How to Write Your Second Book
Writing a book can be a daunting prospect, even if you’ve done one before. In today’s post Bryan Cohen, author and creative coach, let’s us in on a little secret to writing your second book. First-time authors will be interested to read this too.
The first step of writing your second book is to write your first book. Write the first draft of your first book as quickly as possible. Don’t worry about editing as you go along, just get it out of your head as quickly as possible. When you’re done, take at least one more crack at editing it right away. After all, you have a second book to write and time’s a wastin’.
When your first book is in decent shape, workshop it in a group to smooth out some of the rough edges. After making those changes, either hire an editor or get a friend to do it in trade for something else you do well. When the changes are made, you can self-publish the book or shop it around to agents, editors and publishers.
Everything I just wrote is step one in the process of writing your second book. And your third. And your 30th. When you get your first book out of the way, whether or not it’s good, it gives you the confidence to do another. It allows you to convince yourself that writing books isn’t that crazy. After all, you just finished one and you survived to tell the tale.
One of the reasons National Novel Writing Month is so fantastic is that it allows thousands of people a year to get that first book out of the way. Maybe they’ll create something fantastic. Maybe it’ll be terrible. Either way, with that first book off the to-do list, the next book looks a lot more doable.
If you’ve started and stopped your first book a hundred times over, try setting a new goal for yourself. Set out to write your second book. By the time you reach step two, writing a book will be a cake walk.
About the Author
In honor of his new book, Cohen is hosting the “1,000 Prompts, 1,000 Dollars” Writing Contest on his website. Click the link to find out how to enter!
Bryan’s new book 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts, Volume 2 is out now.
Bryan Cohen is an author, a creativity coach and an actor. His new book, 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts, Volume 2: More Ideas for Blogs, Scripts, Stories and More is now available on Amazon in digital and paperback format. His other books include 1,000 Creative Writing Prompts, The Post-College Guide to Happiness, and Ted Saves the World. He has published over 30 books, which have sold more than 20,000 copies in total. Connect with him on his website, Build Creative Writing Ideas, on Facebook or on Twitter.