To write or not to write…

This week I was sent a list of the top 10 books for 2008.  Did you know that out of the 10, only 2 were written by women? For those who are interested the books are Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri and When Will There be Good News by Kate Atkinson.  This got me thinking though, why are we not writing more?

In talking to women through my work, many have a goal of writing a book.  It is said that we all have one good book in us.  Stats show that 82% of people dream of writing a book but only a few do.  What holds us back? For me the start was actually putting pen to paper.  I brought a book called The Writers Way as I was desperate to unleash some creative talent and thought that I’d give writing a try.  Here I found a way to tap into my creative mind, it was private and personal and allowed me to write freely without consequence. Up until reading this and writing my first book, I had only put pen to paper through journal writing.  I never dreamed I could actually become a writer. As is often the case with many writers, your passion can spark in you a talent that would otherwise lay dormant.  My passion at the time was women and relationships and once I had the book idea, the rest fell into place.  One of the best things you can ever do for your career is to write a book about your area of expertise.  Saying you are an ‘author’ sets you up as a specialist in your field and will open many doors that would have otherwise been closed. The publishing industry has changed with the popularity of the internet.  When I was trying to get my first book published, because I was an ‘unknown writer’ I was told that it would be near impossible to get a publishing deal.  I spent 12 months getting rejected from publishers through-out Australia before I found success. Today however there are far more options available budding writers and I don’t think it’s necessary to be at the mercy of big publishing houses.  Many women are now self publishing or writing e-books with phenomenal success.  Woman can now publish their own books to support their talents, passion and more importantly  - grow their profiles or businesses. Joanna Penn is a self published author.  She now supports people who are also interested in writing, publishing and marketing their own books successfully through her website The Creative Penn.  Her thoughts on getting started are below. 5 Lessons to Help You Get Started on Your Book When people think about writing a book, they may talk themselves out of it because they are not as good as the great writers, the prize-winning authors, the best-selling authors. They may need permission to make mistakes and to have a rough first draft and permission to be mediocre for a while. Creativity has the reputation of being bestowed as a gift and miraculously to allow the creation of finished perfection. But this is not true. Here are some valuable lessons learnt at a Picasso exhibition at the Brisbane Modern Art Gallery held recently. It was an exhibition of lesser known drawings, prints and some of Picasso’s own personal collection of paintings as well as photos of him in his various studios. Although on art, not writing, the lessons are the same. 1.    You don’t have to be perfect. Not everything Picasso did was a masterpiece. There were sketches and doodles displayed that he could have dashed off in no time at all when he was clearly just playing with ideas. We should be more like this. Don’t expect everything you do to be a masterpiece first time. Play…try things out…ask your friends what they think…relax into it…and in time one of the things you do will be a masterpiece. 2.    Be authentic. Many of the pieces Picasso collected were from friends or by friends, people he admired, phases he went through. Each tells of something he saw in them that wasn’t necessarily obvious. Some of the pieces are rough and basic, some of great artistic importance. He just collected what he liked. The sketches were of real people, with bulbous noses, or real stomachs. Naked people with no airbrushing. All of these images are authentic and untouched by media worship. Stop trying to be what others want you to be. Stop trying to like what you think others want you to like. Just be authentic. Get to know yourself and investigate the original you. Write what you are interested in. 3.    Don’t put yourself in a box. You can be many people. Don’t constrain what talents you have. Did you know that Picasso also wrote poetry? He was not just a visual artist. He expressed himself in many ways. You don’t have to define yourself by one idea or talent. You can add “writer” or “author” to your list of adjectives about yourself. 4.    Let inspiration guide you. One of Picasso’s most famous paintings is Guernica, a copy of which is displayed in the United Nations headquarters. He was inspired to paint it after the Nazi bombing of this little Spanish town and it has continued to inspire people with its anti-war message. We need to allow ourselves to be moved, and when we are inspired, to act. Don’t let the day in-day out working life kill inspiration and passion. You can still be someone who is moved and who acts powerfully, and who expresses that through creativity. 5.    You have a lifetime of expression within you. Picasso was an old man when he died leaving all kinds of work behind him. You have a long life, and you have time to create within that life. Make sure you use that time to express what you long to share with others. Better to start now and make mistakes, instead of regretting having never started. Jo recently interviewed me for her new book on How To Be an Author.  Please read this if you would like a more detailed account of how my first published book came to fruition.  You can also download a free workbook here to get you started with your own book. Have you written a book?  Have you thought about it?  What challenges have you found?  Who are some of your favourite female authors?  Tell us about someone you know who has written a book.

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