Writing a Book? Here’s Where to Start

One of the questions that I get asked the most is “what advice do you have for someone trying to write a book?” My answer is almost always some variation of “the only way to write a book is to write a book.” And by that I mean, the words aren’t going to write themselves. The first step of writing is putting words on paper, and it’s arguably the most important. And to do that, you need to find out how you work, and how to get yourself motivated.

Find your airplane

I’ve always found that I get some of my best writing done on an airplane. The reason for this, I’ve come to realize, is that I have no distractions when I’m flying thanks to the little button on my phone labeled “airplane mode.” With that button selected, I have no access to Reddit, or Netflix, or Snapchat, or Facebook, or any of the hundreds of possible distractions I impose on myself on a daily basis. Growing up in an entirely attention deficit generation, I have to actively force myself to be productive, or else I can go an entire month without writing a single word. So, when I travel, I bring my iPad (my preferred method of writing) and my headphones and nothing else. I force myself to pay attention to my work and , believe it or not, I get words on paper. And that, like I said, is priority number one.

So my advice to you is to find your airplane: take a train trip; rent a cabin with no WiFi; go somewhere that you won’t be distracted, or somewhere that you can be alone. For some very busy people, the only time they can shut out the world is on a vacation. So do that, and make yourself write.

Finish the dream

Have you ever woken up from a dream so good that you immediately tried to fall back asleep to finish it? It’s almost impossible to pick up where you left off, isn’t it?

Well, I’ve got news for you: writing is no different. Train of thought is of the utmost importance when writing — especially if you’re trying to do something large-scale like writing a book or a novel. For that reason I tell people: get out what you need to, and don’t stop until you’ve said it all. You can always go back and edit, but it’s incredibly difficult to go back and try and finish an incomplete thought/chapter/whatever. The only way to finish the dream is to stay asleep.

When I write, I write in chapters. I always try to bring the action to a conclusion, a natural stopping point. I won’t stop until I’ve resolved whatever is going on. Sometimes this means I’ll write ten pages; other times, I’ll write maybe two or three. But I always finish what I start.

Make sure you finish dreaming.

Rewind, rewind

The most crucial part of writing, after you get out what you need to say, is to take a second look at it. It helps if it’s right after you’re done writing, but it doesn’t have to be. If you need to rest your brain from putting words on paper, fine. But always take a second look at it. The most polished piece of writing doesn’t just magically end up that way; it’s incredibly rare for any piece of writing to survive the first draft (this post is on revision #16). But, like driving from your house to work, you eventually find the best way to arrive at your destination. You may start out in bumpy, unfamiliar territory, but after you retrace your steps, you find yourself navigating more smoothly and easily — maybe even finding a better route. Writing is the same: maybe you’ll think of a better word or a more applicable phrase or metaphor. Either way, the only way to master the point you’re trying to get across is repetition.

The framework I’ve laid out above is one that I followed when I wrote Gift of the Shaper over a two year period — while being actively deployed in the military. So when I say it works, I mean just that — it works.

If you’ve ever found yourself wanting to get a story of yours out there, I can promise you this: if you want it badly enough, you’ll find a way to make it happen.

Just make sure to finish the dream.

And if that doesn’t work, you can always drop me a line.

-D.L.