Write and Publish a Book in Three Months, or Less
Writing a book doesn’t have to be an impossible task. In fact, it’s achievable to have one published within three-months, or even less, depending on your level of resolve, but I think three-months is a good target.
Firstly, I have to say that the initial goal should be completion of the book, and about learning from the process. Whether the book is successful or not is out of the scope of this blog. So I’d like to encourage you to have fun with the words, and make it a goal to finish the steps outlined below, and I assure you there will be plenty of fulfillment to follow.
Steps to writing & publishing your book:
Writing Tools:
Any writing or note taking software will do, including microsoft word, but I've used the following:
- Scriverner is by far the best - 30 day free trial, $45 after that
- Ommwriter isn't bad, good for blocking out distractions - About $7
- Evernote is decent and - free
The First Draft:
“You fail only if you stop writing.” - Ray Bradbury
They often call this the vomit draft, where your goal is to hurl shards of emotion onto a blank piece of paper. Your own self-critic isn’t welcome here, rather, I’d encourage you to write without judgement, which will give you the best possible chance at finding the flow state. The flow state is where the best work comes from, no matter what your discipline is, it’s where you want to be. Flow is when thought is suspended, where time seems to disappear and creation comes out naturally and untethered. Now don’t expect perfection at this stage, because you’ll be able to come back and edit.
Now, I believe a word-count goal is a good idea at this stage, I usually shoot for 1000 to 2000 a day. If you do the math, you could have 30,000 to 60,000 thousand words written in a month. Depending on the type of book you’re writing, your goal could be anywhere between 40,000 to 80,000 words in total. Now don’t get me wrong, you should let the story or content decide the length, but these are good benchmarks to start with.
Staying Motivated:
We all need motivation, these are the two best books I've found to help kick myself into action. I have both of them in audiobook form, and whenever I'm feeling sluggish, I play them and end up inspired after thirty minutes or less - without fail.
Editing:
Go back and read your work, do this 1 to 2 times, it may be difficult, but here's where you can fix errors.
- After 1 to 2 read throughs, send it to friends and family, they'll be able to provide additional fixes.
- If you're inclined, you can hire an editor for relatively cheap. These sites work best: Fiverr & Upwork
Cover Design:
The cover doesn't have to be perfect, rather, I'd recommend having fun with it.
- Again, Fiverr and Upwork are good options for freelance talent.
- Alternatively you can use shutterstock to find a good image, which you can then overlay your title.
- Or you can design it yourself, with photoshop.
Publishing:
With the advent of the internet it is now easier than ever to self-publish. Amazon is the best place to start, the process to completion takes 1 to 3 days, and then you're live. Amazon Kindle Publishing.
Traditional publishing takes longer, and is a whole different animal, which will include finding an agent and a publisher, maybe we'll get into that later...
"Good Luck and May Your Experience be Enlightening!"
My Publications (both under pen-names, and written with the steps above)
- Learn How To Succeed: In The Tech World - Nonfiction
- Prodigal Son - Fiction
- Two Rabbits (currently in editing phase) - Fiction