10 ridiculously simple steps for writing a book

10 ridiculously simple steps for writing a book10 ridiculously simple steps for writing a bookWriting is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words. - Mark TwainAs the bestselling author of five books, I can tell you without hesitation that the hardest part of a writers job is sitting down to do the work. Books dont just write themselves, after all. You have to invest everything you are into creating an important piece of work.For years, I dreamed of being a professional writer. I believed I had important things to say that the world needed to hear. But as I look back on what it really takes to become an author, I realize how different the process was from my expectations.To begin with, you dont just sit down to write a book. Thats elend how writing works. You write a sentence, then a paragraph, then maybe if youre lucky, an entire chapter. Writing happens in fits and starts, in bits and pieces. Its a process.The way you get the work done is not complicated. You take one s tep at a time, then another and another. As I look back on the books Ive written, I can see how the way they were made was not as glamorous as I once thought.How to really write a bookIn this post, Ill teach you the fundamental steps you need to write a book. Ive worked hard to make this easy to digest and super practical, so you can start making progress.And just a heads up if you dream of authoring a bestselling book like I have and youre looking for a structured plan to guide you through the writing process, I have a special opportunity for you at the end of this post where I break the process down.But first, lets look at the big picture. What does it take to write a book? It happens in three phasesBeginning You have to start writing. This sounds obvious, but it may be the most overlooked step in the process. You write a book by deciding first what youre going to write and how youre going to write it.Staying motivated Once you start writing, you will face self-doubt and overwhelm and a hundred other adversaries. Planning ahead for those obstacles ensures you wont quit when they come.endbearbeitung Nobody cares about the book that you almost wrote. We want to read the one you actually finished, which means no matter what, the thing that makes you a writer is your ability not to start a project, but to complete one.Below are 10 ridiculously simple tips that fall under each of these three major phases plus an additional 10 bonus tips. I hope they help you tackle and finish the book you dream of writing.To download a complete reference guide for all 20 writing tips click here to get them all for free.Phase 1 Getting startedWe all have to start somewhere. With writing a book, the first phase is made up of four parts1. Decide what the book is aboutGood writing is always about something. Write the argument of your book in a sentence, then stretch that out to a paragraph, and then to a one-page outline. After that, write a table of contents to help guide you as you write, then break each chapter into a few sections. Think of your book in terms of beginning, middle, and end. Anything more complicated will get you lost.2. Set a daily word count goalJohn Grisham began his writing career as a lawyer and new dad - in other words, he was really busy. Nonetheless, he got up an hour or two early every morning and wrote a page a day. After a couple of years, he had a novel. A page a day is only about 300 words. You dont need to write a lot. You just need to write often. Setting a daily goal will give you something to aim for. Make it small and attainable so that you can hit your goal each day and start building momentum.3. Set a time to work on your book every dayConsistency makes creativity easier. You need a daily deadline to do your work - thats how youll finish writing a book. Feel free to take a day off, if you want, but schedule that ahead of time. Never let a deadline pass dont let yourself off the hook so easily. Setting a daily deadline and regular writing time will ensure that you dont have to think about when you will write. When its time to write, its time to write.4. Write in the same distribution policy every timeIt doesnt matter if its a desk or a restaurant or the kitchen table. It just needs to be different from where you do other activities. Make your writing location a special space, so that when you enter it, youre ready to work. It should remind you of your commitment to finish this book. Again, the goal here is to not think and just start writing.Phase 2 Doing the workNow, its time to get down to business. Here, we are going to focus on the next three tips to help you get the book done5. Set a total word countBegin with the end in mind. Once youve started writing, you need a total word count for your book. Think in terms of 10-thousand work increments and break each chapter into roughly equal lengths. Here are some general guiding principles10,000 words = a pamphlet or business white paper. Read time = 30 -60 minutes.20,000 words = short eBook or manifesto. The Communist Manifesto is an example of this, at about 18,000 words. Read time = 1-2 hours.40,00060,000 words = standard nonfiction book / novella. The Great Gatsby is an example of this. Read time = three to four hours.60,00080,000 words = long nonfiction book / standard-length novel. fruchtwein Malcolm Gladwell books fit in this range. Read time = four to six hours.80,000 words100,000 words = very long nonfiction book / long novel. The Four-Hour Work Week falls in this range.100,000+ words = epic-length novel / academic book / biography. Read time = six to eight hours. The Steve Jobs biography would fit this category.6. Give yourself weekly deadlinesYou need a weekly goal. Make it a word count to keep things objective. Celebrate the progress youve made while still being honest about how much work is left to do. You need to have something to aim for and a way to measure yourself. This is the only way I ever get any work done wit h a deadline.7. Get early feedbackNothing stings worse than writing a book and then having to rewrite it, because you didnt let anyone look at it. Have a few trusted advisers to help you discern whats worth writing. These can be friends, editors, family. Just try to find someone who will give you honest feedback early on to make sure youre headed in the right direction.Phase 3 FinishingHow do you know when youre done? Short answer you dont. Not really. So heres what you do to end this book-writing process well8. Commit to shippingNo matter what, finish the book. Set a deadline or have one platzdeckchen for you. Then release it to the world. Send it to the publisher, release it on Amazon, do whatever you need to do to get it in front of people. Just dont put it in your drawer. The worst thing would be for you to quit once this thing is written. That wont make you do your best work and it wont allow you to share your ideas with the world.9. Embrace failureAs you approach the end of th is project, know that this will be hard and you will most certainly mess up. Just be okay with failing, and give yourself grace. Thats what will sustain you - the determination to continue, not your elusive standards of perfection.10. Write another bookMost authors are embarrassed by their first book. I certainly was. But without that first book, you will never learn the lessons you might otherwise miss out on. So, put your work out there, fail early, and try again. This is the only way you get better. You have to practice, which means you have to keep writing.Every writer started somewhere, and most of them started by squeezing their writing into the cracks of their daily lives. Thats how I began, and it may be where you begin, as well. The ones who make it are the ones who show up day after day. You can do the same.The reason most people never finish their booksEvery year, millions of books go unfinished. Books that could have helped people, brought beauty or wisdom into the worl d. But they never came to be. And in one way or another, the reason is always the same the author quit.Maybe youve dealt with this. You started writing a book but never completed it. You got stuck and didnt know how to finish. Or you completed your manuscript but didnt know what to do after. Worse yet, you wrote a book, but nobody cared about it. Nobody bought or read it.Ive been there before.In fact, the first couple books I wrote didnt do that well at all - even with a traditional publisher. It took me years to learn this, but heres what nobody ever told meBefore you can launch a bestseller, first you have to write one.What I mean by that is so many writers sit down to write their masterpiece, assuming thats all there is to it. Just sit down and write. But as Ive studied the worlds most gifted and successful authors, Ive noticed this is not what the masters do. They are far more intentional than simply sitting and letting the words flow.Every great writer needs a ordnungsprinzip they can trust. You and I are no different. But an authors system for how they produce bestselling book after bestselling book is not always the easiest thing to access. So, as a matter of survival, Ive had to figure it out for myself and create a clear book-writing framework that works. This is what I call the Write a Bestseller Method which helps me get a book written and ready to launch.This is the part that I never learned in any English class. Producing work that sells is not just about writing what you think is good. Its about finding an idea that will both excite you and excite an audience. Its about being intentional and thinking through the whole process, while having proper accountability to keep you going.In other words, the writing process matters. It matters a lot. You have to not only finish your book but write one worthy of being sold. And if you want to maximize your chances of finishing your book, you need a proven plan.Writing books has changed my life. It helped m e clarify my thinking, find my calling as an author, and has provided endless opportunities to make an impact on the world and a living for my family.If youre serious about doing the same, click here to learn more about the Write a Bestseller Program.Bonus 10 more writing tipsIf you need some help staying motivated, here are another 10 tips to help you keep going in the process11. Only write one chapter at a timeWrite and publish a novel, one chapter at a time, using Amazon Kindle Singles, Wattpad, or sharing with your email list subscribers.12. Write a shorter bookThe idea of writing a 500-page masterpiece can be paralyzing. Instead, write a short book of poems or stories. Long projects are daunting. Start small.13. Start a blog to get feedback earlyGetting feedback early and often helps break up the overwhelm. Start a website on WordPress or Tumblr and use it to write your book a chapter or scene at a time. Then eventually publish all the posts in a hardcopy book. This is a little different than tradition blogging, but the same concepts apply. We created a free tool to help you know when your blog posts are ready to publish. Check out Dont Hit Publish.14. Keep an inspiration listYou need it in order to keep fresh ideas flowing. Read constantly, and use a system to capture, organize and find the content youve curated. I use Evernote, but use a system that works for you.15. Keep a journalThen, rewrite the entries in a much more polished book format, but use some photocopies or scans of the journal pages as illustrations in the book. You could even sell deluxe editions that come with photocopied versions of the journal.16. Deliver consistentlySome days, its easy to write. Some days, its incredibly hard. The truth is inspiration is merely a byproduct of your hard work. You cant wait for inspiration. The Muse is really an out-of-work bum who wont move until you do. Show her whos boss and that you mean business.17. Take frequent breaksNiel Fiore, the author of The Now Habit, says, There is one main reason why we procrastinate It rewards us with temporary relief from stress. If youre constantly stressed about your unfinished book, youll end up breaking your schedule. Instead, plan for breaks ahead of time so you stay fresh minute breaks, hour breaks, or even multiple day breaks.18. Remove distractionsTry tools like Bear or Scrivener to let you write in a totally distraction-free environment. That way, email, Facebook, and Twitter wont interrupt your flow.19. Write where others are writing (or working)If youre having trouble writing consistently by yourself, write where other people are also working. A coffee shop or library where people are actually working and not just socializing can help. If youre in a place where other people are getting things done, then youll have no choice but to join them.20. Dont edit as you goInstead, write without judgment first, then go back and edit later. Youll keep a better flow and wont be interrupted by const ant criticism of your own work. And youll have a lot more writing to edit when its time to do so.Its not just about the writingMost books go unfinished. Thats the reality. And those that do get finished quickly fade into anonymity amongst the hundreds of thousands of new books that are published every year.If you want to be different, youre going to need a plan. Ive tried to share that with you in this post. But maybe you want to not only get your book done, but you want to make sure its something worth selling. You want a proven plan, something you can trust - checklist that ensures you will get the work done.The Write a Bestseller program is just that.Remember Before you can launch a bestseller, you have to write one. Fortunately, Ive broken down my process piece by piece - this is what Ive learned from publishing five books and from talking to many of the worlds bestselling authors.In this program, I share with you exactly what it takes to write a bestselling book and why this is something you need to be thinking about from Day 1. This quick but thorough online course will help youFigure out how to come up with a compelling idea for a book and turn it into something people will want to readFinally finish that book manuscript youve been playing with for yearsFollow a proven plan to write not only a good book but one that will continue to sellTo learn more about that and have me walk you through each step of writing a best-selling book, click here.You can also download a complete reference guide for all of these writing tips here.This article first appeared on Goins, Writer.