writing miracles

When you write a book, it changes your life. It’s somewhat magical how it happens. Years ago, I wrote a post about 5 miracles I witness time and again when my clients write their books and publish. I felt it was time to revisit that post with some new examples and a few more miracles!

You’ll Change People’s Lives: Gustavo Ferrer, MD, co-author with Burke Lenihan of Cough Cures, shares that, “Publishing my first book opened new doors and brought the satisfaction of seeing new patients coming to the office and telling me, ‘I love your book.'” He wrote the book because most people—even doctors—don’t know the best cures for a cough. And many medicines are actually dangerous! He’d seen patients in the emergency room die from taking the wrong mix of over the counter medicines. Cough Cures helps prevent those accidents and help people get over their coughs safely. “The feeling that you are impacting people’s lives is the best of all!”
You’ll Discover Your Voice: Writing is partially an act of self-discovery. As you write your first draft, you may find that sections of your writing skim the surface, or come out a little generic. With a bit of coaxing, you’ll find that deeper place where you write from your heart. It may come out poetic or practical, nurturing or a bit nutty, hilariously funny or right on the money, but you’ll feel it when you hit it right—your authentic voice. Finding your voice will empower you in new ways, as a writer and as a human being. Plus, it will enhance your writing and draw your audience to you. Many of my clients come from an academic background. It’s thrilling for them and for me when that light turns on and they rediscover a truer voice that speaks directly to their readers. Dr. Gus Ferrer shares that, “I found a voice that tells me how to communicate complex things in simple language.”
You’ll Make a Name for Yourself: Karin Esterhammer was honored as Erma Bombeck Humor Writer of the Month by the University of Dayton (what humor writer wouldn’t be blown away by that honor?!) and her book So Happiness To Meet You: Foolishly, Blissfully Stranded in Vietnam was featured in Fodor’s 2017 Holiday Gift Guide, alongside 16 other great books by celebrated authors including J.M. Coetzee, John Hodgman, Salman Rushdie and Douglas Preston. What exciting company!
You’ll Get to Know Your Muse: As humans, we are naturally creative. As you write a book, you have the opportunity to deepen your connection to your creative source–what some people call “your muse.” That will help you with all kinds of things—from enjoying your life and relationships, to tapping into your creativity for business projects, to bringing more breadth to your writing and other activities. Kimber Simpkins strengthened that muscle in writing her Nautilus Award-Winning Memoir, Full: How I Learned to Satisfy My Insatiable Hunger and Feed My Soul. Her connection with her muse continues to deepen as she writes for the Huffington Post and completed a new book, 52 Ways to Love Your Body. Her first book trailer, which went viral and got picked up by Self, also offers an example of the creativity that comes out of her strong “muse-connection.”
You’ll Gain the Confidence and Credentials to Take Risks and Go for Your Dreams: Becoming an author of an award winning book helped Huibert Evekink take the plunge, leave his executive position in a large multinational corporation and start his own business, using the book as a business building tool. “Writing and publishing Feedback First allowed me to develop new professional identities…as a writer, an communication expert and as a entrepreneur. I liked starting in a “safe environment”– with Lisa as book coach– in order to learn, gain new skills and transition into new roles. I am still surprised how much the book gave me!”
You’ll Show Up in a New Way: Before publishing Get 10,000+ Twitter Followers: Easily, Quickly, Ethically, Cathy Turney saw herself as “a right-brain creative, technophobic Luddite.” “That I could come to grasp Twitter and actually convey what I learned to others in a style that readers could understand and absorb—using the word focus throughout, making it kind of humorous (snarky), and showing (with illustrations) rather than just telling readers how to do it—that was a miracle,” she says.
You’ll Be Surprised: Perhaps this one is the most miraculous, because it’s also unpredictable. When you write a book, opportunities will enter your life that you could not have anticipated. Some may fulfill a dream.
Carrie Barron, author of The Creativity Cure reports, “Publishing a book created a whole new path, one that I never expected. My job as Director of Creativity for Resilience at Dell Medical School involves integrating the Arts and Humanities into medical training. I’m helping burned out doctors find transcendent movements in their lives, helping them improve mood, mind and the experience of their patients as well. It’s exciting to have such a profound impact.”

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In my own case, I never could have predicted that writing and publishing my first book would have led to a whole new career as a book coach.

Write a Book!

Are you ready for your miracles? Aspiring authors: Share a miracle you envision for your published book.

Published authors, what are some of the miracles that happened to you when you published your book? Please share them below as a comment.

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When you write a book, it changes your life. It’s somewhat magical how it happens. Here are the 5 Miracles I witness time and again when my clients write their books and publish:

You’ll Change People’s Lives: If you’re writing a self-helf or how to book, you’re either writing to help people solve a problem or help them reach a certain goal or both. And when that happens, you are going to meet people who tell you what a difference your book made in their lives. And it will blow you away. I remember when Amy O’Brien published her first book, Stuck with Mr. Wrong. A woman came up to her at a book signing and said, “Your book helped my mom and sister finally understand me.” Wow. Changed that woman’s life. Her family members became her allies. What will people say to you about your book?
You’ll Discover Your Voice: Writing is partially an act of self-discovery. As you write your first draft, you may find that sections of your writing skim the surface, or come out a little generic. With a bit of coaxing, you’ll find that deeper place where you write from your heart. It may come out poetic or practical, nurturing or a bit nutty, hilariously funny or right on the money, but you’ll feel it when you hit it right–your authentic voice. and finding your voice will empower you in new ways, as a writer and as a human being. Plus, it will enhance your writing and draw your audience to you. Many of my clients come from an academic background. It’s thrilling for them and for me when that light turns on and they rediscover a truer voice that speaks directly to their readers. Every time Dr. Pat Hoy sent a new chapter of Arts Awareness, I was excited to see the writing become more spontaneous, fresh and alive. Bruce Dow, MD, is another great example of an academically trained writer who became a storyteller, as he rediscovered his voice in writing Dream Therapy for PTSD. When I ran this post by Dr. Dow he told me he’s at work on another book. “I’m still telling stories, using the voice you helped me find. The results are quite exciting.”
You’ll Show Up in a New Way: You can’t stay the same when you write a book. It forces you to grow. Writing a book helps you overcome areas where you may be playing small. It will help you release old paradigms like, “Who am I to write a book?” or “I’m not a great writer” or “I’m not an expert.” You’ll step into a more expansive version of you and step into your power. And that feels great. Even if you’re already “playing big” you’ll probably uncover one or two areas of growth as you write, publish and promote your book. Marla O’Brien, author of Wine Within Your Comfort Zone, called it the best thing that ever happened to her next to “35 years of marriage, the birth of my children, and a successful teaching career.”
You’ll Get to Know Your Muse: As humans, we are naturally creative. As you write a book, you have the opportunity to deepen your connection to your creative source–what some people call “your muse.” That will help you with all kinds of things—from enjoying your life and relationships, to tapping into your creativity for business projects, to bringing more breadth to your writing and other activities. Kimber Simpkins strengthened that muscle in writing her Nautilus Award-Winning Memoir, Full: How I Learned to Satisfy My Insatiable Hunger and Feed My Soul. Her connection with her muse continues to deepen as she writes for the Huffington Post and completed a new book, 52 Ways to Love Your Body. Her first book trailer, which went viral and got picked up by Self, also offers an example of the creativity that comes out of her strong “muse-connection.”
You’ll Be Surprised: Perhaps this one is the most miraculous, because it’s also unpredictable. When you write a book, opportunities will enter your life that you could not have anticipated. Some may fulfill a dream. For example, Dr. Randy Kamen, author of Behind the Therapy Door, envisioned leading retreats and seminars and doing more public speaking, but her biggest opportunities came not out of searching them out. They came to her. One was in the form of a personal email from Arianna Huffington inviting Randy to serve on a panel of thought leaders on gratitude that Ariana was leading. another was an invitation to train an elite group of CEOs. I’ve also witnessed opportunities that far surpassed the author’s own vision for his or her book. In my own case, I never could have predicted that writing and publishing my first book would have led to a whole new career as a book coach!