The first book is out. The second one is underway. I have this website where I like to write about an array of topics. How should I proceed?
First Book Surge: 4000s by 40
Recently I had the good fortune of jumping on the Sounds Like a Search and Rescue Podcast, where I was asked by the hosts, Mike and Stomp, what’s harder: writing or hiking (the 4000-footers)? I hadn’t thought much about it before, but my immediate answer was, “after writing.” There’s been so much to learn and do.
Marketing and self-promotion are not in my bones. I was not born to be a salesman, and I’ve always cringed at the idea of pitching ideas and products. When people pitch stuff to me, my instinct is to question what the other person is hocking. But unless you want your book to slip into oblivion, you have to learn how to communicate why you think it deserves a minute of people’s time. So, I got to learning.
Since 4000s by 40 came out, I’ve been wearing a lot of new hats: I’ve reached out to local bookstores, hosted events, designed a sell sheet for the book, had my first vendor table at the AMC Awards Night, and participated in my first podcast. But there’s been so much more. I’ve learned about publishing, ISBN iterations, copyright registration, IngramSpark, Bookshop.org, Kindle Create, file development for print—the list goes on and on. I’ve also had to refine my web development skills so that my website runs more smoothly.
You can check out my conversation with Stomp and Mike on the SLARS Podcast, starting at minute 43
Where Do We Go From Here?
Now that the initial surge is over, I want to focus more on the next book. But I still want to write here and keep building connections around 4000s by 40. So—how do I split my time? Especially since I have my day job, and after such a long journey back to good health, daily exercise is the number one priority.
How can I fit all this in?
I need a plan.
The Website: Learn, Grow, Change, Try
This website is where I share stories about hikes, ideas, what I’m learning, and what I’m working on. It’s where I continue to learn, grow, change, and determine what I want to try for next. It’s where I work on expanding my mind and allow myself to be completely human. I want to spend more time here, but not so much time that I never get around to working on my bigger projects. So, I’m hopeful that what I can do each day looks something like this:
The Writing Plan
- Upon waking, grab a little water or juice, give myself some time to wake up, and write a post. There are so many topics I want to write about, but here I want to focus on a few main things.
- First, I want to write about the great outdoors to encourage more people to get out there. I love hiking, and 4000s by 40 is one attempt to share the value we can all derive by getting out there and meeting challenges in nature.
- Second, I want to write about the writing process itself—to shed light on how this world looks. I’m learning a ton, and I wish I had found a blog or site while I was starting out that shared the mistakes and the journey of it all.
- Third, I want to share some poetry when the inclination strikes. I love poetry and find that certain feelings or moments are much better captured in a poem than a story.
- Fourth, I want to use this space to practice writing each morning to get warmed up for the book I’m working on. The only way to become a better writer is to write, and here is a place for me to tease out ideas, make mistakes, and increase my ability to communicate effectively.
- Have breakfast.
- Go for a long walk. If the weather stinks, listen to someone else’s book on Audible while waking on a treadmill for thirty minutes. Or check out a podcast. Anything to expand the brain and learn! If I don’t learn something each day, my mood declines. I know it.
- Crank out the top priority to-dos for my day job. I work for myself, so I can make my own schedule—and after twenty years, I know how to be efficient. I usually need an hour in the morning to knock out the big stuff.
- Write 1000-2000 words in the current book project. Let it fly. Worry about editing later.
- Lunch.
- Knock off a couple hours of day job.
- Exercise. Weights. Kettle balls. Medicine ball. Box jump. Hit the bag. Whatever I need.
- Freedom. Tackle whatever I need to.
- Go to one of my kids’ sports games.
- Go back to the book.
- Noodle another idea that may turn into a blog post.
- Do something for 4000s by 40, whether that’s reaching out to another bookstore or, like this week, work on setting up a Bookshop.org affiliate site.
- Practice guitar. Learn something. Anything.
- Head wherever my mind wants to take me.
Ok, that sounds like a good plan to start this week. Let’s see if I can make this work.
The Writing Process
I’ve found that journaling (or blogging) and being mindful about the process of constructing a book—or writing other articles—is incredibly helpful. If you’re interested in reading more about what that looks like while working on your own projects, head over to the In Writing section of this site. And keep writing!