Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
James Patterson joins the show to talk about Disrupt Everything—and Win: Take Control of Your Future, his new playbook for turning constant disruption into something useful rather than paralyzing. He explains how he thinks about “positive” versus “negative” disruptors, wrestles with whether the gospel of disruption feeds our narcissism, and defends his literacy work and banned YA novels in places like Florida. Mike then presents to him evidence that one of the book’s inspirational case studies isn't quite so inspirational; Patterson reacts to that information in real time.
Want more? This interview is from a Full episode of The Gist Podcast, Hosted by Mike Pesca.
🎧Listen Here👉open.spotify.com/show/3Q5MaJxR4gS4CwgZUCCYVt
*Episodes release daily @6pm ET
_______________________
Follow us:
INSTAGRAM:
/ pescagist
TWITTER:
https://x.com/PescaGist
https://x.com/pescami
Visit Mike's website:
mikepesca.com
Join the "Pesca Profundities" membership and get access to the Gist List Newsletter:
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Get a premium edition of the podcast and help support Mike's work:
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_______________________
CREDITS:
Creator & Host:
Mike Pesca
Producer:
Corey Wara
TIMECODES:
00:00 Intro
01:00 James Patterson talks about Disrupt Everything and Win
02:01 How to be a better father in 1 hour - But was it written in an hour?
04:01 James Patterson went from Ad exec to Author
05:02 Breaking the publishing rulebook and rejecting the one-book-a-year model
06:58 How James Patterson convinced his publishers to release very different books
08:00 “My time here is short”: the quote driving Patterson’s recent work
09:59 Risky books, commercial expectations, and writing for usefulness
10:38 The problem with “disruptor” culture and whether it feeds societal narcissism
13:09 Teaching kids to think: Patterson’s idea of “thinkery” & how it can change everything
15:53 Patterson’s literacy work, the science-of-reading fight, and Florida’s incredible results
17:00 Book bans, YA novels, and why Maximum Ride gets challenged
18:10 Mike challenges James Patterson on Good vs Bad Disruptors
21:02 Patterson reacts in real time to new reporting about the charity Gadens Børn
22:59 Can elite habits be taught? Tool kits, instincts, and accessible advice
James Patterson joins the show to talk about Disrupt Everything—and Win: Take Control of Your Future, his new playbook for turning constant disruption into something useful rather than paralyzing. He explains how he thinks about “positive” versus “negative” disruptors, wrestles with whether the gospel of disruption feeds our narcissism, and defends his literacy work and banned YA novels in places like Florida. Mike then presents to him evidence that one of the book’s inspirational case studies isn't quite so inspirational; Patterson reacts to that information in real time.
Want more? This interview is from a Full episode of The Gist Podcast, Hosted by Mike Pesca.
🎧Listen Here👉open.spotify.com/show/3Q5MaJxR4gS4CwgZUCCYVt
*Episodes release daily @6pm ET
_______________________
Follow us:
INSTAGRAM:
/ pescagist
TWITTER:
https://x.com/PescaGist
https://x.com/pescami
Visit Mike's website:
mikepesca.com
Join the "Pesca Profundities" membership and get access to the Gist List Newsletter:
mikepesca.substack.com
Get a premium edition of the podcast and help support Mike's work:
subscribe.mikepesca.com
_______________________
CREDITS:
Creator & Host:
Mike Pesca
Producer:
Corey Wara
TIMECODES:
00:00 Intro
01:00 James Patterson talks about Disrupt Everything and Win
02:01 How to be a better father in 1 hour - But was it written in an hour?
04:01 James Patterson went from Ad exec to Author
05:02 Breaking the publishing rulebook and rejecting the one-book-a-year model
06:58 How James Patterson convinced his publishers to release very different books
08:00 “My time here is short”: the quote driving Patterson’s recent work
09:59 Risky books, commercial expectations, and writing for usefulness
10:38 The problem with “disruptor” culture and whether it feeds societal narcissism
13:09 Teaching kids to think: Patterson’s idea of “thinkery” & how it can change everything
15:53 Patterson’s literacy work, the science-of-reading fight, and Florida’s incredible results
17:00 Book bans, YA novels, and why Maximum Ride gets challenged
18:10 Mike challenges James Patterson on Good vs Bad Disruptors
21:02 Patterson reacts in real time to new reporting about the charity Gadens Børn
22:59 Can elite habits be taught? Tool kits, instincts, and accessible advice
