Are you one of those authors who keeps meaning to get to publishing your own books, but somehow never manages to actually get all the way to the finish line?
Hey, you’re not alone, it happens to lots of people.
Gathering information from many talks with authors, it seems to me there are 4 big obstacles that trip authors up, and that get in the way of their goals.
What are they?
- Rejection–Thinking that you’re just not good enough, that people will hate your book—and you—because you’re actually a no-talent hacker with no business publishing your own book.
- Worry–Feeling overwhelmed by how big the project is, that you will never be able to do it all.
- Fear–Feeling that no one will notice your book and no one will buy your book and the people that do read it will hate it and write bad things about you on the internet.
- Confusion–Becoming so totally confused about just what to do and where to start that you never end up doing anything.
Let’s face it, these are powerful human emotions. Putting our work out into the world can bring up lots of resistance and make us question the value of our message, the quality of our writing, and the passion we bring to our work.
That’s why I hate to see authors trapped in these emotions, because they just keep you stuck.
New Video: “Self-Publishing Mistakes, Screw-Ups and Disasters”
I’ve got another video for you that addresses this subject head on, and suggests ways you can get over the traps if you happen to be caught in one at the moment.
In the video I also look at some common mistakes new self-publishers make, and go over some of my own classic goofs just to reassure you that even professionals can screw up big time.
At the end of the video there’s a story I call “The Most Important Book of All,” and I think you’ll get something out of it.
It describes some of the things that happened to me when I first overcame my own resistance and succeeded in publishing a book I knew there was a need for.
Getting that book out into the world wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t cheap either. But I had no idea when I published it just how much it would change my life.
I would have to say that nothing was the same afterwards as it was before.
But better yet, go over and have a look at this video. It runs about 21 minutes and it’s packed with content.
Here’s the link: Self-Publishing Mistakes, Screw-ups and Disasters
If it brings up issues for you (I just watched it again, and it brought up issues for me!) leave me a comment below the video. I’d love to hear from you.
Here’s the link one more time, this will be 21 minutes well spent: Self-Publishing Mistakes, Screw-ups and Disasters
This is a reprint of a post that originally appeared on Joel Friedlander‘s The Book Designer.