How Top Authors Build Million-Dollar Businesses

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20 million books sold. 1.1 million email subscribers. 2.76M YouTube subscribers. 1.5M Instagram followers. And 500k Twitter (or whatever it’s called now) followers. Mark Manson didn’t stumble into success; he systematically built a content ecosystem to ensure it.

Ryan Holiday? Same thing.

He thoughtfully built the Daily Stoic media empire: 1.5 million YouTube subscribers. 2.7 million Instagram followers. 150 million podcast downloads. Translating into 1 million+ copies of The Daily Stoic sold.

While most authors still think about "book launches," the modern bestsellers are doing something different → Creating content engines that will drive sales for years.

We spent the last few weeks deep diving into 9 of the World’s Bestselling Non-Fiction Authors (Mark Manson, James Clear, Cal Newport, Ryan Holiday, Mel Robbins, Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin, Daniel Pink, and Adam Grant) and combined this with behind-the-scenes data from Noah Kagan’s Million Dollar Weekend launch debrief to figure out what makes modern authors successful.

Here are the 3 takeaways you will learn (and can steal) today:

There’s a lot to learn from them (26 pages of research, and never-before-seen launch insights from Noah Kagan’s Million Dollar Weekend, to be exact). So let’s get into it.

Most authors make the same mistake:

They start marketing their book when it’s released (or a few weeks before).

The authors hitting bestseller lists? They start 12-18 months before launch day.

The traditional approach looks like this:

The media company approach looks like this instead:

Your book launch shouldn’t start with its own release. It should start with systematic audience building:

12-18 months before launch:

6-12 months before launch:

1-6 months before launch:

The results speak for themselves: A similar systematic approach helped Million Dollar Weekend sell over 100,000 copies in under six months.

The most successful author-entrepreneurs all use the same fundamental system to sell more books and grow their businesses.

We call it the Content-to-Commerce Flywheel, and it has three essential components:

Your primary, consistent source of high-value content. While this could be a blog, Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook, the authors selling the most copies prioritise video as the content to get them reach, because it creates the deepest connection with their audience.

Mark Manson's insight: "Video allows your personality to come through in a way text never can. Readers feel like they know you personally, which translates directly to book sales."

Here's the truth most creators miss: Your social media followers aren't really yours. Algorithms change. Platforms come and go.

But your email list? That's yours forever.

There is also another key distinction:

Socials are permissionless media; users get shown your content → Email is permission-based content. Readers have chosen to receive your content.

This comes with a much higher level of trust. Trust for you to build on with valuable and vulnerable content. Trust that will lead to more book (and other product) sales.

And the numbers prove it. Email drives more conversions than any other marketing channel (including social and search).

Personal storytelling through your email list has the potential to be THE MOST effective driver of book sales. You just have to be valuable and vulnerable enough for your readers.

While social media might get you discovered, email gets you paid.

Plus, an email list opens up another potential revenue stream: Sponsorships.

James Clear's newsletter sponsorships alone generate more revenue than most authors will make from book sales.

Because of his "premium ad rates thanks to its size (3M+ subscribers) and engaged readership", each email sent can expect five-figure+ sponsorship fees.

Your book is the core, but it shouldn't be your only product.

The authors building sustainable businesses and making seven figures, have multiple ways to not only increase their reach and influence, but also to monetise it:

The list could go on. But at its root, it stems from one source. Their content engines.

Look at Ryan Holiday's multi-product approach, for example:

The result? Multiple seven-figure revenue streams. Books just one component.

Each content piece can also generate revenue through multiple channels simultaneously.

When Ryan Holiday posts a Daily Stoic video, it can drive book sales, newsletter and course signups, merchandise purchases, speaking inquiries, AND advisory work - turning one piece of content into multiple potential revenue streams.

Blockworks, although a media company, provides the perfect template for authors. They grew from a single crypto events business to a $30M revenue media empire in just 5 years by following this exact sequence:

Year 1: Events first (generated revenue and assembled high-value community)

Year 2: Podcasts and free content (leveraged event credibility, built daily engagement)

Year 3: Big on newsletters and news site (doubled down on owning their audience, funnelled from events and the free content)

Year 4: Premium products (launched research subscriptions, reducing ad dependency, and adding deeper research/content)

Year 5: Community and sub-brands (created multiple targeted offerings, including consulting)

The key insight: Growth was fueled by staging products (content included) in the right order.

Authors can follow the same playbook alongside their books:

The harsh truth is that writing a great book is not necessarily enough. Today's readers discover authors through content, not bookstore browsing.

Consider these transformations:

What separates winners from losers?

The pattern is clear.

Most winners treat their book as one component of a larger media business. Not a one-time product.

Instead of thinking: "How do I market my book?"→ Start thinking: "How do I build a media company around my expertise?"

Instead of thinking: "I need to sell books.” → Start thinking: "I need to build content systems and relationships that create ongoing value for my audience."

Instead of thinking: "My book launch lasts a month." Start thinking: "My content engine drives sales for years."

The creator economy is quickly becoming a half-trillion-dollar industry (by 2027, according to Goldman Sachs). The creators and authors who will capture the biggest piece of this growth are those who stop thinking like traditional publishers and start thinking like media entrepreneurs.

The bottom line: Your expertise is the product. Your book is the vehicle. Your content system is the engine that drives it.

Authenticity beats advertising every time.

Your next steps:

The transformation from author to media company is essential for anyone wanting to build a sustainable business around their expertise.

Some of my favorite content I found on the internet this week: