1. What inspired you to write this book? I have always had a desire to understand what
happens behind the scenes with football (Soccer) and the NFL and bringing these
stories and the impact the people who work for these sports institutions do on
a daily basis to life through the book for the regular football fan. Learning
that people take annual holidays to follow their sports teams on transfer
deadline day, I wanted to highlight to them how footballs eco system works and
inside the war rooms when these decisions are made, the data and scouting to
shortlist these players, but also the medical teams who race against time to
get these deals done.
2. What exactly is it about and who
is it written for? For many years, the
football transfer window has been a dominant topic in news columns, with fans
increasingly glued to social media for updates on their clubs. The Boot Room
delves into the intricacies of the transfer window, tracing its evolution from its
inception to its current form, shaped by data-led scouting. The book also
examines the impact of data-led scouting on Youth Academies, featuring insights
from one of England’s highly regarded Youth Coaches. In an era of growing fake
news in football, Judge explores the challenges fans face in distinguishing
fact from fiction in transfer news, which captivates the football world for a
few months each year. Ultimately, the book is written to provide something for
everyone, it delves into football finance in a way fans can understand it, case
studies for students in academia, but also for people/podcasters who want to
understand, why do players get transferred for millions, and are paid thousands
of pounds a week. I wanted to write the book in a subtle way, that made it easy
to read and understand, but not lose the legal and financial terms.
3. What do you hope readers will get out
of reading your book? A greater
understanding of how football finance and the transfer market works. Currently
in football, there is a lot of discussion and false narrative around
Profit and Sustainability rules which I discuss and breakdown for the reader. I
would love if the reader could can come away with the discussion points and be
able to feel comfortable to discuss it with their friends and not feel that
finance is changing their game and help them understand it.
4. How did you decide on your book’s title and
cover design? The cover design is
based on the colors synonymous with footballs transfer window. (Yellow and
black) I also wanted to show a footballer in the middle of the book between the
blurred line. A symbol of how delicate their career and the transfer window are
entwined. The yellow symbolling the potential money an athlete can make, and
the black for the dark side, the potential risks of football finance can have
on an athlete with the misguidance from agents, clubs and difficult
choices.
5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have
for fellow writers – other than run!? Go for it! It can be a very nervous process and one that has
been echoed to me with my book and screenplays. But writers should dive in.
Learn by writing and create your own opportunity. You will meet people and
opportunities on the way and this will open doors to the next stage of the
process. There are publishers who will say no to your book, or producers to
your screenplays. But there is always one out there looking for you. The
importance is to keep enjoying it, writing should feel like a hobby and an
escape, it can be nervous when people begin to read your book, but when people
reach out to you to discuss your book, or the impact it has had on them as they
are reading it, is a great feeling and makes you wish you had started
sooner.
6. What trends in the book world do you see —
and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? I think less chances, like in the film
industry are being taken. It is difficult to market books and films now. Most
of the marketing is done via influencers and online advertisement. The
challenge is always, you have a great product, but with books and screenplays,
people and producers tend to navigate towards writers/screenwriters who have
agents and or have been published. One piece of advice would be to build your
own brand on social media as you work on your products, this will help build up
a following and discuss with other authors the process of being published. When
writing a book, story or screenplay, focus on why people will buy your book
what is the draw to your book vs. someone else’s. In The Boot Room, I interview
leading Football experts, Football Directors to give people the inside-view
many fans are not privy to, this gives them a unique view on the world of
football/soccer they crave to know, but currently do not have access to. This
gives the book its unique selling point.
7. Were there experiences in your
personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book? The persistence I have developed through an
early sporting career. The background in football is a hobby of mine and I was
very fortunate in a number of people were willing to be interviewed for this
book and hopefully my next one on the NFL. Writing this one without an agent
meant, I had a number of hats on during the process of writing, requesting
interviews and the production of the book, but I believed in the project and
this persistence as well as a willingness to work with people on their projects
led to a number of doors opening to allow this book to be published.
8. How would you describe your writing style?
Which writers or books is your writing similar to? I try to adapt my writing style to my
audience, in The Boot Room, I wanted fans and readers to understand the legal
and financial framework, so I have tailored the writing and case studies to be
easy to read with examples and diagrams. But also kept in the legal terms so
students could use the book as a marker for their case studies and essays
should they need to. I have always tried to be adaptable, to keep the
opportunities and doors open to my projects. For example, the NFL draft book is
tailored towards NFL fans, but the children’s book is written in a rhyming
style for the correct age group. Then the screenplays I have written, change
their prose, whether it be a comedy, an action adventure, or a horror flick. It
is about knowing your audience and what will grip them and keep them reading
ensuring the book is a page turner.
9. What challenges did you overcome in the
writing of this book? Not having an agent
during the process and now has been the biggest challenge. Most producers and
publishers will only accept manuscripts from authors who have one. But as I
discussed earlier, there are publishers and competitions writers can use for feedback
and new avenues. Some distributors such as Amazon will also help you self-publish
if you feel this is beneficial to you as a writer. But if you persist and
believe in yourself and the book, you will create the door opening
opportunity.
10. If people can buy or read one book this
week or month, why should it be yours?
I believe the behind-the-scenes stories and real-life interviews
I have captured within The Boot Room give it a unique feel for what it is like
within the football world we do not tangibly see on the field if you watch a
game of football. It is this uniqueness that has had a number of people who do
not follow football, but have purchased the book, reach out to me and explain
why they enjoyed reading it. They were unaware these things happened behind the
board room doors. Football is more than just twenty-two players kicking a ball
around the pitch and this new angle into football, its finances and the
transfer window, will make all readers change their view on the game, think
differently, but also possibly see football in a new light. It will answer questions
around, why do footballers get paid so much? Is Financial Fair Play Fair? Why
are only a few teams able to win trophies every year? It also has a chapter
dedicated to growing and improving the Women’s game. How can we do better? What
are the challenges they face? But also, how can we ensure we close the gaps
between the men and women’s game from grassroots level to the professional
game? The time to stop putting it to one side and acting upon the inequality is
now!
About The Author: Andrew Judge is an author and screenwriter from Liverpool who
studied Business Management and Entrepreneurship at Liverpool John Moores
University whose interest in data and finance has led him to research into
football finance and the American Football scouting ecosystem. Andrew has
written a number of screenplays, is drafting his next book on the NFL draft,
alongside two children’s books and currently balances his passion of writing
whilst being a civil servant.). Please see: X Andy Judge (@AndyJudge) / X (twitter.com) or Linkedin (24) Andrew Judge | LinkedIn)
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About Brian
Feinblum
Brian Feinblum should be
followed on www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum. This is
copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2024. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now
resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue
dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The
Writer and IBPA’s The Independent. This
award-winning blog has generated over 3.9 million pageviews. With 4,900+ posts
over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by
BookBaby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018
as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by
www.WinningWriters.com as a “best resource.” For the past three decades,
including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book
publicity firm, and director of publicity positions at two independent presses,
Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres,
right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark
Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay,
Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan
RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He
hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and
has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence
College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association,
Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and
Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have
been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY
Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington
Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, &
Co-Op Association Handbook. It was featured
in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.
