Don’t just rewrite an existing book

Coming to want to author a book is a slow process. There is likely ruminating, rethinking, internal debating, conflicting feelings, competing agendas, to say the least. Rarely, is it a moment of inspiration and then sudden action. Part of the decision process is thinking about what is already available on the market.

Many prospective authors will say, “there is nothing like this on the market. No competition.” This is very rarely true. There is usually some book, or more likely books, that your idea is standing on the shoulders of, wanting to reach higher. Also, the competition for some customer might be to buy nothing at all.

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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: January 21, 2022

Three weeks into 2022, most textbook and academic authors have begun a new semester of teaching, learning, and (of course) writing. As the new calendar year often comes with good intentions, plans for improvement, and resolutions to do and accomplish more than the year before, our collection of articles this week shares some tips and strategies for approaching your future efforts of writing, marketing, and producing your content for readers.

As you work on your writing this week, remember the words of Philip Pullman, “Read like a butterfly, write like a bee.” Happy Writing!

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Your work and international markets

“My work will have broad appeal in Europe.”

“China is a growing market and I think they’d love my book.”

“I’d like to see a Spanish-language version of my textbook. It would be a hit.”

“I know someone who can translate my book into Japanese. Should they get started?”

As a Book Publisher and later a Publishing Consultant, I have heard countless authors speculate on the market for their book outside of the English-language and/or North America. But what is involved with having your work reach Asia, Africa, Europe, and beyond?

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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: March 12, 2021

What part of your writing makes you feel uncomfortable? Do you sometimes feel silly trying something new like building a writing habit or saying the word “Pomodoro”? Oftentimes our self-doubt or fear will increase these feelings as well.

In this week’s collection of articles from around the web, we look at where to put our focus while writing, facing down fear, overcoming the blank page, and habits of a successful student. We look next at research ethics, editing your writing, and treating networking like something familiar – a research project. Finally, we explore support for authors in open access publishing.

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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: February 5, 2021

No matter where you are in your writing career, I can promise you two things: 1) you have the knowledge and experience necessary to move ahead from where you are and 2) you still have further you can go. Early career writers have a tendency to look at themselves as anything but a author and remain paralyzed by imposter syndrome. Veteran authors often question how much more they have to contribute. Arthur Ashe reminds us that no matter the current situation, you should “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”

In our collection of articles from around the web this week, we have advice on finding the angle and argument for your current manuscript, choosing methodologies for online studies, writing more compelling sentences, and triumphing over writer’s block.

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