Comments on: How To Write a Book Fast?

By: Nina Amir

Nina Amir — Thu, 20 May 2010 19:41:17 +0000

How’s it going, Perry? Is the book done? I think your plan was a great one. I’m curious if it worked. I write and teach about writing books and getting them published. I also help people edit their books. So, I’m curious where you are in the process and if your process worked!

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:55:51 +0000

Yes you can do it. It really takes one to be disciplined. You almost need to wear two hats. One as the writer and the other as the writer's boss. Punch in and out. Take it seriously enough as if it were a real 9-5 job, but set the hours however many times a week with a real schedule and don't not show up for the job. If it were a real corporate job, you wouldn't just not show up for work. It needs to be treated as such.

By: Valerie

Valerie — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:58:57 +0000

Get a digital voice recorder and record what you have to say, then hire a professional editor to polish it up a bit and make sure it all makes sense.

By: Cheryl Wright

Cheryl Wright — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:30:23 +0000

Hi Perry,

I'm a professional writer with 16 published books under my belt.

Before starting any non-fiction book, I write an outline. That's the bare-bones of the book and helps me work towards the goal of a completed book. Is it non-fiction you're writing? It half the battle if it's a subject you're knowledgable in, and will reduce your research time considerably.

You also haven't mentioned whether this will be a print book, or an ebook. Are you publishing traditionally or are you self-publishing? These variations make a huge difference as to the road you follow.

It usually takes me around one week writing full-time to write a non-fiction book. I have some articles and other resources on this site that may help: http://niche.writer2writer.com/

You've been given a lot of good advice here, and here's mine:

Just do it.

Just write until the book is finished. If it sucks….? That's what editing is for. Get your story down, then fix it in the editing process.

By: Sainabou

Sainabou — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:40:41 +0000

i like to joint

By: Cynthia Wunsch

Cynthia Wunsch — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:17:48 +0000

I am writing a serious non-fiction book, and while I think you have to do whatever works for you, I have my own methods:

I have a list of chapters and each goes through five stages:
1) preliminary research
2) secondary research
3) first draft
4) sent out for comment and review
5) final draft

I find Liquid Story Binder XE an extremely valuable tool as it lets me keep track of everything without having to remember which stage each chapter is in, or worrying about losing notecards. The great thing is that it's portable and can be run off a USB drive so it's available wherever and whenever. So if I'm at a friend's house and an idea occurs to me, I can be off and running in a flash (bad pun intended). The other thing I like is that it works with a huge variety of writing styles, and has tools like outlines, checklists, global or local attributes, and saves the work as easily accessible rtf files. You can also add sound clips or pictures to the chapters (great for my book on music!).

Here's the website, with a 30-day free trial: bit.ly/cPdan

By: Carl Willoughby

Carl Willoughby — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:38:58 +0000

I've heard prolific writers say that what they do is sit down everyday,
and they write maybe a couple pages or a certain word count each day.

When they reach their goal, whether it takes 5 minutes or 5 hours, that's it.
They're finished for the day. They get on with their life.

The key is to do it EVERYDAY.
With that approach, the book gets written.

Your plan sounds like a good plan.
Good Luck!

By: dasmith21

dasmith21 — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:31:19 +0000

That is a solid plan. You planned your work and now time to work the plan. As long as you are focused on your goal and take action and commit to the cycle of your project you are going to finish it with no problem. You should definitely post your progress, it commits you to action and it inspires others to do the same thing.

By: Mike Noland

Mike Noland — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 18:46:06 +0000

Perry,
Many writers use an outline to help them organize their writing. Your "system" should work well for that. Sometimes, however the static nature of such a system can lead to uncertainty over the best ordering of ideas/concepts. Something I haven't read in the other comments involves a technique similar to what you did with your "Social Media Matrix Report". Try this. On a blank piece of paper, draw a circle around a few words that describe the main subject of your book/story. Next, relas and allow related ideas to flow naturally from your thoughts. Place them randomly on the page and circle each one. Finally, draw lines connecting circles that relate to one another. You may discover a better progression for your ideas or even come up with some additional thoughts on your subject.

Hope this helps.

By: steven boyle

steven boyle — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 03:52:55 +0000

This method would totally work. I'm almost finished writing a non fiction book I did in 5 min chunks. It still requires work but it gets you a very workable first draft. My time was so limited so I focused on 5 min chunks. At the end of the 5 mins I put the pen down even in mid sentence… This meant that when I picked up the pen again I just kept running with it. It really works. Writing like this extracts the information from you. Even if your writing for the waste paper basket, you will be amazed at how quickly you'll finish if you break it down into very achievable chunks of time. Cant wait to read it.