Book Start-up Worksheet #1
Except where I have specifically asked you to write out more, a brief sentence or a
handful of phrases will suffice. Consider the worksheet just an outline of what you
intend to express more fully during our meeting.
If you find that a particular question makes you uncomfortable, you could tell me so,
and perhaps explore what the discomfort is about. Exploring how a question makes
you feel might sometimes be more productive than simply answering it.
1. You read a review of your book that totally gratifies you. In what publication
does this review appear? Quote the imaginary sentence in it that makes you
the happiest.
2. Another thing that pleases you about this review is that it puts in you a
category with two or three other authors whom who admire. Who are these
authors, and why does being likened to them please you?
3. Name two or three books in your field to which you would not wish yours to
be likened. What is it about each of these books that you don’t like?
4. As a result of your book’s influence, a positive change comes about in the
world. As specifically as possible, describe the nature of this change.
5. You receive a letter from a reader who thanks you extravagantly, telling you
what a difference your book has made in his or her life. Write a brief
quotation from this imaginary letter that describes what the reader had been
needing and how, exactly, your book provided it.
6. You are thrilled when a new opportunity opens to you as a result of your
book. Describe this imaginary opportunity as specifically as possible.
7. You read a review of your book that leaves you feeling misunderstood. What
does the imaginary review say that makes you feel that way?
8. While promoting your book, you have the most mortifying experience you
can imagine. What happens?
9. While you are writing, you become aware of someone reading over your
shoulder. Who is it? Why is this particular person significant in the context of
your book?
WORST CASE SCENARIOS
In each of the following pairs of imaginary outcomes choose the one that would
displease you more:
____Writing the book takes three times longer than you estimated it would.
____Your out-of-pocket costs considerably exceed your earnings from the book.
____Halfway through the writing, you begin to develop doubts about the book’s
main idea. You see flaws in it that weren’t apparent to you at the outset.
____Halfway through the writing, you become bored with your main idea.
_____Your publisher wants you to dumb down the manuscript to make it more
“commercial.”
_____Your publisher does nothing to promote the book.
____Your book gets mediocre reviews.
____Your book doesn’t get reviewed at all.
_____You keep hearing yourself referred to as a “pop guru.”
_____ Two years after publication, it seems to you that you’re no better known
than you were before you wrote the book.
____Your book is described as “difficult.”
____ Your book is described as “superficial.”
____Ten years from now, you’ve come to disagree with some of the things you
wrote in the book and wish you could take them back.
____Ten years from now, it turns out you were a “one book wonder.” You feel
you’ve exhausted what you had to say, and never feel inspired to write another
book.
____Your book is widely ignored.
____Your book is widely misunderstood.
____Your book spawns many imitators who fail to give you credit. One of these
becomes far more commercially successful than yours.
____Your book goes out of print after one year.
____Midway through the first draft, you lose heart and abandon the project.
____A teacher who is very important to you is critical of the book.
Of all the negative imaginary outcomes I’ve listed, which do you consider the
absolute worst?
With which pair of outcomes did you have the greatest difficulty making a choice?
BEST CASE SCENARIOS
In each of the following pairs of positive outcomes, choose the one that would please
you more:
____In the process of writing, you learn a great deal more about the book’s topic.
____In the process of writing you become a more articulate and persuasive
spokesman for the book’s main idea.
____ Your book garners you a huge following on Facebook or Twitter.
____Your book impresses someone you have admired from afar, and you end up
becoming close friends with that person.
____You earn $200,000 in royalties.
____While the book itself doesn’t make much money, it launches you in the career
of your dreams.
____Your publisher goes to great expense to promote the book.
____You are paired with a brilliant and sympathetic editor whose
recommendations greatly enhance the book.
____Most of the reviews praise your book extravagantly.
____Every week, you receive two or three deeply grateful letters from readers.
____You book is the kind of runaway bestseller that is more talked about than
read.
____ Sales are modest, but readers often write to tell you that they are reading
your book for the second or third time.
____Your book is assigned reading in college courses.
____Many readers love your book so much that they buy extra copies to give as
gifts.
____An especially wise and clever sentence from your book becomes a widely
quoted aphorism. You keep seeing it on tee shirts and coffee mugs.
_____An entire program of your favorite radio or TV talk show is devoted to an
interview with you.
_____A person famous for accomplishing something good says in an interview
that your book was a great inspiration to them.
____Your book opens a new opportunity to accomplish something good yourself.
____Your book is described as “eloquent” and “inspiring.”
____ Your book is described as “accessible” and “witty.”
____Your book is described as “groundbreaking.”
____Your book is described as “compassionate and wise.”
Of all the positive outcomes listed, which do you consider the absolute best?
With which pair of positive outcomes did you have the greatest difficulty making
a choice?
THE BOTTOM LINE
Describe your minimum acceptable outcome: that is, what you absolutely must gain
(in terms of money, opportunities, recognition, or whatever) in order for you to feel
that writing the book was worth your time and effort.