Writing a book isn’t easy, and it’s a long process from start to finish. Most books will take at least a year—probably more—to hit bookstore shelves after you’ve come up with an idea. There are beautiful books in the world that took years just to write and perfect. You have to brainstorm ideas, settle on a few, outline the book, write it, revise it—and you’ll probably repeat that process a few times. Not to mention, publishing can be its own beast.
That sounds like a lot of headaches. Can I just start writing it?
The short answer is: yes, you can.
Writing is creative and expressive, and one really great way to start brainstorming what you want to say and what your book will look like is to start putting words to paper. You can write out thoughts, ideas, and scenes brain dump-style into a notebook or Word document. After several rounds of just writing what comes to mind, you’ll find yourself with a good bunch of ideas and key points that you may want to include in your book.
I’m also a dive-right-in type of writer, and I often use this method to get my plans on paper without sitting down and saying “and now, I will plan my book.” It’s a lot more fun than writing out an outline.
“Writing is powerful, personal, and human. Even though it can be tedious—and sometimes frustrating—try to remember what’s great about what you’re doing.”
But, unfortunately, you probably will not write a published book that way. Our thoughts, ideas, and memories are often a bit scattered and spread out throughout our train of thought. By the time you’ve finished writing out all of your ideas, you’ll look back on something that reads “And under the willow—oh yeah I loved that willow when I was a little kid, I always used to play under it—was the garden my grandmother? mother? OH—Aunt Shirley planted.”
You’ll still need to sort through your ideas. I’ve already discussed a few ways to do so in my “Digging Up the Project Graveyard” post, and we have a fantastic (and free) guide to starting your writing process here. As you’re working through your writing, do keep these tips in mind:
Writing is supposed to be FUN!
Writing a book is a lot of work, but it’s still supposed to be enjoyable. You get to use your words to tell stories, make people laugh, invoke empathy, or help people turn their lives around. Writing is powerful, personal, and human. Even though it can be tedious—and sometimes frustrating—try to remember what’s great about what you’re doing.
Great Things Take Time
An old, but worthy, adage. The book that you write and publish in six months or less probably isn’t good. Or, it’s very, very short. A craft of this caliber is going to take a lot of effort and time. Don’t try to rush the process by setting timelines you can’t reach, and certainly don’t let anyone whose never written a book pressure you with constant comments of “when are you gonna finish that thing?” Craft your ideas one by one, don’t spend day after day writing into the night to speed up the process, and don’t skimp on things like marketing. It will be more than worth it in the end.
Ask For Help
Help can come in many different ways. Every writer has turned to their friend, roommate, or family member and asked something like “what’s the word for when you’re calm, but also confused, but also angry?” I always have a thesaurus on hand. There are many writers who workshop their work in groups and meetups, and a lot of people have a friend or mentor in the industry look over their work once in a while.
In fact, if you need more help, we have a variety of services for helping you make your book happen! Whether you just want some coaching or a full ghostwriting plan, working with DAS never means that you lose control and authorship over your book. Our clients are involved in every step of the process—we’re just helping you make it a reality in a much less stressful environment. You can download our free guide or schedule a free consultation to get started and find out more.
