Would you trust the word of an inventor that had exclusively relied on his income from his invention for over 25 years? I would. Would you still trust him if you knew his first successful invention didn't have patent protection? I would. Would you still trust him if you knew he was a marketing professional before becoming an inventor? Well, okay, I still would.

How about if you found out his third million-dollar-idea wasn't even his idea? Hmm... Well what if you knew the light bulb wasn't Thomas Edison's idea either? Hmm... Well what if you knew that both Bob and Thomas were well aware that ideas are not protectable intellectual property, only inventions, expressions and a few other developed and used things are. Okay, now you'll trust him because you understand that the law does not give rights to those who merely think but to those who actually do some work to take the idea to the next level.

Bob Merrick strongly believes in the main title of his book, "Stand Alone, Inventor!" and took his own advice in not only figuring out what inventions to take to market but which NOT to take to market because they would not be "manageable" for a "Stand-Alone Inventor." A Stand-Alone Inventor, by Bob's definition, is one who can keep their invention simple enough they can finance and promote it themselves and get it produced and distributed at a profit all by themselves. And, Bob goes on -- on the first page of the first chapter -- to point out that "even if your preference is to simply license your invention, you will find it much easier to sign up a licensee if you first develop your invention into a commercial product in the manner of the Stand-Alone Inventor."

Bob then goes on to explain the 10 rules he generally follows, how to get independent confirmation of the possible commercializability of your invention, why he goes the independent route rather than licensing route, how to protect your invention, how to deal with manufacturers, how to get free publicity, and even how to set up distribution. In short the book provides a great overview of the whole process from idea to profit and identifies over 800 resource listings where you can get information and help along the way.