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Options Trading 101: An Old Wolf's Stories — book cover

Free Book · 32 chapters · ~3.9 hours

Options Trading 101: An Old Wolf's Stories

by The Old Wolf

A storyteller's guide to options trading — risk, the Greeks, core strategies, and the discipline it takes to survive the market. Free to read online; PDF and EPUB available with a free account.

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What you'll learn

  • What an option is — and what most beginners think it is
  • The Greeks as five characters in a story you can remember
  • Position sizing that survives a bad streak, not just a good one
  • The silent killers: spreads, slippage, commissions, assignment
  • Core strategies: long calls/puts, covered calls, CSPs, verticals
  • Two-legged hunts: calendars, condors, butterflies, straddles, strangles
  • VIX, hedging, and what to do when the storm rolls in
  • LEAPS for the long game; journal & discipline for the long career

Table of contents

Front Matter

Disclaimer and a Word from the Author1 minA Letter from the Old Wolf2 minHow to Read This Book2 min

Part I — Before the Hunt

Welcome to the Pack — What an Option Is, and Isn't10 minThe Other Side — Who's Trading Options12 minThe Five Characters — Meet the Greeks10 minThe Anatomy of Price and Liquidity13 min

Part II — Risk Sits on the Throne

"Do I Only Lose What I Put In?" — The Stop-Loss Lie9 minPosition Sizing — Read This Chapter Twice7 minWhich Wolf Are You? — Trader Archetypes7 minThe Silent Killer — Commissions, Spreads, Slippage6 minDark Scenarios — The Risks Books Leave Out11 min

Part III — Core Hunting Techniques

Long Call and Long Put — The First Hunt16 minChoosing Your Expiration — 0DTE to LEAPS13 minCovered Call and Cash-Secured Put — The Pack's Income7 minProtective Put and Collar — Armor5 minVertical Spreads — Walking on Two Legs7 min

Part IV — Advanced Two-Legged Hunting

Calendar and Diagonal Spreads — Selling Time5 minIron Condor and Iron Butterfly — Hunting the Sideways6 minStraddle and Strangle — Betting on Volatility7 minReading the VIX and Hedging the Portfolio13 min

Part V — The Long Game and the Mind

LEAPS — Hunting Over Years9 minFear, Greed, and the Art of Not Hunting7 minJournal, Discipline, Ritual6 minA Field Guide to Safe and Risky Options9 minThe Old Wolf's Last Word3 min

Appendices

Glossary — The Old Wolf's Dictionary8 minTrade Journal Template2 minStrategy Selection Decision Tree4 minAll Checklists, Consolidated6 minRecommended Resources4 minBibliography and Citations5 min