10 Tips To Get Started Writing Your Book

You are far more likely to successfully write and publish your book if you follow these tips before you write a single chapter.

1. Write your book's working title. It helps you focus and answer the readers' questions about the topic. Most non- fiction has subtitles as well. It's better to be clear than clever, but clever and clear are fine. Passion At Any Age: Twelve Ways to Unleash It, Self-Promotion for the Creative Person, Quadruple your book's Online Sales in Less Than One Month.

2. Write your book's thesis. A thesis is a sentence or so stating the audience's main problem and how your book will solve it. Knowing the thesis before you write the book keeps you on track. All chapters should support it. The thesis could be "Each of you has passion and you can unleash it through these twelve steps."

3. Test your book's significance. While most writers fear their book won't sell, it takes only two significances to write a book, and three for a great seller. Ask yourself, Is it relevant? Then write it! Does it present useful information? Does it have the potential to positively affect people's lives? Is it lively, humorous? Does it help answer important questions? Does it create a deeper understanding of human nature?

4. Pinpoint your target audience, all-important to your book's success. No, not everyone will want to read your book. How old are your prospective readers? Male? Female? Are they interested in personal growth, science fiction, mystery, how-to books? What challenges do they face? Are they business people? What magazines and Web sites do they like? Are they Internet savvy? What causes do they support?

Once you know them, write a letter and tell them why you are writing your book and what benefits it will bring them. Dear over-50 reader, "I'm writing Passion At Any Age to help you live life full throttle—with more abundance, joy, and meaning."

5. Write your reasons for writing this book. Your reader, the media, the television and radio talk show hosts all want to know why you wrote this book. Be prepared up front, so you will shine when opportunities come your way. For instance, "I wrote this book because so many of my clients and students asked me to. They didn't want theory; they wanted practical how to's to help them live life well. This audience, primarily over 50, wants and needs practical and spiritual tools to let their passion out.

6. Write down your publishing goals for this book. Do you want to give it away to members of your family or a particular group? Do you want to sell it? How many copies do you want to sell your first year? How much money do you want to make each month? What publishing format will you choose—self- publishing, traditional publishing, Print Quality Needed or Print on Demand, or eBook?

7. Organize the parts of your book. In one file, keep your introduction; in another, your index or resource section. Include your bibliography and keep a file of all people you will quote in your book who may give you a testimonial later. Keep each chapter in its own file labeled correctly so you can find it within minutes. Twenty percent of your papers are important. Be sure to file them vertically and in order to save you time and frustration as your book projects grows. Keep computer files also.

8. Write down your chapter's format. Readers expect a clear map to guide them. They like consistency. In non-fiction, each chapter should be approximately the same length and have the same sections. To make your chapters sparkle, use stories, anecdotes, headings, photos, maps, graphs, exercises, tips. Readers like easy-to-read side bars in boxes.

9. Write the back cover material before you write your book. This "outline" helps give your book direction and helps you focus only on what's important to your thesis or theme. Your back cover has around 8 seconds to impress your prospective buyer. Include what sells: reader and famous people's testimonials, a benefit-driven headline to hook the reader to open the book and read the table of contents, and bulleted benefits. Your bio and picture can go on the inside of the back cover to leave more room for your sales message on the back cover.

10. Mock up a front cover in your book's early stages. Keep it by your workstation to inspire you. To sell your books, your cover and title have around four seconds to hook your buyer. Covers are more important than what is inside. Browse the bookstore and copy a few ideas to get you started. Do you have color preferences? Is you title powerful and short enough to be read across the room?

Writing a book is so much easier when you approach it in small bites. As soon as you get these ten parts written you will be able to start asking more specific questions that become your chapter headings.

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Judy Cullins: author, publisher, book coach
Author of Ten Non-techie Ways to Market Your Book Online and Write your eBook or Other Short Book-Fast!
Judy Cullins ©2002

Seven Secrets For Beating Writer's Block

Most people can easily identify with the dreaded "writer's block". It is a well-known phenomenon that just about everyone has faced at one point in their lives. I used to suffer from writer's block, big time! Thus, I know through personal anguish and suffering, that it is definitely not a pleasant experience.

Especially when the due date for one's project or paper is getting closer by the day, and the boss asks you "how's that project going" every time you don't manage to avoid him/her when you're sneaking down the corridor. WRITER'S BLOCK IS FEAR-BASED. Writer's block is a fear-based feeling. For whatever reason, many of us have this incredible fear of committing ourselves in writing whenever we are faced with a blank page or computer screen.

Fear no longer! I'm here to tell you that writer's block can be beaten! Just realizing that writer's block is really an irrational fear that keeps us from putting pen to paper is half the battle. It's actually a fear of the unknown, often coupled with a fear of failure.

We secretly wonder just what exactly is going to come out of this pen/keyboard, and when it does, will we be revealing some kind of incompetent idiot who doesn't know what they're talking about? On the other hand, if we have done the proper preparation, our rational mind knows that we can do it just like we did it all of those other times before.

Unfortunately, fear often wins the day when it comes to writing.

As I stated above, I suffered from writer's block for many years and it was not the most enjoyable of experiences.

THE 7 SECRETS

Fortunately, somewhere along the way I did manage to develop a few tricks to overcome writers block. Some are obvious, others are not.

Here are my personal hard-earned secrets for overcoming writer's block:

1. Don't Write Too Soon

Before trying to write, it is important to prepare mentally for a few hours or days (depending on the size of the task) by mulling the writing project over in the back of your mind. (Just as athletes don't like to peak too soon, writers houldn't write too soon either!).

2. Do The Preparation

Read over whatever background material you have so that it is fresh in your mind. I read through all background material carefully marking important points with a yellow hi-liter and then review it all before I start to write.

3. Develop A Simple Outline

Before sitting down to write, put together a simple point form list of all of the key points you want to cover, and then organize them in the order in which you are going to cover them. (I know, I know... your Grade 6 teacher told you the same
thing... but it actually does work).

4. Keep research Documents Close By

When you sit down to write, make sure that all of your key background materials are spread out close at hand. This will allow you to quickly refer to them without interrupting the writing flow once you get going. I keep as many of the source
documents as possible wide open, and within eyesight for quick and easy reference.

5. Just Start Writing

Yes, that's exactly what you do. Once you have prepared mentally and done your homework you are ready to write, even if your writer's block is saying "no". Just start writing any old thing that comes to mind. Go with the natural flow. In no time at all you will get into a rhythm, and the words will just keep on flowing.

6. Don't Worry About The First Draft

Once the words start to flow, don't worry about making it perfect the first time. Remember, it's your first draft. You will be able to revise it later. The critical thing at the outset is to write those thoughts down as your mind dictates them to you.

7. Work From An Example

Get an actual sample of the type of document that you need to write. It could be something that you wrote previously, or it could be something from an old working file, or a clipping from a magazine article, or a sales brochure you picked up. As long as it is the same type of document that you are writing. Whatever it is, just post it up in your line-of-sight while you are working. You'll be amazed at how it helps the words and ideas flow. The main thing is to have an example to act as a sort of visual template.

In my experience this last one is the ultimate secret for overcoming writer's block. To help with this, be on the lookout for good examples of writing that you may see in newspapers and magazines, and clip out the useful ones for future reference.

About the author: Shaun Fawcett is webmaster of writinghelp-central.com and author of the new eBook "Instant Home Writing Kit".

By: Shaun Fawcett
Rabu, 28 November 2012

How to writing an eBook? Series I

Regardless of the reason you are reading this, should you undertake the effort of writing, publishing and selling your very own ebook, it is a remarkable experience. The journey will take you places you never though it would.
You will meet people both online and off. You will learn new skills you never thought you had. Lastly, you will gain confidence, regardless of how many ebooks you sell.
These lessons are not going to be a lot of endless hype about what a great life it is to be an author or other unrelated topics. What I’m going to do is give you exercises during the course of this series.
Should you choose to follow these exercises, you will at the very least arrive at an exhaustive list of topics about which to write. In addition, you will have created at minimum an outline or framework for your very first ebook.
Are you ready?
During the next week, I want you to get a spiral bound notebook or notepad.
Next, I want you to put the following three topics on three separate pages:
1. What I LOVE to do
2. Jobs and positions that I have held
3. Skills that I have
Most people don’t know that they are experts at something. Often the largest hurdle for people who want to write a book or ebook is to discover what to write about.
Now that you have your three pages labeled, take as long as you need to write down everything; and I mean EVERYTHING you can possibly think of that applies to you on each page.
It doesn’t matter what degree of your passion on the What I LOVE to do page is. If you have ANY passion for something, write it down. Write down everything.
Now, don’t try to organize it. Don’t analyze it (not yet at least).
Just write.
On page 2, make sure you go all the way back to your first job. Please don’t ask why. Please just do it for both of us. Having done this several times, I can assure you the effort will hold some unbelievable rewards!
If you are a homemaker and have only worked in your home, then list the jobs you do around the house. “Yard work” does not qualify! I want to know what type of yard work. Mowing the lawn? Trimming the hedges? State exactly what.
Remember: just write.
For the third page, Skills that I have, again, follow the prescription. Think about and write down all the skills you have. I mean, ALL of them.
Do not attempt to judge what you are good at or not. That will come later. For now, just write down the skills you have.
And don’t limit your skills to simply the profession or paid work you do. Also write down recreational skills you have. Write down emotional skills you have (leadership, courage, mentoring, etc.). Write down skills you have that you contribute to non-profits; think out of the box into every area of your life.
You don’t need to perform these writing exercises one at a time. Feel free to bounce back and forth between pages. In fact, that is the best way, as when you are writing items on one page, a though will come into your mind on one of the other topic pages, so immediately go to that page and write it down.
You should spend a total of at least 3 hours during the course of this upcoming week. All the better if you can devote 6 hours. The length of the lists will surprise you!
Next, AFTER you feel like you have exhausted your brain, ask your spouse/partner and at least 2 other trusted friends to give you at least 3 items for each page. Have your pen handy when you talk to them so you can write.
Have them tell you more if they will. Some folks may inquire what this is about. Just tell them you are going through some self-evaluation exercises. Do not tell them you are going to try to write a book or ebook. Not now at least.
There you have it. This should give you something positive to do this week that will lay excellent groundwork for writing your ebook!
Drop me a line to let me know how its going!