There are many ways to develop a compelling book that will capture the attention of your target audience and accomplish your goals. Here are some options to consider:
- Reveal details about your company’s history
- Share compelling customer case studies
- Tackle an important issue in your industry
- Provide methods for using your products and services effectively
- Hold a contest to collect story submissions (and generate media exposure from the start!)
- Feature the story of a company executive (or multiple executives)
- Create a workbook for use with your products or services
- Sponsor a charity by developing a book that they can use for promotion or as a profit center
- Compile articles, essays, personal stories, case studies, materials from strategic partners, or any other content that can be assembled into a great anthology-style book
How to Write a Book: Eight Easy Steps to Get It Done Quickly!
Studies show that up to 80% of people have considered writing a book. And while this may sound like a major undertaking, it just might be easier than you think. Following are eight simple steps to finally get your book written in as few as 60 days (really!).
- Decide on a Topic — Start by identifying your target audience. Whom do you want your book to reach? Are you writing for your clients, single mothers, consultants, teenagers, retired baby boomers? Knowing your audience will help you make important decisions when building your content. You should always keep your audience in mind as you develop your book.
- Know Your Book’s Unique Value — Hundreds of thousands of books are published every year, so if you’re worried that there is not enough room in the world for another book, know that the marketplace will always welcome new titles. The key is to establish how your book will be different or better than the competition.
Determine what unique value you bring to your readers. Also important is your purpose for writing the book. If your book is a tool for promoting your business, the amount of competition will be far less relevant. But if you aspire to hit the best-seller lists, then it is essential to know the competition and be able to differentiate it from the rest.
- Choose Your Process — You don’t have to be a professionally trained writer to develop a book. Here are several alternatives:
- Hire a ghostwriter
- Enlist a co-author
- Dictate your book using software such as Dragon Naturally Speaking to convert it to text, or have recordings transcribed and edited
- Get your thoughts on paper and hire a good developmental editor to turn it into a manuscript
- Assemble an anthology of contributions from others
- Leverage Content You Already Have — Your book may already be further along than you realize. If you have created content for your business, you may be able to use it for your book. Here are some places to look:
- Articles and blog posts you’ve written
- Handouts you’ve developed
- Surveys you’ve conducted
- Case studies, white papers, and client success stories
- Seminars, videos, and recordings that can be transcribed
- Contributions from others (articles, interviews, case studies, etc.—with their permission, of course)
- Get Started with an Outline — Everyone has their own unique process for writing, though most writers will tell you that they start with some sort of outline. I recommend using the storyboard process.
Start with a blank wall and a stack of Post-It notes or a pack of 3×5 cards. Write each and every topic idea, no matter how large or small. Once you have all of your ideas out, move the notes around until they form some kind of logical order. This is a great way to identify your chapters, how much content you have for each, and where you need to add more content. You can transfer everything to an outline, or simply work off of your wall of ideas. Many of my books were written using this process!
- Begin the Writing Process — Once you know what topics to cover, you are ready to begin writing. The idea of writing a book can seem overwhelming, but like many big projects, if you tackle it in small pieces it can come together quickly. Here are some ways to manage the writing process:
- Approach each topic as if you were writing a short article. This will help you stay focused on the topic at hand while making it easy for your readers to enjoy.
- Break up the text with plenty of sub-headings and bullets for easier reading.
- Share stories (real-world or fiction examples) and use metaphors to illustrate important points.
- If you get stuck on a topic, move on to something else and return to it later.
- Avoid editing while you write—this can slow you down. Write first and edit later.
- Beware of getting sidetracked. If you stop the writing process to research something online, it can be easy to lose track of time. Make a note about the added work you need to do and keep writing.
- Develop a system for jotting down notes when you need to add more information, look up a resource, or any other kind of follow-up. You might mark a spot in the manuscript with “xxx” so that you can easily search and follow up later.
- Include quotes from people you have interviewed, provide resources for additional information, and compile brief sidebar tips to enhance the reader’s experience.
- Don’t obsess about the length of your manuscript, as it could affect the quality of the content you write. Focus on writing for the reader and getting the most important points across. If you need to expand your manuscript later, you can always add case studies, sidebars, statistics, or other data.
- Make Time to Write — One of the biggest excuses that aspiring authors have is a lack of time to get a book written. Like anything else in life, if you want it badly enough, you have to find a way to make it happen.
You may want to plan your writing time around when you are most creative. Are you a morning person or a night owl? Perhaps you need to get up an hour earlier or stay up an hour later. It is important to discover your own unique process. Some writers are disciplined and write during a set time each day. Some schedule one or two days each week for writing. With my busy schedule, I actually check in to a hotel for a weekend and write! It’s all about what works best for you.
- Cross the Finish Line — The average book manuscript is around 60,000 words. Two typed pages are the equivalent of around 1,000 words. So if you wrote just two pages per day, your book would be done in 60 days! And as mentioned previously, manuscript length is not a deal-breaker, especially when publishing a book yourself. If yours comes in shorter than average, a good book designer can still create an effective finished project.
Once your manuscript is complete, you will begin the editing process. Editing is essential to every book, as typos and other errors can be distracting to the reader. A good editor can clean up basic grammar and punctuation issues, or provide a more in-depth examination of your manuscript and suggest improvements.
Writing a book is a big achievement and can have a tremendous impact on your business. Set a goal to finally write that book this year and you will embark on a fantastic journey.
If you like this blog post, you’ll love our Author Toolkit with templates, worksheets and checklists for writing nonfiction. Check it out!
