Uncommon Stock: A startup tech thriller

Eliot Peper’s new book, Uncommon Stock is a startup novel published by Brad Feld’s new publishing company FG Press. Anyone associated with a startup, or interested in starting a company, or who knows someone in a startup would find it fun and entertaining. At 242 pages long with 69 chapters, each chapter is only about 3.5 pages which makes it fast and fun. It is also full of excellent advice and quotes. For example, here is a consistent theme throughout the book: Most startups fail because their teams implode, not because their products sucked. I love it. So true. People often are consumed with worry about externalities: funding and customers and revenue. They rarely spend a second thought looking inside at themselves and their team. At one point in the book, the protagonist walks out furious in her first business negotiation. Then her advisor asked her this simple question: What would you think of a CEO who walked out on a critical negotiation with a key employee because she got angry? Beautiful. And anybody who has ever tried to do fundraising can instantly sympathize with this part of the book: I’ve been cranking away at this fundraising effort for three months now with nothing to show for it. I know it can take time. I’m sure my expectations were somewhat out of touch with reality. But that doesn’t help. Everyone wants to talk, buy me a coffee, and hear our story. Everybody has friends they think might be interested. But nobody’s willing to make a goddamn decision! I follow up and within a couple of weeks most people just drop off the map. But my favorite passage from the entire book was when the advisor was explaining to Mara about his great failure, how his company blew up and what it meant to him: “Mara, it’s not an easy life. It breaks you down, builds you up again, and crushes you flat. Great works require great sacrifice. It can be addicting as all hell and I can’t imagine anything more satisfying. But you’ll be able to count the grey hairs and the age lines. And the holes. You’ll be able to count the holes you’ve dug yourself into. Don’t forget there are people out there who will help, who will extend a hand to pull you up. You just have to let them. That’s the hardest part, especially for entrepreneurs.” I’ll finish with a simple choice quote that has some deep truth in it. Hold on to that fear. That’s an important feeling. That fear is part of what will drive you to figure your shit out. Uncommon Stock is loads of fun and I highly recommend it. If you have never started a company before, it gives you an authentic taste of what its like. If you have started a company before, it is fun to go along for someone else’s roller coaster for a change. I give it 4 out of 5 stars. Given that it is Eliot’s first novel, there is still room for improvement in the writing style. The conflict between Mara and her main opponent was not as strong as it could have been. But overall it is terrific fun and the first chapter of the sequel (included as an epilogue) seems like he is setting up his second book to be a real nail-biter. Buy the book. Now, before you forget. It is a fun read and you will learn a lot. And get ready for more, because startup fiction is a new genre that Eliot is pioneering and I will soon be joining.