Every so often a book shows up everywhere at once. Quoted poorly in an Instagram caption, on a friend’s nightstand, and in the front of a bookstore at the airport. It’s possible that no one really knows why a hundred equally good books don’t catch fire while one does. But talk to enough people in publishing, editors, ghostwriters, book coaches who’ve watched titles rise and fall for decades, and a pattern starts to emerge. It’s not really a secret. It’s closer to a habit, repeated so consistently across bestsellers that it starts to look like a formula.
The pattern goes something like this: the book has to be easy to read, easy to remember, easy to do, and easy to share. The majority of manuscripts fail on at least one of the four simple steps.
Start with readability. Traditional publishing has long noted that the best-selling books are frequently written at a reading level that is comparable to the third grade. That sounds almost insulting until you think about who’s actually buying books — tired parents, commuters, people scrolling for something to listen to on a drive. A professor might be impressed by a ten-dollar vocabulary word. Seldom does it survive contact with a reader who is only interested in understanding the next paragraph without pausing. When done well, simplicity is a skill in and of itself, but many gifted writers avoid it because it seems like it would simplify things. It isn’t. It’s a translation.
Then there’s memorability, which is where many nonfiction books fall short. In reality, no one will remember a book with 365 tips past chapter two. Contrast that with a title that revolves around a single catchy query or acronym. One sentence, one phrase, or one framework they jotted down on a sticky note can be remembered by readers, but not an entire chapter. It’s not a coincidence. The sales figures over the last ten years indicate that authors who base a book on a single compelling concept are generally correct when they wager that depth outweighs volume.
The next challenge is doing, which distinguishes instruction from inspiration. A reader who nods along at 11 p.m. is not the same as one who acts the following morning. Books that are organized around a simple, uncomplicated routine typically perform better than books that merely outline a philosophy. When you give someone six one-minute steps, an odd thing happens: they try it. Most people close the book and never open it again when you ask them to completely revamp their philosophy of life in one sitting.
It’s possible that the final point—shareability—explains why some books transition from popular to cultural. To be honest, it has been weird to watch this develop over the past few years. Entire social media feeds have been filled with people taking pictures of themselves performing a five-second countdown or giving themselves high fives in a bathroom mirror, all because a book instructed them to do so and made it seem manageable. Two readers are created from one. Two turn into a hashtag. It’s still unclear if this type of viral spread can be intentionally created or if it only occurs when the first three factors—read, remember, do—are in place.
Of course, none of this is a guarantee. Plenty of well-written, easy-to-follow books still disappear without a trace, undercut by bad timing or a crowded shelf or simply bad luck. Traditional publishing house investors seem to think that the formula is repeatable, and they pursue it deal after deal, sometimes succeeding and sometimes failing. Looking at the bestseller lists year after year, one thing that seems to be consistent is that books that are designed to be read quickly, remembered easily, acted upon right away, and passed along without friction continue to appear, long after more complex and flashy titles have quietly gone out of print.
