Just write a book, they say. Easy for them, right? You sit down at the computer to write and your mind goes blank, or maybe your thoughts are just so busy that you feel like there’s no direction. Writing a book is a powerfully effective way to grow your business. It establishes credibility, authority, branding awareness, and it increases traffic and sales. Many business owners essentially use their book as a business card. Imagine visiting a prospect and handing them a copy of your book. That’s good marketing! You can also sell your book and add to your cash flow.
So, the question is, how do you write a book that people will want to read? These seven tips will get you through the process of writing a book unscathed.
Writing a Book Tip #1
Get organized. One super-easy way to write a book is to organize it in the form of questions. For example, if you’re writing a book about how to quit sugar, then the first chapter might be “Why will quitting sugar will save my life?” The second chapter might be “How do I read labels and learn what contains sugar?” Then each chapter can be organized into 5-10 supporting questions. How will quitting sugar reduce my risk for cancer, how will quitting sugar reduce my risk for diabetes and so on. Organizing in this fashion makes it easy to write. You know how to answer questions, and the words will flow more naturally. If this method doesn’t appeal to you, then you might create a detailed outline with every chapter in the book and the material that you want to cover.
Writing a Book Tip #2
Write daily. Put some words down on paper every day. You can sit for 10-20 minutes and write. Write 500-5,000 words a day. The book will be done faster than you imagine.
Writing a Book Tip #3
Don’t edit as you write. Many people get caught up, and slowed down, when they edit as they write. Just type as the words come to you. Don’t fix ideas, spellings or anything else. Just type. You can edit during the first revision.
Writing a Book Tip #4
Dictate. If “writing” doesn’t work for you, then dictate your book. Use a speech recognition software like Dragon Naturally Speaking.
Writing a Book Tip #5
Leverage content. You don’t have to write the whole book yourself. Ask people to contribute chapters. Use content you’ve already written. Transcribe videos or audio content and use it for your book.
Writing a Book Tip #6
Revise and edit. Revise and edit the book once yourself. Go through and read for content, clarity, and of course spelling and grammar. Then ask someone else to edit it for you. This could be a trusted friend or associate, or you can hire a pro. Just make sure someone else lays eyes on it before you publish.
Writing a Book Tip #7
Remember that perfection doesn’t exist. There is no such thing as a perfect book. Don’t let perfection hold you up or slow you down. Do your best and publish. Remember that in the digital world all you have to do is make a change, re-upload the book, and go. You can continue to make changes to your book as new information comes out or as you find ways to improve it. (That being said, if there are enough new changes, consider releasing a new version. You’ll get more marketing mileage out of it.)
Writing a book can be an enjoyable process and you’ll certainly enjoy the business results. Fine tune your idea and get started writing today. In fact, draft that outline right now. You have the knowledge and experience; it’s time to share it.
Once the book is written you can self-publish and get it printed from one of the many online book printers or you can create it as a digital book that is shared online. I recently had an experience where I created the book “Rules of Effective Content Marketing”. This book is completely digital and easily set up for your to have shareable content for your social media and it’s free for you to access.
