Starting the process of writing your book can feel overwhelming.
It is also the start of a very magical, transformational journey both for you, the author, and your readers.
In this post, I want to share with you some ideas to help you get started with writing your book.
If you are here reading this, it's likely that you are interested in writing. You have probably been feeling the call to write a book, or you may be in the process of writing one already. Maybe you've written a book (or books) before, but you're curious to know some more about how to enrich the process. In this post I want to share with you some perspective on how to get started with writing a book, and how to allow it to be a transformational process.
When we allow our writing process to be transformational in ourselves, and when we make ourselves available to transformation as we're writing our books, they become infused with this really potent quality that our readers can feel.
So, how on earth do we get started? Lots of people feel the call to write a book, yet not many people actually do it. I want to show you that the process can be as rich, fulfilling and magical as possible.
1. You don't have to have a plan.
The first thing I want you to know is you don't have to have it all mapped out at the beginning.
When I wrote my first book, Heal Your Inner Good Girl, I was looking for advice about how to write a book and everything I saw was telling me, "you need to get it all planned out, you need to know what your different chapters are going to be, you have to have a really clear idea of the structure"
It felt really constricting, and I just wanted to write my book!
I'm a recovering good girl, so there's a part of me that loves to plan, but I also just wanted to go on this journey and get started without thinking about it too much in the beginning.
I wanted to keep a sense of magic - and I'm guessing that if you're reading this, you are an Unbound or unbinding being like me, and that sense of freedom and possibility and boundlessness is really important to you.
You can have a loose idea of what you're going to write about, but you will gain so much clarity through just getting started and writing.
When you make a commitment to your book and to the book writing process and you just begin, the clarity comes as you write.
You don't wait for clarity. You write for clarity.
2. Ask the question, "What wants to come through me right now?
This is a really powerful question; if you're ever feeling stuck, when you come to the page or you come to your laptop, just pause for a moment and ask: "What wants to come through me today? What wants to be expressed through me today?". Just write whatever comes, whether it makes sense or not, just let it come through. There will be days, maybe, when nothing comes - and that's okay. Maybe you're not meant to write on those days. This is another part of the Unbound Writing process, that we really honour, the cyclical nature of creativity.
Put your place yourself in a place of trust, which is so, so powerful.
(For more in honouring your cyclical nature in your writing, see the following podcast episodes:
Episode 21: Cyclical Creativity with Ali Roe
Episode 20: Harnessing your Cyclical Nature with Angie Northwood
Episode 19: Allowing your Cyclical Nature
3. Know you aren't alone
Know that in your book writing process, you are not alone.
This is a collaborative process, a co-creation between you and the essence of the book that is wanting to be expressed through you at this time.
Liz Gilbert talks about this in her book, Big Magic; how book ideas are these entities of their own, and they're floating around just looking for somebody to work with, to take them on board, and to allow them to be expressed into the world.
If we think about it like that, your book has an energy of its own.
It has a spirit of its own, a soul of its own.
So whatever you are creating becomes this gorgeous, collaborative process.
So I invite you to connect with your book, and to ask your it, "What do you want me to write about, what do you want me to be sharing? How would you want me to communicate this? What's important? What do you want me to know? How can we bring this into the world together?"
The UNBOUND writing process is all about creating a magical space for your book to come through you. When you create space for your book, and allow it to be part of the process, something truly incredible and alchemical takes place.
Wherever you are on your book writing journey, The UNBOUND Press has resources to support you:
Nicola's book, UNBOUND Writing expands on the ideas shared here.
The UNBOUND Writer's Club podcast on Apple iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, and our website has a wealth of information on writing your book to life.
The Unbound Writing Challenge starts on November 16th 2020.