The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists

461 Pages·2005·17.99 MB·English

by  Neil Strauss

ALSO BY NEIL STRAUSS
THE GAME
The Long Hard Road Out of Hell
WITH MARILYN MANSON PENETRATING THE SECRET
The Dirt SOCIETY OF PICKUP ARTISTS
WITH MOTLEY CRUE
How to Make Love Like a Porn Star
WITH JENNA JAMESON
Don't Try This at Home
WITH DAVE NAVARRO
Neil Strauss
ReganBooks
An Imprint ofHarperCollinsPublishers
ALSO BY NEIL STRAUSS
THE GAME
The Long Hard Road Out of Hell
WITH MARILYN MANSON PENETRATING THE SECRET
The Dirt SOCIETY OF PICKUP ARTISTS
WITH MOTLEY CRUE
How to Make Love Like a Porn Star
WITH JENNA JAMESON
Don't Try This at Home
WITH DAVE NAVARRO
Neil Strauss
ReganBooks
An Imprint ofHarperCollinsPublishers
Cover silhouettes are from the following fonts: Darrian's Sexy Silhouettes by © Darrian
(http://westwood.fortunecity.com/cerruti/445/), Subeve by © Sub Communications
(http://www.subtitude.com), Norp Icons 1 and Norp Icons 2 by © DJ Monkeyboy
(http://www.djmonkeyboy.com).
"The Randall Knife": Words and Music by Guy Clark © 1983 EMI APRIL MUSIC INC. and
GSC MUSIC. All Rights Controlled and Administered by EMI APRIL MUSIC INC. All Rights
Reserved. International Copyright Secured. Used by Permission.
In order to protect the identity of some women and members of the community,
the names and identifying characteristics of a small number of incidental
characters in this book have been changed, and three minor characters are composites.
THE GAME
Dedicated to the thousands of people I talked to in
COPYRIGHT © 2005 BY NEIL STRAUSS.
bars, clubs, malls, airports, grocery stores, subways,
and elevators over the last two vears.
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
without written permission except in the case of brief quotations If you are reading this, I want you to know that I
embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address
wasn't running game on you. I was being sincere.
HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.
Really. You were different.
HarperCollins books may be purchased for educational,
business, or sales promotional use. For information please write:
Special Markets Department, HarperCollins Publishers Inc.,
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.
FIRST EDITION
Art direction and design by Michelle Ishay / Richard Ljoenes
Cover design by Richard Ljoenes
Interior design by Kris Tobiassen / Richard Ljoenes
Interior illustrations by Bernard Chang
Printed on acid-free paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for.
ISBN 0-06-055473-8
05 06 07 08 09 QWK 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Cover silhouettes are from the following fonts: Darrian's Sexy Silhouettes by © Darrian
(http://westwood.fortunecity.com/cerruti/445/), Subeve by © Sub Communications
(http://www.subtitude.com), Norp Icons 1 and Norp Icons 2 by © DJ Monkeyboy
(http://www.djmonkeyboy.com).
"The Randall Knife": Words and Music by Guy Clark © 1983 EMI APRIL MUSIC INC. and
GSC MUSIC. All Rights Controlled and Administered by EMI APRIL MUSIC INC. All Rights
Reserved. International Copyright Secured. Used by Permission.
In order to protect the identity of some women and members of the community,
the names and identifying characteristics of a small number of incidental
characters in this book have been changed, and three minor characters are composites.
THE GAME
Dedicated to the thousands of people I talked to in
COPYRIGHT © 2005 BY NEIL STRAUSS.
bars, clubs, malls, airports, grocery stores, subways,
and elevators over the last two vears.
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
without written permission except in the case of brief quotations If you are reading this, I want you to know that I
embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address
wasn't running game on you. I was being sincere.
HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.
Really. You were different.
HarperCollins books may be purchased for educational,
business, or sales promotional use. For information please write:
Special Markets Department, HarperCollins Publishers Inc.,
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.
FIRST EDITION
Art direction and design by Michelle Ishay / Richard Ljoenes
Cover design by Richard Ljoenes
Interior design by Kris Tobiassen / Richard Ljoenes
Interior illustrations by Bernard Chang
Printed on acid-free paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for.
ISBN 0-06-055473-8
05 06 07 08 09 QWK 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
"I COULD NOT BECOME ANYTHING:
NEITHER BAD NOR GOOD, NEITHER
A SCOUNDREL NOR AN HONEST MAN,
NEITHER A HERO NOR AN INSECT.
AND NOW I AM EKING OUT MY DAYS
IN MY CORNER, TAUNTING MYSELF
WITH THE BITTER AND ENTIRELY
USELESS CONSOLATION THAT AN
INTELLIGENT MAN CANNOT SERIOUSLY
BECOME ANYTHING; THAT ONLY
A FOOL CAN BECOME SOMETHING."
FYODOR DOSTOEVSKY,
Notes from Underground
"I COULD NOT BECOME ANYTHING:
NEITHER BAD NOR GOOD, NEITHER
A SCOUNDREL NOR AN HONEST MAN,
NEITHER A HERO NOR AN INSECT.
AND NOW I AM EKING OUT MY DAYS
IN MY CORNER, TAUNTING MYSELF
WITH THE BITTER AND ENTIRELY
USELESS CONSOLATION THAT AN
INTELLIGENT MAN CANNOT SERIOUSLY
BECOME ANYTHING; THAT ONLY
A FOOL CAN BECOME SOMETHING."
FYODOR DOSTOEVSKY,
Notes from Underground
THE
FOLLOWING
Those who have read early drafts of this book IS A TRUE
have all asked the same questions:
STORY.
IS THIS TRUE?
DID IT REALLY HAPPEN ? IT REALLY HAPPENED.
ARE THESE GUYS
Men will deny it,
FOR REAL?
Women will doubt it.
But I present it to you here,
Naked, vulnerable, and
disturbingly real.
Thus, I find it necessary to employ
I beg you for your forgiveness in advance.
an old literary device . . .
DON'T HATE THE PLAYER . . .
HATE THE GAME.
THE
FOLLOWING
Those who have read early drafts of this book IS A TRUE
have all asked the same questions:
STORY.
IS THIS TRUE?
DID IT REALLY HAPPEN ? IT REALLY HAPPENED.
ARE THESE GUYS
Men will deny it,
FOR REAL?
Women will doubt it.
But I present it to you here,
Naked, vulnerable, and
disturbingly real.
Thus, I find it necessary to employ
I beg you for your forgiveness in advance.
an old literary device . . .
DON'T HATE THE PLAYER . . .
HATE THE GAME.
CONTENTS
STEP 7
STEP 1
EXTRACT TO A SEDUCTION
SELECT A TARGET 1
LOCATION 243
STEP 2
APPROACH AND OPEN 13 STEP 8
PUMP BUYING TEMPERATURE 265
STEP 3
DEMONSTRATE VALUE 51 STEP 9
MAKE A PHYSICAL CONNECTION 319
STEP 4
DISARM THE OBSTACLES 107 STEP 10
BLAST LAST-MINUTE RESISTANCE 345
STEP 5
ISOLATE THE TARGET 147 STEP 1 1
MANAGE EXPECTATIONS 387
STEP 6
CREATE AN EMOTIONAL
GLOSSARY 439
CONNECTION 207
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 451
CONTENTS
STEP 7
STEP 1
EXTRACT TO A SEDUCTION
SELECT A TARGET 1
LOCATION 243
STEP 2
APPROACH AND OPEN 13 STEP 8
PUMP BUYING TEMPERATURE 265
STEP 3
DEMONSTRATE VALUE 51 STEP 9
MAKE A PHYSICAL CONNECTION 319
STEP 4
DISARM THE OBSTACLES 107 STEP 10
BLAST LAST-MINUTE RESISTANCE 345
STEP 5
ISOLATE THE TARGET 147 STEP 1 1
MANAGE EXPECTATIONS 387
STEP 6
CREATE AN EMOTIONAL
GLOSSARY 439
CONNECTION 207
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 451