Getting Your Book Out of the Someday Box
Taking on a big project, one about which you may know very little, can be incredibly intimidating. Most of us would never try to build a house, fix a car, or learn to play a musical instrument without help: a teacher, a coach, classes, something.
But when it comes to writing a book, we envision the lone artist starving in a garret and assume that writers work alone.
Does that make any sense at all? Of course not.
Successful writers have a system. When it comes to business books, I’ve created a systematic process to take the professional knowledge that’s already in your head, and lead you through, one step at a time, to the inevitable finished product: your book.
Some Advice From Seth
The world’s greatest marketing guru and founder of The Domino Project, Seth Godin has some excellent advice for authors. Here’s the short version, but please; take five minutes & go read the whole post:
- Please understand that book publishing is an organized hobby, not a business.
- The timeframe for the launch of books has gone from silly to unrealistic.
- There is no such thing as effective book promotion by a book publisher.
- Books cost money and require the user to read them for the idea to spread.
- Publishing is like venture capital, not like printing.
In my first business book, The Commonsense Entrepreneur, I wrote about chunking; breaking big projects down into the smallest possible pieces (remember the joke about how to eat an elephant—one piece at a time?) Making each step small enough and simple enough takes most of the fear and stress out of the process.
(Note: As you’re watching these videos or reading the text, I would highly value your comments on what’s missing. What else would you need to know to do this yourself? Get into whatever detail you want. Of course, you can always use the contact form to speak to me directly rather than leaving a comment here.)
The Process
Taking on a big project, one about which you may know very little, can be incredibly intimidating. Most of us would never try to build a house, fix a car, or learn to play a musical instrument without help: a teacher, a coach, classes, something.
Successful Writers Have a System
When it comes to business books, I’ve created a systematic process to take the knowledge that’s already in your head and lead you through, one step at a time, to the inevitable finished product: your book.
Expose the Whole Book
Establish your reasons for writing a business book. Identify and gather what you’ve already written. Clearly identify what your desired outcome is and what you’ve already done toward that. Be clear on your “why,” and the “what” and “how” will fall into place.
Organize What’s Already Written
Gather it all together regardless of format. Start putting stuff into categories. Put stuff in order where order exists.
Identify the Gaps
Next we need to identify the gaps: the ideas and concepts that are incomplete or missing.
Fill the Gaps
Now we prioritize the missing bits, and create them. This is the piece most of us think of as “writing a book.”
Mechanical Stuff
Every book needs to be proofread, edited, formatted, designed, and printed. Here’s an overview.
Proofreading
The details matter.
Editing
Make sure each sentence, every paragraph, says exactly what you mean.
Formatting
Laying a book out for print can be complex, but it can be done.
Design
Covers (front and back.) Interior. The whole package will benefit from an artist’s touch.
Seeing your book in print is exciting. It also helps you find all the errors it’s not possible to see on the screen.
ISBNs
International Standard Book Numbers
Every book sold through commercial channels needs a unique identifier for all the computer systems it’ll be entered into.
Marketing
Marketing your book is a two-month coaching class. This is just the overview.
Don’t Do This Alone
There are parts of this process you can’t possibly offload to someone else. There are parts you should.
Go. Write. Now.
Someone said that the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Take that step right now.
