Tiny Book Author: There’s a Tiny Book in You Waiting to Be Written is my second book, and it’s almost ready to be published.
How did I go from an idea to a book that’s about to hit the shelves?
Here’s in short everything I did (plus a couple of steps I still need to take).
Keep in mind this is just one of the many approaches to writing and self-publishing. I’m sharing it with you so you might get some ideas on how to go about your own creative writing project.
Have fun!
The Whole Process
About 10 months ago, I got hit by an exciting tiny book idea.
I asked myself (and answered) two important questions: Who’s this book for? What is it for?
I started writing the introduction (I call it “introduction,” but, technically, it’s a foreword), where I told the readers a very specific story: why I decided to write the book they’re now holding in their hands. The purpose of this chapter was to get them to say: “Yes! I picked the right book! This is for me!”
Did I meticulously plan the whole thing? Did I know from the start what I’d be writing in Chapter 7? Not really. I only had a sense of where I was going, and I let new ideas emerge. I planned the book as I went along.
I wrote wrote wrote. Every day. If—for whatever reason—I couldn’t write, I thought about what to write.
I shared my first drafts in an earlier version of a critique group I had organised, and I let my writing buddies have a reaction to my work. Super useful.
Oh, look! I have a full draft. Now what? I asked some of my writing buddies if they wanted to be my beta readers. They read my manuscript and gave me feedback.
I accepted some of their comments and rejected others. If I completely disagreed with their suggestions, I didn’t start a debate. No no no. Never do that. No matter how strong you feel about it, never argue with your beta readers—not even if they tell you to quit writing and try plumbing instead. Remember Roy Peter Clark’s Writing Tool 49:
Learn from your critics. Tolerate even unreasonable feedback.
I don't know anyone who enjoys negative criticism, especially of creative work. But such criticism can be priceless if you learn how to use it. The right frame of mind can transform criticism that is nasty, petty, insincere, biased, and even profane, into gold.
[…]
If you can learn to use criticism in positive ways, you will continue to grow as a writer. — Roy Peter Clark, Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer, pp. 236 -239
Without my beta readers’ feedback—which included 26 yawns from my partner Aloha—Tiny Book Author wouldn’t be as good as it is now.
I revised revised revised. Every day. If I couldn’t revise, I thought about what to revise and how.
Look! Another full draft! I asked Aloha and my brother Jacopo—a storytelling nerd who’s currently studying strategic writing at an Italian academy—to read the second draft and give me more feedback, which I then implemented to further improve the manuscript.
I hired a professional book designer to have the coolest cover and book layout. I’m still working with her. The deadline to finalize the work is 1 September.
I hired a professional copyeditor to edit the manuscript according to The Chicago Manual of Style. The editor made 295 revisions, including 145 insertions, 116 deletions, 30 formatting changes, and 4 comments/queries.
I went through the edited manuscript and accepted 98% of the editor’s revisions. It took me a couple of hours to get to a third full draft.
Next Steps
Finalize the design of the book (cover and interior) with the designer.
Hire a professional proofreader to catch any remaining typos and stylistic and design inconsistencies.
Send the file to Youcanprint, an Italian self-publishing platform that will generate an ISBN and distribute my book on Amazon and other major bookstores.
Publish and celebrate (don’t know how yet).
Talk about my book online and in person. Market market market — but never spam!
Is it easy to write and self-publish a tiny book?
Haha!
No.
It’s challenging.
And that’s precisely why it must be done.
Thanks for reading. 🙏🏻 I hope it was useful.
If you have any questions about my self-publishing and writing process, please ask away. I always reply.
Talk soon,
Fabio
Well done, Fabio! I'm looking forward to reading it. You're the best.
How did you come up with the book idea?
Thank you, Fabio. And congratulations!