The Best Writers' Room on Substack
A copywriting adventure for The Reign of the Anti-Santas was a huge success. You guys really came through.
Around a week ago, I asked you all for help with marketing The Reign of the Anti-Santas. And boy, did people deliver, with emails, comments and phone calls. And after weighing all the feedback and all the ideas, here’s what we came up with:
Rudolph’s in a Cadillac, Santa’s in hiding and Christmas itself is being bought and sold with the fate of the world at stake. The Reign of the Anti-Santas tells how Christmas fell into the hands of Santa’s spoiled kids, low-level gangsters, faded TV-movie heartthrobs, tech bros and lifestyle gurus, and what happens when one elf and an old Santa on the lam step up - against all odds - to save the day.
A raunchy thrill ride through seventy Christmas Eves, The Reign of the Anti-Santas is Goodfellas meets ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas - just in time to wash the candy-cane taste out of your mouth, get Mariah Carey out of your ears, and change how you see December 25th forever!
What people said
Everyone involved deserves thanks and credit for their contributions. So here’s the all-star team.
Talented illustrator and artist Sarah Butler says: #9! Can't wait to read.
Author and editor Scott Waldyn says: Number 5 seals the deal for me. While there were some other fun ones that made it hard to decide between, I landed on 5 because it comes in and frames the story as an intense thriller full of conspiracy and secret dealings. It evokes this sense of subterfuge and action. While the humor rings through, I'm anticipating a rush of adrenaline between the humor.
Historian, researcher and author Kevin R. Kosar says: # 11
Thinker, author and critic Casey Dorman (who wrote a great review of The Reign of the Anti-Santas here): After finishing the ARC, I’d go for #3 or #6. The essence of the book is the side-splitting, nonstop humor, which stays just enough inside the completely ridiculous to keep you caring about the plot.
Illustrator, painter and brilliant individual Danny Jock says: 8. Makes me want to read the book because “against all odds” tales intrigue me.
Award-winning memoirist, author and podcast host Michael Hickins says: 11 - This tag line has the best combination of teasing surprising content without spilling out too many of your secrets (or turning off readers who might want a seedy version of the Santa story but don't want something so gruesome that it spoils the Christmas magic even for them. It's nicely balanced, and even suggests things work out in the end. And isn't that what we all want-- happy endings? ;-)
Editor and world-class proofreader Janell Parque says: My favorite was #1. I feel like it's a good description of the book. Second favorite was #3, but I don't like the "meat grinder" wording for some reason. Third favorite is #6, but it doesn't tell much about the book.
What people picked
1. The shocking story of Santa’s spoiled children, the Wall Street manipulations and the daring elf who helped save Christmas, at least for now. The Reign of the Anti-Santas will change how you see December 25th forever!
3. (2 partial votes) This is the Christmas story you always suspected. Santa litters the landscape with illegitimate children and hibernates for months. Desperate reindeer race to stay ahead of the meat grinder. Listless elves turn to pine trees. And all the while, the money men threaten to undo reality itself.
5. After escaping federal custody, Elvin the elf is ready to tell all - Santa’s inept successors, payoffs in the workshop, betrayals in the boardroom, and the final conspiracy to keep Christmas alive.
6. (2 partial votes) Want to wash the candy-cane taste out of your mouth and get Mariah Carey out of your ears? The Reign of the Anti-Santas is just the ticket this holiday season!
8. When Christmas falls into the hands of low-level gangsters, faded tv-movie heartthrobs, private equity bros and lifestyle gurus, one elf and an old Santa on the lam step up - against all odds - to save the day.
9. A raunchy thrill ride through seventy Christmas Eves, The Reign of the Anti-Santas is Goodfellas meets ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.
11. (2 votes) Rudolph’s in a Cadillac, Santa’s in hiding and Christmas itself is being bought and sold with the fate of the world at stake. The Reign of the Anti-Santas tells the story of how a holiday fell apart, and what it takes to keep it all going.
Thanks again
to everyone who sent over their thinking on this. Being the author of a book can be precisely what disqualifies you from describing it effectively to the book-buying public. I fear some of my past attempts at flap copy have proven this all too well. And I sincerely appreciate all of you helping me to overcome that blind spot as I start to reach out more broadly.
Note: You can order The Reign of the Anti-Santas for yourself or your loved ones and it will get to you before Thanksgiving. Order here: Independent Booksellers - Amazon - B&N - ibooks - Kobo