I was going to write about Mike Pompeo in this email - who I truly believe is the best Secretary of State ever!

I'll always remember his tenure under Trump - one of the best ever!

But while that was the plan last night, I received this email this morning - 

Thanks Mike, I don't like doing emails with new contacts. It’s too impersonal. Surely you have a phone number? Also I only market books my firm publishes, so if you don't want to publish with us I'm afraid I can't myself help though I know someone who can. But we would need to speak first.

Very best wishes, James

Now, this is with regard to some additional marketing I've been doing for my great books on the other site (not the fitness books, the adult books i.e. erotica and so forth). 

I received an email out of the blue from him one fine day - introducing his publishing firm, how they help with marketing and selling books, how they even have "contacts in Hollywood they could introduce books to", and so forth. 

Now, it didnt strike me as being anything out of the ordinary, if anything, their self-marketing was OTT. 

But just out of curiosity, I replied back to him - 

Hi James

Thanks for the "bulk email" on this one!

I've written over 80 books in the erotica genre and more on fitness (for another business vertical) - but while I worked with a publisher in the U.K. years ago on the erotica, I'm currently going it on my own, and that doesn't look to be changing anytime soon.

However, I'm curious - what sort of "marketing" services do you guys provide? The "biggies" are notoriously cranky about advertising erotica and the such as you no doubt know, and I read the part about "Hollywood contacts" etc - so, just wondering what sort of specific marketing services you guys provide, and if that might be something we could potentially work together on down the road ..

I market myself currently and am doing fine, but I'd like to ramp it up to the next level. I can handle ads myself, but the "contacts" part got my attention so figured I'd ask you . . .

Just wondering ...

Let me know - and thanks for the contact - much appreciated!

Now, yours truly doesnt run after publishing firms - or either seek them out. 

I publish EVERYTHING I do - myself. 

And obviously I dont need any help with marketing - given the way things are literally BOOMING on the other site, with reviews to the tune of "I just stopped to SLEEP while reading, and got it done as soon as possible!" - and "“The situations are so well described that many times one can feel the pain felt by the protagonist.”"  (he means mental anguish) ... and way, way more ... I dont need any extra marketing help on either that site - or this one (fitness). 

Hehe. 

Nothing if not a natural born sales and marketing person am I! 

But, I figured I'd reach out to him and "just ask anyway". 

Although their reluctance to communicate via email on their site which I wont mention here DID throw up some red flags - I figured what the hezey, and asked him anyway. 

As always, my gut was proven RIGHT when I got that email above. 

Look, first off, all business is done in writing - especially initially when you do not know the person. 

I mean for one, look at the "bulk emails" he is sending (which dont even include the recipient's name - it's clear its one of those "bulk mailing efforts")  - then he complains that email is too impersonal. 

If it's not too impersonal to badger people in their inboxes - people you barely KNOW - then how it is too impersonal to discuss business with those same people over email? 

I mean, when you meet a woman on Tinder or something, I dont think you instantly ask for her phone number (unless you're the Bozo) - no? 

Same principle applies here. 

You CHAT. 

You TALK. 

And THEN you take things to the "in person" meeting level. 

Jumping the above two steps doesnt work - and leads to catastrophe ultimately - either business wise or romantically or otherwise. 

More - EVERY publisher I've worked with in the past - EVERY real customer of mine - its ALL been done through email!

I've made NO secret of the FACT i dont like the phone. 

Certainly not the dumbphone. 

And getting on the phone for every little thing, or discussions that could be better done on email is a waste of time and even more precious energy. 

Sorry, it ain't gonna happen. I suspect it will be a massive waste of time and him trying to sell me what I don't want, and need... 

I'm sure James has good intentions in mind. 

Maybe thats just how he does business, but it ain't me - and it ain't anyone I've worked with in the past either. 

Yet more - emails being too impersonal?? 

Y'all on this list - what do you think? 

I think we know each other better through emails than we would through any amount of conversation on the phone - because when you WRITE something down, you truly KNOW what you're talking about - and you truly explain yourself WELL - and you get it all OUT and down on "paper"! 

As Freddie said, if it can't be done in writing, then ...! 

True, you DO get on the phone ultimately, but most of the time, there is really no need to do so. 

Especially not for initial interactions. 

Anyway, what can I say, hehe. 

Thats what SOME people think. 

And other than the book linked above, I've been getting great reviews for some of my books HERE - Animal Kingdom Workouts for one. 

One was a very brief comment - like the book itself. 

"THIS IS A SUPERB BOOK!!!!!!!!!" 

The guy wrote this, and just this on a site I did not even know existed - we're TRULY TAKING FITNESS GLOBAL!

Anyway, thats that from yours truly "extremely personal" or "impersonal", depening on which way you look at it, hehe. 

(I mean really, email is the BEST way to market - and he's calling it impersonal, geez - makes me think about his own so called contacts in Hollywood and marketing skills!). Hehe. 

(Not to mention, I really dont think he knows how notoriously cranky REAL writers are about "getting on the phone"... and he runs a publishing biz? Hehe) 

Best, 

Rahul Mookerjee