Legendary writers, the ones who stand the test of time, create a category of one.
They’re snow leopards.
Snow Leopard is the first writing advice book ever written through a Category Design lens. Inside, what you will not find are a bunch of nose-picky suggestions for how you can make your writing “better.” There will be no talk of comma placement, grammatical correctness, or a recap of Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey.”
Instead, you will internalize a completely new way of framing your ideas, stories, and insights to reach and resonate with the most people possible. Written by the world’s first “business writing band,” Category Pirates—made up of Christopher Lochhead, Eddie Yoon, and Nicolas Cole—Snow Leopard shows you how to create a category for yourself, master the art of Obvious & Non-Obvious content, monetize in new ways, and enjoy a lifelong career of independence, creative freedom, and exponential financial upside.
In decades past, David Ogilvy, Gary Halbert, Leo Burnett, Gary Bencivenga, Al Ries & Jack Trout, and many more master communicators have all written about the psychology behind how messages spread. Snow Leopard builds on their work and, along with dozens of new insights and frameworks, roots this thinking in the Digital Age.
In this book you will
The Content A proven framework for becoming a differentiated Creator or CuratorWriter Business A comprehensive guide breaking down all the different ways writers & creators can monetize their work in the Digital Age.Content Marketing An insider’s take on why the growing content marketing industry is becoming more and more saturated (and the opportunity this creates for you).The Art Of Fresh A timeless framework for ensuring your ideas are original, unique, and highly differentiated.The Power of a A new way of thinking about “scaling yourself” on the Internet–and why you never want to be a “better version” of an existing thing.Quick Guide To A never-before-shared model for inventing new language to get ideas to “stick”—and the unfair advantage this creates.How To Write A Book That And dozens of insights from the world’s largest non-fiction study of business books, reverse-engineering books that grab people’s attention from books that flop.Whether you are a writer, creator, entrepreneur, executive, public speaker, investor, or industry thought leader, Snow Leopard is your guide for becoming known for a niche you own.
And experiencing the life-changing outcomes that come with being completely differentiated.
The apex of The Content Pyramid is to become a Category Creator. This means you have successfully become known for a niche you own and that niche has a tailwind behind it (that you have either created or accelerated) that will last long enough for you to exceed your “burn rate,” save and invest money, create and buy assets that pay you dividends long into the future, have a meaningful impact on the world, achieve a level of status that ensures new opportunities continue to fall into your lap and allow you to do what you love every single day until the day your life comes to an end. Pure creative joy. If this sounds like a pipe dream, we’re here to tell you it’s not. We live this pure creative joy every single day.
I had to read this because of my job.
It gave me a headache.
From "category of one" and 'regular leopards move in groups' to employing the Obvious and the Non-Obvious to Languaging to 'Price your paperback or ebook at $20-$30 because you worked hard to write it and people think they're getting something good if they pay a lot of money for it so this technique will get you boatloads of cash', it's Kids In the Hall's Money Momentum refurbished for wannabe authorial influencers in 2022.
I read the Limited Black Leopard Edition, a 259-paged independently-published paperback priced at $29.99. I could make a new record for it but I’m not going to because their advice worked - we bought the book and I have spent far too much of my time and effort cataloging it. Scratch that. Categorizing it. Into a category of one.
I was sent this book for a promotional video (@booksandthingsexplained).
As someone who regularly enjoys writing and creating content, I've found this book to be incredibly helpful for multiple reasons:
1. It really got me thinking about the kind of content creator that I currently am versus the kind of content creator that I want to be. Currently, I'm more of a curator than a creator. However, to achieve the long-term goals that I set for myself, I need to start creating more meaningful and differentiated content.
2. The book goes into incredible detail about how to leverage, differentiate, and monetize your writing and content so that you can become a Category Creator/Designer (aka, dominate your niche)
3. Practical tools and frameworks are used to help the reader leverage, differentiate, and monetize their writing/content.
It was also a bonus that the book was actually pretty funny
The book is well researched and does a great job of explaining types of content and how to choose topics for writing. However, it repeats the same thing about writing non obvious content and giving non obvious solutions throughout the book.
Finally, I am done with this book and to be honest, I have learned so much from it that I feel grateful for spending enough time reading this book.
Snow Leopard is an unconventional gem of a book which will teach you how you can create a category of one if you wish to be a legendary writer, creator or thought leader.
Divided into 8 chapters, this book teaches you everything from Content Pyramid, Business Models, Content Free Marketing (this will blow your mind), The Art of Fresh Thinking, etc.
The book contains hard-hitting truths which will teach you timeless principles and make you think in an unconventional manner.
And this book comes from a credible person, Nicolas Cole one of the co-authors of this book himself has garnered more than 100 Million Views.
This book offers a fresh way of thinking urging you to ask yourself “If I want to create obvious content or non-obvious content?” which will separate you from others.
The book will continuously ask questions until you gain clarity and that too with relatable examples.
The example of how Ryan Holiday is enjoying as a category king in education on stoicism was superb, and how being a king spreads wildfire of word of mouth, helps understand the context very well.
The book also post-mortems the content marketing industry which will debunk a lot of your myths. The lies that are covered in the content-free marketing chapter will definitely leave you clueless.
This might look exaggerated but my review of the book won’t do justice to even 10% of how valuable this book can be to the person who is reading the book, and you won’t know how mind-blowing every page of this book is until you get your hands on it.
This book speaks to you with no filters, the language is very straightforward and I am damn sure it is something which a lot of readers would love.
Sometimes you are just short of words because you genuinely can’t appreciate the book enough and that is what I am feeling right now.
But, I am sure this is a book I will go back to again and again because you know you know
As an online creator/ educator, this book gave me a left-turn in my thinking on how to create valuable content and build an online business.
Some take aways:
Obvious vs. Non-obvious content. I have often noted that the content that seems to get the most attention, likes, shares, are 'insights' that confirm my audience's worldview. This is 'obvious content'. It has the benefit of making audiences feel comfortable and liking you, and has immediate return on investment. However it fails to leave a lasting impact, and the brief spike is over as quickly as it came. Non-obvious content, however, challenges people's thinking (something people often don't like to do). This delays gratification (possibly indefinitely), but has a much higher long-term reward if the insights actually make a difference.
Languaging: Using language to create new concepts and make ideas stick. Examples: freakonomics, the tipping point, category design, etc.
The 'better game': Trying to be better than others in a saturated category is a difficult competition. Their solution, create your own category. Admittedly, this is also difficult. Thinking of a good category that hasn't been explored requires a lot of intelligence and creativity.
What I didn't like:
Sometimes the bragging felt excessive and seemed to be padding the page-count.
No simple guidance to determine what is an obvious vs. non-obvious idea. Perhaps this is a spectrum? They don't talk about it this way though. To whom must a problem or solution be obvious to in order to count as 'obvious'? Or how many people?
No discussion of the risk of creating a category and then being out-competed in it. For little-guys starting out without an obvious, what is keeping someone from seeing your idea and small following, and coming along and playing the better-game? I feel this book over-sells the security of simply having and expressing a new category, and under-estimates the risks of not having power in the category.
The ideas and insights are worth the price. Interesting, helpful and valuable information.
Downsides: They really needed a proofreader and line editor on their book and there's a few f-bombs. They are kinda edgy guys, but that's who they are. If you're going to price high, make sure you deliver a polished book. Yes, your insights and research was worth the price, but if you are going to price it high you owe it to your paying readers to polish the book free from glaring typos.
The book cover is beautiful and it prompted me wanting to buy your book, (along with the title, subtitle and book description). So if you spent your budget on the book designer, well done.
My thoughts: they have a few blind spots, especially when it comes to the value of fiction and Names or well known people in the media and publishing industry.
I think they only see part of the picture. But I think they see part of the puzzle of the mystery why some things sell well and others flop. I respect this guys.
I think they practiced what they preached and they truly believe in their insights and research. And they are genuinely trying to help people.
Category Pirates is actually a beautiful branding, I checked out their website and YouTube and YouTube channel.
As a non-fiction writer, it was nice and invigorating to read something with more depth and insight in writing and marketing business books that went beyond the cliche yet true basics.
Overall a good, engaging read. Helpful takeaways. I tend to take notes while reading book. Always a nice bonus when the authors summarize the takeaways and action points in the last chapter.
Well done guys. Be interested in talking to you guys someday.
Snow Leopard is a book that left me quite underwhelmed. What appeared to be an exciting exploration of legendary writers and their unique styles turned out to be a stretched-out version of a few newsletters.
The book's primary flaw lies in its attempt to force-fit frameworks onto the works of these writers. Rather than delving into the genuine artistry of these legends, the authors seem intent on superimposing their own interpretations. This left me wondering when and why the authors decided to change tracks, veering into a direction where they began explaining how to write a bestselling book – advice that, ironically, they themselves did not seem to follow during the writing process.
As someone who picked up this book hoping for profound insights into the minds of legendary writers, I found myself sorely disappointed by the inconsistency in its narrative and the sense that the authors were more interested in promoting their own strategies than in honoring the creative genius of the literary greats they set out to study. While there are certainly some nuggets of wisdom buried within these pages, they are often overshadowed by the book's lack of focus and the authors' self-promotional agenda.
In the end, "Snow Leopard" leaves readers with a sense of being cheated with their own tricks and an opportunity lost to truly appreciate the legendary writers who have made their mark on literature. If you're seeking genuine insights into the creative process of these authors, you might want to look elsewhere.
It is good in the sense that we all have the ability to publish real-time work and get real-time feedback on it all.
It is bad because you need to be very mindful about your craft and how to grab the attention of others who have a million and one things to do in a given day.
My best advice is to learn from those who have proven strategies, especially those who are not following the masses but instead carving a Category Of One.
The fellas at Category Pirates call this a Snow Leopard.
If you have any interest in writing, you should grab this book simply because dang, look at the cover!
Just the cover ropes me in and makes me want to be this so-called, “Snow Leopard.”
However, beyond that, this book will show you how to internalize a completely new way of framing your ideas, stories, and insights to reach and resonate with the most people possible.
This book covers so many epic topics!
If you are a writer, creator, entrepreneur, executive, public speaker, investor, or industry thought leader, then this MUST be your next read.
You are learning from those who have DONE the work, not just TALKED about the work.
This book will set you free and let your ideas and thoughts blast through the internet and beyond to impact others positively.
Everyone has the ability to write and say anything they want and to capitalize on it as well. Anyone in the world can do this to varying degrees. But most people who write aren’t able to.
Snow Leopard: How Legendary Writers Create a Category of One by Category Pirates focuses on helping you to write unique and useful ideas by utilizing 5 levels plus the Obvious and Non-Obvious Problems and Solutions: 1. Level 1: Consumption 2. Level 2: Curation 3. Level 3: Obvious Connection 4. Level 4: Non-Obvious Connection 5. Level 5: Category Creation
Plus the following: •Obvious Problem—>Obvious Solution •Obvious Problem—>Non-Obvious Solution •Non-Obvious Problem—>Obvious Solution •Non-Obvious Problem—>Non-Obvious Solution
My Thoughts about Snow Leopard: The book brings a lot of value through explaining that each of the levels from two onwards are able to be monetized. It focuses mainly on nonfiction writing but the insights can be applied to fiction as well.
Basically, all writing needs to catch the reader’s attention with insights that provide a solution to a problem that the reader wants or must solve.
The writer can do this by providing non-obvious solutions to obvious problems or vice versa. - I found that the book was unique in the way that it stated the insights but not completely groundbreaking as the author says it is. That doesn’t mean it’s bad.
In fact, if you do any creative work (even if it’s not writing) I highly recommend reading Snow Leopard. - Even more highly recommended is The Art and Business of Online Writing.
In a world full of competition being different and standing out is tough, especially in the digital world. This book by the category pirates will definitely help you to become a snow leopard and stand alone. The best writers, the ones that stand the test of time are those that create their own categories.
Following on from their previous books about Category Design in business and marketing, this book dives into the world of content creation and is geared toward creators.
Making my way through the book slowly and it’s amazing so far!
The book's approach to lambasting conventional, generic marketing and social media content is refreshing and valuable. However, the constant self-promotion and self-references significantly detract from the educational content. By the time you get halfway through the book, you will be sick and tired of hearing about "category pirates" and what "pirate Christopher" has accomplished in his life. We get it. You want to invent new languaging and hope it catches on, just like what you talk about in your book. I don't see it happening in this case though, guys.
This book is what us millennial/genZers should have read in school. Category building, non-obvious/obvious, gosh now I see this everywhere! Lots of learning to do and implementation but the book is excellent. It’s quilted from their past writings, which is essentially the model they write about. The one thing I wish it had was visuals. I tend to be a visual learner and there were some instances like the pyramid that I wish was drawn out. But overall, I highly recommend this read.
This book changed the way I think about writing. I'd recommend it for anyone looking to write online regardless of whether or not you have an established audience.
This book tries hard to introduce a new framework for thinking about writing and it's pretty successful. It borrows HEAVILY from their Category Pirates Substack.
The Category Pirates strike gold. Snow Leopard is a strategy book for competing through differentiated category design, language and value proposition design.
Wow. Just wow. I'm not usually blown away by non-fiction, but this is stuff I'd never heard said before. Really, really worth reading. It explains a lot about how and why companies and ideas are viral and successful, or not.
If you are considering writing a book this is the place to start. Loaded with non-obvious forward thinking content that provides data to back presented conclusions and actionable insights (and a checklist!) For actually doing the work of writing.
A brilliant guide for anyone thinking of writing a book. However for those of us that aren't there are many valuable lessons in here for anyone in business with a message to share.
I really like the way the caragories are explained and how they relate to the message being spread. Made it much clearer on the direction I am going to go.