Hey ,
I want to be completely up-front with you: writing a book is hard. Really hard.
The idea of writing a 200-page, well-researched book that is free of errors, would strike fear in anyone.
Today, I want to propose a slightly different idea:
What if you wrote a small book?
My friend Sacha Greif wrote, designed, and published his first book in three weeks. His book, Step-by-step UI Design, was not a complete guide to designing software. Instead it is a guide that teaches interface design through the process of designing a single application.
The entire book is only about 30 pages long, so it makes sense that it didn’t take years to write. And that’s just fine. Sacha sells it for $6, with a deluxe package that includes the source files for $12. That may not have been the best way to make the most money, but the book has done very well and opened up a ton of opportunities.
Best of all, had it failed (it didn’t) he would have only been out a couple weeks worth of effort. Not years like many first-time authors.
That little book made Sacha well over $15,000.
What if you gave yourself a short amount of time?
My SaaS company, ConvertKit, takes most of my focus.
A number of years ago, I was craving the challenge of making a small product and getting it out there as quickly as possible.
I knew taking on a new venture would be irresponsible when I had so much else going on.
So I decided to see how quickly I could create a new product. I gave myself just 24-hours to create, market, and launch a product.
The short time period gave me the rush of working towards a deadline and getting things done quickly.
My product was a series of design exercises I called 10 Days to Better Design, but in sharing the process publicly, I ended up inspiring my friend, Amy Hoy.
When Amy read the blog post I wrote about my 24-hour challenge, she said, "Count me in!"
I wasn't thinking anyone would join me, but Amy was inspired to do her own 24-hour challenge.
She wrote and launched her book, Just F***ing Ship, in just 24 hours! The book went on to make tens of thousands of dollars in sales over the course of a couple months.
Start small and expand later
After reading my book, Authority, Ryan Castillo decided he wanted to write a book on recurring revenue for freelancers. He set up a landing page and started building his audience and writing the book.
But that book didn't come together as quickly as he hoped. So instead of getting bogged down in the writing Ryan decided to start with a smaller book, 7 Recipes for Recurring Revenue.
This time, he was able to write and launch a much shorter book in a week.
A short deadline and smaller project scope gave him the focus and motivation to finish his book!
Launching the smaller book helped Ryan validate that there was demand for the material. It also helped him start growing an audience. Since he saw he was making money off the smaller book, he then worked on writing the full-book.
Should you start small?
Maybe you have an epic book in mind you want to write. That’s great! I’m not saying you have to write a short book.
But if you haven’t gotten started, or you’re having trouble finishing, giving yourself a smaller project may be just what you need.
If you’re feeling intimidated, consider starting with a detailed tutorial, a short guide, or just a smaller version of what you originally had planned.
The skills you learn from producing the small product will be invaluable for your next big venture.
Make a big impact with your small book
Whether your book is small or full length, you need a launch plan.
Building a following takes time, and it’s especially difficult if you don’t have a clear goal in mind.
But just the act of writing a book and giving readers a way to follow along will make it much easier to build a following. By using landing pages and blog posts to build your email list, you can have a profitable following in very little time. I’ll show you how to do it step-by-step.
With the right audience, a solid launch plan, some discipline, and a lot of effort, you can make a living from your writing.
If you’re ready to get started, click here to get $10 off your copy of Authority.
Happy writing!
—Nathan
