A-list copywriter comes clean on his addiction
Published: Tue, 02/11/20
I speaketh of the great & esteemed Bob Bly.
And if you are stubbornly immune to my shameless bribery to get you to buy my new Enoch Wars: Omega Edition novel during its launch this week, maybe… just maybe… Mr. Bly can convince you to give ‘er a rip:
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How I Became Addicted to Ben Settle’s Writing – for the Second Time
By Robert W. Bly
A few years ago, I discovered Ben Settle. And I immediately became addicted to his writing – for the first time.
Among many other things, Ben is a successful and well-respected copywriter specializing in email marketing.
Being a copywriter myself, I am an avid reader of marketing materials, of which Ben is a prolific author.
Somehow, I stumbled upon some of the emails he writes daily for his loyal online subscribers.
They cover a mix of straight marketing advice with Ben’s strongly held worldview of business, people, and human behavior.
And I was instantly hooked and enthralled.
Despite the glut of online newsletters in my inbox, I subscribed. And as incredible as it sounds, I read Ben’s email messages virtually every day of the year.
Not only are the emails devilishly clever and entertaining. But I learn a lot from them, too.
Now, in addition to being a copywriter like Ben, I am also a published fiction writer – and then I found out Ben is, too.
What’s more, he writes in a genre close to my own. His is horror, and more specifically, zombies … while mine is a mix of science fiction, fantasy, and horror replete with aliens, robots, mutants, vampires and werewolves.
Curious, I ordered Ben’s first novel, Zombie Cop – the book you now hold in your hands – and then quickly became addicted to Ben Settle’s writing … for the second time.
If you are a horror novel fan – or just enjoy a good story – I envy you the adventure that awaits you in these pages … because with Zombie Cop, you are in for a treat.
I won’t give plot spoilers here because you can get some either from (a) the blurb on the back cover or (b) just flipping through the book.
Nor will I delve into literary criticism or analysis because (a) I am not a literary critic and (b) I suspect it would bore you to tears as it certainly would me.
I’ll just say that if you like fast-paced commercial novels – with nonstop action and compelling characters revolving around a cool story idea that is a fresh twist on an established horror subgenre, zombies – Zombie Cop is for you.
I’ll close with four pieces of advice.
First, do not try to read the book in one sitting.
It’s too long for that. And you’ll enjoy it more if you stop every few chapters, put it aside for an hour or a day, and savor the action you’ve read in your mind’s eye.
Ben’s creativity is to be enjoyed, like a fine wine (even though I suspect he’s a beer guy like me) – sipped slowly … and not guzzled like cheap moonshine.
Second, don’t start the book until Friday afternoon after finishing your work week.
If you start early or midweek, you’ll either give in to the irresistible urge to pick up the book and keep reading it, interfering with your job … or you’ll pine for his fictional zombie world every minute you spend away from it toiling in the more mundane real world.
Third, do not skip to the end to find out what happens. It will lessen your pleasure in the book. The end should remain a surprise until you get there. Then it will blow you away and leave you, like any respectable zombie, hungry for more.
Fourth, after you finish Zombie Cop, you can go to Amazon and feed your newly formed Ben Settle habit with his other horror novels, of which there are already several and many more to come.
Since I am so much older than Ben – and Ben at age 42 is a much better fiction writer than I am at age 60 – I won’t be around to read them all as he continues to produce great horror books throughout his spectacular writing career.
But you can rest assured I will read all the novels Ben publishes while I am still – unlike many of Ben’s most memorable characters – among the living.
Now settle in (and please forgive the pun) for great reading and unpleasant dreams….
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Thank you, Mr. Bly… from the bottom of my entrail-slurping heart…
Here’s the scoop on the Enoch Wars: Omega Edition launch:
If you buy this book in either Kindle or paperback & send me your receipt (not just buy it, you must send your receipt to me in time) by the deadline below, I will give you the PDF of another book called:
“The Email Players Rules: Volume 1”
This 200+ page eBook contains the transcripts of the first 140 Email Players Rules from my old podcasts.
They were by far the most popular shows I did.
And, while you could waste several days of your life you will never get back hunting down and finding those episodes on my website (it took me a couple days to find each individual episode on my own site since I don’t use any identifying keywords in all the descriptions — and that was with Producer Jonathan’s help and even he couldn’t find them all…) and then listening and/or transcribing them on your own, I have already done all that work for you in this eBook.
Anyway, I will send you this eBook when you do the following:
1. Buy my newest Enoch Wars Omega edition novel (digital or hard copy)
2. Send me your receipt before Friday, 2/14 at midnight EST — let me be crystal clear: you must send your receipt by the deadline, not just buy the book, by the deadline.
Here’s the spine-tingling link:
http://www.EnochWars.com/omega
Ben Settle
P.S. Following are just a few of the tips inside the Email Players Rules: Volume 1 eBook I will send you in exchange for buying my new novel & sending me your receipt by the DEADline above:
* How one of the most brilliant marketing minds on the planet structures his sales funnels.
* How to use the Bible to predict hot new investment opportunities.
* How to write opt-in pages to get high quality leads eager to solve the problem your product helps with… instead of do-nothing mush cookie moochers who just want free stuff.
* How to “stack the deck” to make your affiliate bonuses stand out like a fart in study hall from other affiliates you’re selling against.
* How my place getting burgled by meth addicts made me a much better and more profitable businessman.
* Why Bruno Mars is responsible for a lot of guys getting dumped.
* How to keep your girlfriend or wife on her best behavior. (BONUS: This also applies to pets, politicians, friends, clients, customers, service providers, and anyone else you associate with.)
* What the Bible says about how to to gain the respect of your market, colleagues, teachers, clients, customers, etc.
* The exact best time to “fire” problem customers or clients.
* What to do if your wife or girlfriend gives you an ultimatum.
* An almost “fool proof” way to get what you want from people — whether it’s their money, their support, even their heart.
* How to keep your spam complaints to almost zero.
* How to know if an email you write is worth sending.
* How a copywriting friend would get thousands of visitors to his blog whenever he wanted.
* The most interesting man on Facebook.
* The single worst way ever invented for starting an email.
* How one of history’s greatest marketers tests his ads.
* The easiest way ever invented to get a fast (and potentially huge) short term bump in sales.
* Advice to old school direct mail copywriters struggling online.
* The “mistress management” secret for having an air-tight financially secure business.
* Dan Kennedy’s secret mindset “tweak” for commanding more respect (and bigger fees) from clients.
* How to prevent serial refunders, thieves, copycats and any low class jackass customers from stealing your time, energy and money.
* Why being selfish makes people around you happy.
* A secret way of writing emails (used by Hemingway and other popular novelists) that makes writing faster, more entertaining, and, yes, more profitable.
* Why so many “experts” are broke without a pot to pee in or a window to throw it out.
* How to give yourself an air of confidence that’ll scare away the idiots and attract the best people into your life.
* The dangers of networking in Facebook groups.
* How to position yourself in your market (especially if you sell a service) so people gladly pay you more, give you more respect, and take your advice often without argument or resistance.
* Why your customers are the last people you should ask about how to sell them.
* Why women are the last people a guy should ask about how to attract them.
* The best kind of candy to give a girl as a gift. (And no, it ain’t chocolate.)
* Best way for freelance copywriters to give themselves financial security.
* How to give yourself peace of mind during election years.
* How to repulse people into buying from you.
* Reasons why I don’t mail for affiliate launches anymore.
* How to “spin” bad things that happen to you into sales and success.
* The king/queen theory of a deceased comedian that can help any client better position themselves so only the best copywriter want to work with them.
* The real reason why single chicks love to own cats.
* A fast and simple way to eliminate the anxiety of finding a new market to sell to.
* A real life example of how to turn a one-shot sale product into a continuity product.
* The coffee tax secret for finding out what people *really* want to buy instead of what they simply say they want to buy.
* Why the vast majority of people who claim the Bible is their favorite book are lying through their teeth.
* A scientific way to manufacture your own luck.
* How The Secret is keeping so many otherwise intelligent men and women lonely, single, or “settling” with the wrong person.
* How to use “short cuts” to write ads that make lots of sales even if your copy sucks.
* How to wisely (and ethically) use “hype” to side-step lagging attention spans.
* Arguably the single best movie ever made for would-be entrepreneurs and business school students to watch before spending a single penny getting started.
* What copywriters working on commission need to be aware of.
* When never to get involved in a joint venture — even if the person your JV’ing with is honest as the day is long and has no intention of screwing you over.
* Why I don’t segment my list but insist on everyone else segmenting theirs.
* The dangers of trying to “reverse engineer” marketing and copywriting systems instead of just paying for them.
* The big mastermind group lesson I learned while eating lunch with Brian Kurtz (former Executive VP of Boardroom, Inc).
And that’s just for starters, my little Goblin.
Again, I will send you this eBook when you do the following:
1. Buy my newest Enoch Wars Omega edition novel (digital or hard copy)
2. Send me your receipt before Friday, 2/14 at midnight EST — let me be crystal clear: you must send your receipt by the deadline, not just buy the book, by the deadline.
Here’s the link:
http://www.EnochWars.com/omega