What are the Important Steps to Write a Book? – Ultimate Guide

So are you planning to write a book? Writing a book can change your life forever as it might change the lives of millions resulting in overwhelming you with the credit of this impact.

But is writing a book an easy task? Well, NO! Being an author myself I can assure you that you are most likely to feel like quitting after writing each page.

You may think to quit writing when you experience a lack of ideas when your own message starts to bore you, when distractions don’t let your attention stay intact, or in cases where you get overwhelmed due to the entire burden of the task.

Now you might wonder, is there no way to write a book efficiently? Well, of course, only if you know the following points:

• The perfect starting.
• What are the requirements of each step of book writing?
• How to deal with procrastination, fear, and writer’s block.
• And knowing exactly how to eliminate the feeling of being overwhelmed.

You can get done with your book better than you might think because in this century writers have access to material, writing tools, and the ability to write, better than ever.

Follow a Proven, Stepwise Plan, Instead of Exploring New Things

The reason behind the effort of incorporating this blog is to provide emerging writers with a proper plan for writing a book.

With almost 45 years of writing experience, I am penning down techniques that have helped me with writing over 200+ books. Below you’ll find my personal approach on how to write a book.

I’m certain that you’ll find something that will help you become an expert in the book-writing game. So without further chat, let’s dive in.

Step 1: Essentials You Require Before You Sit to Write

You will never regret sparing some time before you sit to write, you’ll probably thank yourself for being thoughtful and taking some preparation time before starting the enormous task.

The essential thing of this step to keep in mind is not to try shortcuts as it is the foundation of your book-writing journey.

A. Establish a Comfortable Writing Space

To be able to write a book, you do not need a fancy refuge. In reality, I have started as a writer with just a couch and a typewriter.

In my case, that simple couch has given me more productive years than any other lavish work setup. As a matter of nature, it’s better to make your writing space as comfortable as possible.

Note: Genuine Writers Have the Ability to Write Anywhere.

You’ll find most of the writers writing in cafes and restaurants among the chaos of life. My first ever job was as a newspaper typist where 40 of us sat together with our typewriters without any partitions or cubicles.

Eventually, train yourself to be able to write in all types of circumstances.

B. Gather Your Writing Tools

In the newspaper writing business, there is no leniency or time to handwrite stuff therefore it has always been convenient to write over a keyboard. The same goes for the books.

Some writers handwrite their first book drafts and then pay someone to transform them into a word document. But, I’d recommend you to do that on MS. Word in the first place.

Note: I’ve not met a single publisher till now who would consider a typewritten manuscript, so how can one think about a handwritten one?

The publishing industry works solely on Microsoft Word, so writers are supposed to submit word documents files. So it’s better to write in Microsoft Word.

Step 2: How to Start a Book?

Writing a book sounds and feels like a gigantic thing, because that’s exactly what it is! Manuscripts should be composed of small parts as according to an old saying the best way to feed an elephant is a single bite at a time.

A. Break Your Book into Several Intervals.

Don’t try to write in a single go, it’s better to work in small intervals. An effective idea: break your book into pieces as it will help you reach the end result conveniently.

Think of your book as a set of sentences, paragraphs, and pages as it will help you find an effective end result. Keep it simple as these pages will turn into a brilliant book in the end.

B. Sort Out Your Idea.

To write a bestseller, your idea has to be a killer one.

Shortlist a topic on which you can write passionately, something that attracts you to the keyboard, and keep you involved till the end. The topic should be exciting for both the reader and the writer. Keep in mind that there are thousands of writers out there and competition is extremely intense. In short, nobody’s going to entertain ordinary ideas.

The proposition of your book should be with an idea that does not give the reader another other than to pick it.

C. Build a Brilliant Outline.

Writing without an outline or clear vision can make you lose track and you end up with a disaster.

Even if you are about to write a fiction book and believe yourself as a pantser, you should at least have some kind of structure.

Take outlines as a document that keeps you in a straight direction helping you achieve an outcome (a proper book) eventually.

As for non-fiction books, there is no other way to write except to make a proper outline.

D. Work On an Inflexible Writing Schedule.

6 hours each week is an ideal amount of time to be spared for your book writing task per week.

You can adjust these hours according to your preferences or whatever works best for you. If you’d ask me, I like a fixed pattern (same time every day) as it becomes a habit without much effort.

To cut a long story short, just manage to spare six hours in order to see the proper outcome.

E. Do Proper Research Before You Sit to Write.

Yes, research remains the most important part of the whole book-writing process regardless of whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction.

Note: Fiction is not just making up a story, it is something a step ahead.

Your fictional story should be based on strong logic, extraordinary historical and technical details so that readers can believe in it.

On the other way around, if you are considering nonfiction, even when you are writing on a topic you are perfect on, it is better to do some research, and most of the time you win in finding a fact or two that can provide a stronger base to your story.

Even a bit of mistake can risk your credibility as a writer hence to make the readers believe in you, it’s better to do your research beforehand.

Step 3:  Know-How of Writing a Book.

A. Think Like a Reader

It’s better to write it somewhere over a notepad, sticky notes, or anything you find convenient. Just make sure to choose something that keeps you reminded that a writer should write with a reader’s perspective.

Every decision in a writer’s book writing journey should be based upon how a reader would perceive it.

If you aim to please your reader, please yourself first. Write what you would prefer to read while staying confident as there are many readers out there to agree with you.

B. Write a Convincing Opener.

If you feel stuck because you cannot figure out intriguing opening lines, relax, you are alone in this and neither is your distress misplaced.

Even you cannot leave it for the last as a good opening keeps you going throughout the chapters.

Below you’ll find the nature of openings that keeps the readers intact.

• Dramatic
• Surprising
• Philosophical
• Poetic

From a readers’ perspective, these types of openings gain their attention, making them read complete books. According to general research, readers are more likely to like books that have an attractive start.

C. Ensure Your Story Have Some Tension and Conflict

Readers look for conflicts, yes, those who read nonfiction too.

Readers are most likely to lose interest if everything in a book stays happy.

Try to input some conflicts, for instance, if two of your main characters are chatting over a cup of coffee, create a scene where one storm out in a reaction to something the other one has said.

This will help you get the readers to think about what will happen next and keep their attention intact. 

D. Try to Turn Off Your Inner Editor While Writing the First Copy

With years of writing experience, I understand that it is difficult for perfectionists to write first drafts with quality word count without feeling compelled to make each and every sentence up to the mark.

A voice inside your head will question everything, every sentence, every word, every phrase, making you feel less confident about what you have written – don’t worry, that’s just the ego of your inner editor playing the revenge card.

Keep in mind that at the time of drafting do not edit anything as it negatively impacts the writing flow.

E. Writing a Reverberating Ending

The ending is an important part of every story (fiction or nonfiction) so it should be equally breathtaking as the opening. To achieve a promising ending that wins appreciation by the readers following points may stand useful:

• Don’t run towards it. Take steady steps. Make sure you are giving readers what they had expected from the beginning.
• Never settle for something less. That you think is close enough to the desired ending just because you want to end the book. Wait, keep building the story until you find something that leaves you thrilled.
• If you are going to give readers something unpredictable, ensure it is logically on point. So that readers do not have that feeling of being cheated. Your readers should feel surprised instead of being tricked.
• If you luckily have multiple ideas for ending it’s better to go with your heart as readers love endings that emotionally affect them.

Step 4: Rewriting is Essential

A. Become an Editor

Ask editors and they will tell you that first-hand drafts are not publishable at all. So, instead of facing rejection in the first go, it’s better to become a self-editor.

Read, edit, rewrite until you think your manuscript has become the best version of itself.

Your goal is to become a savage editor. For that, follow the list below:

• Disregard unnecessary words.
• Ensure you are using simple words so that readers do not have to keep a dictionary along.
• Avoid unnecessary explanations.
• Make sure you have not provided extraordinary descriptions about each and every character.
• Reduce the use of adjectives as much as possible.
• Try to sketch the scenario instead of telling.

B. Find an Advisor

Try and get an advisor who knows both dissertation writing and book writing to a better extent. Let him/her read your manuscript and take note of their remarks. Make sure to learn the most out of those who have lived the situation you are in now.

Take advice about the publishers, agents, and editors. Always remember that the wiser is the one who learns from others’ experiences.

Step 5: Time to Publish Your Book!

To put it in simple words, when it comes to publishing a book, you have only two options:

A. Self-Publishing

Self-publishing means you are the boss. You are everything from the financier, the publisher, and the decision-maker.

B. Traditional Publishing

Here, traditional publishers take all the risks about finance, decision-making, and even publishing. These traditional publishers take care of everything from proofreading editing, typesetting, printing, designing, and everything.

One cannot tell which technique is the best as both avenues have certain pros under different circumstances.

FAQ’S

1) How to write a book as a beginner?

Before beginning, you should know the proper criteria of writing a book, there are some steps and structures that are essential to follow like how to start your story, how to engage readers, and how to conclude. If you have command on these basics, only then you can think of writing a book.

2) How to write a book with no experience?

Don’t worry if you are having no experience of book writing, there are many writers who got and books published and they were just average writers not that good. If they can do it, you should definitely give it a try and produce some great content for readers.

3) How long does it take you to write a book?

It takes at least 180 days to six months for a writer to fully complete the book, it can be more or less depending upon the word count. The majority of the writers produce a quality book within 6-8 months. However, if your skills are top-notch you can do it faster than that.

4) Is it hard to write a book?

Many people are too afraid to start writing a book because they don’t have enough trust on their skill set. But many people succeeded in writing for the first time. It’s a tough process of writing, rewriting, proofreading, cutting, and editing which consumes most of your brain energy.

5) How to Write Your First Book?

If you are planning to write your first book, you should be aware of what kind of niche or subject you’ll be writing about. Plus, you must be fully aware of your target audience and what they like.

CLOSURE:

Writing a book is a mighty task, but not an unmanageable one.

You can always do this with a consistent will.

Just start by taking baby steps (one step at a time) and make sure you are focused. Keep faith that after going through all these efforts you will be holding a copy of your published book. Best of luck writers!