A lot of people say they have an idea for a book - or plan to write a book... and then never do anything about it.
Here's some of the things that may be holding you back (and what you can do about it)...
- Not having time - you may have existing content you can update/collect, start by writing blog posts, consider part of your working day, or spend half an hour each day writing your book.
- Nobody will read the book - don't worry about whether your idea is too niche or not niche enough. There's a good chance people will want to read your words. And remember, someone has written a book about filing cabinets (yes, really!)
- Idea of 100+ pages overwhelming. Focus on the current chapter or paragraph. Write a small part at a time. Whether it's a few weeks, months or even years - don't rush.
- Formatting the book for publishing - forget about formatting for now - start writing your book, and worry about formatting, self publishing, etc. later.
- Costs - there's no up-front costs to self publish your books. You may wish to hire someone to edit your book or design a cover (although KDP and Lulu have cover creator tools which work just as well) - however that's entirely up to you.
- Copyright and losing rights - you keep the copyright to any books you self publish.
- Struggling to come up with ideas - write about what you have knowledge and enthusiasm for. Perhaps look back at blog posts you've previously written (that's how a number of my books started).
- Wondering how to get started - just start writing! Worry about everything else later.
Just start - don't let anything hold you back. Write a sentence or paragraph. You'll soon be writing more before you realise it.
Making a small start is still much better then making no start at all.
Some of my books ended up being created by accident - for example my latest book on reading business/personal development books - I'd written enough blog posts to collect into a book - I joked to myself about putting together a book on the topic, before I realised it could actually be a great idea.
My books on writing/self publishing and creating software products had similar origins.
Don't wait until something is perfect - otherwise you may constantly be going back, making changes, etc. - with your book never being seen by anyone else.
Avoid temptation to cut corners - for example using ChatGPT to write your book - it won't really be your work, and it could damage your reputation. And don't be tempted by low content books either (something promoted by a lot of online videos). Both of these also risk getting your self publishing accounts deleted!
Enjoy the journey - don't write with the intention of making money (despite what various YouTube videos promise, you won't “get rich quick”), or as a glorified business card - income and raising the profile of your business will come naturally.
Have you considered writing a book? Have you started on your idea, or is something holding you back?
I can help you turn your ideas into an actual book!
I offer a one-to-one power hour, where you can ask my anything (including discussing any of the issues covered in this blog post), and there's also my book on writing/self publishing.
Contact me or visit: booksandnetworking.co.uk/writing
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