You typed "top 10 marriage authors" or you saw the same three names on every forum and wanted to know who's who.
Fair enough.
When your marriage is in trouble, everybody has a guy.
Your brother has a podcast guy, your buddy has a book guy, YouTube has about four hundred guys.
So here are the ten names that husbands bring up most on the marriage forums, in book reviews and in YouTube comments.
One thing before the list.
None of these people can save your marriage for you, and that includes number 5.
What a good one does is show you something you couldn't see about your own house.
Michele Weiner-Davis
A therapist, and the name behind Divorce Busting and The Divorce Remedy.
She's widely credited with the "walkaway wife" idea, the wife who asks for years, goes quiet and then leaves.
Her work is aimed at the spouse who wants to stay when the other one wants out.
Good if your wife has said the word divorce.
Dr. Robert Glover
The author of No More Mr. Nice Guy.
His work is about men who please, hide what they want and avoid conflict.
Men on the forums recommend him constantly, and they warn against using him as proof that she's the problem.
Good if you've been keeping the peace for years and it stopped working.
Willard Harley
A psychologist, the author of His Needs, Her Needs, and the man behind Marriage Builders.
His forum is where "Plan A" and "Plan B" come from, and people have been working his material there for years.
Good if you like a clear structure to follow.
John Gottman
A researcher, and the author of The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work.
Most marriage videos you've watched are quoting him whether they say so or not (the "Four Horsemen" are his).
Good if you want to know what the research says first.
Noah Allen
That's me, so weigh this one however you want.
I wrote The Heroic Husband and I created the Emotional Layering Method (ELM).
I work with married men whose wives are pulling away, have talked about leaving, or have already left.
And I write from my own marriage, where my wife once told me she wasn't attracted to me and wasn't in love with me anymore.
Good if you're done begging and chasing and you want to understand what she's been trying to tell you.
Gary Chapman
A pastor and the author of The 5 Love Languages.
He also wrote Hope for the Separated and One More Try.
Good as a gentle first read, and good if faith is a big part of your life.
Joe Beam
He runs Marriage Helper, which has workshops, courses and a large YouTube channel for the spouse who's been left trying alone.
One husband wrote in a YouTube comment, "Watched every marriage helper video".
Good if you learn better from video than from books.
Matthew Fray
A divorced husband who became a writer and coach.
He wrote the essay about leaving dishes by the sink, and then the book This Is How Your Marriage Ends.
Good if she says "you don't listen" and you can't see what she means.
Brad Browning
He sells the Mend the Marriage program and is on YouTube as "The Marriage Guy".
A lot of people search for reviews of his program before they buy, which is a smart thing to do with any program (mine too).
Josh Hudson
A former marriage therapist who runs Marriage Reset, a coaching program and YouTube channel aimed only at husbands whose wife has checked out.
Good if you want someone who talks to the husband and nobody else.
How to pick one
Okay, so don't follow all ten.
Most guys binge six channels and three books in a week, and then act the same way at dinner.
Pick the one whose description made you a little uncomfortable, and stay with that one person for a month.
Keep going
More lists: the 10 best marriage books for men, the marriage programs husbands use, and a book vs counseling vs coaching.
All the book pages are under Books for husbands.
If she's gone quiet, go to My wife has checked out, and if you're weighing a counselor or a coach, go to Counseling and coaching.
Remember it's NEVER too late,
Noah