It's been exactly 80 days since my last email to you. I've been hiding away doing various semi-secret things. Including: writing 3 new books. (Because 2 just didn’t seem like enough. Haha!)
Here are the details on those new books, followed by a couple of articles, music recommendations, and whatnot.
Enjoy...
Book #1.
YOU’RE GOING TO SURVIVE: True stories of criticism, rejection, public humiliation, terrible Yelp reviews, and other experiences that basically make you want to die—and how to get through it.
This book is dedicated to anyone who wants to write,
paint, sing, dance, speak onstage, post videos online, start a business, or pursue any other type of audacious goal. You’re probably afraid that people will laugh at you, criticize you, gossip about you, leave horrible comments and scathing reviews and mock your existence. And guess what? They sure will! Please pursue your dream anyway.
I hope this book inspires you to charge forward despite the criticism that will inevitably
come your way. Also, this book includes ILLUSTRATIONS that I drew. Art! Yay!
83 pages. Digital (PDF). FREE. You can download it HERE.
Book #2.
HOW TO HIRE THE RIGHT COPYWRITER FOR YOUR BUSINESS... and avoid misery, confusion, wasted time and money, and other wretched tragedies.
Over the years, a lot of people have asked me, “Should I hire a copywriter?” and “How do I find the right person?” and “I hired a copywriter but it was a total
disaster—why???” and so forth.
I wrote this little booklet to answer those types of questions. It’s a pretty quick read. I hope it’s helpful! (Side note: I do copywriting and ghostwriting work, but I’m booked up until 2017. Happily, I’ve included a list of 5
terrific copywriters inside this booklet—so perhaps you can hire one of them instead!)
17 pages. Digital (PDF). FREE. You can download it HERE.
Book #3.
SO THIS IS THE END: A Novel.
Summary:
What if you met the love of your life... on the last day of your
life?
"Temporary Cellular Resuscitation": it's a revolutionary new medical procedure that revives you from death and gives you an extra 24 hours of life.
You can spend your 24-hour "bonus round" however you want—say goodbye to your friends, make amends, treat yourself to that decadent experience you'd been postponing until "someday later." But once your time is up,
it's officially over. Permanently and completely. After dying a second time, there's no coming back.
Thirty-two year old Nora Hamilton begins her bonus round without a clear plan. Aimless and desperately lonely, she flings herself into the world of online dating, seeking one last tryst before everything fades to black. The last thing she expects is meeting Renzo: mischievous, inquisitive, unfairly sexy, the type of man she could devote
herself to forever and ever.
Their chemistry: heart-pounding. Their connection: undeniable. But is it dangerous, careless, or just too painful to fall in love when there's (literally) no tomorrow?
If you’d like to read a FREE SAMPLE of the first 15 pages, you can download that HERE. I will release the full-length book a bit later this year, and when I do, you’ll be the first to know!
Recent
articles.
— Lately, I’ve received quite a few emails from people asking,
“I want to be a professional writer. How do I get started?” Here’s my advice.
Recommendations.
Books, books, books! I've been devouring books like crazy lately, because the one-click purchase button on Amazon has ruined me. If you’re looking for something new to read, I highly recommend:
— SHRILL by Lindy West. Fascinating essays on feminism, body image, fat-shaming, women’s self-esteem, and lots of other topics.
— Girl Walks Into A Bar by Rachel Dratch. She’s so darn adorable and endearing! A lovely memoir from one of my favorite Saturday Night Live performers.
— For Real by Alexis Hall. SUPER HOT AND SEXY. Omg. Just…
whoa. This is one of the best romance novels I’ve read in a looooong time.
— How Bad Do You Want It? by Matt Fitzgerald. Why do certain people pursue their goals relentlessly while others give up so quickly? That’s the question that
Matt explores in the book, which is filled with lots of interesting mind/body research plus stories about elite athletes and how they work on becoming “mentally tough.”
— You Can Do Hard Things by Nicole Antoinette. Nicole is a friend of mine and this book inspired me so much, I
literally burst into tears. You should probably buy this book and all of her other books too.
Thanks for reading this email newsletter-ish thing.
I hope the past 80 days of your life have been really beautiful. I hope the next 80 are even better.
Onward we
go...
-Alex
PS. I created this music playlist and it helped me to run 6.5 miles—my longest run ever in my whole life! If you're
looking for some energizing, get-going-right-now tunes, check it out.
PPS. To everyone who inquired about Brandon's health: thank you for your kind words. After his weird heart-thing, he had a whole bunch of tests and in the end, the doctors couldn’t pinpoint any specific thing that might be wrong. He hasn't had any further episodes, so we're crossing our fingers and hoping it was just a freak one-time thing.
xo.