“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.” — John Steinbeck A novel idea may arrive with almost everything attached. You can see the main character, the problem, the setting, and several scenes before you write a word. Another novel idea may…
“Build it like a Lego sculpture, so you can take it apart without breaking the bricks.” – Ahava Leibtag, CEO, Aha Media Group A strong nonfiction book chapter may contain enough material for several website articles. It might include: That does not mean you should cut the chapter into equal sections and publish each section…
“The reality is that not everything can be done at once.” – Sarah Gibbons, Nielsen Norman Group Old content is not automatically useless. A blog post published several years ago may still contain a strong idea, a helpful example, or a framework readers need. A book chapter may remain valuable even if some tools, examples,…
“A content strategy is a high-level plan that guides the intentional creation and maintenance of information.” – Anna Kaley, Nielsen Norman Group Your books and articles contain more potential content than you may realize. A nonfiction chapter could become a website article, newsletter, checklist, workshop, video, podcast episode, or social media series. Several related blog…
“Content audit: Evaluation of content usefulness, accuracy, tone of voice, and overall effectiveness.” – Page Laubheimer, Nielsen Norman Group Repurposing a nonfiction book can extend the value of work you have already completed. A single book may provide material for blog articles, newsletters, social posts, videos, podcasts, workshops, checklists, and lead magnets. Similarly, a collection…
“Content can be multifunctional.” – Jodi Harris, Content Marketing Institute You have spent months, or possibly years, writing helpful articles for your website. Each article answers a question, teaches a skill, or solves a problem for your readers. Now, you might be wondering whether to turn those blog posts into a book. The answer may…
“The way we measure productivity is flawed. Productivity shouldn’t be about doing more; it should be about creating systems that allow you to do what matters.” — Ali Abdaal Once your book is written, edited, and formatted, your role begins to shift. You are still the author, of course. But now you also become the…
“Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” — Warren Buffett Book formatting is one of the first places new indie authors worry they might make a costly mistake. You finish the manuscript, or at least get close enough to see publication on the horizon. Then a new set of questions appears. How…
“A tool is only as good as the person who uses it. But a great tool gets out of the way and lets you do your best work.” — David Heinemeier Hansson, Creator of Ruby on Rails and Basecamp Choosing from the 12 best writing tools for indie authors can still feel overwhelming if you…
“Goals are good for setting a direction, but systems are best for making progress.” — James Clear, Atomic Habits If you are an indie author using AI, it is easy to believe the next app will fix everything. Better outlining. Faster drafting. Smarter revision. Easier marketing. The promises never seem to end. Yet for many…