What You Need to Do Before You Sit Down to Write Your First Book

I’ve wanted to write a book since I was 8. The tidiness of it — 50,000 lovely words printed together on a pristine stack of papers, enveloped in a durable shell labeled with my name — appeals to both my literary and neat-freak sensibilities.

But when you unpack the realities of what goes into the creation of a book, it’s obvious that writing a book is actually the opposite of neat and pristine. Building up your social influence, organizing your ideas and laying the groundwork for your book proposal takes time. And that’s just the beginning: Writers are responsible for promoting their work for about a year following a book’s release.

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I spoke to three industry experts, who weighed in on book-writing readiness, offering their tips and truths about what writers can expect in the early stages of the book-proposal process and down the line.

Ask yourself if you’re ready.

“If you want to write a book, you should write a book,” says Brian A. Klems, online editor of Writer’s Digest, blogger and author of Oh Boy, You’re Having a Girl: A Dad’s Survival Guide to Raising Daughters. However, Klems asserts you’ll be “in much better shape” if you’ve been writing for awhile, reading resources for writers and keeping up with the industry.

Rachelle Gardner, literary agent at Books & Such, states that you’re likely ready to write a book when you’ve spent years “thinking about [your topic], studying it, writing about it, both in your personal journals and in public spaces, possibly speaking to audiences about it, getting a degree in it or building a career around it.” Your own expertise is an essential selling point in the eyes of an agent or editor. Gardner adds, “You’re ready to write a book when you know what everyone else is writing about your topic, and you are confident that you have something fresh to add to the conversation.”

Additionally, when your audience demands a book, it’s probably time to bring your book idea to life. “If it’s your first book, then you should really be trying to focus on serving the audience you already have,” says Jane Friedman, co-founder and editor of Scratch Magazine. “Not that everyone needs a ready audience, but I usually say that when people start asking for it, it’s probably time for a book.”

So, ask yourself these three things: Am I a decent writer with some knowledge of the publishing industry? Do I have authority on the subject of my potential book? And, finally, is there an audience for my book? If you can answer “yes” to these, you’re probably ready.

Research and reflect.

Before you start pounding away at your book proposal, dream a little about your book to get a feel for its purpose — and to determine if you have enough passion for your topic to take it all the way. Klems suggests you ask yourself, ‘Would I read the book I’m going to write?’ It sounds obvious, but writers often get caught up in writing what they’re “supposed” to write (who among us hasn’t wanted to one-up F. Scott Fitzgerald?) rather than what they actually care and know about.

Klems recounts the time he started writing a novel, only to find, “I had an incredible problem with my plot. That’s when I realized I hadn’t done enough research ahead of time. And if I really cared and if I was as into it as much as I needed to be, I would have done that research.” When he finally tried his hand at humor writing, the genre he most enjoyed reading, he landed a book deal.

Gardner emphasizes the importance of leveraging your expertise as you hone in on an idea. “You’ve got to remember that what sells is what people want and need. Deeply analyze the market for books on your subject for what’s not being said. Where is there a hole that you and your knowledge can uniquely fill?”

Finally, a word of caution: making your book debut can solidify your position as an expert on that topic, which can make it difficult for you to branch out into other topics for future books. However, that’s not to say it can’t be done. Friedman, known for her knowledge of all things writing and publishing, published a satire piece and other essays that led to speaking opportunities. She believes “if the quality of what you’re doing is good, most people have some kind of crossover audience. People who come to them aren’t only interested in one thing all the time, so it’s possible.”

Manage your expectations.

Most writers are aware that writing a book is hard work, for potentially little pay. When asked what a writer can expect regarding how long it takes to do the actual writing of both proposal and book, Friedman responds, “it depends on your ability to commit to sitting down a certain amount of time per day or per week to do the writing or research. Some people have blocks, or they lack confidence, or they’re not approaching it with a professional mindset. They let the psychology of it get in the way. If you take away the psychology piece, if you can just sit down and write the thing, you’re probably not looking at more than a year of work.”

Once you’ve written your book, you enter the editing phase. Gardner says, “the editing will be weeks or months of going back and forth and polishing your book, [before] the marketing and promotion phase.” And writers shouldn’t expect their publishers to handle all the promotion. If you don’t care about your book enough to promote it, who will? Gardner reflects, “I know a lot of people who were publishing 15, 20 years ago and they talk about driving around state to state with books in their trunk, going and shaking hands with bookstore owners and getting themselves on the radio. Even in 1995, successful authors were usually budgeting at least 50 percent of their time on the promotion of their books, and the rest on writing activity.”

As for the financial specifics, Klems, Gardner and Friedman all confirm that a typical advance (the money you get to keep upfront, regardless of your book’s sales) for a new writer is usually in the four figures. “It’s not unusual for someone with a really nice following online or some currency to their name to get $20,000 or more,” says Friedman. “However, for someone without as much of a media presence, a typical advance is under $10,000.”

The reason? With brick-and-mortar bookstores vanishing, publishers aren’t willing to risk as much money on new writers as they used to. But there’s a positive aspect to this: Modern publishers may offer greater royalties now than before. Klems says, “So while they may not be paying you as much up front, there’s greater potential on the back end if your book sells well.”

Decide how to publish your book.

For some, traditionally publishing a book is a stepping stone to more publicity, influence, or an increase in sales of a product. For others, it is a milestone, the crowning achievement that proves you’ve “made it” as a writer. As it becomes increasingly simple to self-publish books on digital platforms, it becomes increasingly difficult to get a spot on a traditional publisher’s book schedule — but that certainly doesn’t mean it’s impossible. However, do consider whether traditional publication makes the most sense for your book. Perhaps a blog dedicated to your topic would be ideal, or a series of short digital downloads, or a self-published eBook. Also, if your topic is extremely timely, your information may be irrelevant by the time it hits physical and digital bookstores through a traditional publisher.

One final note: Prepare yourself for the best-case scenario, too. If your first book sells and you find yourself in a multi-book deal, be ready for a rigorous cycle of writing and promoting more books. Gardner works with authors who, while they are working on the marketing and promotion of one book, “they’re in the editorial, back-and-forth process on another, and they’re actually trying to write a third book, all at the same time. That is a big job, and people who are in that space will tell you that their head is spinning a lot of the time, but at the same time, it’s their dream.”

Amanda Layman Low is a freelance writer and artist. Contact her on Twitter

@AmandaLaymanLow.