Successful Failure - Large Print by Kevin Fredericks (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Being successful is no laughing matter . . . unless the road there is littered with flops, fool's errands, fizzles, and straight-up failures--from the New York Times bestselling co-author of Marriage Be Hard.

"I'm so happy Kev failed, because these stories will set so many free from perfection!"--Tabitha Brown, bestselling author of Feeding the Soul

Kevin Fredericks (aka KevOnStage) is a viral stand-up star, an NAACP Image Award-winning comedian, the founder of KevOnStage Studios, a New York Times bestselling author, and a superstar on social media. But his path to success wasn't always smooth. As a kid, Kevin noticed something useful: If he made people laugh, the grown-ups would let him stay up late. In church plays, his commitment to the role of Goliath led to a busted lip, and the audience couldn't get enough. He dreamed of becoming a performer, of finding that big break that would launch him into the bright lights of pop culture fame. But as he soon found, the road to the life we want is longer, weirder, more embarrassing, and more entertaining than we think it will be.

In Successful Failure, the comedian recounts hilarious stories and sincere insight from his adventures (and misadventures) trying to make it in life. From performing under an alias to avoid getting fired from his suit-and-tie day job to breaking a chair onstage and quitting stand-up for six months, from pooping his pants on a bus next to his future wife to starting a clothing line called Dreams Don't Die (they sure do if the merch doesn't sell), Kevin reminds readers that while we might not be The Rock, Warren Buffett, or Kevin Hart, we're all out here trying, and that's okay.

Laugh-out-loud in one moment and perceptive in the next, Successful Failure is a wild ride from one of America's funniest comics and a sendup of our ideals around hustle culture and success.

Review Quotes

"I'm so happy Kev failed, because these stories will set so many free from perfection!"--Tabitha Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Feeding the Soul

"As someone who's caught quite a few Ls myself on my own journey to success (and is still catching them!), I relate to Kev's hysterical honesty, bold transparency, and earnest desire for readers to learn from his mistakes as they fulfill their dreams. There's wishful thinking and there's practical application--Successful Failure offers both (but HEAVY on the practical . . . and we thank Kev for it!)"--Yvonne Orji, actor, comedian, and author of Bamboozled by Jesus

"Failure is often funny. Especially when Kev fails. So get this book. You're going to learn some things, laugh, and find out that you can't be scared to fail out here."--Tony Baker, actor and comedian

"Fredericks's . . . affable tone and can-do attitude bolster his valuable advice to view one's career in less binary terms--'Failure isn't the end, but neither is success, ' he contends, describing personal growth and fulfillment as the real payoff. The result is an upbeat encouragement for readers to pick themselves up and try again."--Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Kevin Fredericks is an NAACP Image Award-winning comedian, the founder of KevOnStage Studios, and a superstar on social media. He is the co-author, with his wife, Melissa, of the New York Times bestseller Marriage Be Hard. His work and commentary have been featured by Good Morning America, Complex, Ebony, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, and MSNBC.