Project Palisade

How Jim Murphy's book became an overnight sensation 🦅

Inner Excellence and the Chase for Virality As an Eagles fan and someone who works in publishing, nothing has fascinated me more so far in 2025 than the Inner Excellence story. For those who aren’t aware, Inner Excellence is a book by …

Some headlines to observe from TIME Magazine's most anticipated books of 2025.

A glance at Time’s most anticipated books of 2025 Happy 2025 everyone. We are officially a quarter-way through the 21st century. Frankly, I am just grateful humanity has made it this far… But jokes aside, I’m glad it’s a new year…

The pop star is "shaking off" the traditional routes for her own.

Why Taylor Swift is bypassing traditional publishers Do I really want to talk about Taylor Swift? Yes, because this time, she’s subverted the publishing world, and we may have to talk about it. I have some parse opinions about her music and her…

HarperCollins has made a deal with an unnamed AI tech company to authorize their backlist titles for AI training - given the author's permission.

This deal is the first of its kind when it comes to AI licensing, and other publishers may follow suit.

What will this mean for authors? We'll discuss that 👇

HarperCollins just changed the landscape for AI in publishing: Here’s what authors need to know HarperCollins recently inked a deal with artificial intelligence (AI) technology companies to allow backlisted books (or, published works that have been out for more than one year) to be used for A…

How the results of the recent US election may impact the conversation surrounding banned books 📚🏦

The importance of literature in the aftermath of the US election I try to avoid talking politics on here. I’m not the least bit qualified considering my age and current occupation. However, the recent US election this November 5th has sent shockwaves throu…

Find out you can get free copies of books from publishers!

What are ARCs? And are they good for business? Today’s topic actually crosses over with a topic that I’ve been in frequent discussions with many of my clients lately, and that is: promotion strategy. Promotion is obviously a big dea…

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee is an epic family saga, a bestseller, and a modern classic.

Don’s Reviews: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee Earlier this year I read Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, a family saga thriller focusing on an immigrant Korean family and their struggle for survival and finding their place in mid-to-late 20th Century J…

Don reviews a Hemingway classic - Islands in the Stream 🦈

Don’s Reviews: Islands in the Stream Anyone who knows me will tell you I’ve always been an admirer of the literary giant, Ernest Hemingway, and his lasting impact on the art of literature. Last month, I got to read through his p…

The first sencha chat is out now:

Podcasts Sencha Chat #1 Hosts: Donovan, Leif Topics: Olympics, LTOU season two, Disney cancellations, RDJ as Doom, more.

Breaking down the exposition of one of the top action thriller shows on television: Jack Ryan.

Understanding Exposition: How Jack Ryan Establishes Its Plot Jack Ryan is a political thriller book series (sometimes known as the Ryanverse) written by the late Tom Clancy centered around the titular hero and protagonist, Jack Ryan. Having been adapted into…

A deep dive into 2023's successful, yet controversial historical dramas.

“Oppenheimer” vs “Napoleon”: A Lesson in Historical Authenticity Christopher Nolan and Ridley Scott, two of the best filmmakers in the business, made noise in the box office in 2023 with the releases of Oppenheimer and Napoleon, respectively. However, both of th…

Struggling to find inspiration for your book? Here's some ways to get started 📖🖋

Coming up with a good novel premise: 7 Ways to start your book Something that stumps a lot of writers I see – including myself sometimes – is coming up with a decent novel premise to begin with. I’ve a solid number of clients who tell me they…