Attack of the Pre-Orders

In this issue: Books by Maggie Messitt, Philip Gerard, Dan John, D. Randall Blythe and ... me??? plus ... the dogs got bathrobes

Author

Brendan O'Meara
January 01, 2025

I did a promotional partnership with the Power of Narrative Conference (I don’t get any kickbacks or commissions). If you want a discount for the weekend tuition, use the promo code CNF15 at checkout to save 15%. The conference takes place March 28 and 29 at Boston University. Visit https://combeyond.bu.edu/offering/the-power-of-narrative-conference/ to learn more and to register for an unforgettable time. Susan Orlean, a three-time guest of The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, is the keynote speaker!

The Riff

Happy (?) New Year, CNFers,

Pre-orders …

Go on …

admit it …

you’re sick of them, too.

It’s okay. Every goddam author under the sun bombards you to pre-order their book. BEGS you. Every author, big and small (sorry, popular and not), must go around and blast to the world over and over and over again asking you to spend an obscene amount of money (often north of $30) to buy something they won’t get for six to nine months. In an age of next-day shipping, book pre-ordering does not jive.

We all know this is part of the game, yet it still feels icky when you already ask people for their attention — be it to listen to your podcast, or read your newsletter — or even plunk down a couple clams on Patreon. Then on top of that you’re asking for a significant investment from your generous audience in the form of a pre-order (or 2 or 3 or 4).

I’ve been sitting on my pre-order link for The Front Runner: The Life of Steve Prefontaine because I haven’t been able to bring myself to be yet another writer begging you to pay $32.99 on top of your attention. I put the link up on my website. I read a little “house ad” for it on the podcast. I haven’t told a lot of people and perhaps that’s my propensity for self-sabotage. I’ve long thought the idea of success is for other people, a lovely, debilitating trait I got from my dementia-addled mother.

And so it comes to this … I first shared the book cover and pre-order link with the Patreon gang. Now I’ll share it with you before I start getting obnoxious on social media about it.

If $32.99 (or more if you’re being generous) is too much (gosh, that’s a lot money, it really is; it’s like a half-tank of gas or 60 Busch Lights), ask your library to order it, maybe? Is that a thing? Fuck if I know.

If you order five or more for you and your reading group, share the receipt with me and I’ll be sure to schedule some kind of private group sesh. Just like the Metallica Industrial Complex promotes around concerts, “Enhanced Experiences.”

Below, you’ll see the beautiful cover and a link in the caption that will take you to HarperCollins’s site. There you can visit the bookseller of your choice. If you have a favorite bookstore, ring them up.

This has been a wild ride, man. If nothing else, just bask in that book cover. It’s a beaut, Clark!

As you know, this newsletter starts here and goes up to 11!

The Books

  1. Newspaper (Bloomsbury Academic) by Maggie Messitt. An odd, little book that braids a selected history of the newspaper in the United States and South Africa, two countries near and dear to Maggie’s heart.

  2. Just Beyond the Light: Making Peace with the Wars Inside Our Head (Grand Central Publishing) by D. Randall Blythe. He’s the lead singer of the death metal band Lamb of God. They make Metallica sound like Led Zeppelin.

  3. Words & Music: An Album of a Life in Story and Song (Beach Glass Books) by the late Philip Gerard. Before Philip’s untimely passing a few years ago, he was one of the most cherished teachers and writers in this CNFin’ community.

  4. The Armor Building Formula: Bodybuilding for Real People by Dan John. He’s one of my favorite strength coaches out there, sensible, not an Instagram trainer.

The Other Stuff

  1. The effing algorithm, man … somehow this came across my YouTube feed and … I love it. It’s Aki, a Japanese minimalist and his channel just makes me happy.

  2. A recent podcast excerpt in Longreads, this featuring Louisa Thomas.

  3. In case you still need convincing, you don’t need Twitter (I left when what’s-his-face [who apparently is going full-on White Supremacist] bought it, but people still seem to need convincing). Shoutout to the Read This email by Stephen Knezovich. Happy One Year Anniversary to my favorite daily email!

  4. I got a tip protector for Christmas.

  5. Comedian Isabel Hagen struggles with the social media element of being a standup. I came across this via Jason Zinoman’s NYT article.

  6. How to stop doomscrolling.

  7. Some, but not all, the lessons learned from finishing writing a book in 2024 (parting shot, in writing, from Ep. 444).

ICYMI: December on CNF Pod

CNFin’ Happy Hour: So You’ve Quit Your Resolutions and You Feel Like a Big Fat Loser

Friday, January 17, 2025
5 p.m. PST to 5:45 PST
Link: https://us05web.zoom.us/j/81970506176?pwd=AUDdT0DRlnSbuD7M4YHagu7JYZRtz8.1
Meeting ID: 819 7050 6176
Passcode: 0IGkjK

Maybe Patreon?

Seen a nice little uptick in Patreon enrollment. If you want to help financially support the podcast and possibly get some face-to-face time with me to talk through some shit, consider becoming a patron. You can join for free if you want to lurk, but to get perks, you gotta thrown down that plastic. https://www.patreon.com/cnfpod

Bonus: The Dogs Got Bathrobes

We keep our house pretty chill (literally) in the winter. It makes for shivering dogs when they get their monthly baths. So they got bathrobes for Christmas. Our. Dogs. Own. Bathrobes.

Kevin is in LOVE with hers (this surprised us). Hank loves a good blanket, so it’s no surprise he loves his. I assure you he doesn’t look like a seal.

Lachlan loves his robe, too, but I don’t have a photo with him in it. So here he is not respecting my space. Very on brand for him.

Until February, stay wild,

b.o.