Organizational Check-in_Updated Shorter Version

>> Hi, everyone, and welcome to Launch Your Dream Book. Today, we're going to talk a little bit about getting organized and just a bit of a check-in for you. Since we are going to really get started in the publishing process in the upcoming modules, we wanted to have a little check-in to see where you are with your writing so that we can help support you and give you some tips up until this point to help you move through the process smoothly. All right, so first off, like I said, the next modules are going to be all about the publishing process. So just have a check-in with yourself where are you right now in the process, how is your content shaping up, how is your schedule holding up and really ask yourself where do I need to go next. And maybe you need to refresh and go back to some of the older modules and post your outline on Facebook and get really clear, maybe you're ready to start going full speed ahead with continuing writing and getting a draft completed, wherever you are, just check in with yourself so that you can make a plan going forward. The plan, as mentioned earlier in modules, is bio-individual. So your timeline will look different than colleagues' timelines, and that's totally okay. So it's just really important to have this check-in so that you can figure out where you're going next and adjust your timeline accordingly. So as you're shaping content, remember that the first draft is not about being perfect, it's more about getting your ideas, your thoughts, and your feelings on paper. Refining can come later. I do say to write in the same voice, the same tone, try to do those things as you're moving along, but for the most part, allow yourself just the flexibility that, you know, this doesn't have to make the cut into the final book. A lot of times you get ideas and you may just kind of free write and things may come up and pop up and so you allow yourself to write, and then later on, you may realize, "You know what, this doesn't make sense here, it makes sense in another area" or "This doesn't make sense all together" or "I really want to expand on this idea." So the first draft is just getting everything in one document so that you can refine later on. A lot of people want to know, "How do you know when to stop?" And I think simply it's when you're done with what you have to say. And as you move along later on in either a peer review or an editor can tell you if you should add some things or take things out later on. And I'm going to get into peer reviews in a minute here, but really, you know, stop whenever it feels... Stop when you feel full essentially. If you think of it like nutrition, you know, when you're eating, stop when you feel full, and it's the same thing with writing. And then you can always tweak later on. And if you're not sure or if you start talking about another concept, that's totally okay. I recommend that if you start talking about another concept and idea altogether that seems like it could be probably another book, then I suggest you take that information and put it into another document, you know, ideas for later, you can call it, or ideas for another time, and put all of that information there. And if you're not sure, something that I do is I will put literally just not sure or maybe here, maybe not, and I'll highlight that, and then I'll just move on. And so I kind of put a note to myself that, "Hey, maybe this will come together later on, maybe not." Either way, that's okay. All right, so a couple things you want to ask yourself as you're writing and going through this process is, "Is your voice consistent throughout?" You know, "Are you writing for your reader or are you writing to... You know, just a therapy session for yourself?" Asking yourself those things as you write will really help the piece come together, you know, so you're not talking like a college student in one paragraph and then, you know, like a busy mom in the next paragraph. You know, you want to make sure that your voice is consistent, that you're writing to that reader. And a good thing to do is survey your ideal readers if you don't know, see what they struggle with, where they need the most support and how you can ideally help them. All right, so I mentioned peer review groups. These are great to do as you move along in the process. So simply, you can ask your community or friends if they are willing to do a peer review of your work. You can even offer them a copy of your book once it's done and once it's printed. But I found this is a great way to get feedback early on, see kind of those missing points, see what people are really resonating with and what they really would like to see more of. And you can take some of that feedback, and it can help mold your content even further. And this is also a great way to do it, which we'll talk about editing and budgeting and things like that later on, but we've had tons of students... Have peer review groups and community groups where people offer to read their work and their book in exchange for feedback, and then they offer them a copy once it's printed. But this has just been a great way to start kind of that process especially if you may be feeling unsure. Another thing that you can do is if you have a newsletter, if you have some sort of following, you can totally ask your online community. My friend Alex Frenzen actually did this, which I thought was genius, in one of her emails, she's a writer, and she was writing a book, and she sent the eBook out for free and said, "I'd love, you know, for you to read this right now. If you find any typos or anything, just let me know." And her community was just so invested in her that they literally would say, "Hey, Alex. On page 67, you had a typo here." And they were looking for those things. And so essentially, she got free editing from her community for her book. And then a few weeks later, I saw that she came out and said, "Hey, thanks to your feedback, here's, you know, an updated version sans typos." And she sent it out again. And this was a process that she did until eventually she put it online to sell, so just a unique way, something different to get your content in the eyes of others and get that feedback. And it's just, again, great to see what's missing, and this can really help you move forward quite easily. So when engaging peer reviews and groups, make sure to ask the right questions. Something that I learned early on was instead of saying, "Oh, what's wrong with this," ask a reader what would they like to see more of because this actually will give you more information than what they don't like because we all don't like certain things about certain books, and that's fine. You know, your book isn't for everyone. It's for a very specific audience. So by asking what would they like to see more of, then it really sets the stage for where they want to see your voice come out, what information they want you to share. And so this will give you a great insight into what you should include or how you should go further. And then just ask them, you know, "Is the tone to the reader consistent? Do you feel this tone is consistent throughout?" And then they may make notes like, "Oh, here, you know, it sounds a little bit more college age, whereas here, it's a little bit more mature. And here, it's funny, but here, it's really dry." So that will, again, help you shape your content. And write notes in parts that you think might need more work. Like I mentioned, I just put, you know, "May want to change, not sure on this." And I get people's feedback. And sometimes, in those notes, people are like, "Oh, my goodness. Yes, expand on this idea." And sometimes people are like, "Drop that." So it just gives you a sense. And also make sure that these peer review groups, make sure that you tell them who your reader is. You know, say, "This is my ideal reader," because your peer review group, it may not be necessarily your ideal reader, it may be someone that loves your work, loves what you do and is excited for you but, you know, it may not be a type of book that they would ever read but they're willing to give you feedback. So say, "Hey, if you were a 23-year-old, you know, new college graduate, on her own for the first time, you know, is this something that you would relate to?" And have them read it through that lens. And then also ask content-related questions so you know what you need to add in or take out. All right, another thing that you can do, many writers, including I believe, Brené Brown, actually, I know she does these, I did one for one of my books as well, is you can host a creative session in which you invite friends, colleagues, writers, or other creatives to help you flush out the book idea a little more. And you can really be at any point in the process. But now, in this check-in, where we're at in the module is a great time to do this. It just gets you excited about your book. You can see people in person and get them excited about your ideas and what you have to share. And you'll get really great feedback. You can get input from marketing ideas to general concepts. And I think, for you, as the author, it just gives you a sense of encouragement and just a boost of energy to really complete the book and get it done. All right, so next steps. First, just ask yourself, "Okay, where am I?" And be honest with yourself. If you're a little behind, that's okay. If you've been writing and writing and writing and you haven't, you know, looked at anything or stopped, that's okay too. Wherever you are, just be okay with that. And say, "This is where I'm at." And then ask yourself, "Okay, based on the timeline, based on what we're going over, what do I need to do?" And then lastly, "How am I going to get there?" And this is where the timeline comes in because we gave you a timeline in an earlier module. And there's this section on there where you create your unique timeline. So go through that and see "Okay, what needs to shift around? All my writing times and days, you know, are they set in stone or should I tweak them or change them? What are the things in my life that maybe I need to release so that I can put energy into here?" And put those things in there. And then, if you maybe say, "Oh, this creative collaboration was really a good idea," add that into your timeline and get the ball rolling with that. Or a peer group. Any of these ideas, just say, "How am I going to get there? How am I going to get to that end result of publishing my book?" And it's okay that if you don't know all the steps yet because, like I said at the very beginning of this call, we're getting into the publishing in the next coming weeks. And so you don't have to know all of the things but have a general idea of how your content is going to shape up and how you're going to get there with the organization of your book and with the content. Okay, so like I mentioned, all the next modules are all about publishing, so check out your publishing timeline to see when your first official draft should be completed and set your writing schedule and get to work. And as always, if you need anything from us, feel free to reach out to us on our Facebook page, and we are happy to support you in this process if you have any questions about the organization of your book or where you're going next, just let us know, and we're happy to help.