer. The decision to go it alone and self-publish, or go with a small press is strictly an individual business decision. Hiring professional freelance resources like editors, cover designers, and formatters can be daunting enough. Let alone that dreaded marketing and promotion. All of that takes precious time away from what you could be doing. Writing!
With an experienced Literary Agent, award-winning Author, publicist, and publisher like RJ Parker, you don't have to do it alone. RJPP offers years of success and reputation to represent you and your work. Ask yourself, “Do I want to succeed? Is my book worthy of reaping all it is worth and then some?” If you take pride in your work and want to excel to the top, RJ Parker will implement his years of knowledge and skills learned as an industry leader in marketing to get your work into the hands of the people who matter.
What about the nitty-gritty financial workings?
We don't pay advances as a traditional firm does. (which in this business, an advance is used against royalties before you get paid) BUT, we DO pay a much higher royalty rate AND you get paid every month! The standard industry royalty rate is 12-16%. We pay 50% to established writers, and 40% to new authors. (New authors will pay a setup fee). For the majority of authors, we pay the cost of editing, cover artist, ISBN number, formatting, etc.
Interested?
If you are looking for mediocrity or status quo, RJ Parker may not be a good fit for you. However, Parker is a go-getter in the industry who will not cease until he makes your dreams become your reality!
Please send your proposal to agent@rjparkerpublishing.com and include:
Book Title
Book Description
Synopsis (what your book is about and why you think it’s a good fit with RJPP)
A brief bio, including your city of residence, and publication history
First two chapters
250 copies • Completed manuscript.
SOOP is a small virtual publishing company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, with a core team based in the US and additional contractors around the world. SOOP currently focuses on curating a small number of volumes for publication each year to enable its team to dedicate a great deal of time to working with its authors directly - not just on the manuscript, but also on platform-building and promotion.
250 copies • Completed manuscript • Looking for novels that capture the arcing collision of expectation and sudden challenge.
Founded in 2015, Thea Press is an independent book publisher committed to helping nurture hidden stories and narratives to birth. We serve authors who are skilled observers and subverters of the status quo. Thea Press authors cut through what one expects to see in order to give a taste, sound, touch, and smell of the unexpected. We are midwives of the stories birthed not by the God of the mainstream whom we've been taught and sometimes forced to know, but by the Goddess who reveals herself to those whose senses are keen and hearts are open.
Wonderwell is an award-winning, values-driven, forward-thinking hybrid publishing company specializing in books and ebooks that help, heal, and inspire. We believe that authors should have access to high-quality, elegant publishing services and full-scale in-store distribution without having to give up their publishing rights or control over the timing and execution of their book. Many of our clients are first-time authors who know a great deal about how to help make the world a better place, but who need help translating that knowledge into a compelling book. That's where we come in. Wordsmiths, idea sculptors, and enthusiastic cheerleaders for the human race, we make a difference in the world by helping authors to make their difference in the world. We publish primarily practical nonfiction in the following categories: Business and Tech, Health and wellness, Parenting and Relationships, Personal Development, and Inspirational Memoir.
Dear Author,
You worked hard to write your manuscript, and you know that expert assistance is needed to ready it for the market. But perhaps you didn’t realize that working with a publisher is no longer necessary—especially publishers who charge fees to produce your book upfront and "share" more of your revenue whenever a book is sold.
1106 Design is an author services company that has served over 4,000 authors since 2001. We offer all the editorial and design services you’d expect from a publisher, transforming your manuscript into a polished book. But here's the difference: we help you secure print-on-demand printing and worldwide distribution in YOUR name. This means you'll earn several dollars more for every book sold instead of a meager “royalty” and never lose control of your book or your book files.
We understand that your book is not just a passion project but also a potential source of income. No two books or authors are alike. That's why we'll customize a package of services tailored to your needs at affordable prices, starting at $5,555. And here's the best part: after this one-time investment, every penny of revenue from book sales is paid directly to you, never to us.
If this sounds like a better way to publish your book, I invite you to browse our services, design samples, no-surprises pricing, outstanding customer reviews, and educational articles at https://1106design.com. You can download a free PDF of my book, "Publish Like the Pros: A Brief Guide to Quality Self-Publishing and an Insider's Look at a Misunderstood Industry," and request a free, no-obligation consultation.
1106 Design is rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. We are a “Highly Recommended Expert” at IngramSpark.com and rated "Excellent" at Alli, The Alliance for Independent Authors, at SelfPublishingAdvice.org. Alli's "watchdog list" of the best and worst publishing services companies is invaluable.
How can we serve you today?
Sincerely,
Michele DeFilippo, owner
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Atmosphere Press is an independent publisher dedicated to author rights. We publish in all genres and have an exceptional editorial, design, and promotional staff. We stand for Honesty, Transparency, Professionalism, and Kindness. We want our authors and their readers to be blown away when they first hold that book in their hands. It needs to look good inside and out, and feel good to the touch. And, of course, the words need to be top-notch, and our editors are devoted to making that the case.
250 copies • Partial manuscript.
Authors Unite helps you become a profitable author and make an impact. We take care of printing and distribution through major online retailers, developmental editing, and proofreading with unlimited revisions. We take care of the entire process for you from book cover design all the way to set up your backend so all your book royalties go straight to your bank account. We can also help with ghostwriting if you prefer not to have to figure out all the steps on how to write a book yourself.
With our book marketing services, you don’t need to worry about figuring out all the steps on how to market a book or how to become a bestselling author. We’ve helped hundreds of authors become bestselling authors on Amazon, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal. We take care of the entire book launch process for you to help you sell thousands of copies of your book and become a bestselling author.
View case studies here: https://authorsunite.com
100 copies • Partial manuscript.
Bookmobile provides book printing, graphic design, and other resources to support book publishers in an ever-changing environment. Superior quality, excellent customer service, flexibility, and timely turnarounds have attracted nearly 1,000 satisfied clients to Bookmobile, including trade houses, university presses, independent publishers, museums, galleries, artists, and more. In addition, we manage eBook conversions and produce galleys, and regularly provide short-run reprints of 750 copies or fewer for major publishers such as Graywolf Press.
Looking for all types of books, including fiction, children's books, health, memoir, business books, and cookbooks
Bright Communications LLC is a woman- and veteran-owned custom publisher in Hellertown, PA. Founding CEO Jennifer Bright is a Book Doula, whose passion is helping authors bring their books to life. Our team of expert editorial, design, and marketing pros help authors go from idea to completed books and retain 100% of the rights to their work. We also offer four custom publishing packages and a $1900 self-publishing assist program.
100 copies • Completed manuscript • Looking for novels, memoirs, fantasy, and other fiction.
Crescendo Publishing is a boutique-style, concierge VIP publishing company assisting entrepreneur authors with writing, publishing, and promoting their books for the purposes of lead-generation and achieving global platform growth, then monetizing it for even more income opportunities.
100 copies • Completed manuscript.
eBooks2go, Inc. was founded in 2011 to provide the missing link for all your publishing needs. Our end-to-end solutions provide the guidance and support that enable publishers and independent authors to pursue their passions. To date, we have helped more than 750 authors and 100 publishers worldwide. We offer an array of simple and affordable solutions to assist self-publishing authors at every stage of the book publishing process. Our comprehensive service offering includes editing, print and eBook production, book marketing, cover designs, ISBN registration, and even website designs. We are a single source for all of your publishing needs.
Gladiator Publishing Co. has held a reputation in the Literary Industry for nearly 100 Years as a Writer-Loyal company. Nearly 100-years later, Gladiator Publishing Company still maintains that strong characteristic. We place our Authors publications first and foremost. You may hear many other "Publishing entities" state that they are "the first" to do this or the "originator/pioneer" of that. If everyone is using the same marketing, promotional, and advertising pipelines what makes them so original?
As the proud recipients of six-awards in 2018 for our innovative marketing techniques, media outreach, extremely low budget compared to the Global Industry Standard (72-83% cheaper), and an Author-inclusive style, it is no wonder we are the #1 Requested Publishing Service on the East Coast. We are staffed with industry-specific professionals that are dedicated to market and brand development.
Full Editing Services (substantive, copy, formatting, proofreading, story flow, line) are INCLUDED in the price. No hidden fees, no extra cost for something that Publishing Services should be more than happy to provide to benefit the manuscripts success. The industry has turned toward greed and away from literature. It's sick and inappropriate, it's ok to agree, they know it too.
Maintain 100% of your royalties in all formats.
Maintain 100% of your Copyrights, Intellectual Property, and Creative Control.
You be the Author and we'll be the Publisher.
Happy Writings!!
100 copies • Completed manuscript.
Happy Self Publishing has helped 500+ authors to get their books self-published, hit the #1 position in the Amazon bestseller charts, and also establish their author website & brand to grow their business. And the best thing is, we do all this without taking away your rights and royalties. Let's schedule a call to discuss the next steps in your book project: www.meetme.so/jyotsnaramachandran
Ingram is a rather large company with several different divisions and supplies books to bookstores and libraries in over 200 countries around the world. Ingram also has a print on demand digital printing company, Lightning Source. IngramSpark is the platform that combines those two services together. At IngramSpark, we work with authors and independent publishers to print their books for orders they need (no minimum order) and we have a way to list the books as available for sale to all of Ingram’s 39,000+ customers- distributors, bookstores, retail outlets, libraries, etc., so you never miss a sale. You would provide us with the print-ready digital files (one for the cover and one for the interior) and we print the books as they are sold through our distribution partner’s websites. We pay you for those sales approximately 90 days later. The compensation you earn is based on the retail price you set, minus the wholesale discount you offer our distribution partners, minus the print cost.
Looking for health, parenting, inspiration, and children's books.
Momosa Publishing LLC is a woman- and veteran-owned custom publisher in Hellertown, PA. Founder and CEO Jennifer Bright is a Book Doula, whose passion is helping authors bring their books to life. We are an efficient, effective, excellent team of editorial, design, and marketing pros.
100 copies • Completed manuscript.
Prepare to Publish is run by two writers, so we understand your concerns and your requirements. Our service is tried and trusted by mainstream publishers, too, and we'll give you the same high-quality experience that they get, without costing the earth. We work with fiction and non-fiction. We offer a variety of packages to authors including structural editing, copy editing, typesetting (print and ebook) and proofreading – whatever your book needs to be produced at the best quality. We have a network of highly experienced freelancers, so we can find the right editors for your book.
Bestsellers are great. Long-term sellers are even better. We'll help you do both.
Project Bestseller is about creating bestsellers. More importantly, it’s about building author platforms and long-term success. We’re building books that sell well over time, generate income for their authors, and create a lasting impact for their readers.
How? The surface answer to this question is:
- crafting each book for maximum appeal to readers
- editing, design, and production with quality to match or exceed traditional publishers
- building an author platform to build loyalty and reach
- optimizing marketing elements such as keywords, categories, and sales copy
- leveraging promotion and advertising to generate sales at a profit
A deeper answer is: with strategy, curiosity, and intense passion.
Why? We believe good books should sell. If you're like most of our clients, you have a big vision for your book. It represents you. It says something about who you are. Now you’re ready for it to start touching lives.
You can probably think of half a dozen books that have become part of the grain of your life, because they gave you exactly what you needed at the time—whether it was a feeling, an experience, a different perspective, or just the information you needed to unlock your next possibility.
Now it's your turn. We can help you impact your readers with your book. It's what we do.
We've been helping authors finish and publish their books since 2012. Services include: ghostwriting, editing, cover design, book design, formatting, publishing guidance, launch planning, marketing.
The author hasn't added any updates, yet.
Amazing stuff fella. Well proud of ya :)
Thanks Nick, I massively appreciate your support!
Thanks Ben, well proud of you too mate!!! The shoot looked awesome!!!
looks like a great book everyone's waiting for
"Awesome initiative. There’s not enough focus on the mental strain creative leaders are put under, and it makes a huge difference that it comes from a former top creative in Matt. Bloody brilliant." Paul Nagy Chief Creative Officer at Y&R Group Australia
Congrats mate, finally after all the hard work you put in to this project, it looks like you will finally be recognised.
Looking forward to reading it :-)
Looking forward to the read Matt...
I just heard your interview with Ben Kay and thought this sounded fascinating, good luck with it!
Thanks Martin!!!!
Good Luck!
Hey Matt, you gave a talk at D&AD New Blood back in 2016. I was one of the lucky 50 people there who had their brains de-mangled by you. Really excited to read your book!
Mike
Has the book actually been published? I'd love to have a few copies.
$21
25 readers
1 autographed, limited edition copy of the book "The Dopamine Switch." You’ll also get VIP access to my creative leadership mastermind group + exclusive access to updates and an invite to join my PressureProof Creative™ community. *This bonus is limited to the first 55 readers.
Includes:
$25
16 readers
Two copies (one for you and one for a friend) of the autographed limited edition of the book “The Dopamine Switch” + FREE invitation to the book launch and exclusive access to updates and an invite to join my PressureProof Creative™ community.
Includes:
$67
2 readers
3 copies of the autographed limited edition of the book “The Dopamine Switch” + FREE invitation to the book launch and a massive thank you mention in the book.
Includes:
$297
0 readers
My corporate coaching sessions start at $999, but if you preorder 15 copies for yourself, friends or colleagues I’ll give you a 2 hour, no-holds-barred, dopamine-fulled coaching session absolutely FREE + FREE invitation to the book launch and exclusive access to updates and an invite to join my PressureProof Creative™ community.
Includes:
$447
1 reader
25 copies of the autographed limited edition of the book “The Dopamine Switch” for you and your team + FREE invitation to the book launch for you and 2 members of your team + your company's name mentioned in the book as a Sponsor + a half-day workshop for your team where I'll teach some of the most potent tools from my book
Includes:
$997
3 readers
My in-house workshops start at $3000 a day (excluding design) but if you order 50 copies I’ll run a high-intensity, sustainable high performance training session for you and your company, college or university for just $1000 (excluding reasonable travel expenses)
Includes:
$3457
0 readers
Preorder 125 copies for your company, organisation, or network and I’ll give one of your most high-potential employees 3 months of peak performance creative leadership coaching for just $1000.
Includes:
$4977
0 readers
If you’re a creative entrepreneur, preorder 250 copies to sell online and I’ll personally work with you for 6 months to pressure-proof your creative brain and help you design a creative life you never want to escape from.
Includes:
on Aug. 5, 2018, 11:06 p.m.
good luck. It is definitely a conversation / tool that is needed