Is there a Book inside you trying to get out? Then it’s time to take a deep breath… and get started. You’ll never run out of reasons to postpone: Not enough time, not enough research, not enough writing skill… Don’t listen to that stuff! The reasons to write are actually far stronger. Here are just a few:

• You’ll help or entertain (or both) a whole lot of people.
• You’ll experience a lasting sense of achievement.
• A book in your name will change your standing in your professional and/or social world.
• It doesn’t matter if you reach 10 people,10,000 or 10 million: every reader counts.
• With print-on-demand, it’s easier than ever to get published.
• You might actually enjoy the process — in fact, you probably will!

But there’s one more overriding reason to write that book. You’ve lived a unique life, and that means you  possess knowledge, insights, stories and gifts that no one – literally no one — owns in the same way. The book inside you is truly one of a kind, and you’re the only person on the planet who can write it. If you don’t put pen to paper (or pixel to screen) that irreplaceable book will die with you.

Why Hesitate?

Remember, it doesn’t have to be a masterpiece to be valuable. Think of the books you’ve read that have helped or amused you. How many were by literary giants? Some no doubt, but not all. Often a book takes a special place in our lives because of just one idea it gave us (or, in fiction, one unforgettable character).

If your focus is your business or profession, you may be hesitant because you’ve learned that books don’t make money. That’s largely true — and also wholly untrue. On the one hand, only a small minority of authors earn a living from book sales. On the other hand, a book can be one of the most powerful tools to promote your business or advance your position professionally. And there’s definitely money in that. 

Make it Easy with Braincat

So what does it take to get started? Often people feel paralyzed because they have so many ideas rushing around their heads and don’t know how to grab hold of it all. This is where Braincat can be immensely helpful. Beginning in Brainstorm mode — the first step in the Braincat process — you’re free to pour all your ideas in just as they come to you. You can be totally random about it, and that’s very relaxing, because you know the Braincat process will quickly pull it all into shape.

The next step is Categorizing, and in Braincat this has a special value for book planning. Quickly placing your content in categories reveals the underlying organization of your ideas, a hidden structure you may not have seen at first. You’ll notice that the material in your mind naturally clusters into segments that will become chapters in the finished book. 

Once you’ve finished categorizing, scanning a few chunks instead of an enormous list of notes is another moment of relaxation. You realize that there’s a limit to all this material! It actually boils down to a manageable number of components.

Next in Braincat comes the step called Sequencing. Your focus here is on those large categories you’ve created, which makes sequencing easy and quick. You ask yourself, “What comes before what?” Now you begin to see the flow of the book, what you might call the Reader’s Journey. It can be surprising how clearly this presents itself to you once you look at it through the Braincat lens.

The last step in the Braincat process is Output.  Click the button and you instantly get a simple Outline with your headings in the sequence you chose, and all the details listed under the headings. You’re ready to start writing, and with far more confidence than if you’d jumped in without a plan.

Or… Write First, Then Plan

A quick footnote here. Some people actually do better if they just start writing without any prior  organization. If that’s your style, you’ll still need to arrive at a book plan eventually. Here, Braincat can help you in a different way.

Take a large block of your writing and drop it into Braincat using Copy & Paste.  Braincat will disintegrate the text into phrases with a built-in device called TextBreaker. It’s as if your writing has been turned back into notes. Now you can categorize those phrases just as you would any other notes. Once again you’ll begin to see your book’s hidden structure. You can proceed to sequence your categories and — presto! — get the outline that suggests your Reader’s Journey.

So no more excuses! It’s time to share that wonderful book you’ve been hiding inside you.