I
know, I know, a lot of people want to write a book, right? And surely it’s a
good desire.
Why I think so? Every living human has a story to tell, because to live is to
live out your story. And if every story is unique, and stories have lessons,
then everyone has something to say, something to teach, something to give.
And
to give, you need a medium to do it. If you choose to use a book to share what
you know, here are a few baby steps.
The
writing process comes out of life, out of living, and you know living happens every
day and everywhere. And that’s why your content can be found anywhere.
But
how do you capture your content? One of the easiest ways to do so is to keep a
notepad with you. A notepad should not be far off wherever you are---the ideas
for your book can hit you at any time, and some of the best hit when you least
expect them. Some of the finest lines could come to you when you are eating,
walking about, in a conversation with someone, and so on. You get it.
And
since a short pencil is better than a long memory, capture it before it flies
off. There's often too much going on in our lives to commit things to our
memory, but a pencil keeps it noted.
Why
wait till you sit down to think up your ideas? Heard of the writers block,
right? Yeah, often it hits the very moment you sit to punch the keys.
And
this note-taking habit is shown in one of my favorite movies, Finding Forrester. Ever seen it? Derek
Luke, who plays the Jamal, the young man who befriends William Forrester, Sean
Connery's character in the movie, always carried a back pack with him.
In
his backpack, he had a little notebook
which he used to write down some of his favorite lines. In the movie, he
ends up losing his backpack while he and his friends, out of curiosity, visit William
Forrester’s apartment. To them the old man was mysterious and they wanted to
find out who he was.
They
get spooked and ran off, and Jamal leaves his bag behind. William ends up
looking through his backpack and notices the young man’s writing habit and some
of the lines he had penned. These little pieces of sentences are what the
renowned author sees and likes, even comments on them in his notations in
Jamal's book. This ultimately became the tissue/link to their friendship.
Great
pieces equals a great book, and these pieces could come to you at the beach,
the grocery store, in a conversation. So always have a pen at the ready or your
own writing software.
