Do you want to start your book writing journey but don’t know where to start? Are you scared and think becoming an author is impossible? Have you finished writing but are afraid to publish, or is your draft still sitting somewhere?
It would be a waste if you had lived an amazing life but didn’t leave behind any book for the world. No matter who you are, what challenges you face, or how bad your procrastination is, with 10 years of writing experience, I can say:
Anyone can write a book and become an author, especially you!
Why am I so sure?
When it comes to writing, I have a record: I graduated elementary school with a terrible grade in Literature. My dad said, “You’re a genius, no one in the whole school has such a low score.”
When it comes to procrastination, I’m a “professional procrastinator.” When I was a student in 2008, I carried over 10 kilos of all kinds of books home, spent a lot of time… admiring them on the shelf, and dreamed that one day I would be a best-selling author!
I started writing then, and 5 years later, I had almost finished the introduction!
What about now?
In the 5 years from 2015 to 2020, under the pen name Fususu, I published 6 books in traditional way in Vietnam, 3 of which have been consistently among the top-selling books in bookstores many years, making me a “full-time” author so I can freely live my dream of traveling and writing.
Currently, I have over 20+ book titles…
I share this not to brag, but to show you that if I can, you can too. What do you think is the exciting writing experience that made me different?
5 years ago I couldn’t finish the introduction, but 5 years later I published one book every year, not to mention translating them into English and publishing internationally?
Becoming an author tips #1: Learn It Right, Do It Right!
A question that Craig Valentine, the 1999 World Champion of Public Speaking, once asked that I always remember: “What happens if you have decades of experience, but in all that time, you’ve been using the wrong method?”
Generally, if the method is wrong, the failure will be long. You will not only waste time, money, and opportunities, but also create bad habits that are hard to break.
Because I thought I was bad at Literature and had no talent, I never learned how to write. For those 5 years of procrastination, I wrote instinctively, following writing tips I picked up online without knowing if it was right or wrong. When I realized this barrier, I decided to learn from the best to achieve my goal!
In 2011, even though I was introverted and quiet, I set a goal to become a speaker. I invested $10 to read Craig Valentine’s World Class Speaking. A year later, I became an official Trainer at a well-known training company in my country. After that, I invested and read countless books of all kinds, but still couldn’t write my first book. In 2015, to cure my chronic “procrastination” disease, I took Bj Fogg’s Masterclass in Tiny Habits, a Stanford University professor who has over 20 years of research in behavioral science. To learn directly from him at that time, you needed $400, now it’s $1700.
You get what you pay for. Thanks to understanding the science of habit formation, I created a small but powerful habit for myself, and surprisingly, this habit later conquered all the arenas, helping me publish my first book that same year, and then a new one each year after that.
I believe that knowledge is power that helps you open any door of opportunity. In July 2020, I continued to invest over $2500 to learn directly from Craig Valentine. Indeed, his knowledge is priceless. After 3 months of training, Craig not only helped me speak better, but my writing skills also improved. From then on, I confidently published my 7th book on public speaking.
Public speaking is a skill, changing yourself is a skill, book writing is no exception. It’s also a skill, and it’s completely different from writing Literature in school. So the first writing experience is to learn and do something important that will support your career later on. That’s writing skills in general, and writing experience in particular.
Book writing secret #2: Write for Readers, You’ll Become an Author.
Early 2020, if you sat with me in a coffee shop in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, you would see a beautiful and talented girl, not only appearing in the newspapers many times, but she also runs a few companies. She invited me for a coffee to ask about writing tips.
She asked in detail and took notes enthusiastically. I didn’t hide any writing tips that helped me publish a book every year on my book writing journey. At the end of the meeting, I asked her a question, “What are you writing a book for?”
She said quite a lot, including one point: “I want to build my personal brand name.”
Hearing that, I had a feeling that something might hinder her book from being released this year, but I didn’t know what it was, so I couldn’t advise further.
Half a year after that conversation, on my birthday, August 15, 2020, she sent me a greeting.
I thanked her and asked, “How far is your book?”
She remained silent and did not answer.
Because I really wanted to help potential authors, in December 2020, I texted her, and she replied, “I’m too busy, so I’ve only written half.”
Meanwhile, with that same writing tips, in 2020, I published another novel and finished writing two book manuscripts. I share this not to brag, but to help you see the difference once again.
My hunch was right, and now I know what it is.
It’s the same successful writing tips, but what stopped her from finishing the book? What makes the goal of writing a book haunt her year after year, while I keep publishing books regularly?
Because I have more experience?
No. If we consider successful experience, I’m sure she has more than me, because she runs several companies and has a profile full of outstanding achievements.
Because I have more writing experience?
No. I see on Facebook that she also writes often, with many posts getting hundreds and thousands of likes.
What’s the difference?
It’s the purpose of writing a book.
She wants to build her own image: Not only a successful businesswoman, but also an author!
My purpose when writing any book is to help you achieve a goal that I have achieved, so that you can be even happier than me. So when I see somebody struggling, I have more motivation to finish the book and help them be happy.
When I heard her share that she had only written half, can you guess how I felt?
I have more motivation to finish my next book, to help people write books effectively, to help you turn any valuable experience you have into a book in a maximum of 9 months and 10 days. Recently, when sharing on Facebook about completing my next book, I asked her again about the unfinished book.
“It’s still there,” she said. “I can talk in front of a thousand people, but when I write, I feel unnatural somehow.”
A writing tip I learned from 5-star authors like Brian Tracy and Adam Khoo to write naturally. It’s that they turn books into a conversation between them and the reader. So if anyone still thinks books are something high-level, to show off knowledge and build an image for themselves, they will not only have difficulty writing but may forever be a reader.
I hope my 8th book can help her and those who are struggling with writing can finish their books.
Secret #3: The More You Know, The Less You Worry!
Recently, a friend talked to me for advice on book writing. I was surprised that he had finished writing 2 ebooks with pretty compelling stories, but was hesitant to publish because he was worried about a lot of things! He gave some copies to people but didn’t get much feedback, so he was also worried. He didn’t know the process of publishing paper books, so she was worried too. Most importantly, he didn’t know if it would sell after publishing, so he was also worried.
After conquering my seemingly far-fetched dreams, do you know what lesson I learned?
Let the fear say what it wants.
Achieving your goals is your job.
Usually, people are only afraid when they haven’t started taking action, when they don’t understand something. But when you know the details of the steps, fear will have to be afraid of you, it will be quiet and watch you take action.
When I met Craig Valentine, he had been a champion for 10 years, I read his books and shortened my path to becoming a Trainer. Bj Fogg also had a long journey of 20 years, I read and shortened my path to my dream book. Their long journeys became my shortcuts.
Now, let my 10-year long journey be your shortcut in a few hours of reading my 8th book that I’m translating, and discover the secrets that I guarantee many authors will “hide their skills” from you (I’m translating this book, see you at the launch).
Thank you for reading this far. I hope you have found some inspiration on your book writing journey. In summary, the 3 blood-and-bone writing experiences I want to share with you are:
1) Learn It Right, Do It Right!
Writing a book is also a skill, it’s different from writing essays in school. Writing instinctively is good, but if you learn how to write effectively, and especially have a map in hand, you won’t have to fumble around, and you can finish the book quickly.
2) Write for readers, you’ll become an author:
The most important thing in writing is not what you’re going to write, but how you want to help the reader. Treat your book like a conversation with your reader, then your book will not only be more natural, but your writing inspiration will be overflowing!
3) The more you know, the less you worry:
I can say that I am one of the few authors in the world who can write, design covers, print, translate books, and even put books on the bestseller list myself. I do everything from A to Z not to show off how good I am, but to understand the process and help you effectively!
And if you want my long journey to be your shortcut, then follow my blog and wait for information about this big book, which I have painstakingly compiled 10 years of experience for you!
P.s. While waiting, why not download my free gift, including 3 three ebooks that also help you to kickstart your book writing journey?
