So I want to write a book. There. I said it. Heck, I've written it. That makes it more real. I also bought a notebook just to capture my thoughts, ideas, resources, etc. relative to that book. And I have a bunch of writing resource guides at home from my decades-long dream of writing a book.
But I'm looking for advice from women who are writing, have written or want to write a book so we can encourage each other. Any takers?
Lisa G. Beatty
First off, kudos to you for knowing what you want to do. Writing a book is definitely an incredible (if sometimes scary) prospect. My first step in acknowledging this goal was tackling the craziness that is NaNoWriMo (or National Novel Writing Month). It's a challenge that takes place every November across the country.
The goal? To write 50,000 words in 30 days. Sounds pretty crazy, huh? The feather in my cap in 2009 was completing the challenge for the first time. While 50,000 words wasn't enough to fully complete the book I was working on (I tend to be pretty wordy), it was just the kickstart I needed to get serious about realizing my goal.
I've just dusted off that first attempt at knocking out my goal (part of the challenge was to refrain from re-reading/editing during the 30 days as well) and I'm hoping to wrap up the book by the end of the summer.
I could certainly use encouragement and would love to take you up on that offer. ^_^
~Aliera
Lisa,
How's the book writing going? Have you made any progress since your May post?
I tackled writing two ebooks last winter and it was great! Hard work, frustrating, exhausting, but great!
Now I am working on fleshing out my ideas for two print books. We shall see how they take form. :-)
Shannon
No progress to speak of. I have been talking with my husband about co-authoring a book of his art. He's considering a couple of different idea/series. We think we want to start with an e-book to save money and test the waters. There aren't many art books in e-form yet, however.
How did you get started? My husband says when it comes to painting, the first place you start to overcome the "blank canvas" is to put some tone or color on it. Doesn't really matter if you end up keeping the color...just covering up the white has a psychological impact of overcoming the fear of the start.
Do you use a digital tool or an analog one when you are first writing? Again, I'm torn between the two. One method I am studying says to buy an 11X17 sketch pad and a few good pens and start writing/drawing ideas in long hand.
My husband bought my daughter and I both an iPad and keyboard to encourage us to write. She's got multiple books and stories started (and she's only 12) and I have one writing exercise recorded.
Yikes!
First of all, don't be hard on yourself for not starting. I think books have a way of coming when they are ready.
When I wrote my ebooks, I simply began with an outline (that consisted of the chapter headings) and then started banging them out one by one. After the original sketching of the chapters I had to discipline myself to stick with a chapter until it was done. Some definitely came easier than others. Sometimes I just wanted to shoot myself when I got stuck and end the misery. Just kidding. It wasn't quite that bad...almost on a couple of occasions. :-)
I wrote both books in Pages on my Mac and then hired a graphic artist to create page templates and book covers for consistency. Then I simply merged the two together. It can be very costly to have someone format an entire book for you, so I suggest hiring someone to create templates that you can use and modify yourself to give a consistent and professional look that matches your brand.
I love your idea of starting with a sketch pad! If that feels good to you, then by all means do it! Over the course of my life I have found that I have to write when the words are flowing. Sadly, you can't force that to happen. You can do things to encourage it by being places that allow your thoughts to flow, by taking large chunks of a day to just think, etc.
I could see the iPad being a great tool for writing because of it's portability. I would love to have one at my bedside, but for now I keep a pad and pen. Some of my greatest inspiration comes when I am outside walking, in the shower (stinks for water conservation), and when the lights are out before I go to sleep.
Just figure out where, when and how your thoughts and ideas begin to flow best and do them. Remember that you can't force it and the harder you try the less you will get. But you can encourage the words to come.
Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for the encouragement and sharing your experience. You are so right that the words come when they want. All we can do is put ourselves in a place to receive them and capture them in some form or fashion. Like every woman, I struggle with finding time to just be alone other than the shower and you are right it is hard to capture words then! But as my daughter gets focused on her writing and my husband gets steeped in his art again, I need to take that time and invest in my writing!
I can't wait to see what you are working on next!