So YOU Want to Write a Book?
https://www.teachbetter.com/blog/write-a-book-we-all-have-stories-to-share/
Ever since I was a young little punk, skating around town, sporting a mohawk, and donning oversized shorts, ripped-up Vans skate shoes, and a Rancid t-shirt, I’ve always wanted to write a book. Even my mom, one of the individuals who has always supported me throughout my life would always say after I experienced some event, whether traumatic or celebratory, “You know Mike, you should write a book.” I always replied with, “Yeah, I know, I will one day…”
To be honest, I always thought my first book, and all books after, would be fiction. I majored in English Literature, taught middle school ELA, it was basically in my blood to be a fiction writer! I have started numerous fiction stories to never be finished. Why you ask? Simply because I didn’t have the passion for what I was creating. I was going through the motions of telling stories of my life via other characters. It wasn’t what I wanted to share with the world, it wasn’t the message or impact I had to give the world.
If you know me, you know that I recently released my first book, The EduCulture Cookbook: Recipes & Dishes to Positively Transform Classroom & School Culture with EduMatch Publishing. I’m not going to go into details in this blog of what The EduCulture Cookbook is all about or how I came to write about the positive, culture-transforming recipes we have dished out on our campus. If you would like to know that check out this blog and then go pick up your own copy of The EduCulture Cookbook today to begin positive change with your staff and students tomorrow!
I’ve been asked over a handful of times now, “How did you go about writing your book? How did you get connected and signed with a publisher? Have you ever felt “imposter syndrome” while writing?” My goal with this blog today is to help provide some insight to anyone either struggling with writing their first book or contemplating starting one
We all have stories to share. We all have advice to provide. I don’t care if you are going through practicum courses to become an educator, taught for 172 years, or have made your way up the ranks to Superintendent, we all have something beneficial to share with others. Don’t ever think that your voice doesn’t matter. If one person is affected by what you have to say then it was worth it. How do we begin to find our voice, the stories we want to share to help other educators? Begin blogging! Start getting comfortable sharing brief pieces of what you’re going through and experiencing. This will help to get you focused on how you write and if there is a specific topic you have a lot of insight into that others will benefit from. Blogging also will give you feedback on how your writing is being perceived. You’ll have a much better understanding of what connects and what needs tweaking or even elimination.
Once you’ve narrowed down your focus for an entire book, write! Find the time that works for YOU. Maybe getting up an hour earlier is when you write. Maybe in the evening, after the family is all wound down you write. Maybe it’s just Saturday and Sunday mornings. Whatever works for you is when you write. And please, don’t beat yourself up if you miss a session or two or twenty-seven. This isn’t a race. You’ll get that manuscript done and be proud of it.
Share your writing with individuals outside of the circle you work in every day. If you’re reading this, I’d put money down that you’re already pretty connected on Social Media. This is another sales pitch as to why we need to be connected educators. By having others, across the country, probably that you have never met face to face read your work you will be able to gain that feedback to let you know if what you have to say is being perceived how you intended. Sharing our writing with other educators across the country helps us to get a better insight into how we can help provide advice to all educators and not just those in our specific situations.
Believe in yourself and if you’re knocked down get back up. There are many educational publishing companies out there. Do not put in your mind that you only want to work with a specific company. Research each company, find out what their submission process is, and do it! If you get an interview, like any, be confident in yourself and your hard work. They wouldn’t be taking an interest in you if they didn’t believe you had something to share with the world! If you don’t get that contract move on and submit to another company! This is about helping others and sharing your stories and advice, not working for a specific publisher.
I hope this advice helps. If you’re looking for more in-depth details reach out to me, I’d love to chat. I’m looking forward to learning from you, now go write!
Please check out my latest book, The EduCulture Cookbook: Recipes & Dishes to Positively Impact Classroom & School Culture with EduMatch Books & my podcast, Punk Rock Classrooms.
https://bit.ly/educulturecookbookamazon
https://www.punkrockclassrooms.com/
