I know, I know. This post is RIDICULOUSLY late and for that, I apologize. But on a positive note, I have much news to share with you!
First off, this picture is an accurate depiction of where much of my efforts have been devoted for the past year. I'm writing a book and the picture to the left shows the progress I've made!
Just to knock out some of the questions you may be wondering about, here's a list of things that you should know.
#1) Unfortunately I will never reveal the content of this book throughout my blog posts. Although I wish I could, this could potentially [and SIGNIFICANTLY] hinder the publishing process which will hopefully be in full force by the beginning of the new year!
#2) The book will be nonfiction and could be compared to the literary works of people like Anthony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Les Brown, Stephen Covey and Wayne Dyer.
#3) Being an author has been a lifelong dream of mine. Some people wake up in the morning with the purpose of going to work. I wake up with the purpose of working on my book. And when it's time for bed, I often lay down just in time to think about what I've been working on all day....yep....you guessed it - the BOOK! Of course, this is in addition to balancing my other ventures which I must sustain for income purposes!
First off, this picture is an accurate depiction of where much of my efforts have been devoted for the past year. I'm writing a book and the picture to the left shows the progress I've made!
Just to knock out some of the questions you may be wondering about, here's a list of things that you should know.
#1) Unfortunately I will never reveal the content of this book throughout my blog posts. Although I wish I could, this could potentially [and SIGNIFICANTLY] hinder the publishing process which will hopefully be in full force by the beginning of the new year!
#2) The book will be nonfiction and could be compared to the literary works of people like Anthony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Les Brown, Stephen Covey and Wayne Dyer.
#3) Being an author has been a lifelong dream of mine. Some people wake up in the morning with the purpose of going to work. I wake up with the purpose of working on my book. And when it's time for bed, I often lay down just in time to think about what I've been working on all day....yep....you guessed it - the BOOK! Of course, this is in addition to balancing my other ventures which I must sustain for income purposes!
Before you begin reading this list, please remember that this is the first time I've ever written a book of this particular nature; that is, a book which will be physically published and distributed. However, I've invested the majority of the past year of my life diligently researching, studying, and learning about the process one must endure in order to be an author of a successful book. With that being said, here is the list....
#1) STUDY! STUDY! STUDY!
In On Writing: a Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King writes, "You should also pick up the writers' journals and buy a copy of Writer's Market, the most valuable of tools for the writer new to the marketplace." Although this is written approximately 80% into Stephen's book, it's my belief that this is by FAR one of the best pieces of advice given in the entire publication.
Personally, If I would have purchased my copy of the 2012 Writer's Market before I purchased Stephen King's On Writing: a Memoir of the Craft, there's a very good chance that I would've never read Stephen's book, especially since I have no interest in writing fiction.
SERIOUSLY - If you're an aspiring author and wish to bring significant value to the literary world, go obtain a copy of Writer's Market! If I'm not mistaken, I believe the 2014 edition has been released! Not only will it give you a wealth of information that you would've never previously known, it'll also emphasize the importance of doing your due diligence in understanding the quickly evolving market which manages your aspiring desire!
In On Writing: a Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King writes, "You should also pick up the writers' journals and buy a copy of Writer's Market, the most valuable of tools for the writer new to the marketplace." Although this is written approximately 80% into Stephen's book, it's my belief that this is by FAR one of the best pieces of advice given in the entire publication.
Personally, If I would have purchased my copy of the 2012 Writer's Market before I purchased Stephen King's On Writing: a Memoir of the Craft, there's a very good chance that I would've never read Stephen's book, especially since I have no interest in writing fiction.
SERIOUSLY - If you're an aspiring author and wish to bring significant value to the literary world, go obtain a copy of Writer's Market! If I'm not mistaken, I believe the 2014 edition has been released! Not only will it give you a wealth of information that you would've never previously known, it'll also emphasize the importance of doing your due diligence in understanding the quickly evolving market which manages your aspiring desire!
#2) YOU THINK YOU'RE DONE? THINK AGAIN!
For every shortcut that you take while writing your book, for every chapter that you don't perfect, for every grammatical error that you don't take the time to correct, there's an aspiring author that's willing to go the distance in order to ensure that he's published before you.
If you doubt this, consider this. I'm 143,168 words into what I consider a literary masterpiece. Now, out of the 420 pages I've completed so far, approximately the first 350 pages were completed within the first couple of months of beginning this project. Nearly 1 year into this project and I'm at 420 pages. This means that with exception of about 70 pages, I've spent approximately 10 months editing, revising & improving my original draft.
Perhaps this may not seem very significant since you're not aware of my personal writing abilities and skills. However, I humbly assure you that my friends and family would agree that I'm an exceptional writer. Taking this into consideration, I'm still unsure of whether I'm going to pursue the traditional or self-publishing route. Each have their own pros and cons. The traditional route is far more complex, often involving literary agents, contract negotiations, query letters, attorneys, and a long process that can be quite complicated (refer to Writer's Market for a better understanding). Self-publishing is much simpler; however, it has some significant disadvantages that should be considered before it's chosen.
Now take a moment and think about the writers that are absolutely POSITIVE they're going to pursue the traditional publishing route. Although I won't dwell on the particulars anymore than I already have, can you imagine the extreme lengths they're going to take to ensure their manuscript is as close to perfection as possible before seeking a literary agent or a publisher that'll accept solicited manuscripts?
For every shortcut that you take while writing your book, for every chapter that you don't perfect, for every grammatical error that you don't take the time to correct, there's an aspiring author that's willing to go the distance in order to ensure that he's published before you.
If you doubt this, consider this. I'm 143,168 words into what I consider a literary masterpiece. Now, out of the 420 pages I've completed so far, approximately the first 350 pages were completed within the first couple of months of beginning this project. Nearly 1 year into this project and I'm at 420 pages. This means that with exception of about 70 pages, I've spent approximately 10 months editing, revising & improving my original draft.
Perhaps this may not seem very significant since you're not aware of my personal writing abilities and skills. However, I humbly assure you that my friends and family would agree that I'm an exceptional writer. Taking this into consideration, I'm still unsure of whether I'm going to pursue the traditional or self-publishing route. Each have their own pros and cons. The traditional route is far more complex, often involving literary agents, contract negotiations, query letters, attorneys, and a long process that can be quite complicated (refer to Writer's Market for a better understanding). Self-publishing is much simpler; however, it has some significant disadvantages that should be considered before it's chosen.
Now take a moment and think about the writers that are absolutely POSITIVE they're going to pursue the traditional publishing route. Although I won't dwell on the particulars anymore than I already have, can you imagine the extreme lengths they're going to take to ensure their manuscript is as close to perfection as possible before seeking a literary agent or a publisher that'll accept solicited manuscripts?
#3) ENJOY THE REFLECTION!
If you ever decide to write a book, it must be an honest reflection of who you are. However, this doesn't mean that it must be an autobiography or nonfiction. It simply means that being authentic with yourself means having the courage to be genuine with others!
There's no doubt about it - Writing a book is TONS of fun if you enjoy writing! Or should I say creating? If you're anything like me, it means going on a mental vacation without ever leaving the confinement of your imagination! But remember: If you write a book, the content of your book should be a genuine reflection of your thoughts, ideas and creativity.
With this, I leave you with a short extract from Csikszentmihalyi's book flow: the psychology of optimal experience: "If the only point to writing were to transmit information, then it would deserve to become obsolete. But the point of writing is to create information, not simply to pass it along."
Until Next Time....
If you ever decide to write a book, it must be an honest reflection of who you are. However, this doesn't mean that it must be an autobiography or nonfiction. It simply means that being authentic with yourself means having the courage to be genuine with others!
There's no doubt about it - Writing a book is TONS of fun if you enjoy writing! Or should I say creating? If you're anything like me, it means going on a mental vacation without ever leaving the confinement of your imagination! But remember: If you write a book, the content of your book should be a genuine reflection of your thoughts, ideas and creativity.
With this, I leave you with a short extract from Csikszentmihalyi's book flow: the psychology of optimal experience: "If the only point to writing were to transmit information, then it would deserve to become obsolete. But the point of writing is to create information, not simply to pass it along."
Until Next Time....