Learning how to write a book for the first time is a challenge, but you can easily become an author.
In this article, I offer a step-by-step process for writing your first book faster.
Over the past few years, I wrote a three-part series of books about writing called Become a Writer Today. I also published The Power of Creativity, a novella and several short stories.
I’ve faced many painful mistakes while writing books, and I’ve also learned a little bit about how to write a book.
In this guide, I'll explain exactly how to write a book based on my experiences and lessons from talking to other authors on the Become a Writer Today podcast.
I'll also reveal some of my mistakes and offer proven book writing tips. My speciality is nonfiction book writing. That said, you can apply some of the lessons from this guide to fiction too.
How to write a book
1. Develop Your Book Writing Skills
Book writing, like any skill, takes time to develop. You need to learn skills like writing the first draft, self-editing, arranging your ideas and so on.
Your strengths and weaknesses, life experiences and even the books you read play a crucial role in shaping the author you will become.
Don’t worry if you get things wrong.
Stephen King threw the draft of his first book in the bin. His wife fished the book, Carrie, out of the trash and encouraged him to finish and publish it.
2. Create A Dedicated Writing Space
Do you have a dedicated place in your house to cook? Or perhaps you have a large couch in front of your television?
____-WHAT______ can be an easy and fun activity if you have a dedicated space. The same is true for writing.
Want to write a best selling book?
Create a dedicated writing space where you can work on your first draft without interruption.
Ideally, your space will be sparse and devoid of distractions. That means no televisions, game consoles or other items that don’t support your writing.
You could put inspirational posters on the wall or look out onto your garden. Conversely, many successful authors prefer working while facing the wall because the outside is distracting.
Remember, a perfect writing atmosphere varies from one author to another.
Tip: You could also go to a library or coffee shop each day. The poet Raymond Carver wrote many of his early poems in his car. As long as you can work without interruption, you’re good.
3. Decide Why You Want To Write A Book
Most people forget to mention how lonely the writing process feels. Authors spend hours researching, revising and sitting alone in a room with only words and ideas for company.
If you’ve never written a book, the isolation is difficult to get used to, but it’ll pass as you get into the process of writing the book.
The people close to you might understand what you’re doing, but don’t count on it! One new writer struggling with his book emailed me to say:
“One of the reasons I have not gone farther with writing is because my family sees me working at a computer, or like today with a cell phone, and thinks I’m goofing off.“
Is my book a passion project?
Am I writing this book to improve my writing skills?
Will this book help me advance my career or become an expert in my field?
How will I serve existing or new readers with my work?
Is a book the best medium for me to express my ideas?
Do I want to generate a side income from my book, and if so, how much?
Do I have a plan for marketing, promoting and distributing my book?
Will this title help me advance my dream for writing full time?
Find at least four to seven reasons why you’re writing a book in the first place. Referring to your list will keep you motivated when you feel isolated or others question what you’re doing.
I wrote How to start your First Book because I wanted to:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09FZQHWMJ
Practice writing and improve my craft
Help other writers and readers
Deepen my knowledge of various topics
Earn a side income from sales.
Tip: Keep your list of reasons alongside your book notes so you can review it regularly.
4. Commit To Writing Your Book
Writing a book is a time-consuming creative project that demands months (or even years) of time. Ask yourself if you have the mental resources, creative energy and time to do it.
You must write every day and sacrifice other pursuits or rearrange your day so you can put writing a book first. When I wrote my first book, I gave up playing Call of Duty and Halo because I didn’t have the time to write and play games.
Tip: Commit to working on your book every day by writing in the same place at the same time, either early in the morning or late at night.
5. Research Your Ideal Reader
what readers want
Identify what readers want… and what you can write about
A reader buys a book because they want to be informed, inspired educated or entertained.
Connecting with your intended audience is critical when you want to publish your manuscript.
You must cater to a certain demographic, so having a clear idea about your intended audience can go a long way in shaping your book.
For instance, J.K. Rowling wrote her Harry Potter books primarily targeting teenagers and young adults reading for pleasure.
Her books catered to a universal audience and became a cult phenomenon due to her magical storytelling abilities. Always keep your intended audience in mind and consider how they might feel or react to your book.
Figure out what you’re going to say that’s different.
If you want to entertain, educate or inform readers, you must offer something no one else can.
Tip: If you're writing nonfiction, consider surveying someone who represents your ideal reader or interviewing them.
6. Study Other Books In Your Niche Or Genre
As a savvy writer, your job is to find out your audience's wants, likes and dislikes.
Spend an hour or two browsing Amazon and finding Kindle books about your topic. Look for books in your niche with a sales ranking below 30,000 in the Kindle store.
Typically, these books sell at least five copies per day, meaning they’re popular with readers and earn a return for the author.
Read at least the top ten books in your niche, taking note of the titles, categories and ideas behind each book. Study both good and bad reviews for these books to see what readers like and dislike and how you can improve.
An author can also easily combine several ideas from various books and remix the information with their writing.
Robert Greene, author of Mastery and The 48 Laws of Power, said he reads 300-400 books over the 12-24 months before starting a project. He uses a flashcard analogue system to record lessons and stories. In a 2013 Reddit AMA, he said,
“I read a book, very carefully, writing on the margins with all kinds of notes.
“A few weeks later I return to the book and transfer my scribbles onto note cards, each card representing a critical theme in the book.”
Tip: Learning how to analyze a book is a great way of understanding the conventions of that genre.
7. Gather Your Book Ideas
If you're writing nonfiction, readers expect accuracy and research.
If you're writing fiction, and your story takes place in real-world locations, details matter. Every good author has a system for arranging ideas for their current and future books.
Try these options:
Learn how to journal
Keep a personal Zettelkästen
Use a mind map
Tip: Review your Kindle notes from other books at least once a week. You’ll be amazed by what you forget.
8. Establish What Your Book Is About
Get a blank piece of paper and spend an hour asking and answering questions like:
Who is this book for?
What’s the big idea behind my book?
What are my strengths and weaknesses?
How is my book different from other titles?
Why should people spend their money (or time) reading my work?
What can I offer that no one else can?
Nobody has to read your answers, so be honest. They'll help you write a more concise first draft. Free writing can help with this step too.
Tip: Road test positioning statements by writing and publishing short articles related to that topic on popular blogs and other writing platforms like Medium.
9. Decide What Type Of Author You Are
There are two types of authors: pantsers and plotters.
Pantsers are writers who sit down in front of the blank page with only a vague idea of where they are going or what the story is about.
They write from the seat of their pants, inventing things as they go along, and are happy to see where their characters take them. They write with a connection to God, their muse or their subconscious.
Stephen King is a pantser.
Plotters spend weeks or months planning their book ideas. They decide what they want to write about in advance. They also have a clear view of their story before they begin.
When plotters sit down to write, they have a firm idea of what they’re going to say and the research to back it up.
Robert Greene is a plotter.
I’ve tried both approaches, and there’s nothing wrong with either. You’ll discover what type of writer you are, and your writing voice will emerge if you turn up and do the work.
Remember, as Seth Godin says, “Everybody’s writing process is different.”
After years of painful rewrites, unfinished manuscripts and pulling my hair out, I found out I’m a plotter. I like to know what I’m writing about in advance.
I NEED to know what I’m writing about in advance. Today, I’m convinced being a plotter lends itself well to most types of nonfiction writing.
Tip: Identify a subject or an area of expertise about which you can write at length and let your imagination soar. Freewriting is one way to explore your interests before planning or starting a book.
10. Interview Experts For Nonfiction Books
Years ago, part of my job as a journalist involved interviewing politicians, business people and even authors.
The interviews that caused me the most problems were more than 60 minutes long because they took hours to transcribe.
Don’t make my mistake.
Interviews can help you research a nonfiction book faster and add credibility to your work.
However, if you’re interviewing subjects, keep your interviews between 30 and 60 minutes and work out in advance what you want to ask interviewees.
Tip: You can save a lot of time by getting your interviews transcribed for a dollar a minute using Rev.
11. Set A Cutoff Date For Your Research
How much research is too much?
Greene’s books are dense, nonfiction books of more than 500 pages filled with historical stories and psychological insights. In other words, research forms the backbone of what he writes.
Consider a typical Frederick Forsyth novel, the english novelist of books like The Jackal.
He dedicates entire chapters to describing the origins and operations of an intelligence agency. This process indicates in-depth research.
Your book might not depend on so much research upfront. Remember, research can turn into a form of procrastination.
Tip: You can always fix gaps during the editing process.
12. Establish Your Book’s Controlling Idea
You might want to write a children’s book, or a book about a sport or a diet regime. Or you might want to tell a personal story or offer a guide to a complex topic like teaching science to kids.
Your job will feel a lot easier if you get yourself a chainsaw.
For authors, that chainsaw is the controlling idea behind their book.
Tip: Consider two to three books from your preferred genre. Use the back jacket copy or book blurb to extract their controlling ideas.
How to start your firstBook: An Easy Guide to Researching, Creating, Editing, and Self-Publishing Your First Book (It free here today) or get it.
I also recommend using a plagiarism checker like Grammarly or ProWritingAid to check your nonfiction works for inadvertent mistakes.
Ultimately, the tool is less important than the process.
Tip: Check out our guide to the best book writing apps.
14. Outline Your Book
Outlining a book is an ideal approach for most nonfiction authors and plotters. You can create an outline using an index card or dedicated software like Dynalist or MindMeister.
Here's how I did it: I
Tip: Create an outline based around the three-act structure. Book writing apps like Living Writer include this.
15. Break Writing Into Small Chunks
Writing a book is much like running a marathon.
A new runner doesn’t attempt to run 26 miles as part of the first session. Achieving that level of endurance requires many sessions to build the discipline and strength to finish a marathon.
16. Write Everyday (If You Can)
Do you need to write every day?
If this is your first book, it’s unrealistic to expect you can write every day for several months. Instead, aim to write five or six days every week.
Cultivating a writing habit becomes crucial when you reach this juncture.
A good writing habit ensures that you set aside time each day for creative work.
If you haven’t written much before, set a more achievable daily word count target along the lines of 300 or 400 words.
17. Finish Your Messy First Draft … Fast
Writing the first draft of a book is intimidating. You look at the blank page in front of you and wonder how you’re going to fill this page and hundreds of other pages to come.
Don’t overthink it.
Instead, find somewhere you can write quietly for an hour and do all you can to get the words out of your head and onto the blank page.
The first draft is sometimes called the vomit draft (Eww!) or the rough draft because you just need to get it out!
Don’t stop to edit yourself, review what you’ve written or see if what you’re saying makes sense.
Tip: Speech to text software will help you write a first draft faster.
18. Accept You'll Make Mistakes
A rough draft, like the name suggests, includes flaws. As long as you have a skeleton idea that you can refine and rework, your rough draft is a success.
A writer shared this sentiment with me a few weeks ago:
“My writing isn’t good enough; I feel like I’ll never finish my first draft!”
First of all, the job of your first draft is simply to exist, so don’t worry about the writing.
20. Set A Deadline
Professional writers work to deadlines. Some writers complain that deadlines loom like a guillotine and find them off-putting.
Your story will not jump out of that blank page on a bright sunny day and say, “Hey, I am ready to be published!”
A typical nonfiction book consists of between 60,000 and 80,000 words, and a typical novel can be anywhere from 60,000 to 120,000 words.
(You can write shorter books if you’re self-publishing.)
If you want to write a nonfiction book, and you commit to writing 1,000 words every day, it will take you 60 days to write the first draft if you write daily.
Tip: Put deadlines into your calendar for a first draft and for sending your book to an editor.
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https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09FZQHWMJ
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