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laurasauras's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this! It gave me a lot to think about and I think I read it at a very important time for my novel's development.
devincarlos's review
5.0
An amazing book I highly recommend it
I have already purchased and gifted 3 copies to friends and family. As someone who runs an Incubator program and seeks to help people create, launch and sustain long lasting innovative companies I can tell you found absolutely zero flaws in his logic or advice. As someone who is writing their own book I can tell you the wealth of advice was timely and perfect. I am reinvigorated and will get back to work now writing my own perennial seller. Buy this book even if you are not an author. It's about creating something that lasts and getting it into the right hands regardless of your crafts. I can't recommend it enough.
I have already purchased and gifted 3 copies to friends and family. As someone who runs an Incubator program and seeks to help people create, launch and sustain long lasting innovative companies I can tell you found absolutely zero flaws in his logic or advice. As someone who is writing their own book I can tell you the wealth of advice was timely and perfect. I am reinvigorated and will get back to work now writing my own perennial seller. Buy this book even if you are not an author. It's about creating something that lasts and getting it into the right hands regardless of your crafts. I can't recommend it enough.
gemmamilne's review against another edition
3.0
Sped read this after quite a few people recommended I take a peek.
It’s a very practical book - which is what I was exactly what I was looking for. There’s a level of obviousness around what he’s saying, but there’s something about sitting down for a few hours and working through the strategies and thought-processes in a dedicated manner.
The first half is more about getting the idea right, the second half about marketing it. I actually found the first half more useful, as I’m in the middle of working out what to put in the proposal for book 2. I read the second half with ‘Smoke & Mirrors’ in mind and did have a few brain waves, but wasn’t bowled over. (In fairness, I did used to work in advertising, so I appreciate I’m maybe not the main target audience...)
The overall idea: of creating something that lasts, as opposed to a flash in the pan, is compelling. And he makes a great case for it. Maybe that shift in thinking is the key takeaway from the book, but it probably didn’t need a whole book to get that across.
Recommend as an afternoon exercise.
It’s a very practical book - which is what I was exactly what I was looking for. There’s a level of obviousness around what he’s saying, but there’s something about sitting down for a few hours and working through the strategies and thought-processes in a dedicated manner.
The first half is more about getting the idea right, the second half about marketing it. I actually found the first half more useful, as I’m in the middle of working out what to put in the proposal for book 2. I read the second half with ‘Smoke & Mirrors’ in mind and did have a few brain waves, but wasn’t bowled over. (In fairness, I did used to work in advertising, so I appreciate I’m maybe not the main target audience...)
The overall idea: of creating something that lasts, as opposed to a flash in the pan, is compelling. And he makes a great case for it. Maybe that shift in thinking is the key takeaway from the book, but it probably didn’t need a whole book to get that across.
Recommend as an afternoon exercise.
allarminda's review against another edition
4.0
This is an absolute must-read for any creator. Ryan Holiday has long been one of my favorite authors, thinkers, and doers. As I continue pondering the message of this book, I believe that together with Seth Godin's "Tribes," Austin Kleon's "Steal Like An Artist," and Steven Pressfield's "Turning Pro," you have the perfect starter kit for anyone ready to share their work with the world.
bootman's review against another edition
5.0
2nd read:
I’ve been pretty disappointed with Ryan Holiday’s recent books. They’re all just kind of the same old thing over and over and over. But, as I write my new book, I remember really liking this one, so I gave it another read. Unlike his other books, this one definitely holds up, and I still really enjoy it. Many of his other books are just filled with cherry-picked stories and then him saying, “See! You can do this too!” Perennial Seller has a lot more actionable advice that’s hard to argue with. It covers everything from the writing process to marketing the book and much more.
1st read:
I absolutely love Ryan Holiday’s work, but for some reason I never heard of this book until now, and it didn’t disappoint.
As an author and content creator on various platforms, I absolutely loved how Ryan brought his style to this topic.
I’ve been pretty disappointed with Ryan Holiday’s recent books. They’re all just kind of the same old thing over and over and over. But, as I write my new book, I remember really liking this one, so I gave it another read. Unlike his other books, this one definitely holds up, and I still really enjoy it. Many of his other books are just filled with cherry-picked stories and then him saying, “See! You can do this too!” Perennial Seller has a lot more actionable advice that’s hard to argue with. It covers everything from the writing process to marketing the book and much more.
1st read:
I absolutely love Ryan Holiday’s work, but for some reason I never heard of this book until now, and it didn’t disappoint.
As an author and content creator on various platforms, I absolutely loved how Ryan brought his style to this topic.
victoriakleinco's review against another edition
5.0
Will anyone give a sh*t about what you created Next week? Next year? Next decade?
No matter what kind of business you have, you are a creator. At the very least, you create content to gain attention for the work that you do, and you may even create things like books or courses that people can purchase.
But are you creating meaningful, long-lasting work that people will continue to buy + use 5, 10, 20 years from now?
OK, so you're latest Facebook post probably isn't a masterpiece, but the work that you create that represents your business - the things you actually sell that have an impact on people - are they perennial sellers?
In Perennial Seller, Ryan Holiday blends art, science, and old-fashioned luck together to share a time-tested formula on how to create works that sell for decades to come.
Why does creating a Perennial Seller matter?
Ryan explains is pretty well:
>> “Perennial” ... regardless of how well they may have done at their release or the scale of the audience they reached, these products have found continued success and more customers over time ... Like gold or land, they increase in value over time because they are always of value to someone, somewhere. In other words, they are not simply perennial; they are perennial sellers. <<
Whether it's a movie, or a book, or a course, or a physical product ... a perennial seller is something that consistently sells, year after year. You may update it, expand on, create a new version, but the core thing is the same ... and it sells, over and over and over.
Perennial sellers are the types of works that you can create an entire career around - the kind of thing you become a "recognized name" for.
So the "why" is pretty clear: a perennial seller is a cornerstone of making an impact that will, quite literally, outlive you.
How do you create a Perennial Seller?
So, you want to create a perennial seller ... must be simple, right?
No way! If it WAS simple, then everyone would do it; that's part of what makes a perennial seller so impactful.
It's not a random, one-off, unedited creation that someone slapped up onto a website and promoted on social media.
But don't lose heart, it IS possible for you to create a perennial seller.
>> This is the good news. It means that your perennial seller does not have to be birthed in some single episode of genius. Instead, it can be made piece by piece - or, as Anne Lamott put it in her meditation on writing, “bird by bird.” you don’t have to be a genius to make genius - you just have to have small moments of brilliance and edit out the boring stuff. <<
In fact, Ryan spends the majority of the book explaining the 4 parts that are vital for any perennial seller:
1. The Creative Process
2. Positioning
3. Marketing
4. Platform
Skip any of these elements, and having a perennial seller would be nothing short of a miracle.
But we're entrepreneurs, we're used to great odds!
Don't waste your time, friend.
Read Perennial Seller, and you'll be more than motivated by Ryan's collected examples of grit and creativity that have helped to create some of the most memorable movies, TV shows, albums, books, physical products, and more.
>> No matter what we have heard from our parents and internalized as part of the American Dream, hard work does not trump all. It’s that old saying: The more you do, the harder you work, the luckier you seem to get. <<
One of the things that I found most impactful about Ryan's writing style and his approach is that he walks the talk.
He is an actual embodiment of all the elements he discusses in the book. He is continually putting this into practice over and over.
He even explicitly says that the book Perennial Seller itself went through FIVE rounds of edits before it was finalized (by the way, even in the publishing world, that's a lot of editing rounds).
>> We have to have this kind of discipline. The discipline required to hit pause and return to our prospective studios until the work meets the standards we’ve set for ourselves and that the fans have for us. We need to have our own test: Does a summary of the book work as a talk? Are the early users you’ve given prototypes to already addicted to their early versions of the product? Does what you made scratch your own itch in a way that suggests it will do the same for others? <<
If you're out to make works that matter - the ones that continue to impact people for decades, generations to come - then read Perennial Seller by Ryan Holiday. It will change the way that you think about creativity, marketing, and building a business (and maybe your next Facebook post).
No matter what kind of business you have, you are a creator. At the very least, you create content to gain attention for the work that you do, and you may even create things like books or courses that people can purchase.
But are you creating meaningful, long-lasting work that people will continue to buy + use 5, 10, 20 years from now?
OK, so you're latest Facebook post probably isn't a masterpiece, but the work that you create that represents your business - the things you actually sell that have an impact on people - are they perennial sellers?
In Perennial Seller, Ryan Holiday blends art, science, and old-fashioned luck together to share a time-tested formula on how to create works that sell for decades to come.
Why does creating a Perennial Seller matter?
Ryan explains is pretty well:
>> “Perennial” ... regardless of how well they may have done at their release or the scale of the audience they reached, these products have found continued success and more customers over time ... Like gold or land, they increase in value over time because they are always of value to someone, somewhere. In other words, they are not simply perennial; they are perennial sellers. <<
Whether it's a movie, or a book, or a course, or a physical product ... a perennial seller is something that consistently sells, year after year. You may update it, expand on, create a new version, but the core thing is the same ... and it sells, over and over and over.
Perennial sellers are the types of works that you can create an entire career around - the kind of thing you become a "recognized name" for.
So the "why" is pretty clear: a perennial seller is a cornerstone of making an impact that will, quite literally, outlive you.
How do you create a Perennial Seller?
So, you want to create a perennial seller ... must be simple, right?
No way! If it WAS simple, then everyone would do it; that's part of what makes a perennial seller so impactful.
It's not a random, one-off, unedited creation that someone slapped up onto a website and promoted on social media.
But don't lose heart, it IS possible for you to create a perennial seller.
>> This is the good news. It means that your perennial seller does not have to be birthed in some single episode of genius. Instead, it can be made piece by piece - or, as Anne Lamott put it in her meditation on writing, “bird by bird.” you don’t have to be a genius to make genius - you just have to have small moments of brilliance and edit out the boring stuff. <<
In fact, Ryan spends the majority of the book explaining the 4 parts that are vital for any perennial seller:
1. The Creative Process
2. Positioning
3. Marketing
4. Platform
Skip any of these elements, and having a perennial seller would be nothing short of a miracle.
But we're entrepreneurs, we're used to great odds!
Don't waste your time, friend.
Read Perennial Seller, and you'll be more than motivated by Ryan's collected examples of grit and creativity that have helped to create some of the most memorable movies, TV shows, albums, books, physical products, and more.
>> No matter what we have heard from our parents and internalized as part of the American Dream, hard work does not trump all. It’s that old saying: The more you do, the harder you work, the luckier you seem to get. <<
One of the things that I found most impactful about Ryan's writing style and his approach is that he walks the talk.
He is an actual embodiment of all the elements he discusses in the book. He is continually putting this into practice over and over.
He even explicitly says that the book Perennial Seller itself went through FIVE rounds of edits before it was finalized (by the way, even in the publishing world, that's a lot of editing rounds).
>> We have to have this kind of discipline. The discipline required to hit pause and return to our prospective studios until the work meets the standards we’ve set for ourselves and that the fans have for us. We need to have our own test: Does a summary of the book work as a talk? Are the early users you’ve given prototypes to already addicted to their early versions of the product? Does what you made scratch your own itch in a way that suggests it will do the same for others? <<
If you're out to make works that matter - the ones that continue to impact people for decades, generations to come - then read Perennial Seller by Ryan Holiday. It will change the way that you think about creativity, marketing, and building a business (and maybe your next Facebook post).
neural_lauren_unreal's review against another edition
2.0
Having went through the first 15%, I am totally convinced there's no point going further. After all, every hour I spent on reading the wrong book is an hour I DID NOT spend on reading the right book.
Admittedly Ryan posed a thought-proving question, but he gave a lazy, unthoughtful, unoriginal and thus extremely unsatisfying answer.
Time to move on.
Admittedly Ryan posed a thought-proving question, but he gave a lazy, unthoughtful, unoriginal and thus extremely unsatisfying answer.
Time to move on.
allieeveryday's review against another edition
4.0
Won via Goodreads giveaway.
I love marketing. I love reading about it and talking about it and hearing new and cool creative ideas and even watching commercials (though I could die happy right this second if Geico promised to never advertise again).
This book was fun and conversational while also talking about how to create and market things that will continue to sell for a long, long time. It covered making sure that your work is as good as it possibly can be, making sure your work is positioned correctly, building a platform, finding ways to market without spending ad dollar$$$, but like WAY more interesting than it sounds, and with other good book recommendations and relevant pop culture anecdotes and cool publicity stunts thrown in!
I’ve followed the author’s blog for a while, because it’s a good marketing resource and he’s fun to read, and I plan to continue, so I guess I’ll have to forgive him for calling my beloved Friends a “receding cultural memory” on page 31. Them’s fightin’ words, good sir!
But for real, enjoyed this one a lot and it's going to live on my desk so I can go back and read bits of it when I'm not feeling very creative.
I love marketing. I love reading about it and talking about it and hearing new and cool creative ideas and even watching commercials (though I could die happy right this second if Geico promised to never advertise again).
This book was fun and conversational while also talking about how to create and market things that will continue to sell for a long, long time. It covered making sure that your work is as good as it possibly can be, making sure your work is positioned correctly, building a platform, finding ways to market without spending ad dollar$$$, but like WAY more interesting than it sounds, and with other good book recommendations and relevant pop culture anecdotes and cool publicity stunts thrown in!
I’ve followed the author’s blog for a while, because it’s a good marketing resource and he’s fun to read, and I plan to continue, so I guess I’ll have to forgive him for calling my beloved Friends a “receding cultural memory” on page 31. Them’s fightin’ words, good sir!
But for real, enjoyed this one a lot and it's going to live on my desk so I can go back and read bits of it when I'm not feeling very creative.
dunguyen's review against another edition
5.0
It will not be a surprise that a book about perennial sellers, works that keeps selling well after they have been published, will probably become a perennial seller itself.
Ryan Holiday has in this book taken the lessons he's learned from his mentor Robert Greene, his own books, his work in the marketing industry and countless of stories from around the world and distilled them into clear ideas that any creator must read and internalize. The book is easily read with a light style that is almost conversational. If that seems like it could undermine the authority of the book, there's plenty of real-world stories that put the ideas into context and shows how these ideas have been applied in real life. But behind the conversational style and the many great and entertaining anecdotes and stories, the ideas that this book presents are some that I look forward to implementing. Seeing how Holiday has used these ideas himself for his own work (including this very book) shows that it's not all talk and no walk, it's not another book that espouses some simple idea which could have been covered in a short article. This book provides a lot of value if one is willing to use the learnings in it.
There's a point in the book about your platform and in it, he suggests creating an email list. Being a subscriber of his email list, I've been trying to read most of his recommendations and through his book reviews, I have also bought every single one of his books. As a fan of Ryan Holiday, I would recommend this book, not only because the ideas are good, or because they work, but because they worked on me.
Ryan Holiday has in this book taken the lessons he's learned from his mentor Robert Greene, his own books, his work in the marketing industry and countless of stories from around the world and distilled them into clear ideas that any creator must read and internalize. The book is easily read with a light style that is almost conversational. If that seems like it could undermine the authority of the book, there's plenty of real-world stories that put the ideas into context and shows how these ideas have been applied in real life. But behind the conversational style and the many great and entertaining anecdotes and stories, the ideas that this book presents are some that I look forward to implementing. Seeing how Holiday has used these ideas himself for his own work (including this very book) shows that it's not all talk and no walk, it's not another book that espouses some simple idea which could have been covered in a short article. This book provides a lot of value if one is willing to use the learnings in it.
There's a point in the book about your platform and in it, he suggests creating an email list. Being a subscriber of his email list, I've been trying to read most of his recommendations and through his book reviews, I have also bought every single one of his books. As a fan of Ryan Holiday, I would recommend this book, not only because the ideas are good, or because they work, but because they worked on me.
cyrkenstein's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.75