Bad Books Are Everywhere
When he was in 6th grade, my son interviewed me for his school newspaper. He wanted to know what I liked about being publisher more than being a teacher. I said
I can make sure kids never have to read a boring book again.
I meant that.
The world has too many dead books already. We really don’t need to make more.
If you’re building a book, you’re investing real energy. Don’t you want to be sure folks will read it when you’re through?
How to Make Sure Real People Read Your Book
I’ll bet you’ve looked at a book and wondered why someone wrote that. Maybe the book is a hit with readers — just not for you — or maybe it had an audience of one. Now you face the same challenge.
You’ve pulled pages and posts from your blog. You’re serious about making a book by repurposing content. But which book? How do you decide the best way to put them together? How can you make your book one that delivers what readers are interested in reading about? I can give you these points to get you started.
- Choose one central compelling question from your content that still interests and intrigues you. Begin with the end in mind. A book has a single focus. That focus carries the reader from the first page to the last on an invisible thread. Sort your pages to find one set that answers your central question. Think of that set as your book-to-be.
- Write in 25 words or less the answer to What will readers know after reading this book?
- Visit the marketplace and read, read, read and listen, listen, listen.
Think about how information travels. People talk about what interests them. Writers write about what interests people. People read to know more and to find more to talk about.
Check the bestsellers at Amazon and the other big bookstores by searching for your topics there. Google your topics too.
A huge topic is a great idea, if you make it your own. Don’t discount a wildly popular topic as a bad idea with too much competition. Competition also brings audience interest and awareness. There’s huge marketing there already done for you.
- Find a need that is not being addressed and match that need with the content you have to offer. If your posts are about innovation, you might version them to highlight a unique facet of your niche, such as finding innovations throughout your workday, or innovative thinking for entrepreneurs. Your blog posts and the marketplace can work together to mold the compelling twist that draws readers to pick up your book and start reading.
- Now write in 25 words or less the answer to Why would readers care about what this book says?
When you can say what readers will know and why they’ll care, you’re ready for the test, which is the plus one thing to do.
PLUS ONE: Tell your friends. Tell acquaintances. Tell everyone about your book idea. Watch their faces as they react. Encourage them to ask questions. Don’t worry about people stealing it. Your book is your book. They can’t write it. Besides, it’s well on its way and they’d have to start one. . . . Ask them whether they might read it. That’s the best way of all to find out if they will.
If you hear them say yes, get going, but keep asking as you work. Readers make great collaborators. They let you know whether your message is getting through.
If you hear them say no, that’s okay. Head on back to steps 3-4 to find a new need to retwist your compelling question. You have content. What you’re looking for is the reason for readers to care about it.
It’s there, keep looking. You’ll find it. That’s what people are talking about.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
To take your ideas to a higher level, click on the Work with Liz!! page in the sidebar.
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If you want a really popular book I would suggest starting a religion. Look at Jesus, Muhammad, and L. Ron Hubbard.
You can’t argue with success.
Yeah, that works if you’re starting from scratch or if you have that content on your blog . . . but if you’re repurposing content, it could be reaching to pull religion alongside the content you’re starting with. 🙂
On the flip side of repurposing what’s been rewritten for a blog but has now been identified as plausible for a book is “blogging-as-authoring” (there’s a better phrase, something catchy like “blogging your novel” except for non-fiction writers, but my mind isn’t finding it this afternoon).
What are your thoughts on using a blog as the vehicle by which you write a book in the first place…each blog entry is a section of a chapter, being published to test material and to gather anecdotal information from the target audience.
Do authors risk losing book buyers if they publish their first drafts to the world, and are upfront about what they’re doing? Or do they stand a good chance of building a real audience of buyers?
HI Tina,
Welcome, I’m of the school that says there’s only good done by getting your work known and read by real people. You form an audience of folks who like your work. Seth Godin has published his blog several times and Deb Weil’s new book has the first chapter available for free.
Books get lost in bookstores and the chance that my books would get into one and be where you are on the day you’re looking to buy is soooo slim. But even if you’ve read every word, the chance that you might want to buy it in book form is higher than that. 🙂
I’d say there’s not much chance, Tina, that by writing a book on my blog, that I’d lose any sales.
I only communicate with 500 or so people a day… mostly the same ones over and over.
There are 240,000,000 other people out there who need to know what I know.
The 500 or so that read my blog will be beta readers and testimonials on my sales page.
Hi Mike,
You said that so much better than I could. My blog has expert commenters. And you, of course, are still king.
I’m might have a few kingly traits ….like, I rule !
Yep,
You got it!
Liz, may I expand just a incy bit to your quote?
Ideas cannot be copyrighted! It’s not possible to own something that’s intangible. Should someone steal your idea and write it, there’s no one else to blame but yourself.
I often encounter people who complain to me how they could have been rich by now only if they had executed their ideas. When seeing those huge profits flowing to their “idea stealers”, they moan and bitch all day.
So what if they stole your idea, they wrote your idea but you are the one with that idea then go improvise it and make it better, twist it, concoct it, conjure it…blah blah blah. Do what it has to be done to Make it Tangible and OWN IT!
Also be very caution who you show your idea to. Some are so pessimistic in life, nothing can be more rewarding than seeing the sky drop upon him. ;-(
Renee,
You are right. That to have an idea and do nothing with it is no reason to whine. It doesn’t even mean that someone else stole your idea when they do what you have been thinking about, ideas have a way of occurring to many people at the same time.
It makes sense that they would. We’re all bombarded with similar information. Why wouldn’t more than one of us put it together in the same way?
Your point is so strong, Renee. The guy who wins in the guy who executes and makes the idea into an innovation. Something people can use. Something real and tangible.
And we’re still able to take our idea twist it turn it and make our own version. NOBODY CAN MAKE THE LIZ VERSION OF ANYTHING, BUT ME!!! That’s what’s cool. 🙂
I can’t agree more than this…
There is ONLY ONE LIZ STRAUSS who’s the salon daughter and blogs at http://www.successful-blog.com 😉
I’m laughing!
There is only one Renee who would say a lovely thing. 🙂
Great tips Liz. Can’t wait to read the rest!
Thanks, Phil!
I can’t wait to read them either! I have no clue what they’re going to say. 🙂
Yeah, sure Liz. YOU don’t know what’s next? Absurd! It’s all there, it’s just hidden.
Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be GREAT! 🙂
Yeah, Phil,
I know the stuff all right. I just have no clue what I’m going to write about next. I never do. I plan for it. But my brain changes it’s mind. Go figure. 🙂
Mine too Liz. Mine too. Right now, it’s turning to the time to wash the dishes channel. Gotta go!
Whoa! Your brain is not very nice. 🙂
Hi Liz,
Yet another really good post on writing. I’d extend the comments a bit on writing your book on the blog – it’s actually a very difficult thing to do. The two people who have written books who started as blogging the ideas that I know of both specifically commented how much more difficult it was to write a xx,xxx thousand word book as compared to the standard 300 word blog entry.
A different set of skills.
I can personally attest to the difference in the book I’m writing as compared to the ideas in my blog(s). It’s the same, but different.
Like driving a car and driving and semi truck. It’s still driving, but very different.
Scot
(The West Coast crowd always comments late…!)
Yeah, Scot,
You’re right. So far we’ve only gotten to the skeleton. Although it also depends on the kind of book that you’re going for and the kind of posts that you’re starting from. Seth’s books really art pretty much an edit of his blog posts.
So it’s harder or easier depending on the content you start with.