By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin
Often
writers will ask me, how in the world have you written over 60 books with
traditional publishers? I have a simple answer, writing books is like eating an
elephant. The task seems daunting and impossible at first.
How
do you eat an elephant? It's an old joke but you eat an elephant one bite at a
time. It the same way to accomplish any huge task—one action at a time.
Recently I began to write another book. It doesn't matter that I've done it
over and over through the years. Each time it looks daunting to write an entire
book manuscript. No matter what others will tell you for everyone getting
started is hard. The writing in the middle is hard and finishing is hard. Yes
the task is difficult and looks impossible. So how do you get it done? One bite
at a time.
What is the
deadline for completing your book? If you don't have a deadline, then I suggest
you set one. After you have a deadline, how many words a day are you going to
write to complete the deadline? Make sure you build in some extra days for the
unexpected (happens to everyone) but make sure you hit your
deadline.
Or maybe
your goal is tied to your social media. You want to reach a certain number of
followers on Twitter or a certain number of connections on LinkedIn. Are you
actively working on these networks? Are you posting a number of times each day?
Are you connecting with new people? Without your regular actions, then it will
be hard to increase your presence and meet your goals.
Do you want
to do more speaking? Are you pitching different conference directors and
leaders? From my experience you have to be proactively promoting your speaking
skills to get more speaking meetings.
Do you want
to appear on more radio shows and talk about your latest book? There are
thousands of radio stations and programs which use guests on their program.
These bookings do not happen just sitting back and waiting for them to call.
Your phone will be silent if you take this action. Instead, you need to be
actively pitching the producers of these programs.
Or maybe
you want to write more magazine
articles or appear on more podcasts? Waiting for the phone to
ring will likely not happen. What proactive steps are you taking to either go
ahead and write the article then submit it to the publication? Or you can write
a query
letter and send it simultaneously to different publications and
get an assignment?
Many are
surprised that I have written over 60 books through the years. There are several
keys in this process but one of the most important
is consistent writing. It is a matter of writing
one paragraph, then another paragraph which becomes one page then another page.
It is the same process as eating an elephant—doing it in bite-size
pieces.
Do you
break your writing into smaller pieces? I'd love to have your tips and insights
in the comments below.
Tweetable:
It appears impossible. How do you write a book? Learn the secret in this article from this prolific writer and editor. (ClickToTweet)
8 comments:
Terry, first off, I love that image! It's so true that the only way to write a book is to just do it, one bite at a time. It's reassuring to know that even you feel the pressure with each new manuscript you write. And as with everything in life, you have to take action if you want to accomplish something, whether selling your books, getting a speaking engagement, creating products, or writing for a publication. You have to keep at it. Thanks for sharing!
Karen,
Thank you for this feedback and encouragement. I've learned the hard way the author has to be actively working on every aspect of the work for it to happen--writing, the book production process and the on-going marketing. It is what we do not just once but over and over.
Terry
You keep eating those elephants, @WTerryWhalin.! Authors everywhere need to benefit from your experience! But let’s find a more environmentally sound idiom / metaphor! Lol.
Hugs, Carolyn
Carolyn,
Thanks for the feedback. There is probably a better metaphor than elephants but I'm unsure what it would be. Like eating an elephant, books are long and daunting but can be done if you persist.
Terry
Terry, this is a fun post, and so true. It's like the papers that pile up on my desk. To look at the stack is overwhelming, but following through with one paper at a time makes the task doable and soon my desk is clear. The same for writing a book. My goal each day is to get something done, no matter how small, toward my goal of publication. Some days I get a lot done, other days one or two small tasks. But with consistency, eventually the goal is reached: publication. Thank you for sharing. Your posts are always thought-provoking and inspirational.
Linda,
What a great illustration with the pile of papers. Yes the key is to keep moving forward inspire of all the interruptions and other things which happen in our lives--whether a lot of a little, the key is your consistency.
Terry
Thank you, Terry for this article!
Here we are again, a wonderful reminder: a consistent writing practice and plan works. Even if it's baby steps, it works. You've gotten some great feedback comments too.
Deborah,
Thank you. I agree--even taking baby steps consistently will eventually complete the book. Most authors do it by a certain number of words every day or every week.
Terry
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