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Show Topics:

• How to write a book
• Where to start
• Who to hire to pull it together
• Copywriting a book title
• Where to print a self-published book

Gregg Pechmann is in the process of publishing his first book, Upside Down: How We Survived Seven Shortsales. It’s been a four month process and he shares everything he’s learned along the way.

Gregg and his wife survived a major financial disaster and lived to write about it. Gregg said he had tears when the book was finished, both from the process, but also from reliving everything his family had to go through. That kind of emotion is what you should be putting into your writing.

Gregg hired Erin Casey, an editor who also works for Success Magazine to edit Upside down. He’s using Lightning Source to print and also fulfill Amazon orders.

I asked Gregg how they stuck to a schedule (his wife Sharon wrote a bookend for each chapter) to finish it on time. Building a website for the book was a strategy he focused on and I also asked him why he did that.

More publishing resources:

• A show all about writing a book and the self-publishing process
• How to get a book published through a traditional publisher
• I answered a question from Rob on the printing process and self-publishing

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I’ll help you turn your ideas into a business that changes the world (and your bank account).  Here’s how.

Right-click to download the show | Leave a review on iTunes | Submit a question or call (919) 355-8275.

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Show Topics:

• Having fun while working
• Creating great customer service (our experience with a bad client)
• The difference between a blog and a magazine site
• Facebook is dying for business
• What printer to use when self-publishing

I spent the beginning of this week hanging out in Colorado with a team at the startup company, Moolala. What struck me was the difference in their culture and the culture of many solopreneurs. I’m afraid many people are starting businesses that give them less fun and freedom than the job they fought to get out of.

David replied to a post this week entitled We Suck; Tell Your Friends. I not a proponent of pleasing everyone.

Chris Repp is a member of The Art of Manliness. He has a question about blogging and guest posting. What’s the difference between a blog and a magazine site?
(more…)

Check out the ideas that have flown off the computer and into books this year.  If these guys can do it, why can’t you?

80% of us want to write a book.  In this video I share some ideas on how to do it.

A list of the book I mentioned in this video:

• Become a Coach – Justin Lukasavige
• Drumming up Business to the Beat of My Own Drum – Jeff Jones
• Holy IT – Scott Wittig
• The Greatest Harvest – Chadrick Black
• Get Naked – Derek Sisterhen
• The Inside Out Youth Worker – Kent Julian
• The IMPACTS Dynamic – Dickey Eason
• Smarter, Faster, Cheaper – David Siteman Garland
• One Woman’s Journey – Joel Boggess
• Stripped Down – Tony and Alisa DiLorenzo

I mentioned these resources in the video:

• A show all about writing a book and the self-publishing process
• How to get a book published through a traditional publisher
• I answered a question from Rob on the printing process and self-publishing
• Gregg Pechmann’s story on self-publishing

If you’d like your cover framed and hanging on my wall of covers (you’ll see it behind me during live Coach Radio shows), print out the front cover, autograph it and send it to me.

What are you writing this year?

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Covered in today’s show:

• The process of traditional book publishing
• Finding an agent (or do you need one?)
• Creating a book proposal
• Selling your idea
• Advances and royalties

David Siteman Garland has been a guest on Coach Radio and is a friend of the show (here’s his story).  David built a his brand, seemingly overnight, and creatively turned it into a book which hits the shelves in December, 2010.

David’s book is Smarter, Faster, Cheaper: Non-boring fluff-free strategies for marketing and promoting your business.

David takes me through his process of starting from scratch and follows through with his book hitting the shelves.  He’s never written a book before this one so now you don’t have an excuse for doing it too.

David’s story is interesting because a publisher sought him out to write a book.  When they entered negotiations it only took seven days to complete and now his book will be released in less than one year from when he started.  The timeline for a book is usually about two years.

You must have a platform for a publisher to find you interesting.  They won’t market your book for you so you have to lead or be involved in a community.

A lot goes behind the scenes when with the first draft is complete.  David went through about ten edits to get to the finished product.

David defines advances and royalties and royalties to me.  His advance was in the five-figure range and was something he was very happy with, given his experience.

“Very few authors make a lot of money from royalties.” - David Garland

Follow David on twitter @therisetothetop.

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I’d love to help you turn your ideas into a business that changes the world (and your bank account).  Here’s how I help.

Right-click to download the show | Leave a review on iTunes | Submit a question or call (919) 355-8275.

Subscribe to Coach Radio:

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054 Coach Radio – Writing Books, eBooks, Self-publishing

Right-click to download

Send me your feedback or questions or leave me a voice mail: (919) 355-8275.

Leave a review on iTunes

Get Naked – Derek Sisterhen’s new book. 

What do you think of the cover? —————->

Justin Hughes starts us out with follow-up questions from last week’s show on shopping carts and accepting payment.

I really enjoyed your podcast on your setup for billing.

My brain is really strapped though right now with work, FAA, and trying to get my wife’s website set up for her book launch next month, and while I normally would do all the research work to identify the ideal solutions for us right now, I’m just too overwhelmed. So, I wonder if you could offer me some advice.

The book is being self-published using Lightning Source and we’ll have a .pdf, kindle, nook, and ibooks version, and while we plan on marketing this and pushing it, the various versions will be the only thing we’re selling right now.

Paypal is obviously necessary to accept, but is this the best solution for right now? Additionally, since we’re not sure how much we’re going to sell online, 1ShoppingCart seems an expensive solution for an unknown return.

So what would you do in my shoes?

Thank you for your help.

Ryan Brewer writes to ask about turning a blog into a book.

I write a daily personal finance blog and I had the idea not too long ago to turn my blog into an ebook.  How can I start?  How can I market it?  Is it even a good idea? I greatly appreciate your time.  Keep up the great work

Many authors have done this.  Social Media 101 and many of Seth Godin’s books came from blog posts. This tech tip highlights a website that will turn your blog into a book.

Keoni Kim asks about writing a book without rehashing the same info that’s already out there.

I’ve been on your list for a few months now and I want to thank you for your great information the you provide.  I am a big Dave Ramsey fan and have been actively paying down my debt for the past year. I wanted to write an ebook on finance like you have.  What advice can you give to me?  I don’t want to rehash what Dave and all the other Personal Finance guru’s have already done.  But it is a good way to get someone off the ground.  Any advice you can give is appreciated.

Chapter covered from Become a Coach – “What can I do to Learn More About the Business of Coaching?”

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