Patience and Persistence in Writing | 1min snip from The Tim Ferriss Show

Get the app

#726: Hugh Howey, Author of Silo and Wool — A Masterclass on Writing, Unorthodox Self-Publishing, and Living in The AI Age

The Tim Ferriss Show

chevron_right

notes

NOTE

Patience and Persistence in Writing

Starting in obscurity, the author's first book outperformed other debut works from small presses, leading to self-publishing the sequel. Despite initially earning modestly, the author's approach aimed at consistent output, planning to write two books annually for a decade. By focusing on continual improvement and content production without fixating on immediate success, the author highlighted the importance of building a backlist, citing examples like Dan Brown and George RR Martin who gained prominence after having multiple books in circulation.

00:00

Transcript

chevron_right

Play full episode

chevron_right

Transcript

Episode notes

Hugh Howey is the New York Times bestselling author of Wool, Beacon 23, Sand, Machine Learning, Half Way Home, and more than a dozen other novels. His Silo trilogy was recently adapted by Apple TV, becoming their #1 drama of all time. Please enjoy!

Timestamps for this episode are available below. Resources from this episode: https://tim.blog/2024/03/13/hugh-howey/

Sponsors:

Momentous high-quality supplements: https://livemomentous.com/tim (code TIM for 20% off)

Helix Sleep premium mattresses: https://helixsleep.com/tim (20% off all mattress orders and two free pillows)

Wealthfront high-yield savings account: https://wealthfront.com/tim (Start earning 5% interest on your savings. And when you open an account today, you’ll get an extra fifty-dollar bonus with a deposit of five hundred dollars or more.)

Timestamps:

[00:00] Start

[06:48] Breaking the formula with a literary sleight of hand.

[11:00] A commitment to 10 years of obscurity.

[15:02] Buying back rights and self-publishing.

[22:04] Why authors should strive for a reader-first vs. publisher-first mindset.

[24:22] Hitting the NYT Best Sellers List with a self-pub book.

[27:44] Pricing logic.

[31:00] The undersold value of worldwide rights.

[33:57] How authors can find deal leverage early on.

[37:07] Establishing a daily writing habit.

[41:34] Fiction that inspires better writing.