Roberto Blake has grown over 500,000 subscribers on YouTube and helped hundreds of channels grow to 100,000 subscribers from zero, and earn a full-time income as Content Creators. In Create Something Awesome, Roberto helps you unlock the opportunities to earn in the Creator Economy, understand the "creator mindset", and what it takes to succeed as a full-time content creator. You will not only learn how to create intentional content that grows an audience, but how to properly monetize your creativity and build a true community.
Overall, not bad. Doesn't really add anything new to the deluge of information out there on the topic of content creation. I will say the chapters on mental health, real expectations, and how to deal with criticism are rock solid. Worth picking up for anyone looking to get into content creation.
Really appreciated this one. A genuine and authentic look into the creator space. I would recommend this to creators of all sorts, whether starting out or seasoned, established independent freelancer or those embarking on expanding their social media presence. Would make a great gift for high school or university graduate. Would be a good one for book club business focus groups or sharing of ideas and experiences within social media building spaces for those looking for critique partnership that they would be able to share and compare.
The Story Accessible, whether novice or expert in the field. A positive, encouraging outlook which also took a deep look into the challenges and celebrations of starting, shaping, and completing creative endeavors within social media for the artist, business undertakings, and general entrepreneurship spaces.
There is a lot of value packed into this book, both topically and amount of depth. Plenty of context and history to relate to and glean from.
Great at storytelling, with plenty of tangible, practical, actionable examples from fundamentals as well as personal experiences to give life to the real world scenario.
All told without overt overselling of ideas which was refreshing.
Included group and data analytics.
Chapter listings: The Creator Economy Build a Powerful Personal Brand No More Starving Artists Monetizing Your Creativity Value First Content Authenticity and Boundaries Creating a Community How to Stand Out and be Noticed Picking a Platform Feeling Overwhelmed and Overworked Imposter Syndrome Consistency is King Building a Million Dollar Creator Business Collaborating and Networking How to Pivot and Adapt Become Known How to Deal with Criticism Staying Motivated and the Creator Mindset How to Deal with Failure Revealing My “Secrets” as a Full-time Creator Final Thoughts Appendix
A lot of golden nugget, solid advice. The Appendix displaying Q&A for some specifics was also a nice touch.
The Writing Was well written in how it was engaging and compelling, balancing enough how-to principles with plenty of examples and personal anecdotes for an accessible yet stylistic quality that was both professional and yet casual enough to embrace the business side and creative thought to problem-solving from more conversational point of view.
I think the underlinings could have benefited from graphic design integration.
Comparison chart would have been fun.
Needed another round of copy-edits, but this was not terribly distracting, rare occasion I felt compelled to go into copy-editing mode-- which to describe is this deep compulsion to edit and correct for grammar and format before rereading a second time for content.
May have benefited from reorganization on some fronts.
Tone It was consistent and celebratory to the tagline and branding for the book Create Something Awesome.
Somewhat letter to younger self which was interesting to read. Showed personality. A very admirable and humble approach but also straightforward and no nonsense at points, which gave it a very friendly, positive, good energy, supportive, cheerleader type quality, whilst making for a refreshing, approachable, open, honest, and achievable reading experience you can imagine and easily translate into your own work.
I’ve been a content creator for years now and love reading books with tips and advice. I’ve read dozens of books on this topic, and Roberto Blake’s new book is without a doubt in the top 3 or even the best one I’ve read. I found Roberto’s YouTube channel early in my YouTube career, and it helped me get over 80,000 subscribers and actually make a living from creating. Since I know his content inside and out, I didn’t think this book would provide too much value, but I was wrong.
What really separates this book from all of the others is the details and actionable advice. A lot of the books on being a creative or entrepreneur can come off like some hustle-culture nonsense that just tells you to stay motivated while hyping you up. Roberto definitely encourages the reader, but he’s realistic about the results and gives advice that includes which platforms may work for you, what type of equipment you need and more. Along the way, Roberto also provides pieces of his personal story and how he overcame challenges like impostor syndrom.
This book is great because it walks the reader step-by-step through how to monetize their content through products, getting brand deals and other methods. The last part that really stuck out is a section that most books are afraid to touch: cancel culture. Roberto is upfront with the reader about how an audience can turn against you and how other content creators can come after you when you become successful. He also provides some advice on how to navigate this situation. And as someone who went through it, I wish I had this book when it happened.
I don’t care who you are, if you want to use social media to spread awareness about your brand and/or bring in additional income, you need to read this book. It’s short but provides twice as much value as most of the books that are double the length.
Rarely do I ever write book reviews like this. I feel it is necessary with this particular book as it might save you some time and money.
As Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch says, “Murder your darlings.” The best writing is ruthlessly edited. The author has forgotten his audience and fallen in love with his own prose. Or he had a quota of pages to fill.
For the next book, I hope he pays an editor.
I was excited about an inspiring and concise manual for YouTube success. What I found was a sometimes-whiny book, pontificating, and belaboring points. There are chapters that could have been a couple of pages.
Yes, there is some good information in this book. There is no doubt that Roberto is successful on YouTube and it is interesting to learn about his journey. I just don’t think the book carries readers through.
Great book for a new content creator. Great style, authenticity and practical information. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is that it really needed to go through more editing prior release. Content is top notch though.
A sound journey through the life of a creator and how to embark on that journey, the possible pitfalls, and potential successes. The creator economy is expanding and growing and this is a peak behind that curtain. Well done Roberto on taking us on this journey. 😎📚
Roberto Blake is a standout among the "how to be a content creator on youtube" crowd. On his main YouTube channel Roberto has, for many years, provided straightforward, clear cut advice on how to build your own brand and begin to monetize it so you can start to generate multiple income streams.
He doesn't pull his punches in his advice - but he's never cruel - and backs it up with a refreshing level of transparency showing he does indeed walk his talk.
Roberto's book is a great introduction to his coaching style and the type of actionable advice he provides. If you're interested in the best mental way to approach entering the content creator realm this book is a great starting point for you. And if you're already a fan of Roberto's this book is a great compliment to his vast amount of videos and livestreams where he dives into many of the topics he covers in this book.
I'll be reading this again, and picking up the audio book when it comes out.
I liked this book because it is down to earth and written at a level where you don't need a Ph.D. to understand it. It was what I needed as a "new" content creator. I have created a few videos on YouTube over the past couple of years, but at nothing more than the hobbyist level. Using this book, my goal is to take it to the "side hustle" and eventually to the full-time content creator level.
This book is not a "get rich quick" book, so if you are looking for that type of book, this is not the book for you.
Depending on how you process reading, this should take you only 1-2 days to read.
The only improvement that I would make if Roberto made a second edition is there are several typos throughout the book. But those are minor.
Good advice from someone very experienced and established. I heard Roberto say on a podcast he hopes to write more books. I would encourage him to review his future books for misspelled words and grammar issues before publishing as it will help legitimize his experience even further with his readers.
I found Roberto's book on his YouTube channel, I've always been interested in YouTube and the opportunities it beholds. I read this book because I've always wanted to make my own YouTube channel and this seemed like a perfect motivator for me to start.
I think this book really offers some hidden gems from a very well-respected and hard-working creator that can be extremely useful. I believe some chapters are very useful for beginners and others are things to keep in mind or for people already working as content creators.
Roberto brings clarity on what being a full-time Youtuber means and some very useful insights on how to begin and conduct yourself. I appreciate him sharing his thoughts, and journey for all of us seeking to enter this world.
Create something awesome Is a book That every content creator should have close at hand. Roberto Blake writes a honest, heartwarming?, but so practical vision into the world of becoming or working in this land of creating content in a simple, down to earth way. He gives you great insight into how things work. He also explains the ups, but also the downs in this life. The good and the bad. You can feel his Sincerity in his words in giving you his best. Thank you, Roberto.
Decent starter book for any beginner just starting out on content creation and knows absolutely nothing about going on any platform.
That being said- I wish a little more went into the trade secrets/specifically Chapter twenty on growth strategies. I will say that Roberto’s YouTube channel is fantastic for that and just watching one of his lives will contain so much value (just dedicate and hour or two)
This book is very particular when it comes to showing an individual how to navigate the creator economy. Roberto's view on how we should approach content creation as a career is very important, I like how he lays out the content and the entire passive income bit.
Really Great Read 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! I got this book as a Christmas gift and really enjoyed it! It’s insightful and down to earth. I liked the overall message of relying on effort verses on luck. The discussion about boundaries was very meaningful to me and I liked the strategy section at the end. Highly recommend.
Enjoyed reading the book and learned a lot a lot of the workings of the creator economy. There was a lot of good content as far as the working of content creation and also amazing insights that helped me think through my reasons for wanting to become a content creator and what to expect mentally when jumping into this world. Highly recommend this book.
I read the first couple of chapters on Google, and I really liked it, so I decided to go for it. After those first few chapters, it kind of fell off for me. A little disappointing, but the information in it didn't feel particularly important to me at this time. Maybe it's good knowledge to have for the future, but just not right now.
This is a great motivator for anyone wanting to work in the Creator economy - at any level. There is insight and actionable steps to help you understand and grow your creator business: YouTube, BLOG, Podcast, and more.
While it does not go into the most detail or advanced strategies for people who have preexisting knowledge or experience in the subject, it does serve as an overall good introduction to content creation and how to handle many fundamental problems most will face when trying to start it.
It was nice how it felt like the author was having a conversation with you. But on the downside, there weren’t too many actionable steps. There were a few really good ones
Roberto knows his stuff. From the personal side of content creation to its technical aspects. Content creation is merger of art and analytics. Roberto embodies both perfectly and is practical in what he teaches.