# Transform Your Writing Journey: Craft Your First eBook in 30 Days
Written on
Chapter 1: My Writing Journey
If you've been sharing your thoughts on Medium, you might find yourself dreaming about publishing a book someday. What if I told you that "someday" could become "next month"?
I first joined Medium in September 2022, having only dabbled in writing on LinkedIn for a couple of months prior. By December, I ambitiously aimed to launch my first ebook within 2023. While I lacked a clear plan, I was determined to navigate the entire process—from conception to release. On January 27, 2023, my ebook, The Lemon Tree Mindset, was published on Amazon, and I was thrilled to have reached my goal just one month into the year. In May 2023, I followed up with my second ebook, Conquering Your Burnout.
Both were completed in 30 days, but this article focuses on how you can write your first ebook in a similar timeframe by utilizing the framework that guided me through my journey.
The Strategy
You can adopt this three-step approach to transform your life experiences into an ebook:
Choose a Familiar Topic
Pick a subject you know well and feel comfortable discussing at length without needing notes. Consider areas where you've gained insights or faced challenges firsthand. Here are some prompts to inspire you:
- Your journey in building something significant: a business, running a marathon, or achieving a personal milestone.
- Skills you’ve acquired: a new language, coding, or any other expertise.
- Overcoming personal challenges: dealing with adversity, health issues, or major life changes.
- Your experience as a freelancer or digital nomad.
The options are limitless, and you probably have more knowledge than you realize!
Document Your Journey
Once you've identified a topic, visualize the initial stages of your journey: it's day one, and you know nothing. Reconstruct the steps you took to reach your goal: the mindset you adopted, the path you chose, your emotions, and the obstacles you encountered. Think of it as sharing your story with a close friend, paying attention to all the details.
Don't stress about formatting at this stage. Concentrate on reliving your experiences and capturing them fully. Be specific and analyze how you achieved your success.
Establish a Process
After reflecting on your journey, create a step-by-step process so others can follow your path to achieve similar results. While your approach may have been instinctive rather than methodical, revisiting your experience will help you connect the dots and outline a logical framework. Use your insights to develop a user-friendly guide.
In writing my second book, Conquering Your Burnout, I revisited my experiences with burnout and structured them into a coherent process that could assist others facing similar challenges. Transform your experiences into a structured approach.
The Tactics
Writing an ebook can seem daunting and unachievable. To make it manageable, turn your strategy into actionable steps:
Break It Down by Word Count
Many ebooks on platforms like Amazon are around 5,000 words, but I prefer a more substantial length of 10,000-12,000 words. To achieve this, aim for writing about 350-400 words per day. If you're already contributing to Medium, this is roughly equivalent to a 3-minute article each day. It's certainly achievable!
Divide Content into Chapters
While creating The Lemon Tree Mindset, I found it helpful to list my chapters numerically. Since the book chronicles my journey of becoming a solopreneur, I identified 19 lessons learned along the way. This system allowed me to concentrate on one specific lesson each day, with daily writing sessions of 400-600 words. It’s manageable!
Incorporate Exercises
Adding a "What You Can Do" section in my books has proven beneficial. This element challenges you to validate your process, turning theoretical concepts into practical exercises. The most positive feedback I receive on Amazon centers around these exercises. Readers, especially in self-help genres, are eager for actionable advice, so ensure your ideas translate into tangible activities.
Your Turn
With a clear topic and the necessary knowledge, you can realistically aim to write a 10,000-word ebook in just 30 days. Dedicate about two hours each day to writing, and structure your ebook based on your lessons or steps.
Keep in mind that writing the ebook is only the beginning of the publishing journey. You’ll also need to edit it (affordable editors are available on platforms like Fiverr), format the content, design a cover (I used Canva for my first book and Fiverr for the second), and publish it on Amazon or your chosen platform.
Since my experience is solely with Amazon, that is the focus of my advice. I previously shared an article detailing my steps to publish an ebook on Amazon.
My Step-By-Step Guide to Publishing an eBook on Amazon
If you're ready to reinvent yourself and monetize your passions, you can find The Lemon Tree Mindset on Amazon, and it's available for FREE on Kindle Unlimited.
Update as of October 2023: The Lemon Tree Mindset has reached the top 18 on Amazon Kindle in its category! I’m thrilled and have decided to create a digital workbook to assist other writers in self-publishing and achieving success.
If you're interested, check it out below:
FROM ZERO TO AMAZON BESTSELLER: Your 360 Self-Publishing Workbook (digital)
A clear and actionable roadmap to self-publish on Amazon and become a bestseller in your category.
Video Overview: How to Write an Ebook in 24 Hours
This video offers insights into quickly writing an ebook and generating revenue through effective strategies.
Video Overview: The 7 Steps To Write Your First Book For Beginners
A beginner-friendly guide outlining essential steps for writing your first book.
Good luck on your writing adventure, and remember, every journey begins with a single step. Are you prepared to turn your "one day" into next month?