start writing a book

Why You Haven’t Written Your Book Yet: 5 Tips to Start Writing (+Finish!)

January 8, 2019 by Lisa Tener

The two biggest challenges of writing a book are to start writing and to finish your book.

The other day I heard from someone who’d been working on her book for 15 years.

15 years!

Have you been struggling to start writing your book or finish it?

Here are the 5 main reasons I see people get stuck, along with tips to get unstuck and start writing:

“I don’t know where to start.” Hard to start writing if you don’t know where you’re going. A road map will help. Sit tight. It’s coming.
“Who am I to write a book?” Ah, self doubt. Who can escape it? Those nasty comments inside our heads telling us we don’t have the credentials, or the talent, or the know how. Rubbish. I’ve coached people who got C’s in writing as children who learned a few rules of good writing and went on to write award winning books. Thank the critic for its opinion and move on. Get feedback from readers in your target market and hire an editor with a strong reputation in your genre (I’m happy to make suggestions). You don’t have to do this project all on your own! Gather a stellar team instead.
“What will people think of me and my book?” We’re all afraid of failure and of putting ourselves out there. Most authors worry about how their books will be received. Yet, how will you feel if you never take a chance? Let go of what others will think and listen to your heart. One way to turn this on its head is to let go of the ego that worries about how you’ll be seen and focus on the service oriented aspects of writing your book. Think of all the people you’ll help. You know in your heart that you’re writing your book for them, not for your ego. So, when ego whispers in your ear, think of your commitment to readers instead.
“What if my book is successful? Then what? Will I lose all my privacy?” This sabotaging voice is a bit more subtle but dangerous all the same. It’s good to think about your future with a successful book—both the pros and cons—and then plan for what will make the journey most enjoyable. How can you design success in a way that uplifts you? Put this fear to work and turn it into an ally! It will make success all the sweeter—and on your terms.
“I just can’t seem to consistently make the time.” Is there one activity or commitment you can release? Perhaps let go of a volunteer activity for a few months in order to focus on your book. You can return to it when your finish your book. Or perhaps just reduce your time spent on less productive activities such as surfing the internet or watching a favorite Netflix series. Turn those activities into a reward for after you complete the writing. Put your book first by scheduling the time right into your calendar or phone. Once you schedule specific days and times in your calendar, keep them sacred, whenever possible.

[bctt tweet=”How to Start Writing a Nonfiction Book” username=”LisaTener”]

Okay, I promised a road map to address how and where to start writing a nonfiction book. Here are three options that all provide a solid road map:

If you’re writing a how-to, self-help or business book, check out the self-study program, Quick Start to Kick Start Your Book. I’m offering it at a 20% discount for the month of January, or only $77.60 (the discount will show up in the cart at the end, not on the product page). Quick Start will help you clarify your book concept and structure BEFORE you start writing your book.
I’ll be holding a free training with the support of my pal Samantha Bennett on January 30 to teach you exactly how to start writing your book, and to make it a compelling book. We’ll cover all the common challenges and answer your questions. Sign up here!
If your book feels urgent, you don’t have to wait until January 30. Schedule an exploratory call and we can determine the best way for you to get started now.

How To Write A Great Book

February 4, 2018 by Lisa Tener

Someone asked me recently how to write a great book. She wondered, “Is there a formula?” Rather than a formula, I would suggest there are important guidelines to help you get started to write your book. Get clear on these before you get writing—or as soon as you are able—and you are more likely to write a great book! Here’s the most important thing to know:

Yes, You Can Write a Great Book!

I’m sure you want to write a book that makes an impact—inspires, supports, guides, creates positive change for readers. The kind of book readers share with friends, buy as gifts, and recommend on Facebook and Goodreads.

Most of my clients write books that powerfully transform some aspect of their readers’ lives. Here are just a few examples:

Consider the Nautilus Award-Winning book, The Soul of All Living Creatures, by Dr. Vint Virga. This great book offers stories about animals that open our hearts, minds and souls to the four legged creatures we share our planet with.
Success Without Stress: Simple Steps to Finding Calm for Women Business Owners became a finalist for two presitgious awards: 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards and 2017 New Generation Indie Book Award. This great book helps women business owners reach their goals calmly, amid the chaos of the entrepreneurial lifestyle.
On the Verge by Cara Bradley gives readers tools to make mindfulness a daily practice. It was recently featured on the Oprah Network with a four page reprint. Imagine how many people that book is impacting!
Arts Awareness, by Dr. Patricia Hoy shows how readers can apply the principles used in the arts to expand their everyday consciousness.
Full by Kimber Simpkins is also a Nautilus Award-Winner. Full offers readers a glimpse into how the author shifted her relationship with her body over time and overcame an eating disorder.
Feedback First won two Stevie Awards from the American Business Awards (For Best Business Book and Best Business E-Book). This gem by Huibert Jan Evekink and Steven Becker teaches team leaders and members to give and receive constructive feedback within multinational and multicultural teams, taking into account different cultures and the expectations of millenials, in particular.
The Creativity Cure, by Drs. Carrie and Alton Barron, offers a “Prescription for Happiness” and delivers!

Imagine the impact each of these books is having on their readers!

What about your book? You may wonder how to bring your wisdom and brilliance onto the page? How can you help your readers transform their lives?

How Do You Write a Great Book? What Are These Authors’ Secrets?

Writing a great book starts with a vision and a plan.

Before you ever write a word, get crystal clear on your vision for what you want readers to experience.

And to get clear about that, you need to identify who your readers are, and deeply understand what’s going on in their minds and hearts.

For instance, in Success Without Stress, Teri had a clear image of her reader: a business owner with a vision for how her business should be and where she wants her business to go, but who’s juggling so many priorities and projects, she constantly in a state of stress, unable to get out of crisis mode. The reader is a victim of her own success. And she desperately wants to change that.

Keeping that image in mind helped Teri write in a conversational, supportive and humorous voice that immediately captivates her readers and makes them open to the strategies she shares. She makes it feel doable—easy, even.

Sometimes identifying your reader is so obvious you miss it! Dr. Carrie Barron had a working title of I’m Creative But I Can’t Create. That title implies readers that they’re creative and who see creative blocks as their big problem. Yet, as Carrie spoke to me about her clients, it hit me that this was really her market—and a huge market—people who were depressed, anxious or unhappy.

That clarity led to a great title—The Creativity Cure. Knowing her readership and the “promise” offered in her title helped Carrie and her co-author write a great book.

This article on How to Clarify Target Market offers 9 Keys for Clarifying Your Readership.

Don’t Forget The Features

Features can make a book engaging, accessible and fun. They can also help readers benefit more deeply from the book’s material by making the reader’s experience more real or deep. To write a great book, the right features can be crucial.

Graphs or charts can help make the abstract more tangible, or can provide lots of information in an easy-to-access format.
Journaling prompts or exercises can help readers experience the work directly, perhaps even causing an inner shift in perception about something, or creating an aha moment.
Cartoons can add humor and make difficult material more palatable, enjoyable even.
Quotations can inspire.
Scientific information can be put in sidebars so that it’s there for those who want it, but others can skip the more technical parts.
Stories or anecdotes can make the material come alive with examples that readers can relate to.

In On the Verge, Cara Bradley offers an “At a Glance” summary of each mindfulness practice at the beginning of each chapter. Readers immediately learn the purpose and benefits of the practice addressed in that chapter, as well as a brief version of the “how-to” of it.

While you’re probably more accustomed to finding summaries at the end of a chapter, this excellent feature quickly inspires and motivates readers to dive into each chapter by providing an idea of the benefits they’ll get out of reading about and applying the practice. With a book that has a strong experiential element (exercises or practices), it’s important to make sure readers have the support to jump in and try things, rather than just read.

Next Step: Structure!

Then there’s how to structure and organize your book—another essential element to write a great book.

Teri settled on short chapters, knowing how frazzled and busy her readers were. And the book itself is short, just over 140 pages, and each page about 3/4 the size of a typical self-help book. Even visually, this book says,”You can do it!”

Cara spent lots of time working out her structure. At first, it was just too complicated and we agreed that it could easily overwhelm her readers, so we spent time simplifying. In this case, structure was something she came back to refine several times.

Even if you have a structure that changes, you will still save so much time by virtue of just having a structure.

When people start writing without a tentative structure in place, they often end up with quite a bit of material they can’t use and a harder time figuring out the structure when they do finally get to it.

You, Too, Can Write a Great Book: Starting with Clarity is Key!

Of course, writing a great book requires time spent editing and getting input from both readers (from your target market) and at least one seasoned editor.

However, when you get clear on vision, market, tone, features and structure BEFORE you start writing, you tend to write a great book—the right book—the one that matches your vision and goals. With that clarity and strong foundation, you also tend to write a book much more quickly, and a book that succeeds in resonating with your readers. Your book is more likely to have the impact you envision.

That’s why I often recommend that before someone even have a book concept consultation with me, they work through Quick Start to Kick-Start Your Book. Because this is the self-study book writing program that will bring you clarity on all those elements mentioned above. Plus, Quick Start provides the tips you need to make the time to write a great book, stick to it, stay accountable and get support.

I often hear from authors that working through Quick Start was one of the most powerful, practical and helpful steps in getting their book written and published:

“Quick Start saved me from writing the wrong book!”

“I thought I knew what my book was until I worked through Quick Start. Then I really knew my book!”

“I had already written a first draft and it was a mess. Quick Start helped me rethink the book and write a much better second draft.”

What Do I Get with the Quick Start to Kick-Start Your Book Self-Study Program?

You will receive:

A downloadable PDF or a physical spiral workbook—your choice!
Emails to support you in the program and you can time these emails to your preferred pace—daily, every other day or weekly
An Audio CD or MP3 to guide you through the crucial exercises of visioning and clarifying your book concept
The BONUS special report: Empowered Author: How to Avoid the 10 Worst Mistakes of New Authors
The BONUS special report: Writing Breakthrough: 5 Powerful Steps for Inspiration and Flow, which teaches you the same 5 steps I use in my popular Writing in the Zone Program.

And as questions come up, you can ask on my blog and get answers directly from me in a forum where the whole community benefits.

As incentive to get started on your book for summer, I am offering a FREE BONUS of the downloadable special report Secrets of Compelling Writing, which will help you self-edit your book for starters and make your writing come to life for your readers.

The downloadable Quick Start Program is just $97 and you can find out more and purchase it here.

How About a Consultation with Your Quick Start, Sir (or Ma’am)?

Once you complete the lessons and exercises in Quick Start, you may well wonder whether your Book Concept is the best it can be:

Will it resonate with readers?
Have you chosen the right audience?
Is it marketable?
Are there features that would make it fresher? More powerful?
Does the structure work or is there a better way to organize it?

I hear you. And I absolutely LOVE helping authors get clarity and take their book concept from good to great (or even from chaos to clarity)! Here are three options below:

Option 1: Purchase Quick Start on its own and receive The Secrets of Compelling Writing as a free bonus.

Option 2: Purchase Quick Start plus a full-hour Book Concept Consultation (you will receive preparation questionnaire that you and I will both use to prepare for our call and you will receive The Secrets of Compelling Writing as a free bonus). Use both links below:

Option 3: Purchase a 1.5 hour Book Concept Consultation plus preparation questionnaire. Get Quick Start (download version) free, as well as Secrets of Compelling Writing.

Note: This special offer is not widely available, so if you purchased with this link, please inform me by email to get your complimentary copy of Quick Start, which is normally $97 for the download version, and Secrets of Compelling Writing).

Questions? Feel free to email me.

What They Say

Dr. Jeffrey George recently purchased Quick Start to get started on his book.

Here’s what he said:

Dr. Jeffrey George “Quick Start to KickStart Your Book helped me clarify my vision, set aside time for writing and develop a working title—all within a week. When I shared my title with Lisa she loved it and called it, ‘spot on.’

“Lisa’s down-to-earth style and supportive tone helped me immensely in getting started on a lifelong dream—to write a book.

“Lisa’s daily emails provided practical tips to guide an aspiring writer and Quick Start and the accompanying Meet Your Muse exercise offered the emotional support needed to overcome obstacles that have blocked me for years.”

– Dr. Jeffrey George

Here’s what Eileen Wilder, author of The Brave Body Method, Said About Her Single Book Concept Consultation

book author Eileen Wilder wrote a great book — Eileen Wilder Wrote a Great Book , Featured by Barnes & Noble and Got National Publicity

“When I hired Lisa Tener I was SO nervous… I didn’t really know what I was doing, but felt in my heart I really wanted to write a book.

a great book — Eileen’s book — featured by Barnes and Noble

“Through one coaching call, Lisa honed my book idea, gave me feedback on my title, and gave me the strategy for how to market my message. I self-published within the year, and then it got picked up by a publisher!

“Now I’m being booked for National Television Interviews and out-front placement in Barnes & Noble. Lisa’s advice was nothing but catalytic— she made my dream come true.”

– Eileen Wilder, author of The Brave Body Method

Next Steps to Write a Great Book: Strong Writing and Editing

Once you get clear on your book concept, you can write your book. Here are a few articles with writing tips. You may decide to bookmark this page for future reference and return here once you’ve settled on your book concept.

These articles will help you with the next steps of writing and then editing:

Writing Tips and Editing Advice: These tips will help you become a better writer and self-edit your work.

Each Chapter Better Than the Last: This article shares three great writing tips that Micaela Karlsen used in her book, A Plant Based Life, chosen

How to Find an Editor: Once you’ve written the whole book, or you feel you need feedback on one or more chapters before proceeding, it’s time to work with an editor. This article explains the different types of editing, as well as how to find an editor.

One step at a time. I don’t want to overwhelm you with instruction here. Perhaps you want to bookmark this page for next steps in the process of writing a great book.

Can I Really Write a Book? What to Do When Doubt Creeps In

October 5, 2011 by Lisa Tener

lisa tener book writing coach — Your Book Writing Coach

Most people who want to write a book never complete it. Some never start. And one of the biggest reasons is self-doubt.

Here are some of the doubts and my responses:

Doubt #1. “I’m not trained as a writer” or the more insidious, “I don’t have an MFA” Guess what? Many of our most famous authors were not “trained” as writers. However, they knew a few secrets:

Secret #1: Find a teacher or mentor: You can learn the most important rules of compelling writing in one sitting. Then it’s a matter of practicing them, getting feedback until it becomes a part of you. And sometimes that can happen pretty quickly. I had one client send in a train wreck and a week later sent me a beautifully written chapter of his memoir. When I asked what happened, he replied, “I just studied the feedback you sent me–really studied it–and did what you said.

Secret #2: Learn the Rules of Compelling Writing: Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style and Stephen King’s On Writing are two classics that offer easy to implement advice that can improve your writing dramatically. My two favorite rules:

* Use verbs with energy rather than passive voice

* Show; don’t tell. Ask yourself: “How can I make this come alive for my readers.”

Doubt #2: “Who’s going to read what I have to say?” “Hasn’t it all been said before?”

No one has said it exactly the way you will. Someone out there (maybe many someone’s) needs to hear it from your voice, your stories and anecdotes, whatever it is that’s special about the way you have to say it (humor, experiential exercises, examples–however your personality comes across).

Doubt #3: ” I’m so overwhelmed. I don’t know where to start” or “I’m so disorganized. How can I ever get this into book form?”

Start with your vision and goals. Why are your writing the book and for whom? What will it do for them, for you and for the world? Think about your ideal reader—the person who needs your book desperately and will read it in one sitting and recommend it to others. What will speak to them? What are they looking for? See it from their point of view. Once you do some work up front about your vision, goals, audience and features of the book, then you can organize it.

I suggest using index cards or post it notes to write ideas and move them around into categories. You may group them into 7 steps, 10 principles, or into 3 parts with 3 chapters each. Play with your cards or post it notes and try different groupings.

For more information on where to start and how to organize, check out my Quick Start to Kick Start Your Book: Turn Your Passion into Profit. It will get you started on clarifying your book concept and organizing into a table of contents and outline. And it comes with a free teleseminar just for those who purchase the product.

YOU CAN DO IT

If you have the passion and desire to write a book, trust that this prompting comes from an inner knowing and sense of purpose. If you didn’t have the potential to pull it off–and do a great job of it–you wouldn’t have the inner prompting to write it. Yes, there are likely pieces you’ll need (expertise, support, clarity, tools), but the universe will bring those along as you are ready for them. Be open to the guidance you are sent–and trust your instincts about what’s right for you.