WordPress.com Blogger Scores Book Deal for “You Are Not So Smart”
According to David McRaney, “You may think that you’re a rational, logical being who sees the world as it really is. But you’re as deluded as the rest of us, and that’s OK, because it keeps you sane.”
David is a journalist and the creator of the WordPress.com blog You Are Not So Smart, which was recently expanded into a book, You Are Not So Smart: Why You Have Too Many Friends on Facebook, Why Your Memory Is Mostly Fiction, and 46 Other Ways You’re Deluding Yourself, published this October.
“This is an amazing and revolutionary time for writers,” David says. “The barriers to entry are so low, and the platforms like WordPress.com are so well made, anyone with a voice can start shouting and be heard. Instead of writing a book and hoping a publisher won’t throw it into the slush pile, writers can start a blog and build a fan base. They can prove to publishers there is a market for their work and their voice.”
About the Book
“You Are Not So Smart is a celebration of self delusion. One topic at a time, it explores how silly and irrational we all are through the lens of fascinating psychological studies,” David says. “For example, you may think that you see everything going on before your eyes, but you are only aware of a small amount of the total information your eyes take in, and even less is processed by your conscious mind and remembered.”
Ironically, a bout of irrational thinking is exactly what helped David to land the book deal:
“I got into a heated online argument with two friends over which was better, the PS3 or the Xbox 360. The argument went on for days, and I think we all crossed the line, insulting each other and getting legitimately angry – and we’re friends in real life!
I thought it would make a great blog post, so I researched why I was so brand loyal and silly. That became my post on brand loyalty and fanboyism, which I published that post at about the same time an iPhone prototype was stolen. With the buzz around fanboyism at an all-time high, someone at Gizmodo saw my post and asked if they could republish it with links back. I agreed, and all of a sudden my hits went through the roof. I kept writing and posting and soon emails arrived from the publishing world asking if I was interested in turning the blog into a book. I said hell yes.”
Learn more about David and You Are Not So Smart by checking out our interview with the author.
Congratulations on your new book, David!
November 15th, 2011 at 4:57 am
Thanks for sharing
November 15th, 2011 at 6:33 am
I am well and truly inspired. Many thanks!
November 15th, 2011 at 7:11 am
waooo
November 15th, 2011 at 9:39 am
Excellent. It’s always great to hear a blogging success story
November 15th, 2011 at 8:23 pm
That has got to be the most productive Facebook spat ever, David! Congrats to you and good luck with the book!
November 15th, 2011 at 9:37 pm
Congratulations David on your book, Hollywood just might turn it into a movie.
November 16th, 2011 at 5:12 am
hooray for the little guy!
November 16th, 2011 at 5:57 am
Congratulations! you give us inspiration to achieve more by doing what we love the most. More success to come, David!
November 16th, 2011 at 8:00 am
Now I am inspired! I hope that I can build the fanboyism of followers that David has that gave him the breakthrough in publishing a book. Awesome stuff.
November 16th, 2011 at 11:35 am
Congratulations, David, what fantastic news! Your book looks brilliant, and you’ve inspired me, thanks! I wish you tons of success. New York Times besteller list for a start…
November 16th, 2011 at 3:34 pm
Good stuff, I’ll definitely give it a read.
November 16th, 2011 at 4:36 pm
i dream someday… i’ll get to publish some also ahahah.. good one!!!!
November 17th, 2011 at 3:33 am
I am delighted to be joining the Blogger’s
November 17th, 2011 at 9:09 pm
Only new to blogging and wordpress but great to hear your news. Will check out your blog and book. Congratulations.
November 18th, 2011 at 12:47 am
Congratulations. Wonderful.
November 18th, 2011 at 1:40 am
And you’re not that smart, but got a book published? Hmmm, you might rethink your next book title . . . or maybe not. Congrats on having a voice many want to hear.
November 18th, 2011 at 7:08 am
Nice work !!
November 18th, 2011 at 2:51 pm
brilliant and inspiring! this is too my desire! we shall see where i get to. meantime i am off to buy your book. congrats!!
November 18th, 2011 at 4:24 pm
Nice to see the recognition is rewarded
November 18th, 2011 at 10:42 pm
Now, may I also join the line of prospective book writters or am I being delusional? Well, then I must read the book…
November 19th, 2011 at 2:04 am
Correct, that is definitely one reason why we all blog. Who wants publishers or publicists when you have the entire world just a click away.Happy blogging
November 19th, 2011 at 10:45 am
congratulations…..
November 19th, 2011 at 11:17 am
very nice
November 19th, 2011 at 6:50 pm
It’s great to hear this news. I look forward to reading your book sometime… I’m supposed to be working on mine, but I get so distracted by everything else on the internet that it’s difficult to focus.
As a result, I have a blog too… It gives me something worthwhile to do with all the internet reading I do. At least, I hope it’s worthwhile.
November 20th, 2011 at 1:57 am
So inspiring to read this story. You never know what the future can hold!
November 20th, 2011 at 3:07 pm
I find the story interesting. However, I am unclear as to how WordPress is a viable method to launch book deals. As i understand the scenario, the information being used for the book was and is still freely available on the authors WordPress Blog. So, how can any books be sold for profit if the information is available for free? So is the author going to shut down the blog and direct visitors to the online bookstore?
November 21st, 2011 at 5:36 pm
Congrats! And if you have any tips for increasing a fan base, PLEASE post them! I have 8 followers and 20 ‘likes’ on FB (down from 21). There must be some insider secret to boost those numbers! Throw us a bone, please!! Congrats again! Nicely done.
November 22nd, 2011 at 4:13 am
Congratulations!
November 22nd, 2011 at 5:46 am
This is great! Good job
November 22nd, 2011 at 12:21 pm
It is a good advice, motivate me verymuch
November 23rd, 2011 at 7:47 am
Applause! Good work.
November 23rd, 2011 at 12:01 pm
That’s Great! Congratulations!
November 23rd, 2011 at 1:52 pm
Congratulations to him!
A great illustration of success breeding success. There has to be the effort which went into starting it all, though.
November 24th, 2011 at 10:29 am
Interesting !!
November 25th, 2011 at 5:51 am
Awesome!
November 25th, 2011 at 5:01 pm
Thanks for the inspiration, David!