Success in publishing can become a creative trap. Publishers often reject new projects from their bestselling authors if they deviate from an established genre. This risk-averse behavior pigeonholes proven talent and stifles their creative evolution, forcing them to stick to what's safe.

Creativity is a struggle between time and resources. A publisher's explicit goal should be making authors millionaires, not for luxury, but for sustainability. Financial independence allows talented writers to dedicate their time to their craft, creating a virtuous cycle for both author and publisher.

To accelerate your career, focus on developing 'agency'. This means moving beyond assigned tasks to proactively solve unspoken, systemic problems. Instead of chasing high-visibility projects, look for the unaddressed issues that keep leaders up at night. Solving these demonstrates true ownership and strategic value.

Industries fixated on prestige—awards, parties, and reputation—create cultures that resist common-sense business improvements. This focus makes it difficult for insiders, especially those lower on the totem pole like authors, to challenge the status quo and say "the emperor has no clothes."

Legacy publishers focus marketing on a short 2-3 week launch window. This model is flawed, as external events can kill momentum. A better approach is continuous, automated marketing that treats books as long-term assets, ensuring they find their audience over time regardless of launch timing.

Publishers and agents now prioritize an author's social media following over most other factors. The size of an author's advance and their book's sales potential are seen as directly correlated to their online footprint. Aspiring authors must build a following before they even start writing.

Don't be afraid to surface problems to executives, as their job is almost entirely focused on what's not working. Withholding a problem is unhelpful; clarifying and framing it is incredibly valuable. Your champion isn't offending their boss by raising an issue, they're demonstrating strategic awareness.

In an era of constant problem-reporting, writers have a responsibility to shift from journalism (describing what is) to thinking (proposing what could be). Their role should be to generate and explore novel ideas and solutions to society's challenges, rather than just documenting them.

The myth of robust publisher marketing support is largely false for authors without massive advances. In the current landscape, an author is an entrepreneur by default. They are responsible for building an audience and driving sales, and can be a "good" or "bad" one, but cannot opt out of the role.