Good Guys Finish First
Jonathan Maberry is a New York Times best-selling author, editor, and comic book writer for IDW, Marvel, and Dark Horse. He has also spoken at DMC before.
Jonathan started out his talk by discussing information. He said that even with all of the information available today, we either let that change us, or we go back to your old ways of thinking. It’s a challenge of life. With all of the information available to us today, we have a choice on what we accept.
After discussing information, Jonathan talked about the problem of getting people to listen to you. Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone listened and understood you? Jonathan provided a few tips on how to get people to listen to you:
- Show that you are serious about what you are talking about
- Show that you know your topic very well.
- Get people to react to what you say.
As a writer with an exceeding amount of experience, Jonathan provided some insightful advice on writing. He pointed out that there is a difference between writing and publishing. Writing is the act of creating and publishing is the art of selling what you wrote. To be successful, it is important to learn the craft of writing and learning the business of publishing.
When writing, Jonathan recommends that we should try to entertain those reading the piece. That way you can entertain someone into doing business with you. Doing business with someone doesn’t need to be forceful or mechanical, but natural and entertaining.
Lastly, Jonathan talked about his career in writing and how he hasn’t done just writing. He counseled that we should not cement ourselves in one place or career, but to be adaptable. Learn about different aspects of your job that you may not do and become a pro at it. For example, if you work in SEO, learn about web development. The more skills you are capable of, the more valuable you are to a business.
Jonathan truly believes that supporting each other is the better way, or being the “nice” guy. Seek to promote each other instead of “punch” each other. Seek to elevate yourselves and others.
Enjoy the video replay!