Will You Write a Book in 2021?
You could hardly find a better time to write a book. On every level, 2020 shook the world out of its familiar patterns of operation. Nowhere is this truer than in the area of how we do business.
You could have several compelling reasons to write a book.
- Your business has created and successfully implemented new methods for managing your remote office work situation.
- You’ve discovered new ways to reach customers, via creative use of blogs, newsletters, and other forms of communication.
- You’ve organized successful online conferences.
These are only a few possibilities.
Maybe you’re a visionary with a gift of anticipating trends. With your picture of the future in mind, you have a number of ideas for restructuring aspects of your business to meet anticipated needs.
Other business leaders want to know about whatever you have to contribute. The times demand increased cooperation and sharing of ideas.
“But I Can’t Write a Book.”
This argument gets weaker with every technological advance. In one of my blogs last month I mentioned that some aspiring writers dictate for five minutes a day into their phones. In a year, this can yield enough material for a book.
I had a potential client who asked me if she could narrate her chapters and have me turn them into a book. I assured her that I could, and I have done this kind of work on many occasions.
Maybe You’ve Already Written a Book
You might be surprised how quickly blog posts can add up to book-length material. If your blog is 500-800 words in length, and you write one weekly, that’s 2000-3200 words a month. A year’s worth of blogs comes out to 24,400 to 38,400 words. These are decent size books.
We tend to be conditioned by the idea that books are long, 400-500 pages, which depending on page and type size, can log in at over 100,000 words. In reality, as people’s attention spans have contracted, books have gotten shorter. A 100-page book, which can run from 24,000 to 30+ thousand words in length, is thick enough to have a spine, which you want in your print version. E-books can be as short as you want.
Most business books are getting shorter.
Your blog posts have already landed you at the low end of that range. Editing and expansion of key ideas can move the text into the higher range.
“But I Don’t Know How to Organize That Material.”
Enter the developmental editor. These are experts who have the gift of looking at your material with fresh eyes and organizing it into a comprehensive and compelling book.
If you go the dictation route, a ghostwriter can interview you by asking key questions. In this format, both the questions they ask and the completeness of the answers you give are what makes or breaks the value of your book, as does the ease of communication between the two of you. Once they’ve gathered the material, they will organize and edit it in much the way that a developmental editor does.
Result: A Book of Which You Can Be Proud
And that book can make a difference in your industry. You can take additional pride in the contribution you make.
Another benefit worth mentioning is that by focusing on particular subjects related to your business or business developments in general, you will discover even more ideas. The questions a ghostwriter asks may spark creativity. The way an editor rearranges your thoughts may have the same result.
You could also become hooked on writing books. And that’s not a bad thing.
Pat Iyer is a developmental editor and ghostwriter. Executives hire her to enable them to get their book done. Connect with Pat at patiyer.com.
Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.
Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.
Reach her through Patiyer.com
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