Writing a book: the big idea
I mentioned on my previous post on writing a book that I had wanted to write a book for around 30 years. Although, I wanted to write a book I did not have a big idea when I first had that desire. The desire was something of a dream but a dream without action is just a wish really. How many people do we hear say things like, 'I wish I had done such and such' or phrases equivalent to that?
Therefore, the very first step is to decide on the 'big idea' - what general area will the book be about? Whilst, I may have a fiction story or two in me, I realise that my experience is best centred on non-fiction, in personal finance & business or personal development and so that will be my main focus here. That said, I am sure that many of the concepts and principles could equally apply to both fiction and non-fiction writing.
Returning to the 'big idea' concept, I actually had two problems with this: no idea and too many ideas! To be honest, if you really do have no idea, then the book is not yet ready to be written. That said, it is possible to get some suggestions for potentially good ideas by considering your skills and knowledge, life experience, subjects that genuinely interest you, people and events that stir you, what you talk about to close friends, if you have a social media presence, what people most engage with and so on. This should at least produce a short list to consider further.
Now that you have a short-list of potential ideas, the second potential problem arises - deciding on which is the best idea to pursue. There are several ways to go about this I found. They basically boil down to analytical assessment and intuitive insight...or 'left brain / right brain' thinking. In reality, we are likely to have elements of both types of thinking style, although we tend to have a preference. If we have a heavy preference for one particular thinking style, then it might be an idea to talk with someone with a different style of thinking to your own.
Essentially, we are trying to use our thoughts and decision-making capabilities to narrow down our choice. Some examples of more analytical, or left-brain thinking might include:
- Undertaking research around search terms and keywords
- Assessing the number of titles in specific genres
- Looking at the sales results and 'best seller ranks' of certain themes or genres
Some examples of more intuitive approaches, or right-brained thinking might include:
- Connecting with your gut feeling
- Telling people what your ideas are and gauging their responses
- Using techniques such as meditation and visualisation to allow the ideas to 'ferment' in your consciousness
There are a few techniques that combine elements of each, such as:
- Mind mapping - which is a more creative form of writing out lists on a piece of paper
- Free-format surveys, where you invite people to respond in whatever way they want to rather than with a yes / no or on a scale of 1-5 basis...this produces what I call 'hot language', which you can then interpret
- Trial and error - basically, in your own name or using a pseudonym, try writing on a small scale on one or more subjects and see what reaction you get - this could be in forums, on a blog (your own or as a guest writer elsewhere), or using a 'content curation' platform like Scoop.it as I did initially.
I wish I had actually attempted to use all of these techniques myself all those years ago!
Writing a book: the content
Different strokes for different folks here. Some people need a regular routine to write, whilst others need to block out sections of time and focus all of their attention completely on the process of writing. Whichever, option works best for you it is essential that you have discipline to stick with the plan. It is all to easy to drift off when we should be writing - phone calls, social media, web-surfing, the pub and a range of other potential distractions can get in our way and effectively sabotage our well-intentioned efforts.
I have heard of ideas like a '30-day writing challenge' for example, where the idea is to write say 1,000 words per day every day, regardless of what else is going on in your life. There are some professional writers that section off chunks of time on a regular basis and they sit and write at these times diligently. Then, there are the writers that have short, yet intense creative bursts where they can sit and write thousands of words in one mega-session instead. I have learnt that I fall into the latter camp and can get completely consumed with my writing for days on end (within reason!). It might sound as if the last idea is a wishy washy approach but it still requires focus, discipline, planning and dedication as with the first couple of ideas. The main thing is to find what works for you and then go for it! Writers write and something written down on paper (or in a computer say) is better than nothing. Having a plan to write is therefore essential.
One final point here, you don't actually have to write when writing a book! I am currently reading a book, where the author is dyslexic (why they made that word so difficult to write I don't know!) and he used a piece of speech-to-text software to speak the words rather than write them. Alternatives are other forms of speech-to-text capture like transcription services and even a third party that can interview you for your thoughts and ideas to either write for you or co-write the book.
Returning to the idea of testing. It might be an idea to try our your writing skills in a lower risk, lower commitment basis before attempting to sit down and write the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As I mentioned earlier, giving it a try will help you determine whether it is something you have the motivation to continue with when the going gets tough...or not.
Writing a book: what is a book anyway?
This might sound like a strange question but when I was started writing a book I was not sure what would 'qualify' as a book and how it should be laid out. Of course, I understood some of the basics, such as a title, chapters or sections and some sort of flow. What I was not sure of was how long it should be for example. I was advised that a decent non-fiction book is typically between 15,000 and 60,000 words long. However, you need as many words that are required to tell the story or convey the message you are looking to get over. There is a bit of snobbery in this regard and if one of the main publishers is involved they will expect minimum and maximum word counts. However, personally I cannot see the point of padding out a subject unnecessarily just to reach a word count target. My own book is in these respects a little on the short side. Could I have made it longer? Sure, of course I could. I could have adopted the 'tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them and tell them what you told them' approach that I remember being taught in English at school. I found the just tell them approach a little more punchy this time however 😉
Writing a book: getting it published (format)
So, we have an idea, the content is written out and we have met our personal or external word count target. Then we start moving into unfamiliar waters for many writers...getting it published. I did not have a clue in this regard and initially I was going to outsource everything. Outsourcing can be to a publishing house or agent, or if you decide to self-publish, it could involve outsourcing certain steps of the process.
I wanted to self-publish my book and whilst I had planned on using an 'agent', actually a friend and fellow property-writing mentor, that was for my 'big book' rather than what turned into my first book.
I soon realised that a book can come in several different forms: paperback and hardback, we should all be familiar with but also audio book, 'ebook' (electronic) and even video books (usually an audio format delivered via a video streaming service like YouTube) are other alternatives that have emerged in the new electronic age. Then, within say an 'ebook' are different formats depending on where the book is going to be made available.
What kind of format do you want your book to be in? The answer will largely depend on what you want to achieve from publishing a book. Some people just want something that looks good as a download from their website, others want to be available the word over in a variety of different formats. Some want fame & fortune, whilst others seek reputation and credibility. Many will be in between...
The format of the book is linked to the idea of where the book will be available as we shall now see.
Writing a book: available outlets (sales channels)
Some books are 'free' but they are still made available for 'sale', so this section address the distribution of a book. Waterstones bookshop on the high street or Amazon online? Major book distributor, smaller independent, digital bookstores or just from your own PC or garage? All are valid choices and should be aligned to what it is you want to achieve from the book.
Personally speaking, I wanted a book to be available easily to my target readership in an 80/20 kind of way. Equally, I had no idea as to how popular if might be and so I wanted to keep my set up costs to a minimum as well. This leant itself to an ebook format and by far the biggest marketplace for ebooks, especially for non-fiction writers, is Amazon Kindle. Other distributors and book sales engines are available but many are dominated by the major publishing houses and rank purely on sales figures. What Amazon seems to do very well is combine sales data and feedback ratings to arrive at it's 'Best Seller Rank', which allows the little guy writer / publisher a fighting chance of reaching his target audience. That is why feedback ratings are so important to people like me, as it helps to get the book noticed in an otherwise crowded landscape. By the way, yes that is a hint...all feedback ratings are welcome...as long as they are good that is 🙂
Kindle also offer a series of benefits that help to promote the book in return for an exclusive arrangement with them, which will not suit everyone but certainly did suit me. I then opted for a great looking format, which is based on a graphics-rich PDF layout with pictures, tables, highlighted sections and such like. As my first book is a 'toolkit', then a textbook-type of look and feel seemed to work well and this is an additional differentiator as the basic Kindle format (.mobi) is not that exciting in appearance. I have had one comment from someone suggesting the scroll across the page aspect resulting from this format is not their preference but most people that have given me feedback have said they really like it. Like anything new, it can divide opinion.
I did not initially go with a printed format and focussed purely on a digital format instead, although given the relative popularity of the book I am looking into doing a print version now as well. Let me have your thoughts on that if you like.
Writing a book: promotion
The final step (so far) in writing a book, that I had no real awareness of, was the promotion involved in launching a book. If the content writing was a struggle or challenge within and the formatting and publishing issues were just new knowledge to acquire, then the promotional activity was a combination of the two! Learn some new skills (actually apply known ones in a different way) and 'struggle' to get the message out far and wide, without completely peeing people off!
I tried to copy what I saw other people do if I liked it (and if it seemed to work) but I also tried to keep things done in my own style. This was the advantage of doing my own promotion drive. The downside was that after a solid week of tweets, emails, forum posting and the like at all hours, I was totally exhausted.
I enlisted the support of what I called 'book ambassadors', people who received an advance copy of the book for free and in return agreed to help me to promote it and leave honest reviews. Many ambassadors did help to get the word out, although I am not sure that everyone did, which I guess is just a fact of life. Similarly, I reached out to 'industry influencers', who are people that have a following and authority in the genre. Many just ignored my approach but some I have to say were extremely supportive and helped to promote the book in various ways. It always helps to have a connection with both ambassadors and influencers, if you are to truly engage and get that shift from inertia to a mobilised mini-army of book promoters - after all it is my baby not theirs.
What did I learn here? Some will and some won't, despite what promises they make or what type of relationship you think you have with them; so do not rely on this support 100%. Follow the Law of Reciprocity and give something to get something...paying it forward always helps!
In addition to the mini-army that I mentioned, I embarked on a social media, email and community-based awareness campaign. Blog posts, forum posts (seeking permission or following the rules of the various forums used of course), allowed me to make more people aware of the book. My own social media and subscriber lists were the most obvious people to get the book of course but there were others that frankly had never even heard of me across the globe that ended up buying too! All of this was helped by making a big splash and a special offer promotion. I did not intend to make a million from my book. Instead I had two main objectives: 1) to give people what I did not have when I started out as a property investor...a resource or toolkit to help shape their journey and; 2) the opportunity for people to become familiar with me, what I do and also what I stand for (my values). In conclusion, I wanted to give something back into the community but also to attract people to me that share my approach and values. I guess the over-arching purpose was to help build my credibility, reputation and 'personal brand' too.
Writing the book: the Result
I can now call myself an Amazon Best Seller! I did have the #1 book in Real Estate in the UK store (#3 in US) within the first week of launch. Not many have written a book and even fewer could call themselves a best seller (however that is determined), so that is very satisfying.
I have shifted far more copies than I ever thought possible in countries that I did not know knew who I was including the UK, US, Brazil, India, Israel, Finland, Germany, France, Canada & Australia and that's just the ones I am aware of.
I have had a surge in inquiries, website subscriptions, social media contacts and even opportunities presented to me that might not otherwise have arisen and all within the first week of publication.
Was it worth it...oh yes, on so many levels! It is a hugely satisfying accomplishment but equally a humbling one too...that's a very nice feeling to be left with: a balance of personal satisfaction and giving something to people to aid their journey.
Post Script: Writing a book out-takes
I just wanted to jot down some of the more humourous or unusual things that happened along the way of this journey that helped to make it such a 'rich experience'...
- I now realise that midnight does not mean midnight - it means midnight in California as far as Amazon are concerned!
- That when you convert a PDF to a 'print replica' format using the Kindle conversion tool that it will not preserve the many weblinks that I had in the original format(I have a work-around for this)
- That print replica means A4 PDF and not single page on a Kindle device, plus it is not compatible with 'old' versions of Kindle...old being before 2012 😉
- That you can hack the dates in your computer to go back in time to correct a launch offer start date when strictly speaking you missed the deadline!
- That your parents only want a print version...and your sister...and a bunch of other people too!
- That some people will promise or pledge to help you but in reality will not for a variety of different reasons or excuses
- That the whole world of self-publishing is a magical land waiting to be discovered, with it's own people, hang-outs and even language at times
- That there are freelancers in the Philipines, Serbia and India that are super-smart, super-efficient and super-value ready to assist you in plugging your gaps
- That you become ever-so-slightly obsessed with each step of writing, publishing and promoting a book such that you forget to wish people happy Birthday, pay some of your bills on time or even eat!
- Just because someone else thinks you will be good at writing a particular subject does not mean you will be ignited by the idea and driven to complete it
- Sometimes the answer is staring you in the face and all you have to do is adjust your gaze or shift your perspective to see it...I had my book material written already in an alternative format and was trying to discover a different book to write instead
- You will receive praise and plaudits from complete strangers and sometimes nothing from people you have known for years...don't worry either way, don't write a book for anyone other than yourself and your intended reader and make it the best you possibly can and the inner satisfaction will come