Here are 100 books that Creating Signature Stories fans have personally recommended if you like
Creating Signature Stories.
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Throughout my career, I’ve come across so many everyday people with awesome ideas of life-changing potential for a select group of people. And most of them struggle to reach the people they can most help. This is such an incredible shame! I’m passionate about connecting those entrepreneurs and business owners who have great ideas with the people who will most benefit from their solutions, so both parties win. A big part of that is ensuring their marketing engages their target audience, hence this book list.
No one can truly predict what will go viral, and honestly, I don’t aim for virality—my focus is on reaching a specific audience, not the masses. That said, I did want to understand the factors that make content more shareable. I wanted to craft content that resonates deeply while encouraging organic sharing, and Contagious provided a wealth of insights to achieve exactly that.
Jonah provides many examples and explains the science of why people share things in a way that I found fascinating and practical. I walked away with clear strategies for adding more share-worthy elements to my content without sacrificing authenticity or integrity.
Why are some products and ideas talked about more than others? Why do some articles make the most emailed list? Why do some YouTube videos go viral? Word-of-mouth. Whether through face-to-face conversations, emails from friends, or online product reviews, the information and opinions we get from others have a strong impact on our own behaviour. Indeed, word-of-mouth generates more than two times the sales of paid advertising and is the primary factor behind 20-50% of all purchasing decisions.It is between 8.5 and 30 times more effective than traditional media.But want to know the best thing about word-of-mouth? It's available to…
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
After 17 years in the advertising industry, I became a professor to teach what I learned in practice. Only then did I start reflecting, researching, and discovering why we were successful in some efforts and not in others. From that perspective, I’ve been crafting new ways to approach marketing that are not based on what worked in the past but on what works now in light of the dramatic changes in the field. Within marketing, I focus on social media strategy, digital marketing, and storytelling.
This book is all about brand building and it was integral to my advertising copywriting days.
Mark and Pearson use Jung’s 12 archetypes to classify brands, consumer markets, and consumers. We used their system to help our clients identify brand meaning and archetype and then used that as the basis for establishing relationships with customers.
Knowing the brand archetype helped me know what type of character’s story to tell. Brand and story archetypes become a shortcut to letting an audience and prospective customer know your brand story is about their story.
This book describes a system of meaning management, the first-ever systematic approach to successful brand meaning. 'This book illuminates the most ancient grooves in our mental architecture, which Carol Jung described as "archetypes", and shows how they can be employed to bring meaning and profit to a brand. There is a nascent power here, which, if understood correctly, can bring a rare vitality to a brand or a corporation' - From the Foreward by Alex Kroll former Creative Director, CEO and Chairman of Young & Rubicam. Some brands are so extraordinary that they become larger-than-life, symbolic of entire cultures, and…
After 17 years in the advertising industry, I became a professor to teach what I learned in practice. Only then did I start reflecting, researching, and discovering why we were successful in some efforts and not in others. From that perspective, I’ve been crafting new ways to approach marketing that are not based on what worked in the past but on what works now in light of the dramatic changes in the field. Within marketing, I focus on social media strategy, digital marketing, and storytelling.
To tell a brand story, you need ideas. Where do ideas come from? No one really knew, including me, until James Young Webb wrote this book, and I discovered it years into my career.
Before reading Young's book, my ideas for marketing clients were often hit or miss. Sometimes, they were brilliant, and sometimes, just okay. What was the difference? I didn’t know until I read this five-step process. When I followed this process my ideas were better. Knowing and following the process will make your ideas and brand stories better.
This concise and powerful book lifts the lid on the creative process and eloquently details the steps needed to create exciting new ideas.
Advertising copywriters, engineers, poets, painters and scientists have all benefited from its text to make creative breakthroughs.
Advertising trailblazer William Bernbach wrote, "James Webb Young conveys in his little book something more valuable than the most learned and detailed texts on the subject of advertising. Mr. Young is in the tradition of some of our greatest thinkers when he describes the workings of the creative process".
Coyote weather is the feral, hungry season, drought-stricken, and ready to catch fire. It’s 1967, and the American culture is violently remaking itself while the country is forcibly sending its young men to fight in a deeply unpopular war.
Jerry has stubbornly made no plans for the future because he…
After 17 years in the advertising industry, I became a professor to teach what I learned in practice. Only then did I start reflecting, researching, and discovering why we were successful in some efforts and not in others. From that perspective, I’ve been crafting new ways to approach marketing that are not based on what worked in the past but on what works now in light of the dramatic changes in the field. Within marketing, I focus on social media strategy, digital marketing, and storytelling.
Like discovering the hidden process for generating ideas, discovering the hidden power of curiosity unleashed my capabilities and improved my efforts.
Leslie explains that curiosity declines as we grow older and as technology increases. Both work against a sustained quest for understanding that leads to insight, innovations, and ideas. If you know this, you can nurture your desire to know and stay curious in a modern world where we can seemingly answer any question almost instantly.
This book opened my eyes to new possibilities illuminating new ways to become a more engaging brand storyteller.
"I have no special talents," said Albert Einstein. "I am only passionately curious." Everyone is born curious. But only some retain the habits of exploring, learning, and discovering as they grow older. Those who do so tend to be smarter, more creative, and more successful. So why are many of us allowing our curiosity to wane? In Curious, Ian Leslie makes a passionate case for the cultivation of our "desire to know." Just when the rewards of curiosity have never been higher, it is misunderstood, undervalued, and increasingly monopolized by a cognitive elite. A "curiosity divide" is opening up. This…
Vanitha Swaminathan is the Thomas Marshall Professor of Marketing at the University of Pittsburgh and the Director of the Katz Center for Branding. Her research focuses on branding strategy with a particular emphasis on digital branding. She has published in various leading marketing and management journals including Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Consumer Research, Marketing Science, and Strategic Management Journal. She is currently serving on a three-year term on the American Marketing Association Board of Directors and previously served in AMA’s Academic Council as President. She has co-authored the Fifth Edition of the world-renowned textbook Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring, and Managing Brand Equity, along with Professor Kevin Lane Keller.
David Aaker’s Aaker on Branding is a must-read for those interested in the principles of branding. The book’s author David Aaker is known as the Father of Branding and is a prolific author, and branding expert. This book combines principles of branding from across his various books and is thematically organized into various topics including creating a brand vision, and creating and managing brands, among others. Readers of this book will also learn about maintaining the brand’s relevance over time. An excellent compilation of the principles that drive branding success.
"Aaker on Branding" presents in a compact form the twenty essential principles of branding that will lead to the creation of strong brands. Culled from the six David Aaker brand books and related publications, these principles provide the broad understanding of brands, brand strategy, brand portfolios, and brand building that all business, marketing, and brand strategists should know.
"Aaker on Branding" is a source for how you create and maintain strong brands and synergetic brand portfolios. It provides a checklist of strategies, perspectives, tools, and concepts that represents not only what you should know but also what action options…
The more I learn about the brain, the more I want to dig in and discover more. Why do we procrastinate? Why do people buy things? Why do some people love unlocking these topics weekly on The Brainy Business podcast (where each person on this list has been a guest) and sharing those insights with the world? When it comes to selling and buying in a brainy way, behavioral economics is the best way to get there, and these books are all a great first step into learning what behavioral science is, how the brain really works, and up-leveling your brand.
When it comes to applying behavioral economics concepts to your branding, practical examples are a must. Nancy’s book is full of them, and while it shares about the science, it doesn’t lead with that, making it very approachable for everyone in business to be able to apply to their marketing.
A great book by a wonderful person who has really been there.
WINNER: 2023 American Marketing Association Foundation Leonard L. Berry Marketing Book Award WINNER: 2024 Axiom Business Book Awards - Silver Medal in Advertising / Marketing / PR WINNER: National Indie Excellence Awards 2023 - Marketing & Public Relations WINNER: Readers' Favorite Book Awards 2023 - Gold Medal in Non-Fiction - Marketing WINNER: NYC Big Book Award 2023 - Marketing & Public Relations WINNER: 2023 Chanticleer International Book Awards, Harvey Chute Grand Prize Winner - Non-Fiction Business & Enterprise FINALIST: Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2023 - Business FINALIST: American Book Fest Best Book Award 2023 - Marketing & Advertising SHORTLISTED:…
Homeless following the death of his adoptive parents in a car crash and the subsequent loss of their farm tenancy, Seb decides to enrol as a residential student at the Asklepios Foundation, a College of Natural Medicine, boasting a sanctuary modelled on an ancient Greek healing temple. Spending a night…
As a kid I used to sit around the table, hearing my French grandparents share stories about life during the Second World War and helping the French Resistance movement. I remember seeing my mum sitting down to interview my French grandad about his life and getting captured near Dunkirk as a young French soldier. That’s where my love for storytelling was born. By the age of 26 I had interviewed over 100+ government officials and business leaders across 7 countries. By 2021 my podcast The Unconventionalists won “best-interview podcast” at the podcasting for business awards. I wrote Glow in the Dark, to help entrepreneurs and business leaders impact the world with their story.
Matthew is a serial public speaking champion who basically should be entered in The Moth Hall of Fame asap. If you've never heard Matthew Dicks talk, pause this and go watch his videos online. He's that good. What I love about his book is that he shares how he crafts his own stories and shares some amazing tips on how to capture everyday events that can later on be turned into powerful stories. Although this book isn't so much geared towards business or work, I think everyone can learn a great deal from Matthew's impressive experience of making people pay attention and connect to what you say (both as a best-selling novelist, school teacher, and public speaking champion).
A five-time Moth GrandSLAM winner and bestselling novelist shows how to tell a great story — and why doing so matters.
Whether we realize it or not, we are always telling stories. On a first date or job interview, at a sales presentation or therapy appointment, with family or friends, we are constantly narrating events and interpreting emotions and actions. In this compelling book, storyteller extraordinaire Matthew Dicks presents wonderfully straightforward and engaging tips and techniques for constructing, telling, and polishing stories that will hold the attention of your audience (no matter how big or small). He shows that…
I’ve
been a student of story structure for decades. As a novelist, this initially
started as a means to learn as much as I could from those with more experience
than myself, but quickly grew into a passion. I read everything on the subject
I could get my hands on and eventually began analyzing the plots of novels and
movies for myself, amalgamating what I had learned with my own theories and
insights which coalesced into a wholly new structural paradigm. Since then,
I’ve had the privilege of working with many talented screenwriters and
novelists to help them shape their stories using Six Act Structure.
As the title suggests, Williams’ book focuses on identifying the Moral Premise at the heart of your story idea and building around it. It’s a very thematic approach to storytelling. This Moral Premise essentially breaks the story into four components: a positive “virtue”, a negative “vice”, desirable consequences (success), and undesirable consequences (defeat). You can use this to create a simple structure of “Vice leads to undesirable consequences (defeat), while Virtue leads to desirable consequences (success)”. I'm admittedly oversimplifying it, but it's a great tactic to get to the heart of your story's theme and strengthen your narrative.
The Moral Premise reveals the foundational concept at the heart of all storytelling and successful box office movies. In concrete terms it explains how you can create your own success and, in the process, entertain, delight, challenge, and uplift this generation and the ones to come.
I’ve been writing novels for more than three decades, and when I started out, I sucked. Truly! I had never even heard of structure. Really, it’s about getting to the heart of your story and reaching the heart of your reader. My first novels went nowhere. But once I dug into these very books (among many others), I learned how to write commercial best sellers. I’ve sold more than 250,000 copies of my self-published books. As a writing coach and copyeditor, I work with thousands of writers, and I have published about twelve writing craft books. I also teach online courses, which have been taken by more than 6,000 writers.
I’ve been recommending Larry’s book for decades! This book got me hooked on plotting and helped me to see clearly how novels have specific scenes in specific places. It’s all part of expected, time-tested storytelling.
I love how Larry uses architecture and engineering phraseology because that’s what fiction writers are doing: constructing a story. And that story needs to be solid, on a well-built foundation. If you don’t learn and master the six core competencies (you’ll have to check out the book to learn what these are), your novel won’t hold together.
The vast majority of writers begin the storytelling process with only a partial understanding where to begin. Some labor their entire lives without ever learning that successful stories are as dependent upon good engineering as they are artistry. But the truth is, unless you are master of the form, function and criteria of successful storytelling, sitting down and pounding out a first draft without planning is an ineffective way to begin.
Story Engineering starts with the criteria and the architecture of storytelling, the engineering and design of a story--and uses it…
Marriage and Fatherhood in the Nazi SS
by
Amy Carney,
When I was writing this book, several of my friends jokingly called it the Nazi baby book, with one insisting it would make a great title. Nazi Babies – admittedly, that is a catchy title, but that’s not exactly what my book is about. SS babies would be slightly more…
I’m an Executive who started life as an Occupational Therapist. As an undergrad, I had an innate curiosity around mental health, and what makes people thrive not just survive. This fascination sent me to university multiple times, and, as a self-confessed book nerd (my teams tell me one of my most common sayings is ‘There is a book you could read..’), constantly testing book theories at work. As an executive, I mentor up-and-coming leaders. This compilation of books represents the most common books I recommend to people to help them thrive at work as a leader. I hope you find them as useful as I have.
While we would love to think we are always rational, we are hard-wired for story not the rational data (albeit key data can be a strong anchor in a story). I started my career far more in the assumption of rational data trumps all, but recognised, through bumps and bruises, how stories can overtake decision-making. When I learned how to tell a better story, I learned how to get the results I needed. Gabrielle is such a down-to-earth, energising speaker and writer, and this book provided me with such a practical, relatable framework for always having a good story or two in my back pocket.
Learn the science and master the art of telling a great story
Stories for Work walks you through the science of storytelling, revealing the secrets behind great storytellers and showing you how to master the art of storytelling in business. Stories hold a unique place in our psyche, and the right story at the right time can be a game-changer in business; whether tragedy, triumph, tension or transition, a good story can captivate the listener and help you achieve your goals. In this book, author Gabrielle Dolan draws from a decade of training business leaders in storytelling to show you…
