Writing is like any other business:
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It doesn’t matter how good your product is if you don’t have a way to get it in front of customers. Your idea will fail to launch and fail to impact lives.

That said, no amount of marketing or sales can save a terrible product.
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So while writing the book might be the easiest part, it’s also—by far—the most important.

That’s because good writing is good marketing. If it’s well-written, people will talk about the book. They’ll recommend it. Word of mouth will keep it selling long after your launch window closes.

Your book may never hit a bestseller list (at least not officially—looking at you, New York Times), but it will keep selling hundreds of copies a month for years after publication.

On the flip side, if your book is poorly written or fails to make an impact, you might get a short-term spark from a big marketing push… but it’ll fizzle. Worse, it’ll rack up bad reviews.

The one part of the publishing process the author has total control over is the writing.
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Sure, an editor will offer suggestions—but you don’t have to take them.
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In my case, I took about 85% of what my editor suggested and trusted my gut on the other 15%.

And based on the feedback so far? I nailed it.

Why I hate blurbs but love reviews

As I write this, we’re just 72 hours out from the launch of Hard Lessons From The Hurt Business: Boxing And The Art of Life.

If you’re new here, that’s my latest book—a memoir of growing up in the projects, failing out of high school, becoming an alcoholic, and rebuilding my life through boxing, sobriety, and studying physics.

It’s also my first book published with a major publisher. And as part of their marketing process, I had to collect blurbs—those little endorsements on the back of the book from people with recognizable names.

Here’s the problem with blurbs: they’re not reviews. At least not when it comes to non-fiction. (Fiction’s a different beast.) Blurbs are basically character references, not reader reactions.

They’re designed to help push someone off the fence and into the “buy” column. That’s fine, but they don’t tell me anything about what someone actually thinks of the book.

Fortunately, over the past week, real feedback has started to roll in.
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Bulk orders have landed. People are reading the book, either to prep for interviewing me on their shows or before sending out an email about it to their lists.

And the feedback?

It’s making my heart sing.

I've done my job. I've written a great book. Now, I just need your help.

The Vanity Metric I'm obsessed with

My goal with this book is to hit a bestseller list—NYT, USA Today, or Publishers Weekly. To get there, I need to sell a certain number of copies during launch week. Here’s the kicker: every pre-order counts toward that first week’s total.

The press that comes from hitting one of those lists can goes a long way towards selling more copies of the book. It's very much a case of the rich getting richer, except it's book sales and almost no one is getting rich from the royalties on a non-fiction book.

If you’re on this list, that means you already dig my writing. You’ve seen the reviews. You know you’re in for one hell of a ride and some damn good storytelling.

So here’s what I need from you:
​Pre-order the book. I’ve made it super simple.

• If you want the pre-order bonuses (A bonus Hard Lessons Guide, the draft that didn't get published, and a private Q&A group call), follow the instructions on this page—>https://edlatimore.com/hard-lessons-from-the-hurt-business/.
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  ​If you don't care about the bonuses but still want to support, the rest of the instructions are one-click simplicity.
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• To order the hardcover, ebook, or audiobook from Amazon, go here—>https://amzn.to/4la1btk​
• To get a signed copy, go to Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million.
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  ​Fun fact about bestseller lists:​
  Vendor diversity matters. If too many orders come from one place, it can hurt your chances. That’s why buying from Books-A-Million helps a lot.
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  ​You can grab regular copies there in every format—but they’re also the only place carrying signed copies, and those are limited.
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  And yes—I personally signed every single one.
• If you'd like to order from another vendor, feel free to do so. People have sent me pre-order receipts from Target. Bookshop.org is another great vendor that helps with order diversity, if you don't want to rock with the larger corporations.

I appreciate all of your support and help. I put a lot of myself into this book, and based on how people are responding to it, I succeeded in bringing you a great experience.

3 days away from launching the best thing I've ever written. I hope I can count on you to help me share my story with the rest of the world.