When picking a publication date for Playmakers, I made the case to the publisher for dropping it during the first days of free agency, our busiest time of the year. After all, when football books are released at the outset of football season, there’s a natural inclination to say, “Why do I want to read about football when I can watch it pretty much every day of the week?”
And then I realized on Tuesday that I was dropping a book during our busiest time of the year. It made for a crazy day, as the media tour continued and the news kept flowing (the PFT crew did a great job as usual of keeping the site current). At one point on Tuesday, it dawned on me that, after months of anticipation for the release of Playmakers, it wasn’t the end of the process but the beginning.
Yes, I’ll keep mentioning it here. For the first time in more than 20 years of free content, we’re offering something more, with a request for something more than your time in return. (Although we greatly appreciate your time.) Many who have bought it have said it’s the least they can do after getting so much from PFT at no cost for so long. Others want something tangible to reflect all the time they’ve spent parked here (the lot is unlimited in size, even if that wasn’t the case during free agency 13 years ago). And others want updates on how it’s going.
It seems to be going well. Better than I expected, because I frankly had no expectations. I didn’t know what to expect. The haters will do what the haters do, but the noise has gotten drowned out by the transactions that are being made.
Thanks to all who have invited me on their shows this week to discuss the book, and to talk about the NFL news of the moment. From high-profile national programs like those hosted by Dan Patrick and Rich Eisen to wildly popular podcasts like Pardon My Take, it’s been nice to see true friends help nudge this process along.
Other publications have reached out to talk about the book, including InsideHook.com and the Next Big Idea Club. Other things are cooking because, again, publication is hardly the end of a process that literally took years to get to this point. This thing really is just getting started.
So thanks to those of you who have purchased the book, thanks to those who will. And thanks to all shows and podcasts who have or who will give me a sliver of real estate to let their audiences know about a book that they actually may enjoy reading.
