Maybe you’ve already read my previous article, about turning your best blog posts into a book. If not, you can find it here: See What Happens When You Turn Your Best Blog Posts into a Book. Anyway, if you’re still reading, here are some more ideas for the next phase of turning your blog posts into a book.
Get more juicy ideas about each chapter
Last week, you might have already finished the ten chapter titles, then written two sentences. Since we’ve already used the example of an organizing book, let’s keep that example. So for each of the ten chapters, write two or three more sentences about each chapter. You’ll find that some of the chapter headings are simple to expand. Others will give you problems. You may find that you could even divide some of the original chapters in half and create new chapters that way. Still unconvinced of the merits of writing a book? Here is what happens when you write a book. One thing that happens is you’ll meet other authors.
What do you want to learn?
Maybe you feel that you’re not smart enough or you don’t know enough. But, chances are, you know a lot more than you think you know. Still, there may be areas in your knowledge that you’d like to expand. So for instance, thinking about our imaginary book, what is it about organizing that you’d like to know more about? For me, it would be organizing photos and digital organizing. Maybe you could start by writing about physical photos first, then move onto digital photos. Maybe whichever you feel more compelled to write about.
Where can you learn more?
Of course, there’s always Google for a way to find out more. You could also ask your photographer friends which websites are the best for learning about how to organize photos. I’d say start by tossing any photos that are out of focus, don’t have anyone you know in them, or are simply not interesting. Other good places to learn about organizing photos could be on Pinterest or YouTube. I really like this article from NPR If You’ve Always Wanted to Write a Book, here’s how, especially the ideas on how to banish your inner editor.
Pull from your own knowledge
If you have photos, you will have organized them to some extent, probably. So how did you do that? If you haven’t done that before, think of a friend or colleague who has done this. This goes for any chapter of your book. Talk to someone who’s done what you’re going to write about. You might even want to quote them.
Talk to a professional
Did you know there are professional organizers that specialize in organizing photos? You might want to look at some of their websites for some ideas. For instance, my friend Glenda Evans is a Certified Photo Organizer. Find someone who does what you’re writing about and ask to interview them. You might be surprised at what you find out.
Speak Your Mind