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#289: Paul Millerd — The Truth About Traditional Publishing (And The Deal He Would’ve Taken)

#289: Paul Millerd — The Truth About Traditional Publishing (And The Deal He Would’ve Taken)

Author: Jay Clouse January 13, 2026 Duration: 1:00:55
Creator Science with Jay Clouse
Business
Paul Millerd is the author of The Pathless Path, which has earned Paul $325,000 in royalties to date. In the process, Paul turned down a publishing offer from Penguin, one of the major publishers in the industry. Then, in December, Paul decided to double down and produce a new version of The Pathless Path, an ultra-premium hardcover book that is just beautiful. So in this episode, we talk about that decision, the dark side of traditional publishing, the book deal Paul WOULD have taken, and when traditional publishing actually makes sense. → Get The New Hardcover Pathless Path ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Paul's Website / Twitter *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Intro (05:53) Why He Self-Published (08:01) Designing Books Beyond the Obvious (13:13) Money Isn't A Reason to Write (16:54) Book's Success and New Opportunities (20:30) Rejecting Penguin (22:00) Redefining Self-Publishing Potential (25:00) Author Rights and Publishing Deals (30:29) Reviving Unpublished Books (31:33) Publishing Challenges and Opportunities (37:11) Write a Book You Love (39:38) Inside The Pathless Path Hardcover (43:02) Overcoming Doubts, Achieving Success (46:23) Inspired by Steel Brothers (48:43) Direct Sales for Higher Margins (53:04) Amazon Book Bundling Limitations *** RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#182: Noah Kagan — Behind the scenes of writing (and marketing) Million Dollar Weekend → #163: David Moldawer — Diving deep into book publishing with an industry insider *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For anyone trying to build something meaningful online, the sheer volume of advice can be paralyzing. Creator Science cuts through that noise with a focus on what’s proven, not just popular. Host Jay Clouse sits down with a different builder each week-think James Clear, Ali Abdaal, Tim Urban, or Codie Sanchez-for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like a practical workshop. They dig into the specific systems, experiments, and mental models that have driven real growth in their businesses. You won’t just hear inspirational stories; you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at the iteration and observation that actually moves the needle. This isn't about quick hacks. It's about developing a sustainable, evidence-backed approach to creative work, which is why this podcast has become a trusted resource for so many. Each episode is built to give you a tangible strategy or framework you can test, making the weekly listen a consistent source of actionable insight for your own path as a creator.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 50

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Creator Science with Jay Clouse
Podcast Episodes
#293: 12 Ways To Stand Out In 2026 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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The world is changing faster than ever, and sometimes it feels like the old playbooks just aren't working anymore. In this solo episode, I share 12 opportunities I see for creators in 2026—ideas that range from the pract…
#290: Behind The Scenes: My End of Year Retro [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Every month inside The Lab, I do what I call a monthly retro. It's short for retrospective. The idea is that, on a regular basis, you look back at what you have just done to learn from it, course-correct, and move forwar…

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