The best books on growing a YouTube channel and editing for retention (2026)
If you run a YouTube channel, or edit videos for one, these are the books worth your time on growing an audience and keeping viewers watching. The list mixes platform strategy with the craft of editing, because a channel needs both to grow. Disclosure: we publish one of the books below (marked).
We have kept each description to what the publisher or book listing says, and we have not ranked them; the order simply moves from channel strategy towards the craft of editing. Books about YouTube date faster than most, so check you are buying the latest edition, and read them alongside your own channel analytics rather than instead of them.
The YouTube Formula by Derral Eves
Derral Eves explains how YouTube's algorithm decides which videos succeed and how creators can work with it rather than against it. The book covers launching a channel, making content, growing views and subscribers, branding, search and monetisation. It suits creators, entrepreneurs, social media strategists and brand managers who want measurable results from the platform. At 352 pages it is a detailed read, so it rewards those willing to test its ideas on their own videos.
YouTube Secrets by Sean Cannell and Benji Travis
A practical guide to building a profitable channel, published by Lioncrest. It covers channel fundamentals, ways to attract views and subscribers, and different ways of earning an income from video. The authors write for both newcomers and experienced creators, which makes it a sensible first book if you are starting out.
The Retention Editing Playbook. £304.50 one-time, instant download.
Secrets to Become a Celebrity on YouTube by Manthan Bhendkar (our book)
Also published as The Retention Editing Playbook, this is Asendify's retention-editing system for YouTube. It covers hooks, open loops, pacing and the editing checklists used on client channels. It suits creators and editors who already publish regularly and want more of the people who click to keep watching. It is narrower than the platform books above: it assumes you can already get clicks and concentrates on what happens after them. See what the playbook covers.
30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel by Tim Schmoyer
Tim Schmoyer's digital workbook takes you through improving an existing channel one step at a time, with a focus on turning viewers into a community. The day-by-day format suits creators who already have a channel, feel stuck, and want a structured routine to follow rather than a long theory book.
In the Blink of an Eye by Walter Murch
Walter Murch's essay on film editing, with a foreword by Francis Ford Coppola, asks why cuts work at all. It looks at continuity, what makes a good cut, the blink as an emotional cue, and digital editing. It was written about film, but anyone who edits video will find the thinking behind each cut useful.
Grammar of the Edit by Roy Thompson and Christopher J. Bowen
A Focal Press textbook on editing film and video, now in its fifth edition, with Christopher J. Bowen named as author of the later editions. It suits editors and creators who want to study editing as a craft in its own right, separate from platform tactics, and who like a reference book they can return to.
How to choose
- You are starting a channel from scratch: begin with YouTube Secrets, then read The YouTube Formula once you have a few videos out.
- Your channel exists but growth has stalled: 30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel gives you a routine to work through.
- People click but leave early: Secrets to Become a Celebrity on YouTube focuses on hooks, pacing and editing for retention.
- You want to understand editing itself: start with In the Blink of an Eye, then keep Grammar of the Edit to hand as a reference.
More playbooks on other topics: Asendify Books
The Retention Editing Playbook. £304.50 one-time, instant download.