Customer Reviews

Self-Promotion for the Creative Person: Get the Word Out About Who You Are and What You Do

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mr Silber must indeed be very good at self-promotion: he obviously got all his friends and extended family to write great reviews about this mediocre book.

When I set out to pick a book on self-promotion, I wanted useful insights (something a little deeper than "smile, and the world smiles with you"), or at least a clear method -- a set of carefully selected and tested steps. After reading so many reviews praising this book, I thought I had finally found what I was looking for.

Big mistake. This book is not clear, or organized, or particularly insightful. It's just a big, long jumble of ideas loosely grouped into chapters that all seem to talk about everything and nothing. It is not very well written in terms of either formal grammar or style, and is only mildly amusing, as the lack of a clear direction quickly makes it boring.

But that's not all: the book is filled with quotes and pseudo-scientific "facts" that may be appropriate for a casual conversation among friends over a beer at a bar, but definitely not for a book that the reader would like to be able to rely on. In other words, it reads a lot more like The National Enquirer than The Washington Post.

In my opinion the author makes the mistake of confusing creative people with ignorant, unsophisticated people lacking a critical sense.

Lee Silber's book "Self-Promotion for the Creative Person: Get The Word Out About Who You Are and What You Do," is honestly one of the most straightforward and realistic books on getting you and your business heard above the "din," in this crowded marketplace. I've read books from Sergio Zyman to Jay Conrad Levinson, and I feel Lee Silber's book ranks right up there. If you are a business owner or an entrprenuer, this book has hundreds of creative ideas to get your own word of mouth going and the "buzz" going about you and your work. Everyone knows that word of mouth is the key to new and continued business, but how do you generate it? How do you keep it going? What can you do to be different? How do you market what you do and have real success? All of these and many other questions are answered with very creative but sound business ideas. This is definitely a book to have in your personal and business library.

I LOVED this book! I have been trying to find a way for years to make things happen as an artist, but everything I found in other books seemed futile. This book was an inspiration! Things I can actually do to make my career happen! Lee Silber definatly knows what he's writing about and it's not boring (How's that for new and different in a self promotion book). I actually would get excited about my carrer like I should be.

... what I was doing. All that time I worked with some of the top creative advertising people in Memphis who shared ideas with me as we worked for some pretty big clients like Holiday Inn. Somehow, when it came to promoting myself, especially the true art that I do because I love it, the song of my soul, I wasn't selling the work that meant the most to me. I was baffled and discouraged. I mean, that is why I got into this business in the first place. I have tried reading and applying all the rules, but none seemed to be a proper fit for my brain, my heart, my world. Then I read this book. This guy understands what it is like in here. Using visual, emotional images, and humor he gets the points across in an organized, interesting way. He innoculates the reader with hope. Everytime I read another section, my mind started leaping off from his ideas into my own. I felt like I was drinking a pot of coffee ... I got excited, like he was a cheerleader excited for me personally. He covers everything. This book approaches problems in a variety of ways, so it helps open up new categories , new ways of problem-solving. Practical,fun,and a gentle, but true mirror on the ways we sabotage ourselves. This book has changed the way I think. Wish I had read it years ago.

This exciting book, written for the creative person contains unique, creative, inexpensive ways to promote yourself and your products. It helps you define what you do and how it benefits the public. It tells you how to reach the biggest possible market with the least effort and expense. Author Lee Silber shows you how to stand out from the crowd, call attention to your work, use word-of-mouth advertising and get help from important people. He reminds writers that all publishers want media=savy authors so the more they learn the better their chances of publishing. And today most published authors, no matter who publishes them, have to promote their own work to be successful. SELF-PROMOTION FOR THE CREATIVE PERSON has creative ways to use the Internet to publicize yourself and your art. It shows how to make an effective Web site. There's a step by step description of how to network and how to handle interviews. Author Silber says all we need is a dream and the passion and discipline to keep working at it. He quotes William Faukner, "Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go." The author points out it isn't the most talented people who succeed but the most motivated." He helps you develop the attitude that you will make it no matter what. And he gives you all the tools you need. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to succeed at anything. Maryanne Raphael, Writer's World

Nothing really new or enlightening in this book. Many contradictions. For example, in one section the author suggests you produce what the market wants. In another, they insist that an artist stay true to their own passions. They suggest using unusual clothing as a hook, then berate someone they know for wearing an outdated hat. Particularly unhelpful for fine, visual artists (painters, photographers, etc.) Most examples given cite those who have already "made it" breaking into new fields, but once someone's "made it," they're virtually shoved into dozens of new fields (actors writing books, singing, etc.) Author also suggests using famous people you know to get ahead, as though everyone has a bevvy of famous friends. Author suggests contacting such people, but doesn't tell how this is achieved with any success whatsoever.
All of this has been said before...a million times...and better, too. Save your money for your own self-promotion efforts.

I feel like this book has some quality points about it, but the way it's written and structured (or not structured) seemed random to me. There are a lot of fine examples about famous people using "creative" methods to get noticed or get their foot in the door, but after reading the majority of them I didn't feel inspired, but left thinking "Hm, ok. I guess that could work in the perfect situation."

Perhaps I am biased already knowing that having a bunch of business cards with you is key, and writing funky and creative thank you cards can cause you to stand above the rest, but I felt like claim of "everything you need to know to get the word out" left me wondering what else was out there.

After reading points like "don't listen to naysayers", "don't take no for an answer", and "create magnets or stickers with your information on them" I couldn't help but think that the comments were either 'duh' quality or 'tacky' quality.

The book has many, many randomly placed famous quotes, interviews, and "action items" that never seem to follow a strict pattern, which is why I pointed out that the book seemed to be structured poorly.

In the end, it's a great read for someone with only a few ideas or knowledge on promotion (as long as you can get past the structure annoyance), but for the guerrilla who wants thought-provoking ideas, this might not be the best book for you.

I'm a career counselor in New York City and "Self-Promotion for the Creative Person" is one of the books that I most frequently recommend. It is upbeat, creative and inspiring. This phenomenal book helps people shift their negative attitudes about self-promotion so that instead of feeling ashamed of marketing their creative work, they consider this part of the creative process. I've seen this book dramatically shift the attitutes and actions of countless people, resulting in well-deserved success for all of them in their various creative fields.

I don't know what led me to purchase Self Promotion for the Creative Person. Ordinarily I find books about promotion to be elementary and not useful. Maybe I just liked the colorful cover :) But once I got it I was so so so glad! I am a speedy reader but this took me weeks to get through because the content was so rich I had to very often stop, put it down and start thinking and writing about how I could apply the suggestions and ideas in it to my own career. It has helped me to develop myself as a writer and filmmaker like you wouldn't believe. I directly credit this book for my getting press in some local papers and making a number of good sales...and Ive only been practicing the ideas in it for about a month. I still go back and review things in it about once a week and find new things to improve my marketing plan. I would have easily paid 3 times the amount I paid for this book....well worth it!! If you are an artist, writer, filmmaker, or creative person of any kind trying to make a living or a name for yourself from your work, this book MUST be in your library.

I fit the typical profile of a "creative person" as described by author, Lee Silber. This means that, up until now, I've focused 100% of my energy on developing my craft and felt my art should speak for itself. I found most self-promoters to be pretty obnoxious and a big turn-off. But somehow, the author manages to show how promotion can actually be creative and fun. Silber gives so many examples that there's bound to be something that will match your personal style. The best thing is that every time I read from this book -- I find myself coming up with ideas of my own -- and THAT, in itself, has made it worth every penny. Thanks, Lee!!