How long will it take to write my book?

I was recently asked the question: How long will it take to write my book?

As there is no clear answer and many variables, I’ll share my tips in this post.

I can write 1,000 words an hour, but remember I’ve been doing this for a while! I’ve been writing blogs for 10 years and books since 2009. And to do this I need a good structure, an outline and a plan.

So if you can keep up with me, you could effectively shut yourself away for a week and write your book. This is one of the reasons we put on the annual Writing Retreat in Spain to give you the focused time to work on your writing.

50 hours of writing would give you 50,000 words – the average size of a business book – although there’s the added time you need to edit and polish it.

But even if you are half as fast as me, and can’t shut yourself away, writing a book doesn’t have to be time consuming.

If you can dedicate half a day each week to your writing, and write 500 words an hour (just under the length of this blog post), then you could get the first draft of your book done in 6 months.

And your book doesn’t have to be as long as 50,000 words. You may have a series of shorter books or be writing a book to generate more leads in your business.  Then you can write it in less time. One of the participants on my 10,000 word book challenge last summer recently presented me with his book – a great succinct read (I’ll share his story another time).

Of course the words you write are important. I’ve had clients come to me who have written many thousands of words for their book, but they have later found that they’ve been the wrong words! That’s where having a strong structure helps, and this is something I help my one-to-one clients to develop, as well as teaching it on the Planning and Writing weekend and Writing Retreat in Spain.

You also need to realise what might stop you from writing your book, so that you can minimise these.

With the best intentions in the world and even with putting writing time in your diary, actually making this writing time happen could be a challenge. That’s why you have to make it a priority. Of course life gets in the way, but if it continues to stop you, then you need to question whether it’s the right thing to do at the moment.

When you do sit down at your desk or take your notepad to a cafe to write, then it’s essential to minimise distractions if you want to create your best work. I suggest that you place your phone on its front and put it on silent, turn off your email and social media, and tell people not to disturb you unless it’s an emergency!

Another great tip is to turn on an alarm to give you the focus you need for a set duration of time. That way, if you are in flow, you can choose to continue. And if you’re struggling to find the right words, it makes you sit there for a period of time and get started.

There are other things that can get in your way. I was talking to someone recently who told me that her fear of getting published was stopping her from writing her second book. When I told her how I could help her to publish her book, it took away this angst. I hope that now she can get on with doing her best stuff – being creative and writing her book – and let others worry about the other stuff later down the line.

One of the things I do with all my private clients is help them to create a launch plan for their book. We work back from their proposed launch date to now, putting all the milestones in place. That way it feels more manageable and easier to complete. And with the regular accountability, they can make their book happen.

So how long will it take you write your book?

My belief is that if you really want to write your book, you’ll pull out all the stops to make it happen.

A strong structure will help, as well as the impetus to sit down and write regularly.

How long will it take to write your book?

I’d love your comments below.