The introduction to The 4-Hour Chef. The book has 1,000+ photographs and 100+ illustrations.
If you missed the big news, The 4-Hour Chef is being boycotted by 700+ bookstores across the United States, led by Barnes & Noble.
Why? Because I’m the next big bet from Amazon Publishing. I now have armies of booksellers hoping me to fail, despite my only motivation: getting books to as many people as humanly possible.
Some retailers are rallying behind the book, but they are few and far between. I’m certainly grateful for their support and will help ensure they move copies.
In The New York Times today, David Streitfeld writes:
The book [The 4-Hour Chef] might need all of his considerable promotional talents. It has not yet generated instant heat even on Amazon; on Sunday it was ranked No. 597 in books and 4,318 in the Kindle Store. “The 4-Hour Workweek,” in an updated edition published in 2009, was by contrast No. 328 in books and 2,723 in Kindle.
To that, I would reply: Patience, dear friends and foes. The number is moving in the right direction.
I don’t rush, and I haven’t even gotten started. I still intend the launch of The 4-Hour Chef to be very different… starting with this post. And despite the hailstorm of blacklistings, I have not downsized my ambitions. I have upgraded them.
Fiction: My goal is to have The 4-Hour Chef hit national bestseller lists.
Fact: My goal is to have all three of my books on the lists at the same time.
The New World of Cross Promotion
I have worked hard with both of my publishers, Crown Archetype and Amazon Publishing, to provide a preview chapter of The 4-Hour Chef.
It’s smart business, and I sincerely thank both teams for being forward-thinking enough to make this a reality. There’s also a short sample of The 4-Hour Body in The 4-Hour Chef, which brings the franchise full circle.
The 4-Hour Body on Kindle — notice the new sample chapters in the Table of Contents.
THE STEPS:
– If you have a digital version of The 4-Hour Body or The 4-Hour Workweek (must be “Expanded and Updated” edition), you now have access to The 4-Hour Chef chapter entitled “HOW TO USE THIS BOOK: CONFESSIONS, PROMISES, AND GETTING TO 20 MILLION.” It’s a funny read, a good primer, and it outlines the entire book.
– If you don’t have digital copies of either of my two previous books, this is a good reason to grab one or both. Have you read The 4-Hour Workweek but not The 4-Hour Body? Now you have an excuse to grab 4HB. Read The 4-Hour Body but not 4HWW? Grab a Kindle copy for $12.99.
If you already have a Kindle version, directions are at the bottom of this post, but first, some industry-wide thoughts…
It’s amazing to me that the last page of every e-book isn’t a sales page for related “backlist” (an author’s previous works) or, at the least, an e-mail opt-in for free similar content (e.g. sample chapters from past or future books). Publishers should study how start-ups refine sign-up flow (scroll down here for good models). To create profitable content in a world of endless noise, you need a direct line. Otherwise, you’re like an advertiser at the Super Bowl, paying $5 million a year to reach the same audience.
Second, traditional publishing is siloed. Competition for authors, and constantly changing staff, means orphaned books left and right. This also means fragmented backlists and lost revenue. There are many authors with books at 2-4 publishers, and despite cordial relationships with them all (in my case and in many cases), the books aren’t cross-promoted. Even though publishers compete for top talent, much like universities, I think the future is in collaboration, again much like inter-university research projects. There is no need for antagonism, especially when the costs of digital experimentation are so low, and the potential downsides can be so easily capped. Once you cap the downside, the upside usually takes care of itself.
Perhaps this promotion is a prototype.
On Your Kindle — The Steps
If you don’t have one of my previous books, nothing special required. Just download one and you’re good to go.
If you *already* have digital copies of 4HWW or 4HB, here’s what to do on your Kindle:
You can receive the new versions by going to the “Manage Your Kindle” page. Find the book in your Kindle Library by typing “Ferriss” in the search field, and click on the “update available” link next to the book’s title.
Within 5 minutes, any of your devices that have the eBook currently downloaded and have an active
wireless connection will be updated automatically. The previous version will be replaced with the corrected version.
Before clicking “update,” please be sure the wireless and “Annotations Backup” settings are turned on for each of your devices. Go to “Settings” –> “Reading Options”. Doing so will retain any highlights, notes, and furthest page read. You can check and adjust your Annotations Backup settings by navigating to the settings menu on your device. For further help with modifying settings, go to http://www.amazon.com/kindlesupport and check the help pages for the devices or applications you are using.
I hope you all enjoy this first chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.
And keep an eye on the blog. I promise much more excitement this week 🙂
The Tim Ferriss Show is one of the most popular podcasts in the world with more than one billion downloads. It has been selected for "Best of Apple Podcasts" three times, it is often the #1 interview podcast across all of Apple Podcasts, and it's been ranked #1 out of 400,000+ podcasts on many occasions. To listen to any of the past episodes for free, check out this page.
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Great read Tim, and I’m very excited to see how this all turns out!
Tim,
I just clicked on the link and pre-purchased my copy for Kindle… wish you the best with the launch and fighting the silly establishment who is boycotting, how lame.
I like how you’re thinking outside of the box and actively innovating with your publishers! Also I find it unwise and frankly immature of Barnes and Noble (and others) to blacklist a guaranteed cash cow. Maybe they should start to make their own business model a little more efficient so they would be able to compete with Amazon without resorting to kindergarten tactics…
Tim,
Anything in mind for pre-orders? I have both of those other books as well, but in the print (antiquated) form.
I am in the same boat.
Same.
Yo tambien.
I’ll piggyback on this.
Not a fan of Kindle (native or iOS app). Pre-ordered 4HC, to go along w/ the other 4H’s. Anticipating the release… would love a sample.
same…
In the same boat- hard copies of 4hww and 4hb, with a pre-ordered copy of 4hc. Hope you can make something happen here, would love to see a preview.
Ditto. I like real books, touch and feel. Many of the hard copy books I buy I viewed previews of online. I hope you can get a sample chapter out to the rest of the world
Moi aussi. Quel dommage!
same here 🙂 i really want the new book as soon as possible
Same here, could we have a reply from you Tim ?
We love your books but it feels like you forgot the ones who bought hard copies (and it’s kinda ironic when you think about it)
Hi Aurele and all,
I haven’t forgotten!
I love you guys. The challenge is the medium. There simply isn’t a fast enough way for me to provide print readers will an exclusive digital update like this, and the print is too slow (months).
I’m learning as I go, and this was the best solution I could come up with, given the technology and options I have. I hope you understand. Certainly, I haven’t forgotten my very dear print readers. *I* still love print. Alas, since publishers don’t know who buys their print copies, I can’t communicate directly with you!
Much more coming, and I very much appreciate the comments.
All the best,
Tim
Have also the hard copies of both books. I have a Kindle and love it but for novels, not for reference book. I keep going back to 4hWW and 4HB and guess I’ll do the same for 4HC. I like to go quickly through pages and hard copies makes it easier than e version. Looking forward to the release.
Any way to get first chapter on paper? I own both of the other books ankd have also purchased them for several friends.
Same here. I bought hardcopies of the others, knowing they would become “reference” materials.
So if we are old school and have hard copy books – both 4hr workweek and 4hr body then we have no opportunity to preview?
True, I got Hard copies as well
Yeah I also have bought hard copies of 4HW and 4HB + also got the 4HB audio book version on CD.
Me too. But don’t worry – I’m sure we’ll be getting our hard copies of the sample chapter in the mail any day now.
I hate to be *THAT* guy but…
“Sidenote…
Why might you buy the physical book, even in addition to the Kindle? Three reasons:
1) It will be gorgeous, a wonderful tactile experience, and truly unlike any cookbook you’ve ever seen.
2) I’ll be thinking up bonuses for people who buy the print edition early.
3) It would really help me out. Inexplicably, The New York Times excludes all advice/how-to books from their e-book bestseller list, so only the print edition counts towards the bestseller list. Silly, but there you have it!”
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2011/12/13/the-4-hour-chef-ipad-app-ios-from-amazon-publishing-plus-free-roundtrip-anywhere-in-the-world/
How stupid for sellers to walk away from something that will probably sell – lights out! Agreed on your point regarding collaboration.
Good luck with the launch!
I am sharing this on my Orlando deals facebook page, I am a big fan Tim and I hope that the book stores Open there eyes before it to late! Best of Luck Tim.
If we prefer reading things in real, honest-to-goodness paper and thus don’t have digital versions of the books (but have read both!) is there a way to access the sample chapter?
No love for us that have printed versions? I’ve bought three copies of Work week and one of Body, I feel left out on this…
Really excited about the 4 hour chef! Can’t wait to read the sample. Been a big 4H fan for years.
Good luck on the launch!
I wish you the best success. It’s cool you’re on the leading edge as far as publishing the book goes. Good for you for ahead of the curve….
Didn’t see a way to update the book using the kindle app on iPhone. Not possible? Or am I missing something? Thanks!
@Benjamin:
You’ll need to browse to https://kindle.amazon.com/ and then access “Manage Your Kindle” by hovering your mouse over your name on the top right corner of the page.
I’ve been meaning to get a copy of 4-Hour Body and this gives me a great excuse. Really interested to see how your book marketing plays out this time around.
I wish you the best of luck with it, Tim. I’ll be picking up a copy.
Hey Tim: Any consideration for those of us who have purchased multiple copies of both books in hard copy format…I bought at least a dozen 4HWW and 5 4HB. If not, it is not a big deal…just hoping.
This is very frustrating to see. They hate Amazon’s success so they decide to make an enemy out of an author instead and punish their own customers by capriciously limiting choice? If B&N wants to win the publishing wars, providing fewer products to their customers is probably *not* the way they want to go. Amazon has problems, sure, but booksellers boycotting books is a strategy that will not serve B&N. Love your books, Tim. I’ll be buying.
I have a digital copy of the 4 hour body, but it’s through iBooks. Should I be able to see the preview, or is it only available on the kindle? Thanks!
has anyone answered this for you? I would also love to know the answer to this.
Keep it up Tim, I love your endless energy and ambition, it’s inspiring. I’ve been excited about the 4HC for ages and can’t wait to get mysef a copy to add to the previous 4 hour books in my reader. I have a feeling they will all compliment eachother well. Go go go!
Found it on my Nexus 7, needed to update on Amazon, delete from my device, and load again. Thanks! Was nervous it was only going to be on the kindle and not the kindle app. 🙂
Tim,
I wish you the best with the launch of this new book. I’m an author who has been lucky enough to be traditionally published, a form that gives more cred to the author—at least at first. Naturally I follow trends in publishing like a fly on meat.
This boycott by B&N and others is silly. Publishing is an 800-pound paraplegic gorilla. Though Amazon is often viewed as this bully, I do hope their foray into publishing pushes the rest of the biz to get its act together. As it stands, publishing sits in its wheelchair getting its IV drip from Stephen King, John Grisham, and James Patterson.
I’m not quite sure what to make of Amazon in this game yet, but I do wish you the best and we’ll see which direction the 4-Hour Chef and others takes us.
Best,
Brendan
Tim – is it coming to the iBooks Store for iPad / iPhone? I’d love to pre-order but don’t see anything there yet… Thanks!
What if I have the print verisons of 4HB and 4HWW???
Dont make me buy another one please 😉
You’ve been blacklisted…. Winning!!!
I have the hard copy of 4 Hour Body and a digital 4HWW that was sent as part of the promo for 4HB… what do I need to do?
Hi Tim,
regarding increasing promotion for new books. Have you heard about the http://www.undergroundbookclub.co.uk/ ? It’s a free newspaper featuring the first chapter of new release books handed out on London’s tube.
Such a great a way to find out about new interesting books while commuting to work.
Liebe Grüße,
Rainer
Tim,
I pre-ordered a physical copy of the 4 Hour Chef months ago…surely I can read the intro chapter now if buyers of previous books can, right?
I know that doesn’t directly help your goal of having all three on the bestseller list (I’m rooting for you), but it doesn’t seem right if readers who have already bought the actual book don’t get the same early access that readers of past books do…
Thanks.
Great stuff, Tim. Congratulations. Just got it downloaded on physical Kindle and iPad.
Can’t wait to dig in.
Good Luck!
Amazon update doesn’t exist on the 4hww UK version on the kindle, so can’t read it !
No bonus chapter in my UK Kindle copy 🙁
Fantastic first chapter. Your larger economic focus of the book is right up my alley. Voting for a healthier and wealthier country through our meals is brilliant.
Cheers to helping stimulate the economy by $882 million, and adding 9,300 jobs.
Tim,
Been listening to 4HB from audible on the commute home, just seen the email about 4HC so pre ordered from amazon.co.uk tonight. Exciting.
So, no love for the people that have the hardcopy of BOTH of your previous books. I’ll be buying the new book, but I do feel slighted and would have very much like to read the preview. sniff!
Interesting stuff, Tim. I’ve got digital 4HB on my Nook, but don’t own a Kindle. Given the B&N boycott, will that not get the update?
can we get it on the iPad through iBooks?
does this work in the UK? I just downloaded the 4HB on my kindle pc app but I haven’t received the sample chapter for 4HC.
Second that!
3rd – bought 4HWW in Australia and don’t have the bonus chapters…
This doesn’t seem to work in the UK. Darn it.
Hi Tim,
your two previous books were about very intesting subjects but this last one can’t have the same success because Americans love eating out very much!! USA is packed with any kind of restaurant, fast food and so on!!
Obviously, I wish you the best !!
Business idea: you are a marvellous learning machine, why don’t you write something like: ” The Four Weeks Great Learner” or “The Four Months Great Learner”!!
Market target: would-be lifelong learners!!
Obviously, you are a sort of learning genius and you shouldn’t take for granted some important learning principles!!
It will be a smash hit!!
All the best!
Fab, greetings from Italy.
That is most disappointing based on the value those of us are experiencing. The Lift Challenge is a good example of the popularity and that it is working! We at Aphrodite would love to help in anyway we can, and especially gratifying as we are a little on the rebellious side anyway. I have the digital version of 4HB and look forward to the 1st Chapter. Let us know if we can help!
Brillent marketing.
But why not use the buy two, get 1 free model to increase readership/fans?
Being this book is launching and you want to increase sales, you could do something like: Buy 4H Chef and 4H Body, get 4H Workweek free. Maybe readers could email receipts for proof like you did with 4H Body promos.
Just a thought — love your work, I’ll pre-order mine today.
Probably because he’s testing – aka, he’s Tim Ferriss
I pre-ordered my copy on Kindle in Nov ’11. A year ago! You have nothing to worry about – this is going to be a kick ass launch.
Awesome Intro and Teaser For The Book! Not Surprised To Hear About B&N Though…Most Traditional Book Retailers Fear Evolvement Of Their Current Business Models
That’s silly, I bought this book WAY WAY WAY before it was even up for pre-order 😀 Just putting the link on your blog would outsell any of the other books I see daily. GO TIM!!
For a guy who hates to write, why do you write such big books?
I just got my copy of 4-Hour Chef and it looks awesome! It feels like Christmas to me. 🙂
Oh, I know! … Now there’s one big book for each arm for better exercises! Cross-promotion AND cross-fitness!
@Mark:
Yes, you can do lateral raises with those.
Heads up for anybody buying the 4 Hour Work Week-many of the resources are no longer available e.g. the fourm is dead and so is the px method sales page:(
The exact resources might change with time but the principles are timeless, all you have to do is adjust to your specific situation.
I just looked and it’s not available on Kindle yet?
Tim, you have your own army… your fans 🙂
Hi Tim,
I’ve been a huge fan and subscriber since the very week that you released 4HWW. I’ve worked at independently-owned bookstores for much of the last 12 years. During that time, I’ve sold many, many copies of your first two books. I used to keep a copy of 4HB next to the register at one of our Santa Clara County bookstores for the sake of up-selling, and to great success.
I absolutely support publishing books in digital format. I cannot speak as to the intent of B&N’s boycott, but I can speak for at least some of the small, independently-owned bookstores. Amazon’s business practices have been incredibly destructive to publishers, authors, and readers wanting unique content. Amazon has long succeeded in not paying sales tax in California, giving Amazon a simply unfair price advantage as compared to other vendors, and at the expense of tax revenue to California constituents. Amazon has also used its substantial economic power to drive profit margins down to an all-time low for publishers, who have been in turn forced to protect their dwindling revenue base by publishing only the books guaranteed to be top sellers. Amazon has, unfortunately, been responsible for a terrible monoculturing of literature. I’ve loved Amazon for the sake of simplicity, price and selection; however, the true cost of this involves losing access to unique content.
Things will change as we move inevitably toward digital content — and I trust that issues like this will be worked out. In the meantime, I do my best to vote with my money, and that presently involves not supporting Amazon. I wish you the absolute best with your third book, and I’ll be buying a copy as soon as I can find an independent bookstore offering it.
Thank you,
-Michael
Just release the sample chapter for all. It will get more previews and some will share it.
Would love to read the first chapter of The Four Hour Chef, but I own both real hard cover versions of your other two books, not e-book copies. I prefer to own and read real books, any options for someone like myself?
Look forward to reading your new book! Best of luck with getting it in the hands of us all who want to read it.
“First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they attack you. Then you win”.
Death of the bookstore does not mean death of the book. In fact its quite the opposite. Barriers to entry have been shattered (to $0) and more people have an outlet and a voice than ever before. The consumer is winning hands down.
Keep shaking things up. As for the dinosaurs: it’s evolve or die. Same thing that it’s always been. Pouting won’t help.
Hi Todd,
1. I agree that death of the bookstore does not mean death of the book. My argument, however, was not that books were dying — only that they were becoming monocultured.
2. You’re absolutely correct: barriers to entry have been eliminated to the publishing of books. Indeed, publishing books in eBook format can be free. You’ll also see very low prices (sometimes $0) on eBooks, making these books more financially accessible. Some people take advantage of this new-found access to the works of lesser-known authors. Most do not.
Most people are unwilling to read books that do not come with a strong recommendation. This can be a word-of-mouth “tell a friend” recommendation or even through a trusted individual (I’ve read several books at Tim Ferriss’ suggestion). It can also be at the recommendation of an enthusiastic bookstore employee. Many people see an author’s involvement with a publishing company as a form of “legitimizing” the content. Most books are simply untouched without some method of certifying that the book is worth reading, regardless of Amazon’s “You might also like…” algorithms.
As far as independently-published authors go, this means that we’re stuck with only the authors that have marketing savvy or the finances to pay for such. Here, I have confidence that Tim will be successful — his marketing skills are nothing less than impressive. However, what of authors that just want to write amazing books on the topic of their choice? They’re pretty much cast to the shadows without some form of book pundit constantly reading and reviewing new titles.
It’s really not dissimilar from the feasibility of a third-party in the U.S.’s current political environment. Without a vast amount of marketing and money, a third-party is incapable of prominence given the lack of a system supporting proportional representation. In the instant case, independent booksellers have been largely equalizing the battle, giving smaller titles a chance to flourish. Without that structure, we’re only going to view the titles supported by vast marketing efforts and money as being worthwhile.
3. I also agree that the consumer is winning… by price. Indeed, Amazon’s success has been the direct result of the choices made by consumers. Again, at the expense of legitimate variety.
4. “Evolve or die” is the very crux of the issue. People have voted with their money, and they would rather have cheap best-sellers than pay more for a wider variety of literature. Yet, Amazon still relies on the wider variety of actual bookstores…
Amazon’s encouraged customers to peruse the merchandise at brick-and-mortar bookstores, to scan the book using the Amazon smartphone app, to then purchasing the book on Amazon. What happens when customers no longer have this outlet?
As an example relevant to the instant case, I know dozens and dozens of people who love Tim’s books. I know several of them who own digital copies. I don’t know a single one who discovered them through Amazon’s recommen0dations. They all discovered the book through either word-of-mouth from existing readers or from the hand-selling found in independent bookstores. I would have never heard of Tim if not for an independent bookseller.
Mind you, I don’t feel that independent booksellers are necessarily feasible. From a business and economics standpoint, their infrastructure may make them unsustainable in that format. I only know that a service is being lost that is detrimental to the variety found in literature.
5. Finally, I agree with you that pouting won’t help. I hope that a happy medium is found that supports not just the publishing, but the actually dissemination of a broad diversity of books, rather than just best-sellers. I have faith that, given time, this will work out. In the meantime, I will “pout” — or rather — mourn the barrier to the effective spread of minority literature.
Hi Michael,
To clear things up: I had not read your comment and was not reacting to your comment. I certainly wasn’t trying to be an internet bully and saying that you personally were pouting. It was an independent post, so no bad blood there.
To say that a shift towards Amazon [an entity that can offer hundreds of thousands of books at a time] is hurting book diversity to me is backwards. An independent brick and mortar bookstore is, by its very physical nature, limited in its offerings. There are only so many titles that will even fit in the store. And good luck seeing self-published works in any real number. Amazon gets a point here for selection.
We can argue about some vague perceived immorality about their pricing structure, but at the end of the day they just simply have a more efficient way of getting content to the consumer, & they pass on the savings. Amazon gets a point here for price.
To say that the consumer is hurt in terms of being unsure of a books quality because they aren’t able to ask a singular bookstore employee (who is unlikely to have read every single book they could stuff into the store) for their opinion, to me, is also backwards. Authors may try to game the reviews a bit, but almost every single title has several different review perspectives to weigh, with most having 10+ if not 100 or 1000+. That outweighs the cashiers take, in my mind.
No argument on word of mouth driving book sales, but that’s usually in social setting between friends, and is irrespective of how they had their book delivered to them. I don’t doubt that bookstore employees can help this process, but I see that as being a more minor occurrence compared to widespread traditional socializing.
Tim is simply forward thinking enough so see where things are going, and is blazing the trail once more. Is Amazon acting ethically? In my mind ethics are largely BS (read The Moral Animal), ie, you are against amazon because it threatens your job, I am for amazon because I get books for less money. Neither of us is right or wrong. At the end of the day they are winning, and thats all that really matters.
Todd– I agree with you re: diversity. My daughter is a big reader. Her tastes are non-mainstream. We love going to bookstores. Whenever we go to get her a book she wants, it is almost never in stock. Even at B & N. We then browse a bit at the store, come home, and order the book online.
Tim,
Very excited about 4-Hour Chef and wish you the best. I picked up a copy of 4HWW on the kindle and have been using 4HB as a reference since it came out. Thank you for constantly pushing the envelope. Best wishes.
James
I pre-ordered my copy of 4-Hour Chef quite a while ago from Amazon. I don’t need to read the first chapter to know I want the book, and I can wait until later this month to read it.
I am puzzled, though, by your reference to a boycott by Barnes & Noble. Out of curiosity, I went to the B&N website, and it appears to me that 4-Hour Chef is offered and available for pre-order.
Hi AG,
Oddly, the book appears onsale on BN.com but is not offered in stores. I’m not 100% clear on the logic, but I can see how the order-on-demand nature of BN.com makes it less of a cost outlay to take the one-off orders (vs. national retail laydown).
Cheers,
Tim
B & N’s website will stock a lot of self-published books they’d never put in the store. They even sell book’s printed by Createspace, amazon’s printer for self-publishers.
If they’re boycotting you however, it does seem odd that they would let their website sell your book. I expect it’s to minimize complaints when people find your book is unavailable in store. Much more pleasing to hear “we can order one for you” vs. “we’re boycotting that book, you can’t have one”.
Been a follower/fan for years and your books have had an impact on my life. 4HC is definitely in my queue. Good luck, Tim.
Looking forward to seeing how you roll this out, Tim, and excited to be a part of it!
I’m destroying my Nook and getting a Kindle Paperwhite! Wish I didn’t have to re-purchase the 4HB on Kindle, but I probably will. 4HC will be my first book on my Kindle PW when it arrives. Sorry to hear about the bad news.
Who would be interested in starting a small “4-Hour Life” mastermind with me via skype and/or email? To keep the dream clearly in focus? I’m a die-hard Tim Ferriss fan, primarily because reading the 4 Hour Work Week in 2009 was the final shove that pushed me down the entrepreneurial path. Since then, and after graduating from college, I’ve been slowly producing my own version of the dream Tim created with his book.
I’ve done two medium length re-locations to Europe, taught myself German, roller bladed across the United States, and now run a 6 figure SEO company that is quite capable of being run remotely. I’m getting there, but what I’m finding is that it’s hard to find steady contemporaries who share my particular goal set.
Family, business partners, and friends often tend to blur the vision rather than reinforce it. For that reason, I constantly have to be my own “re-inspiration.” My current goal is to travel the world months at a time and more consistently live the lifestyle of global exploration and freedom. I’d also like to learn 10 languages (knocked out German so far!). As yet, I’ve only experienced it in bits and pieces, but I’m getting closer.
I’m looking for a select group of like-minded individuals interested paralleling that journey and sharing insight, inspiration, and an occasional kick in the a@@. I’m more than happy to provide the same. This is not a business venture; rather, I’m looking to mastermind with people who share my rather unique goal set and are currently taking serious action to achieve it. We can help each other. Tim, a post related to this might be a good idea. I think a lot of people would be interested in finding contemporaries to help them keep vision clear. (To prevent them from turning into the “fat guy in the red BMW”) 🙂
Please email me at austin3959 at gmail dot com, if interested.
– Austin
No sample if 4HB & 4HWW were purchased in iBooks?
Tim,
Us VS Them.
Controversy is good – very good for you. But, you already knew that. I’m excitedly watching how this all unfolds, but I suspect B&N and the other retailers did you a favor.
Much success brutha!
JP Maroney
aka “Mr. Monetizer”
I see the four hour Chef’s sales rank has surged over the past day. The NYT article had it at 597, it is at 221 at the time of writing (12:15 EST, nov 6).
Is this something merely the press from the articles + your blog post, or something else you’ve been working on?
All three of yours books have surged. I’m excited to see how they’ll work together. Having your book listed as ‘bought together’ with the other two on their pages should be very useful.
Tim, BIG fan. A question from left field… do you have creative accessible to those of us who want to help promote 4HC (photos, display, logo)?
Arm us, we’ll suit up…
Hi Alicin,
Thank you for your comment. Please keep an eye on the blog. Much more coming soon, and I fully appreciate the eagerness. There will be outlets soon 🙂
Pura vida,
Tim
Hasta los dientes!!!
+Moros -Cris…
Load UP!
=)
Excellent!
you kidding? I bought your book 4 months ago lol
It doesn’t seem fair that they can ban an author based on what company is publishing him. Is that legal?
David
Darn. Thought I had both the 4-Hour Body and 4-Hour Workweek on Kindle, but I purchased them through Google books.
Plan to pick up your latest on Kindle, regardless.
Best of luck Tim and keep doing what you do! 🙂
If Barnes & Noble think they can compete with Amazon using such a poor approach they’ll probably be out of business in the next few years. They need to adapt and offer their customers something Amazon can’t instead of not offering them something Amazon offers. The boycott is backwards thinking at its finest …
The 4-Hour Chef = #175 in books ( vs. #597 on Sunday).
The 4-Hour Workweek = #239 in books (vs. #328 on Sunday).
Tim Ferris =/= Penny Marshall.
Bow down bitches.
Just a heads up that your RSS is possibly borked. This article isn’t showing up in google reader or on your feedburner page
http://feeds.feedburner.com/TimFerriss
Tim,
What was your training schedule like to prepare for the RKC certification?
Thanks,
Rick
Rick, love the shotokan logo as your avatar 🙂
Bought both printed editions of 4HWW (and audio book), 5 signed copies of 4HB (at launch) while based in the UK, but unfortunately now I feel a little left out…
Based in the UK we seemingly can’t benefit from the updated Kindle copies neither, which I might have considered buying (even if just for the digital note taking). All your printed copy buyers would really appreciate a free 4HC chapter I’m sure.
I will be buying the 4HC in Kindle edition though… What can I say, I’m still not sufficiently frustrated to not buy your new book 😉
looking foward to buying the book!
I have tried this with my copy of 4-Hour Body. I do not see any link to update in the. “Manage My Kindle” section of Amazon. I am a customer of UK Amazon. Could this be the issue? Thanks. Paul
The four hour chef is now the 161st best selling book on amazon, and is rising rapidly, along with Tim’s other two books.
If you want to watch this, check out Sales Rank Express, a tool for monitoring books on amazon. It uses Novel Rank data.
http://www.salesrankexpress.com/
http://www.novelrank.com/
Tim, (when) will there be an ‘order first edition signed copies’ opportunity?
Well, I can’t say I blame Barnes and Noble (I bought 4HB from them). It’s a matter of principle to not support your biggest threat, I guess.
I really doubt it will affect your bottom line, though, Tim. You – if anyone – don’t need book retailers to sell books.
Good luck! Glad to be a part of it.
-j
What if you have all your books but pager turner format?
Good luck Tim! Glad to hear you’ve upgraded your ambitions 🙂
Just pre-ordered my HC copy. Really looking forward to reading it. I have the other two (actually both versions of 4hww). I love them so much I will buy anything you write, pure genius man.
Tim, first I want to wish you the best of luck with your release!
Second, I am utterly appalled that booksellers would boycott your book. It hurts consumers to deny them a commodity they want; and it is completely inappropriate for bookstores to try to control with whom an author chooses to publish.
I wonder if you have access to a list of bookstores that are boycotting your book? If so, I hope you post it. I would like to inform them that as long as they boycott books published by Amazon, and specifically your book, I will boycott them.
I hope that others will join me.
I understand that bookstores are nervous, but this action will hurt the authors much more than it will hurt Amazon,. It is not an appropriate or ethical business tactic.
“I now have armies of booksellers hoping me to fail” I think is totally inaccurate. There are armies of booksellers hoping to defend themselves from the looming threat that Amazon imposes on them.
I think it has absolutely nothing to do with you personally, if it wasn’t you it would be the next big name author. Amazon wants to have its cake and eat it too, they want 100% of the book market and are working towards that with aggressive tactics that puts brick and mortar stores out of business.
I don’t side with either argument, as industries evolve and disruption occurs if you cant keep up then you die, often a slow death. I think you made a mistake signing with Amazon based on their empty promises and showing little to no loyalty to Crown, but now your marketing skills can really be put to the test. I think you’ll still easily hit the best seller list!
The publishing industry is morphing very rapidly and the old school publishers are scared. Instead of thinking about how to adjust and grow with the trends they are making these stupid moves.
I am sure Tim already has his promotional partners setup. I am sure he has his funnel setup on the backend. It is going to take another 10 years before the average author learns how to be a marketer and make money from the book while helping more people than they ever did before.
Tim, if you are reading this, I’ve followed your work for years and have learned lots of cool tricks from you. I may not be getting commission but at I AM a promotional partner because your message helped me.
I am sure you’ll CRUSH IT with the 4hr Chef.
I just bought your book because of the controversy. I seem to be motivated to read books that inspire outrage. 🙂 I’ve also been a long-time fan and I, of course, read the 4HWW when it was updated in 2009. Streitfeld hasn’t seen your day-of book sales. I’m excited, actually, to see how to master things. I personally already speak a bunch of languages, so that’s not a motivating factor. I do not know how to cook, though, so I think that the idea of learning how to cook is awesome. Amazon is getting a monopoly in the book market – I tread very carefully with Amazon because they now control thousands of dollars of my books. I think that the idea that Amazon is taking over is a pretty valid concern, but Amazon is winning because it is quite simply the best at what it does – displaying books, connecting readers with books, storing books, and distributing books. I will love seeing how this pans out – and it occurs to me that all publicity is good publicity. And you, sir, have gotten your book almost incidentally promoted in the NYT. Kudos for your cleverness.
This event could single handily change the book distribution system and the publishing industry forever. I can’t wait to watch this launch unfold.
Major SUPPORT coming your way!
Does this work for Kindle users in the United Kingdom?
So where is the first chapter? Every link leads back to the Amazon order page!
Hi! I am on the “Manage Your Kindle” page, pulled up my expanded & updated edition of 4HWW, and it doesn’t have “Update Available” next to it. So I’m lost. (Congrats on the book–I hope to get a sample of it, soon…). Thx!
Hi Tim,
I thought you might be interested in this article about “how an asshole is blowing up the publishing industry”:
http://techcrunch.com/2012/11/06/keen-on-tucker-max-how-an-asshole-is-blowing-up-the-publishing-industry-tctv/
I love your work – Cheers !
Kevin
Amazon is the death of all book-related professions.
Tim, the following isn’t relevant to this specific post, but I don’t know how else to reach you:
I just want to say a heartfelt thank-you for the literature you publish. Specifically your book “The 4-hour Workweek”, but also for your entertaining and informative blog posts. I have had some huge ups and downs in my life, the downs culminating in a 1 1/2 year stay in jail. Ever since I was incarcerated, I have been on a journey to try and figure out how to live life well. I tried to do normal like most people, but for whatever reason, normal doesn’t work for me. The last couple of years I have had the privilege of finding a beautiful wife, and we now have an amazing little girl and another one on the way. The up’s and downs have still been there though, and this is where you and your book came in. Right now I am working full time learning accounting which is a skill I want to learn but a job I absolutely hate. Several months ago I found your book, and can I just tell you that it is my lifeline! Every time I start feeling like my current situation isn’t going to change, I go to your book or your blog, and it puts me back on track, keeping me exited and motivated for the future.
On may 31st, my wife and our two daughters are headed out to live in Costa Rica (our daughter will be 6 months old at that point). My boss has agreed to let me work remotely which is something I had never even considered as a possibility before your book. I have automated most of my daily tasks, so I’ll probably be spending less then an hour a day working, and my wife and have already found a cheap but beautiful villa, right on the beach (using tripadvisor). To top it all off, I just bought a old motorcycle last weekend and I’m loving it! It’s crazy, but for the first time in a long time, I feel like I am really, truly loving life, all thanks to your continuous stream of inspiration. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
As they say in Costa Rica, Pura Vida.
Thanks so much for the kind letter, Ammon! Pura vida, indeed. Please keep me posted on your adventures. I suspect this is just the beginning 🙂
All the best to you and yours,
Tim
Tim,
First off, I really hope you read this… Still not sure how to get a hold of you, but I’m very excited to share some news with you:
So, you are kind of a troublemaker; 8 months ago I was perfectly happy, working at my accounting job, taking a few classes in school, going on 3 day vacations every few months… You know, living the good life 🙂
Since picking up your book a few months ago I have:
Purchased and learned how to ride a motorcycle
Bought 1 way tickets to Costa Rica for my family and I (we leave May 28th)
Started taking spanish lessons (at school and using DuoLingo)
Taken surfing lessons in California
Automated most of my job (takes about 7 hours/wk now down from 40+)
Negotiated a higher salary as well as remote working agreement (Just a trial period for now 🙂
Vacationed while working remotely in Beautiful Zions National Park
Started exercising regularly and spending more time with my family
Started an LLC and begun work on my muse
In your comment to me, you said that this is just the beginning… and it certainly feels that way. It is exciting, and you and the principals in your book have opened up my mind to a way of living and a quality of life that I had never even considered a possibility! The coolest part is that I’m able to enjoy this amazing lifestyle with my wife and our two daughters (our daughters are both under the age of 2), and I don’t even make that much money… yet. 🙂
So, of course being so excited by your book and seeing these results in my life, I have been sharing some of the tools that I found particularly useful with my family and friends. One tool I have found especially useful is your “Dreamlining” tool. What a fantastic way to stay motivated and live an amazing life! I have done the dreamlining worksheet with most of my family now, and the coolest thing, is that yesterday, my brother who just got a high paying job as an engineer, announced that he and his wife are moving to New Zealand to be tour guides! Before he did the dreamlining worksheet, that was just a fantasy for him, and he never even told anyone about his desire to do it because he thought that it just “wasn’t realistic”. It’s fun helping people you love be unrealistic 🙂 Also, my sister and her kids are going to come stay with us for a month while we are in Costa Rica, which, without dreamlining would not have happened either.
I really just wanted to thank you for putting your time and energy into sharing your knowledge… It really does change peoples life, and it has dramatically changed mine.
Because the “Dreamlining” tool has helped me so much, and I love sitting down and helping other people do it, a few months ago I started working to turn it into an app. I know it’s been tried before, but frankly it was done poorly. I posted the project on Elance and Guru, but luckily ended up getting the lead app developer at Adobe to join my team here in Utah. [Moderator: App info. and link removed.]
Alright, this post has turned into a small novel, so I will end, but again, thank you Tim.
-Ammon
hammona20 (at) gmail (dot) com
Hey Tim, I can definitely see that the 4HC will be difficult to effectively make an audiobook for with all of the illustrations, but I would still like to request that you ask your publishers to create an unabridged version of 4HB. The content of 4HB was very good, but the abridged version on Audible.com was extremely lacking. So much was cut out! Keep it in mind, nearly all the reviews on Audible say the same.
Seconded. 4HWW I revisit on audio often but 4HB on audio I only listened through once for that reason.
Hey Tim and/or Everyone else,
Any word yet if we can get the book on iPad when it comes out? Confirmed answer would be much appreciated!!
I downloaded the update just fine, to both books (I’m using the Kindle app on my iPad and am in the US). I actually chose to get rid of a Nook and start using Kindle almost exclusively for my eBooks because I was noticing B&N doing a bunch of stupid things in their stores (in our town, Walmart starts at $14/hr right now. B&N? $7.50, and their manager can’t get decent employees because he can’t get permission to pay more) and online. Reading the first chapter of 4HC right now.
Hi Tim,
Have hard copies too of both previous books as don’t like e-readers – any chance of a preview for fans of old-school reading?
Thanks
odd got the updated kindle version of 4 hour work but no update option
oh well i got 4 hour body on kindle something i needed and it was there
Hi Tim,
I’m curious what your thought are about ebooko piracy picking up.
With ebook file formats stabilizing (e,g, epub) if you happen to search on PirateBay or similar sites it’s amazing to see that NYT bestsellers are uploaded almost biweekly.
I think you have a strong follower base… most of whom don’t want to shorten you by 10$… (aka “thank you economy”)
Still… it effects authors big time I think, would you agree? Is content still king?
Congrats on the killer press. Getting boycotted is free advertising for Amazon sales. Good job!
Tim,
I have the digital version of the Four Hour Body on iBooks, does this count too?
Jose
I think I’m missing something here. How do I read the first chapter?
Will we be able to buy an autographed version like we did during your 4 Hour Body promotion?
Ok, I have both copies of your books, you know the regular paper versions, and I have pre-ordered the ‘chef’ on Amazon, so how do I get a to peruse the available chapter. I DO NOT WANT KINDLE or any other electronic reading gadget this time. After spending all day at the computer a good old fashion book suits my eyes just fine……..
Just a quick question, because no-one else seems to have an issue here.
I’m a big fan of the kindle (not the kindle fire), but I mostly use it for novels.
The 4 hour chef has over 1000 photographs, I assume most of which are colour.
Isn’t part of the aesthetic appeal of the book a bit lost through this medium?
I have an iPad so have no interest in a fire which I assume will present the book with full colour photos/illustrations and all the advantages of digital like search and social sharing.
Does the kindle app on iPad have everything in colour? I’ve not really used it before as the regular kindle is a pleasure to use for reading on its own.
Hey Tim that is crazy about the publishing issues. It is possible that the controversy will propel your book even higher. I’m still thinking you about the tip you gave in 4 Hour Work week about using http://www.RegistryCompass.com to find expired domain names that already have traffic. As a web marketer this has made me around $19,700 in the last 6 months. Thanks so much!