Two Powerful Questions to Kickstart Your Book Writing Project
As an editor and book coach, I meet so many budding authors who are keen to write a book. They tell me they have lots of ideas swirling around in their head but no idea how to start putting pen to paper.
Or they start to write, excited to share their wisdom with the world, but the previously mentioned head full of ideas keeps taking them off on tangents. This leaves their writing confused and they end up disheartened, with lots of writing but no book shape.
If this has happened to you, the good news is that you can get your book on track quickly and easily with these two powerful questions to kickstart your book writing project.
What?
What do you really want people to know? What is the theme, the one big idea you want to share with the world? Before diving into writing, it\’s crucial to clarify the purpose of your book. Consider the key message or problem you want to address and how your expertise can provide valuable solutions.
When you get clear on exactly what you want to share, it becomes exciting and real. Moving forward becomes easier because your goal is clear. Once you know exactly what you want to share, you can visualise it and see the help it will give to your readers.
While you’re writing, if you are tempted to go off down rabbit holes with other ideas, you can remind yourself exactly what your goal is for this book and stay on track, sticking to your subject. Any writing you have created that is off-subject can be filed away for use in blogs, articles or teaching material.
With a clear goal of what you want to share, it’s also much easier to plan the steps to get there.
How?
Now you know what you want to say, you can create a framework for your book and make time to put it together.
Creating a framework helps you organise your thoughts, ensures a logical flow of ideas and saves time during the writing process. Think about what you want to share and start to break that down. Brainstorm the main concepts into sections or chapters for your book, and then chunk them down into subtopics. This structure will serve as a foundation from which you can build your content effectively.
You now have a place to drop your ideas into as they come to you, a filing cabinet of sorts for each of the pieces of writing you create. This releases you from having to start writing at chapter one and finish at the end. You can write whatever comes to you and have a place to fit it into the book. This process will help to keep you focused and stop you from running off on a tangent – if it doesn’t fit into the structure, ask yourself if it fits with the goals for your book.
Making time to write is important. If you just wait until you have time in your week, it’s never going to happen. Determine a writing schedule that fits your lifestyle and commit to it. Whether it\’s writing for a specific number of hours each day or aiming for a certain word count, establishing clear goals will help you maintain momentum and progress steadily toward completion. So, start with a modest writing goal, fit it into your diary and stick with it.
If you really want to make time for your book, check out my blog for tips on making time to write plus 7 things to do when words don’t flow.
Some final thoughts
Remember how much you already know, as you are the expert on your subject. Look at other information you’ve written in the past, what you teach and what you talk to your clients about every day – there’s a wealth of information already at your fingertips.
You know your client’s hopes, fears and needs, so tap into this as you write. Use this to guide your content creation process so you can begin to craft a book that will resonate with your readers.
Writing a book is an exciting endeavour that will allow you to share your expertise and positively impact a larger audience.
Remember, the most important thing is to start writing. Your unique insights and experiences have the potential to inspire and transform lives through the power of the written word.
