The Next Books You Need To Read

In partnership with

My friend and fellow writer, Chris Wojcik, recently put out a book! Below he talks about what it’s about, why he wrote it, and a few other must read books for martial artists and athletes.

In the Premium Notebook we’re going to take a closer look at this weekend’s modern classic, Chepe Mariscal vs Ricardo Ramos. If you want to learn how to blend judo throws with dirty boxing and play leg locks in modern MMA you have to read this.

Now let’s get into it.

What is A Grappler's Diary: 151 Notes on the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Experience about?

My book focuses on lessons that I've learned through training Jiu-Jitsu for the last 10 years. There are training tips, life lessons, core concepts, and just ideas that have stuck out to me over a decade-plus of Jiu-Jitsu training.

It's written in the style of The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday or The Book of Life by Jiddu Krishnamurti (which is the book I drew the inspiration from, I haven't actually read The Daily Stoic although that's what I always tell people it's like lol). The book consists of 151 "notes" or short essays on Jiu-Jitsu, training, and the experience of being a grappler.

Why didn't you write a jiujitsu book? Like, yes, it's about your experiences in jiujitsu, but it's not really about jiujitsu.

I spend a lot of time studying Jiu-Jitsu techniques and watching matches. I also have read several Jiu-Jitsu technique books and I've found them to be a little unhelpful.

It's pretty difficult to learn via writing about how to do leg locks better, how to play guard, or how to wrestle. I wanted to focus more on the philosophies and ideas that have helped me bring out the best version of myself on and off the mat.

Basically, I took the questions that I used to Google and searched for answers on Reddit and I wrote the answers that I've discovered through experience.

Are there any other books or writers that inspired your book?

My favorite writers are divided into 2 categories: authors and digital writers. I've been reading a lot of books by Charles Dickens, Franz Kafka, and Ernest Hemingway recently.

I also regularly read Dan Koe's newsletter, Nicolas Cole's ideas on digital writing on Twitter, and Tim Denning's Substack. Perhaps the book is fusion of inspiration I've drawn from both camps.

Do you have any favorite martial arts books?

One of my favorite martial arts books is Striking Thoughts by Bruce Lee. Most people know Bruce Lee from his movies, but he also wrote some good philosophy.

Although it is not a book about martial arts directly, the fact that Bruce Lee was an actor and martial artist who decided to write philosophy helped me get over the limiting belief that I couldn't write because I was a grappler and not an author. The other book that really inspired my book was like I mentioned above, The Book of Life by Jiddu Krishnamurti.

What about other books on sports, coaches, physical culture, etc.?

One book that I recommend for any grappler besides mine is The Danaher Diaries. It's really just a collection of written words in John Danaher's Instagram posts but it offers a lot of good advice for grapplers.

I don't read a lot about fitness and sports because I'm around them all day, but my favorite fitness book is definitely 5-3-1 by Jim Wendler. My favorite quote? "You want science and studies? Fuck you. I've got scars and blood and vomit." It's such a silly book but offers solid, simple advice for anyone trying to get stronger.

Are you working on any other books?

Currently I'm ghostwriting a couple of books for writing clients, but after they're done I'll take a break from ghostwriting and start working on my next book which is focused on the business side of martial arts. After that, I'd like to write some fiction!

What advice would you give to other writers balancing writing a book (or another big project) with the rest of their schedule?

The 2 big things are discipline and getting out of your own way.

This book took me so much longer because I'd have periods where I'd work on it obsessively for a month or so and then I'd put it on the backburner. I had other things happening, like ADCC, PGF, and other competitions, and these all forced me to take breaks from the book.

The fastest way to complete any big project is to work on it a little bit every day.

Where can people get your book?

On Amazon here.

I also sell them at all my seminars if you'd like to get one from me in person!

Before we get out of here today I want to review an excellent fight from this past weekend. It had everything we’re seeing in modern grappling blended for MMA.