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(Things writers tell me.)
“I know I have a great idea but I’m afraid to get started. What if I won’t be able to actually capture it on paper?”
“I wrote 50 pages last week but I don’t know how to put it all together.”
“My manuscript is in a coma.”
Here’s the truth about most authors. They hate self promotion. It feels wrong. Most authors just want to tell their story, fiction or nonfiction. You start with an idea, an outline, or chapter.
Then you’re likely to have what seems like a reasonable thought: I’ll write my book and if it’s good, it will find an audience out there. You think this thought (just like I did) with surprising persistence even though at some point it occurs to you that no one can read or buy anybook unless they first know it exists.
Pantsers pile up the pages without rhyme or reason (yes, from the seat of their pants) then get overwhelmed when they try to organize them later.
Planners tend create an outline or eke out a chapter then get paralyzed because they’re afraid of trusting themselves to just get into the flow.
This article identifies the catastrophe that befalls most stories and what to do about it.
Let’s start with the basics: Why are you writing your book?
You have a story to tell and it won’t go away. You have to tell it. Maybe you’re just getting started. Or you’re stuck in the middle somewhere. Maybe it’s your first draft, maybe it’s your tenth.
Whatever you struggle with, whatever you love or hate about writing, your biggest challenge is engaging your reader.
Ok, this is hard to admit but I think it’s important to acknowledge the ongoing pitfall of being a writer: We get knocked down and it's really hard to stand up again.
In fact, it’s hard to admit that we’ve fallen at all.
Self-help books continue to be a favorite of readers everywhere. People it seems never tire of asking for advice. To maximize your success, you might want to follow the conventions and expectations of publishers like Hay House and Workman, who have pretty much set the high bar. Accordingly, your successful self-help book must have the following seven elements well-developed:
We are all liars because we are afraid the truth isn’t good enough to stand on its own. And in a way, that’s true. Truth needs to be stripped to its essentials, to its naked power in order to touch us and alter us.
I believe that’s the real work of a writer. We do it for ourselves and those we have a message for.
How do we access the truth to tell our story (fiction or nonfiction)?
Intention works but rigidity does not; command does not. Sometimes we need to scream, sometimes to remain silent and feel the pressure of birth.
What does it mean to write from your core? What’s in it for you, as an author?
The short answer? It will help you write an inspired book and write it faster.
I was talking to a room of writers last week about the difference between the “everyday” mind and the “core” mind.
The everyday mind quickly scans the surface of reality—the way you’re probably scanning this article right now.
Sadly I have seen smart and dedicated professionals spend months on a self-help book that fails to make a ripple. Usually, the culprit is one or more of the three following pitfalls. I don't want that to happen to you. So p-l-e-a-s- e don't fall down the same black hole.