--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first page sells this book. The last…" description: "\"The first page sells this book. The last page sells your next book.\" — Mickey Spillane" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/mickey-spillane-13884_book_the-first-page-sells-this-book-the-last_2770894.jpg" --- # The first page sells this book. The last page sells your… ![“The first page sells this book. The last page sells your next book.” quote by Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/mickey-spillane-13884_book_the-first-page-sells-this-book-the-last_2770894.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/mickey-spillane-13884_book_the-first-page-sells-this-book-the-last_2770894.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/mickey-spillane-13884_book_the-first-page-sells-this-book-the-last_2770894.jpg) > “The first page sells this book. The last page sells your next book.” [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. First page hooks readers; final page encourages further reading. **In simple terms:** Beginnings attract, endings retain. Key Takeaway Craft compelling openings and closings. Themes writing engagement marketing Mood intrigued motivational Type creative inspirational When to use this quote - book launches - serial storytelling Key Concepts narrative structure reader psychology Questions to Reflect On - What makes you keep reading? - How do you decide when to end a story? A Different Perspective Readers may lose interest if not hooked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Nobody reads a mystery to get to the middle. They read it to get to the end. If it's a letdown, they won't buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/nobody-reads-a-mystery-to-get-to-the-middle-they-read-it-to-get-to/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [The first chapter sells the book; the last chapter sells the next book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/the-first-chapter-sells-the-book-the-last-chapter-sells-the-next-book/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [Life loiters at the book's first page,-- Ah! could we turn the leaf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/life-loiters-at-the-book-s-first-page-ah-could-we-turn-the-leaf/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [There's so much more to the book than the page you were stuck on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zayn-malik/there-s-so-much-more-to-the-book-than-the-page-you-were-stuck-on/) [Zayn Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zayn-malik/) > [What sells a book sells a book, same in traditional or self-publishing . 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But if people don’t know about your book they won’t know to buy it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madi-preda/you-can-write-the-most-wonderful-book-in-the-world-but-if-people-don/) Madi Preda > [“Book buying is a relationship activity, and you need a means to develop relationships with readers and new fans of your work”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barb-drozdowich/book-buying-is-a-relationship-activity-and-you-need-a-means-to/) Barb Drozdowich > [What is entrepreneurship, after all? Bigness is not the issue. Poor people are the ones who take challenges every day. The guy who sells…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-yunus/what-is-entrepreneurship-after-all-bigness-is-not-the-issue-poor/) [Muhammad Yunus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-yunus/) > [My biggest advice would be to take the pictures you want to take. Don’t think about the marketplace, what sells or what an editor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lachapelle/my-biggest-advice-would-be-to-take-the-pictures-you-want-to-take-don/) [David LaChapelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lachapelle/) > [ I think it is worse \[in 2015\] for a mid-list author such as myself. You either have to sell like Stephen King or go… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-p-kinsella/i-think-it-is-worse-in-2015-for-a-mid-list-author-such-as-myself-you/) [W. P. Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-p-kinsella/) > [Some day I'll write a book and call it 'How I Got the Nickname Pumpsie' and sell it for one dollar, and if everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pumpsie-green/some-day-i-ll-write-a-book-and-call-it-how-i-got-the-nickname-pumpsie/) Pumpsie Green > [I always believed that photography was subjective, interpretive and certainly did not represent the truth, but I did think that its status as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-ritchin/i-always-believed-that-photography-was-subjective-interpretive-and/) [Fred Ritchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-ritchin/) > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) ## More by Mickey Spillane > [If the public likes you, you're good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/if-the-public-likes-you-you-re-good/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [I read all the time... I read a lot of history books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/i-read-all-the-time-i-read-a-lot-of-history-books/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [My father was Catholic, my mother was Protestant, and because of that I got Christened in both churches, so I've got all these names...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/my-father-was-catholic-my-mother-was-protestant-and-because-of-that-i/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [“A Commie. She was a jerky Red. She owned all the trimmings and she was still a Red. What the hell was she hoping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/a-commie-she-was-a-jerky-red-she-owned-all-the-trimmings-and-she-was/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [“It was easy,' I said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/it-was-easy-i-said/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [Inspiration is an empty bank account.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/inspiration-is-an-empty-bank-account/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [Nobody reads a mystery to get to the middle. They read it to get to the end. If it's a letdown, they won't buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/nobody-reads-a-mystery-to-get-to-the-middle-they-read-it-to-get-to/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [“I was a ruthless bastard with a twisted mind who could look on death and find it pleasant. I could break an arm or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/i-was-a-ruthless-bastard-with-a-twisted-mind-who-could-look-on-death/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [Mike Hammer drinks beer because I can't spell Cognac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/mike-hammer-drinks-beer-because-i-can-t-spell-cognac/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [The most important part of a story is the ending. No one reads a book to get to the middle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/the-most-important-part-of-a-story-is-the-ending-no-one-reads-a-book/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [Now I'm not an author, I'm a writer, that's all I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/now-i-m-not-an-author-i-m-a-writer-that-s-all-i-am/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [No one likes my books except the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/no-one-likes-my-books-except-the-public/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [I dont like any of them, because they don't read the books. In Kiss Me Deadly my story is better than his story. Anthony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/i-dont-like-any-of-them-because-they-don-t-read-the-books-in-kiss-me/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [If you're a singer you lose your voice. A baseball player loses his arm. A writer gets more knowledge, and if he's good, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/if-you-re-a-singer-you-lose-your-voice-a-baseball-player-loses-his/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [“God, but it was fun! It was the way I liked it. No arguing, no talking to the stupid peasants. I just walked into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/god-but-it-was-fun-it-was-the-way-i-liked-it-no-arguing-no-talking-to/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) [Explore all 48 Mickey Spillane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first page sells this book. 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