Yes, I have been way behind in creating new blog entries but that doesn’t mean that I have stopped writing. In fact, I am trying to finish my new book by the end of the month. My last book was in early 2000 and the process of putting a book together has changed quite a bit and its been a learning process. Here are a few items for those interested in writing a book.
The first thing is how much easier it can be to self-publish a book. Being much easier doesn’t necessarily translate into “easy”. Learning the formatting and the procedure through Amazon takes some time but it necessary as they sell over 75% of all books today. kdp.amazon.com is filled with information about this.
Secondly, make sure to spend time laying out your book before writing it. This will save you an enormous amount of time and effort. Having said that, you will probably start to change your layout as the book comes together. In my case, the original idea of the book went through a major change as I was putting together training programs and the state of the industry address.
The third item is that niche or industry-type of books need to be smaller today. My plan was for 2oo plus pages and hardcover. After talking with several publishers and editors, they all said the same thing: keep it around 130 pages and make it paperback.
Finally, like most things, it ends up taking a little longer than you expect. Plan ahead, schedule times to write. Break it into writing a chapter or even a few pages of a chapter at at time. I found that if you try to write to much at a time you start to think more about finishing than making it the best you can.
Kevin Shortle