Bust through the "I’m not ready" block

Here’s a strong dose of tough love, writers. Hold on to your hats. 

People who want to write a book say these things to me:

• I’m not ready yet…

• I’ll be ready when…

• I have to do / have / be [insert thing here] first…

Sometimes, waiting to be ready is a form of resistance. 

It’s safe there, right? It’s a lot more comfortable to not try something new or commit to something big or risk rejection / failure / ridicule, etc.

Well, I’m here to call your resistance out on its bullshit.

You are ready to write your book. Right now. Just as you are. 

How do I know? Because there will never be a “right” time. You’ll always be going a million miles an hour in multiple directions, and honestly, it will always be challenging to write a book. 

So what can you do about it? Think about how you want to feel six months from now. 

Seriously. Close your eyes for two seconds and ask yourself, how do I want to feel about my nascent book project at the end of the summer?

Do you want to feel like you’re making progress towards your goal, or do you want to still feel like you do today: that you still want to write a book but…?

Great. You have your answer.

If one of your resistance-disguises is “I’m not an expert in my field so I can’t possibly write a book on the subject,” let me give you a quick tip:

Did you know you can be connected to journalists seeking YOUR special area of expertise?

• Help A Reporter Out: https://www.helpareporter.com/

• Qwoted: https://www.qwoted.com/ 

One of the writers I’m working with lamented that someone else was quoted in a Washington Post article on the topic she is writing about.

To me, that’s great news! First, it means your topic is hot. There is a market for it. Second, it means that she can enter the conversation with her expertise on the topic.

Imagine what it feels like to be quoted in a media article on your topic. 

Now imagine what it feels like to have your bio include the fact that you’re working on a book on this topic—and the interest that will generate!

Got questions? Ask me anything!

I’ll be going live on Instagram with my friend and fiction coaching colleague Jacque of Soapbox Editorial next week to answer your questions about fiction & nonfiction, writing, revision, publishing, and cannibalism. We’re hungry for your questions!

Reply to this email with any questions you have and I’ll be sure to answer them. You can join me on IG next Wednesday, March 8, at 1pm Eastern.

The TL;DR:

• You are ready to write your book. Right now. Just as you are. 

• Set yourself up on HARO and Qwoted as a source for journalists to interview on your topic

• Send me any questions you have about writing & publishing and I will answer them LIVE on Instagram on March 8 at 1pm Eastern (and I’ll also make sure you get your answers if you can’t make it live).