What does it take to become an author? Notice that I didn’t even insert the word, “successful” in this sentence. Success is relative anyway, isn’t it? I know authors who don’t believe they are successful until they sell 100,000 copies. And then there are authors who celebrate their success if they earn back enough to pay their printing costs.
But what does it take to become an author—to accomplish the requirements of authorship? During my thirty-some years as a career writer and author; after 34 published books and after having worked with dozens of clients on their book projects, I’ve narrowed it down to 5 P’s. Ask any author who has been around the block and they will tell you that it takes:
• Planning
• Preparation
• Proofing
• Publishing
• Promotion
There are no shortcuts. One cannot deviate from this established path to authorship. If you want to become an author and experience whatever measure of success you desire, you must consider each of these 5 P’s. (It wouldn’t hurt to throw in the word Patience, either.)
Planning
Before you start writing the novel or the nonfiction book of your dreams, put some thought into the potential for your project—a lot of thought. I suggest writing a book proposal. You wouldn’t open a business without a business plan. Consider the book proposal a business plan for your book. At the same time, look at your book as a product. If you view this project any other way, you are already starting down the wrong path.
Before proceeding, ask yourself, “Why do I want to write this book?” and “What is the purpose of this book.” If your responses are valid and reasonable, move forward. If they are frivolous and emotionally-driven, reconsider your project.
What you learn from a well-researched, well-developed book proposal will guide you in making your next decision. Is your original idea a good one or do you need to tweak it a bit in order to make it more marketable?
This could be an important turning point in your project. Make an emotional decision (I love my idea and I’m sticking with it even if I can’t justify producing it) and you may fail. Make an educated decision based on the facts revealed in your book proposal, and your book has a fighting chance.
What about a book proposal for a novel? While the book proposal process is designed with the nonfiction book in mind, I recommend preparing one for a novel, as well. You should establish your genre, have a plan for your story, know something about your audience and how to reach them and you must be prepared to promote your book once it is a book. The fact is that no matter which publishing option you choose, you—the author—are responsible for promoting your book. So you’d better start building your platform—your following, your way of attracting readers.
Preparation
Once you establish that your book is a viable product, begin outlining, organizing and writing it.
Also work on your platform:
• Create a massive mailing and emailing list.
• Become known among leaders in your book’s genre/topic.
• Write and submit articles or stories to appropriate publications.
• Develop workshops and seminars on your book’s topic and present them.
• Publish your own newsletter.
This will be a busy and enjoyable period in the process of becoming a published author. You will sometimes think that these eight to thirty-eight (or so) months are the hardest you’ve ever experienced. But I want you to hold this thought: You ain’t seen nothing yet! Most authors say that they thought the writing process was hard until they got involved in promoting their books.
It is for this reason that I recommend working on your platform while you are in writing mode. You’ll be more well-prepared for what is to come.
This is part one in a series of posts about what you need in order to become a successful author. Watch for more P’s to come your way.
In the meantime, download your FREE copy of my ebooklet, 50 Reasons Why You Should Write That Book.
http://www.patriciafry.com
Hi Pat,
Great post. The traditional publishing paradigm is out the door. Authors are now their own Mom-n-Pop Shop rolled into one — responsible for the whole process.
I would add a 6th P in the third slot: Product. Write the BEST book you can. No scrimping on quality writing. (All the proofing/editing in the world can’t fix a lackluster effort to begin with.)
So true, Toni. Hey, what are some other P words that we could add here? I suggest Patience, Toni has suggested Product. Priorities might be another one. With so much involved in Publishing (note that I capitalized it because it is a P word), we should be mindful of our Priorities. We should be able to take Pride in our Product. Persistence is another important concept, but it must be accompanied by Practical knowledge.
Gotta run–I’m counting on readers to add to this fun P-fest.
Patricia (hey, that’s a P word, too)