5 Ways to Start Blogging Your Change-Inspiring Book When Inspiration Hits

When the light bulb goes off, and you get that BIG idea—the one that fulfills your purpose, feels like a calling or has a sense of mission about it, you don’t want to wait to take action. You want to act immediately, while you feel inspired.

In fact, in the moment when passion and purpose come together you get inspired to take action. I call that inspired action. You get the most effective results from inspired action. That’s why you don’t want to lose that energy that comes with inspiration. You want to act upon it. Here are five ways to do just that so you get your change-inspiring blogged book started right away.

1. Set Up a Blog

Of course, you will need a blog if you, indeed, plan to blog your change-inspiring book. For some aspiring book bloggers, blog setup can feel like a stumbling block right from the get go. Don’t let this become the case for you.

You can set up a free WordPress.com (hosted) site right away; it only takes about 15 minutes to get up and running. You can then hire a webmaster or blogmaster to create a WordPress.org (self-hosted) site for you, and have him convert what you’ve written on the hosted site to the self-hosted site prior to launching. If money is an issue, you can continue with the hosted blog indefinitely.

2. Write Down Your Book’s Purpose and Benefits.

Know why you feel compelled to write this book and define how your book will carry out that purpose. A book that inspires change needs a mission statement. Write that statement and follow it with a list of the benefits the book will provide to readers. You can then write your book to fulfill these “promises.”  People will get on board and join your cause if they understand the benefit to themselves, to others or to the world. You can also post both the mission statement and list of benefits on an “About this Blogged Book” or “About this Blog” page.

3. Outline the Contents of Your Book

Determine all the possible subjects you might include in your book. A blogged book consists of many small pieces of content. It’s not a serialized novel, memoir or prescriptive nonfiction book. It’s a book written in blog-post-sized bits (300-500 words). That means you need to create a table of contents for your book and then break each chapter down into many small pieces. You can think of each one of these as a chapter section or a subtitle—or a blog post! But it’s best to plan them all out to the best of your ability. This makes it easier to sit down and write them each day. And you can definitely plan out your content in this manner when you first feel inspired. In fact, that’s the best time to do this exercise.

4. Prepare to Share

You will want to both share your blog posts after you write them and create community around your book/cause as you blog. Before you get very far at all with your blogged book—even before you write the first post, you can set up a Facebook Page or a LinkedIn group or a Pinterest board related to your book. You can set up all social networking accounts so they reflect your new work. Use all the social networks–Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, Pinterest, LinkedIn (or choose 2 you can really commit to). Let people know why you are doing what you are doing. Share your purpose and your passion. When you feel inspired, your inspiration becomes contagious. Begin talking about your new project everywhere; this will help you follow through because you will have made a public commitment. Later, the online communities you have built will become your author platform, which will help your cause or message spread, your blog grow and your book sell.

5. Connect with “Influencers” and Friends

Tell those people you know who are already influential in your field or in the area you are entering about your new project. Ask them to join your cause and to promote it. Anyone who has authority or reach beyond your own can help you get the word out and build community and buzz around your idea. Of course, family and friends can help, too.

Don’t forget to seek help and advice from those who have gone before you. They might also get on board with your project in the early stages. And look for resources that might be helpful. For instance, consider attending the San Francisco Writing for Change Conference on October 12, 2013. (Only 100 seats! Claim yours now!) Or register for my Author of Change Transformational Coaching Program or attend the pre-program open retreat.