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Book Publishing: 3 Secrets

Book Publishing: 3 Secrets

For more than 15 years, I’ve been researching the best secrets for successful book writing, publishing, and marketing. I’ve read the best-rated books on the subject, worked with a number of top experts in the field, like Seth Godin, and spent infinitely many hours experimenting with the best ideas.

What did I learn? Here are three of the best ideas–they’ve helped me, and I hope they will help you:

1. Create a great title. Titles make a big difference. I could elaborate on how to generate a great title, but perhaps the tip I found most helpful was to create a shorter title rather than a longer one–think “Drive” or “Wool.”

2. Create a great outline. Recently, one of our awesome team ghostwriters at Networlding said, “If you give me a great outline, I can write a great book, and I can write about anything. To create a top-notch outline, think 10 chapters for non-fiction and 15 for fiction, but note that you can always make them shorter or longer.”

3. Harvest powerful stories. Let’s start with non-fiction. Look for 20 amazing stories where up to half are yours and the rest are the product of deep research. Recall the studies done in “The Tipping Point,” where, by writing about the Hush Puppy comeback and through the art of a great story, Gladwell teaches readers the science of networks.

For fiction, think stories within the literary arc of the book. Here, block out scenes in the book you are writing. This will help you fill in content, which is much easier than starting from a blank page. Here, think of an iconic hero, like Luke Skywalker. When we first see Luke, in “Star Wars: Episode IV,” he loses his family and decides to seek revenge. He goes on what is called The Hero’s Journey, where he befriends Obi Wan Kenobi and others, like Han Solo, in an attempt to destroy The Death Star and Darth Vader. The scenes were so vivid and decadent they have permanent homes in our imaginations. Be it fiction or non-fiction, start out with what I call a “scenes session” to create a much richer book.

Wait–there’s more! Stay tuned for three more secrets coming your way soon! In the meantime, feel free to contact me, ask about specific areas in writing, publishing or marketing books. My goal is to help all those who want to write better books faster.

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