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How to Thrive as a Writer in the Capitalist Dystopia
Are the ills of capitalism dragging down your creativity?Are you stuck between needing to exchange money for food and hating monetizing your creative output?Do you scratch your head wondering how you could possibly exist and thrive in today's world?Then this book is for you.
How to Thrive as a Writer in a Capitalist Dystopia is your essential guide to navigating and succeeding as a creative human in the challenging world of modern capitalism. This book offers practical, actionable advice to help writers not just survive but thrive in these “interesting” times.
You'll discover strategies to overcome the systemic challenges imposed by capitalism, learn the rules of the game and how to manipulate them to your advantage, and build a roadmap for a sustainable creative business that brings you joy even in a world tailor-made to steal every ounce of happiness from you.
Whether you're struggling with burnout or seeking to elevate your writing career, How to Thrive as a Writer in a Capitalist Dystopia equips you with invaluable tools to navigate our current capitalist landscape, ensuring your success and fulfillment as a writer from today until this whole house of cards collapses down upon itself and we rebuild something (hopefully) better in its place.
How to Thrive as a Writer in a Capitalist Dystopia is your essential guide to navigating and succeeding as a creative human in the challenging world of modern capitalism. This book offers practical, actionable advice to help writers not just survive but thrive in these “interesting” times.
You'll discover strategies to overcome the systemic challenges imposed by capitalism, learn the rules of the game and how to manipulate them to your advantage, and build a roadmap for a sustainable creative business that brings you joy even in a world tailor-made to steal every ounce of happiness from you.
Whether you're struggling with burnout or seeking to elevate your writing career, How to Thrive as a Writer in a Capitalist Dystopia equips you with invaluable tools to navigate our current capitalist landscape, ensuring your success and fulfillment as a writer from today until this whole house of cards collapses down upon itself and we rebuild something (hopefully) better in its place.
344 pages, Paperback
Published August 4, 2025
5 people are currently reading
4 people want to read
About the author
Russell Nohelty
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http://www.russellnohelty.com/mail/
Russell Nohelty is a USA TODAY bestselling author of science fiction and fantasy books that are both entertaining and thought-provoking. He fills his books with action, adventure, mystery, and thrills.
Russell was born in northern New Jersey, grew up in Northern Virginia, went to college in Maryland, and now lives in Los Angeles with his wife and dogs, which he loves.
He's been writing as long as he can remember and hopes to do so far into the future. When he's not writing, he's usually reading or watching movies. For more information, you can follow him below:
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https://www.facebook.com/russellnohelty
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https://instagram.com/russellnohelty
BOOKBUB
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http://www.russellnohelty.com/mail/
Russell Nohelty is a USA TODAY bestselling author of science fiction and fantasy books that are both entertaining and thought-provoking. He fills his books with action, adventure, mystery, and thrills.
Russell was born in northern New Jersey, grew up in Northern Virginia, went to college in Maryland, and now lives in Los Angeles with his wife and dogs, which he loves.
He's been writing as long as he can remember and hopes to do so far into the future. When he's not writing, he's usually reading or watching movies. For more information, you can follow him below:
https://www.facebook.com/russellnohelty
https://instagram.com/russellnohelty
BOOKBUB
https://www.bookbub.com/profile/russe...
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 18, 2025
This was the book I didn’t know I needed. I read most of it in a couple of days. It got a little slow at the end with all the terms, but it was still good information I wanted to know.
I highlighted tons of great quotes like; “guilt can’t scale.” And, “nobody knows what will work, but if we do enough of the right things, it will probably work out.”
It also had my favorite typo of all time. “because our other dog will goblin it up.” I had to stop reading for a second so I could laugh at the idea of a dog eating so crazy she looked like a goblin.
I can’t wait to go through the workbook.
I highlighted tons of great quotes like; “guilt can’t scale.” And, “nobody knows what will work, but if we do enough of the right things, it will probably work out.”
It also had my favorite typo of all time. “because our other dog will goblin it up.” I had to stop reading for a second so I could laugh at the idea of a dog eating so crazy she looked like a goblin.
I can’t wait to go through the workbook.
August 19, 2025
Full disclosure: I backed the Kickstarter for this book, and even though I have a fair amount of negative things to say, I don't regret it. I found it to be an educational read.
thrive: verb (used without object)
1. to prosper; be fortunate or successful. Synonyms: advance
2. to grow or develop vigorously; flourish.
The children thrived in the country.
Russell Nohelty is a successful writer, and he wants to share what he's learned about marketing with you. But after reading this book, I've come to the conclusion that "thriving" is not what this book is about. It's about how to survive as a writer in a capitalist dystopia.
survive: to get along or remain healthy, happy, and unaffected in spite of some occurrence.
She's surviving after the divorce.
After reading through all of the health issues (both mental and physical) that Nohelty shares with the reader, his suggestion not to strive for happiness in order to avoid falling into negativity, and the constant drumbeat of how exhausted he is from promoting his brand (blog posts, interviews, podcasts, strategizing his advertising budget, evaluating what promotions are working, etc.) leads me to believe that he's deluding himself into thinking he's thriving; he's merely surviving.
But "survive" isn't as marketable a word as "thrive." And it's clear to me after reading this book, that Nohelty knows marketing.
And that's where this book has value. Right from the start, Nohelty gives his readers a reality bath. If you have any illusions about your chances of success after publishing your book, then he will wash those illusions away. Once he's done that, he works hard for you to accept things as they are. It's not your fault. Capitalism is a rough system with many evils; it's difficult to conduct commerce in such a system, but it's what we have to deal with. Nohelty doesn't want authors to let the system damage their mental health.
Once that's out of the way, he shares his business experience, matters of personal health, his experiences with social media, makes suggestions about automating your workflow, explains arbitrage, agonizes over the size of his mailing list, crunches the numbers on advertising ROI, drowns you in marketing philosophy, and tries to get you to focus on what works for you. There's even a clever bit about author archetypes which he and his partner have dubbed "biomes." There's plenty more, but it can be repetitive at times and rambling, and I found myself wanting him to get on with it. But he has to get it all out there because he's trying to make a point and, IMO, he's burning the candle at both ends.
There's a workbook—emphasis on work—that goes with this book that could prove useful. But if you need a guide you can sign up for the service that he and a fellow successful marketer have devised. Nohelty goes into some detail about that in the book, and it stuck in my craw. I don't fault him for monetizing his experience, but I do feel like he's trying to upsell anyone who bought this book. And I don't really appreciate that, but hey, we live in a capitalist dystopia, so it's all fair game.
So if you're an indie writer, should you pick this up? If you've got a routine that you're happy with, then no. If you're content with your writing as a fun hobby, then also no. But if you've got at least three books under your belt, you've sold less than 100 copies (like 99% of us), and you're looking to find out what may or may not be required of you to grow your brand, then yes. It's a sobering look at one man's efforts (one who already had experience with sales and marketing) to grow his brand. Maybe you'll find something in it that works for you.
And Mr. Nohelty, if you're reading this, H.P. Lovecraft never lived in Los Angeles, much less had a salon there.
thrive: verb (used without object)
1. to prosper; be fortunate or successful. Synonyms: advance
2. to grow or develop vigorously; flourish.
The children thrived in the country.
Russell Nohelty is a successful writer, and he wants to share what he's learned about marketing with you. But after reading this book, I've come to the conclusion that "thriving" is not what this book is about. It's about how to survive as a writer in a capitalist dystopia.
survive: to get along or remain healthy, happy, and unaffected in spite of some occurrence.
She's surviving after the divorce.
After reading through all of the health issues (both mental and physical) that Nohelty shares with the reader, his suggestion not to strive for happiness in order to avoid falling into negativity, and the constant drumbeat of how exhausted he is from promoting his brand (blog posts, interviews, podcasts, strategizing his advertising budget, evaluating what promotions are working, etc.) leads me to believe that he's deluding himself into thinking he's thriving; he's merely surviving.
But "survive" isn't as marketable a word as "thrive." And it's clear to me after reading this book, that Nohelty knows marketing.
And that's where this book has value. Right from the start, Nohelty gives his readers a reality bath. If you have any illusions about your chances of success after publishing your book, then he will wash those illusions away. Once he's done that, he works hard for you to accept things as they are. It's not your fault. Capitalism is a rough system with many evils; it's difficult to conduct commerce in such a system, but it's what we have to deal with. Nohelty doesn't want authors to let the system damage their mental health.
Once that's out of the way, he shares his business experience, matters of personal health, his experiences with social media, makes suggestions about automating your workflow, explains arbitrage, agonizes over the size of his mailing list, crunches the numbers on advertising ROI, drowns you in marketing philosophy, and tries to get you to focus on what works for you. There's even a clever bit about author archetypes which he and his partner have dubbed "biomes." There's plenty more, but it can be repetitive at times and rambling, and I found myself wanting him to get on with it. But he has to get it all out there because he's trying to make a point and, IMO, he's burning the candle at both ends.
There's a workbook—emphasis on work—that goes with this book that could prove useful. But if you need a guide you can sign up for the service that he and a fellow successful marketer have devised. Nohelty goes into some detail about that in the book, and it stuck in my craw. I don't fault him for monetizing his experience, but I do feel like he's trying to upsell anyone who bought this book. And I don't really appreciate that, but hey, we live in a capitalist dystopia, so it's all fair game.
So if you're an indie writer, should you pick this up? If you've got a routine that you're happy with, then no. If you're content with your writing as a fun hobby, then also no. But if you've got at least three books under your belt, you've sold less than 100 copies (like 99% of us), and you're looking to find out what may or may not be required of you to grow your brand, then yes. It's a sobering look at one man's efforts (one who already had experience with sales and marketing) to grow his brand. Maybe you'll find something in it that works for you.
And Mr. Nohelty, if you're reading this, H.P. Lovecraft never lived in Los Angeles, much less had a salon there.
September 17, 2025
Packed full of well-earned publishing insight & business savvy. Technically a few things are repeated and I felt the lack of rousing conclusion. Not sure thriving is the promise that Russell really offers - his story is one of dedicated labour. Regardless I was happy reading this book if only to know the journey with all its ups and downs of a fellow writer.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews