I’m speaking with my graphic designer this morning and he tells me he’s been on admission in the hospital for about a week now. In addition to the usual malaria and typhoid, he tells me, he has “BP”. He’s about 36.
A few days ago a friend told me she lost her senior sister last December to “BP”. She was 35. She’d lost her bank job five years earlier and suffered mild stroke three years later due to high “BP”. She passed away five years from the day she lost her bank job.
What has this “BP” got to do with book? I must say, a lot. “BP” by the way, is blood pressure. High blood pressure is a killer.
Writing a book is one of the most fulfilling endeavors, nothing compares. Not even making love. It keeps high “BP” away.
During one of his visits to the White House during the Reagan era, John H. Johnson of Ebony Magazine fame and who in his lifetime became the 400th wealthiest American, sat on the same dinner table with Maureen Reagan.
After telling the young Maureen what he did for a living, Maureen said, “write a book.”
Emily Dickinson said, “There is no frigate like the book.”
An unknown author penned, “If you drop a book and three pounds of gold, pick the book first before the gold.”
Charlie “Tremendous” Jones once said, “Of all the things in this world only two will have the greatest impact on your life, the books you read, and the people you meet.”
According to Uthman Dan Fodio, “The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr.”
Benjamin Franklin is quoted as saying, “If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth writing [about].”
The people we most admire are those with strings of books behind their names, whether fiction or non-fiction.
Names such as William Shakespeare, Leo Tolstoy, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Agatha Christie, Maya Angelou, Seth Godin, Malcolm Gladwell, Daniel Pink, Susan Cain, Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Chimamanda Adichie, J. K. Rowling, Tim Ferriss, Tom Peters and Stephen King, readily come to mind.
Indeed, there is no feeling more exhilarating than stumbling onto the world’s most iconic airports, libraries, shops and websites and finding your book displayed alongside those of the planet’s most revered authors and icons.
There are tons of reasons you should write a book. John Kremer, the book marketing guru, has listed 30 solid reasons, amongst them:
• Stamp of credibility
• Support a cause
• Share a message
• Become a consultant
• Become a speaker
• Become a celebrity
• Reach Buckingham Palace
• Make money
I always tell my friends, if you don’t like the money part, donate the money to your beloved charity.
Writing a book, just like any other serious project, looks intimidating at first glance when you look at all the moving parts at the same time: writing, designing, proofreading, editing, publishing, pricing, distributing, marketing and selling.
But when you break the project down to bite-sized pieces, you discover that it’s an endeavour you can tackle with ease especially if you have a little guidance.
As complex as writing a book and getting it in the hands of readers might look, there are actually 8 simple steps you can follow:
Step 1: Decide what you wish to write about
Step 2: Decide the title & sub-title of your book
Step 3: Decide the content
Step 4: Decide who will write the book
Step 5: Write, proof read & edit your book
Step 6: Publish your book
Step 7: Launch your book to the world
Step 8: Market and sell your book
There is actually a 9th Step, Write More Books, because the needle starts moving in your favour when you have 5 to 7 books to your name.
The end of one book should be the beginning of your next book, as Stephen King, the author of over 60 books, loves to tell aspiring authors.
The world’s most revered authors have dozens of books to their names, most of them best-sellers. For you to join their ranks, you have to write more than one book, seven being the magic number.
Not only that, translate your book into other languages.
The easiest way to write a book is to just begin. That’s the secret. Begin, and your brain and your subconscious mind will take over from there leading you to the final destination.
This piece would not be complete if I don’t mention that Amazon has made it very simple to get your book out to the world. Amazon will even give you a book cover design if you don’t have one.
Don’t wait, if you want to be happy, loved, remembered, and even immortal, write your first, second and third book today.
Remember, the best time to have written your first book was yesterday, the next best time is now.
Since 2015, BWC (Book Writing Clinic), has graduated over 150 budding authors who have gone on to write their first, second, and some, third books. According to BWC alumni members, the inspiration to write is the community spirit in BWC.
I encourage you to enlist in BWC and get your first book done and dusted. BWC will show you how to approach your book project in a professional way. You can get BWC by clicking here and get started right away.
