Write Your Book on Your Blog First?
By DianeMany authors are writing their books by posting on their blogs first.
It’s one way to “test” your market and your content, get feedback, and–get the job done!
Ray Edwards is one author who is doing this for his book, Breakthrough Forgiveness. He says making a public commitment and being engaged in a public writing process accomplishes a couple of things:
- “It ensures I’ll actually finish the darn book on time (my publisher can tell you stories about what happens when I’m left to my own timetable).
- “It should make the book better, because I’ll be responding to feedback from my readers while the book is in process. My ideas will be challenged and tested before they’re printed on paper.”
Another good reason to write a book online first is that it can gain you followers. As Kacie noted in a comment on an earlier post on this blog, “My book isn’t even in print yet, but I already have people looking for it in book stores and online. I hadn’t realized that while i was writing my book, i was already marketing it. It’s a great way to get started.”
Writing a book on a blog is a great way to create that all-important “platform” that publishers look for. If you have readers/followers you can point to, that impresses a publisher.
Seth Godin, the famous marketer, writes his book online first–and they become best sellers.
It’s worth considering….
And if you don’t already have a blog, look for my upcoming ecoaching course on “Easy Websites for Authors: How to Create & Maintain a Website that Sells (Even If Your Book Isn’t Written Yet).”
2 Comments
May 8th, 2010 at 5:08 pm
This is a great suggestion! Many authors not only are starting out this way but actually having their books discovered via blogging successfully. Plus, I find the deadline of needing to post something offers a great way to actually get a book written.
May 10th, 2010 at 12:37 am
Well that was a nice surprise to see i was mentioned!
I would have to agree with Nina, though. I’ve noticed that posting a book online tends to help me write it faster. After about a week of not posting anything people start to get a little irritated with me, haha. And being that they are mostly teens, they tend to really get colorful with their words. (Though its nothing too mean or pushy, most of them are really nice about it.) It really is a good way to push me to write. So there’s another upside.
One thing i like most is to see what people think about it as i’m writing it. I get to go through the story with my readers, whereas i couldn’t do that any other way. Its also good to know that even though my book has not been edited or proofread, people still enjoy it. That means its still good without all the extra help, which can really make an author feel good about the work they do.
Its not for everyone, though. One down side is that your story can change from how you first saw it. A few of my stories changed and got lost some where along the way because i was taking in suggestions from my readers. That can be both good and bad. Good because you can write it the way your readers want, bad because it can mess up your story line and you’ll write yourself into a corner. All i can say is be wary of how you take in the comments of your readers. I’ve had one or two stories fall through because i tried to please all of my readers, and that’s never a good thing.