Hello everyone, I am Yao Maodun, a writer and publisher. In the previous section, I talked about how to take a beautiful and atmospheric book title, and also shared the 4 principles and 6 common ways to take the title, and listed a large number of examples.
In verse 10, let's focus on what to prepare before you can officially write a book.
In fact, I talked about this issue before when I was doing live broadcasts, but because of the time relationship, I didn't talk about it in depth enough. With the help of this column, I will explain it in detail, I hope it will be helpful to you.
As the old saying goes, if a worker desires to do a good job, he must first use it. With the progress of the times and the development of science and technology, nowadays, many people think that writing books is very simple, a computer or even a mobile phone can be enough. After all, it's the Internet age, and you don't have to write with a pen on paper, write it, and mail it to a book editor, as you used to do. But I must say that both the phone and the computer only solve the problem of writing tools, that is, basic material preparation. In addition, we must also be prepared in three aspects.
First, find a suitable writing environment
At present, I have contacted and cooperated with hundreds of writers, including full-time writers and part-time writers. Some of them are used to writing in the office, some are used to writing at home, and authors with slightly better conditions will rent a higher-grade hotel or rent a temporary rent to write in the birds-filled countryside.
Although each author has different requirements for the environment in which he writes, he actually has certain requirements. Because we know that the vast majority of people want to be undisturbed by the outside world when writing, and the quieter the environment, the better. If you are in a noisy downtown, it is difficult for the writer to calm down and write.
A few years ago, I was invited to write a book to a client. This customer is very careful, specially opened a hotel near his home, before and after a month, anyway, do not have to consider the problem of eating and living, in addition to sleeping is writing, that time the writing efficiency is indeed very high.
Of course, it doesn't mean that everyone needs a comfortable writing environment, but it is still necessary to simply prepare and find an environment that suits you, which will make you relax and write higher quality works.
Second, set aside plenty of writing time
Once, I met some authors who said: Teacher Yao, I want to write this book, I hope you will guide me. I said: Yes, but can you guarantee the writing time? Do you plan to write on weekends, evenings, holidays, or during work hours? The other party replied: I haven't thought about this question yet.
Yes, that's the problem. Many authors initially feel that writing books can enhance their influence, but also export knowledge, and spread ideas, which is a cool, happy and valuable thing, and they will not think too much about it at all, thinking that everything will come to fruition. Now, I'm going to tell you, if you've already decided to write a book, you have to set aside plenty of writing time.
Why? Very simple. I've said on several occasions that writing a 100,000-word book, under normal circumstances, takes 3-4 months to write in your spare time. You have to think clearly, is there such a period of time that you can focus on writing. If you're just doing this with a fun attitude, I suggest you give up.
Writing is a happy thing, but it is also a lonely and even painful thing. I can talk about my creative experience, I have published several books on the market, the fastest writing is 40 days, the slowest writing is 4 months. When writing one of these books, I often encountered obstacles, stuck shells, and couldn't find feelings, and I wanted to give up several times. Later, it was forced to insist on writing it.
It is precisely because this experience is still fresh in my memory, so I would like to remind new writers in particular, whether you plan to use your spare time to write, or full-time writing, it is best to set aside the time for writing according to your actual situation.
Third, strictly implement the writing plan
As mentioned earlier, writing a book usually takes months or even longer, so I recommend having a writing plan that is strictly enforced to better achieve your intended goals. So, how should this writing plan be developed? In fact, don't think too complicated. The following is to share with you a book writing plan that I have used, and you can flexibly adjust it according to your actual situation.
【Book Writing Plan】
February 1 to February 10 Preparation of various materials
From February 11 to the end of May, I will write and complete the first draft
June 1 - June 10 Rest and Cooling
June 11 ~ June 17 Additions, deletions, revisions, and finalizations
June 20 Manuscript submitted to book editors
It should be said that it is easy to make a writing plan, but the difficulty lies in whether it can be implemented to the letter. Many people do things in a three-minute heat, and they shrink back when they encounter a little difficulty. Therefore, I would like to emphasize that in order to successfully write your first book, you must be tough on yourself and be sure to strictly implement your writing plan. Otherwise, it is better to give up and not to do it, so as not to give up halfway and waste precious time.
In short, based on my years of experience in book creation and planning, the more thoroughly you prepare before you write, the smoother it will be to write. In addition, there is a personal feeling, the smoother the author writes, the more comfortable the reader is to read.
Well, we'll talk about this section first, and in verse 11, I'll share with you, what should I do when I get stuck in writing? Stay tuned.