Collaborating with a genius (yup, I don’t use it lightly) is always satisfying, albeit challenging. Disruptive thinkers and writers bring with them stubborn personalities; it’s like working with terriers. (This photo of my Pennifur, doesn’t do justice to her status as a terrierist.)

So when one of my uber-bright author clients signs a copy of our work for me, I find it’s telling what they write inside the book flap. Case in point: Perry Marshall, author of the new game-changing Evolution 2.0 book, that I helped him edit, recently signed a copy for me in his Chicago living room:

Heather!! Thank you for the editorial ass-kicking I received from you (“Thank you, sir, may I have another?”) and for your extreme opinionated-ness and for cheering this thing on to completion. I appreciate YOU and all you’re doing to [illegible] this quest for meaning. Friends forever! – Perry Marshall

Perry’s actual dedication looks like this (right). I think |I can read it only because I am a fellow leftie. The sprawl and lack of brevity speaks to his mindset – wide, deep and fearlessly honest.

And now for something completely different (nod to M. Python)… Another author I worked with, Dan Mack, signed his book, Dark Horse, very much in the spirit of his persona, and aligned with his business book’s approach: “Heather, continue to walk in your true identity!”

Up next, a business book about mid-career entrepreneurship on press in a couple of months by Penguin Random House… I wonder what my author client, Bill Seagraves will inscribe on my copy of the book when it comes out? As a former engineer, and a methodical introvert (albeit secretly very creative), how will he express himself on the personal dedication side? Stay tuned!