Book Publishing: How To Go From Idea to Published

Let’s talk book publishing, y’all.

You know the scene in Little Women (the one with Wynona Ryder), when Jo is scribbling over her cute little desk? She has a giant stack of crisp papers next to her and she’s wrapping up her story. She collects all the pages all together, holds them to her chest, and sighs with joy. All she has to do now is slip them into a box and send them on their merry way to the publisher. 

I’m a FAN of Little Women, but that scene has ruined us for the modern day book publishing process. No one is shipping manuscripts in cute little boxes or scribbling perfect first drafts. 

In fact, most of writers, especially those of us who are just getting started, are actually just groping around in the dark, desperately trying to figure out our next steps. Will self-publishing hurt my future career? What’s a hybrid publisher? Wait, I’m supposed to be writing a proposal? 

Today’s post is for my friends feeling this deep in their bones right now. You have a big, budding dream of writing a book but the whole process feels as overwhelming as hiking a 14,000-ft mountain alone. You could probably figure it out, but if you had a guide to help you get to the top, wouldn’t you prefer that? 

Well, friends, consider me your guide, your sherpa up the mountain. 

Next week, I’m launching a free 5-Day Idea to Published Challenge. We’ll cover the five steps to go from idea to published: 

1. Create a writing habit.

Just like you build a house one brick at a time, you write your book one writing session at a time. 

A lot of writers believe they need at least an hour of quiet time every day to write and wait until their lives calm down enough to find it. But circumstances rarely work that way. 

You *can* write in 30 minute blocks every day. The key is consistency. 

2. Grow a book platform to market your work. 

If you want to write and sell those books, your people need to find you. We start with this first because this will be a lifelong journey of connecting with your right people. And, best part, it doesn’t have to be icky! It can actually be a service, and I’ll show you how. 

3. Decide your publishing path. 

No publishing journey is better than the other. Each has their merits. It all depends on your values, vision, and goals. On this day, we’ll cover everything from agents to proposals. So you can make an informed, confident decision. 

If you’re considering self-publishing, don’t let the stereotypes scare you. Self-publishing isn’t vanity publishing. It has launched careers and profited authors. (See how I’m self-publishing here.) Especially if you’re starting out, self-publishing may be your best way to go. We’ll talk about everything you need to know about this path and how best to navigate it. 

4. Write a book proposal or make a publishing plan. 

Traditional publishers like to see a proposal. Self-published books do best with a plan. Either way you go, you need to build a foundation for your book. Day 4 gives the ins and outs of a solid plan so you know you’re writing a good book. 

5. Pitch the book publishing proposal or write a rough draft! 

Now for the fun part! If you’re traditionally publishing, you’ll start hunting for an agent or publisher. If you’re self-publishing, you’ll get started on the manuscript. We detail a strategy for both paths. 

Each day of the challenge, you receive an email with a video and simple, actionable homework to push this dream forward. By the weekend, you could know exactly how to become a published author and your next right steps! 

Join us here!