So you have an idea and you want to write about it. Most of us immediately think, “book” when the light bulb goes off above our heads.
“Gosh, that would make a great book!” or “I’d like to write a book on that topic or concept.”
Sometimes, however, your idea isn’t worthy of an entire book on the subject. That’s why I advise writers to consider writing an article, instead. If it is a worthwhile topic, the writing is good and the audience is eager to get this information, you should be able to sell the article to a high-paying magazine market. If not, perhaps it isn’t a great idea, after all.
Sometimes articles evolve into books. I’ve had this happen a couple of times. After seeing the response to my article on long-distance grandparenting, I wrote a book on the topic. Likewise, there was an interest in my articles on youth mentoring, which encouraged me to reproduce them in book form.
Some of my book publishing/promotion articles also evolved into full-blown books. In fact, article-writing is a good way to test your potential book ideas.
Another option, especially if you want to distribute the material you’ve written on a particular topic, is the booklet. Professionals and experts often produce booklets to test a concept or to bring attention to their work or business, for example.
If you think you have a great idea for a book, here’s what I suggest:
• Write an outline in order to determine just how substantial this book might be.
• Consider writing an article for an appropriate publication to see what the level of interest is in this concept.
• Test the idea by producing a booklet to give away or sell at your website or hand out at trade shows, conferences, etc.
What can you expect from the process of testing the market? You might find that you have a strong niche market for a full-blown book on the subject. The feedback you receive might prompt you to alter your original idea to suit a larger or more targeted audience. You may discover that this isn’t such a good idea, after all and you’ll save yourself money and time.
Have you ever done a test market on a book idea? How did you proceed with that? How did it go? What did you learn from the process? Leave your comments here.
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http://www.matilijapress.com
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