Why Write - Session 1

1. Get Published Now
Session One
Why Write?

2. 2

3. 3

4. Our “Why”
• Why am I here?
• Why are you here?
• What are we trying to accomplish?

5. A Few Preliminaries….
• Three promises:
• This will be a fast-paced hour
• We’ll learn something…and we’ll have fun
• You’ll have access to these slides…take notes…or not….
• Three answers to the question on the last slide:
• Mine is simple….
• You’ll share yours
• “News you can use”

13. We’re in the Starting Blocks
• Writing is about telling stories – it’s about the
narrative
• All of us have our own narratives – and that in itself
is story
• Let’s all tell the story of our lives in two minutes.
Suggest starting: “I was born at a very young age.”
• Some things you might include….

14. The Story of My Life in Two Minutes
• Where born
• Family (X-generation, siblings, etc.)
• Where you grew up
• Where you went to school
• How you happened to be in California in 2025
• What you hope to get out of this course

15. Why Write?

16. Let’s Talk About Writing….

17. ….and isn’t this
the oldest profession?

18. 18

19. ….and
The newest?

20. “No one ever made a decision based on a number. They
need a story.”
Michael Lewis
The Undoing Project

21. Some Suggested Ground Rules
• We can conduct this seminar anywhere along a spectrum
• Some ground rules I’ve found helpful in courses I’ve taken:
– Interactive
– Participatory
– Mutual learning
– Constant feedback
• Homework – but it is all voluntary
• Opportunities to take your game to the next level
• The “Golden Rule” for your fellow attendees
• A word about power point….
• Slides available on my website after each session

22. “Exit Criteria:” What You Should Expect
• If you’re interested in writing shorter pieces: blogs,
newsletters, print or online articles – you’re ready
• If you’re interested in writing a book or publishing a
book you’ve already written:
o You know enough to give yourself a good pole position to
break yourself away from the crowd
o You know enough about the resources available that you
can choose the ones that work for you
o You’re mindful of the level of effort required for these
pursuits as well as the odds of success

23. Great…so now that the administrative “stuff” is out of
the way, what will we cover in these six weeks?

24. Course Construct
• Seminar One: Why Write?
• Seminar Two: First - and Essential - Steps
• Seminar Three: Non-Fiction - The Hungry Market
• Seminar Four: “The Great American Novel”
• Seminar Five: Establishing an Online Presence
• Seminar Six: Social Media - Challenges and Opportunities

25. 25

26. Session One: Why Write?
• History is what writers say it is
• Picking your medium
• A building block approach
• Due diligence the easy way

27. Session Two: First - and Essential - Steps
• Content-hungry media
• Repurposing and building content
• Building relationships with editors – a win-win for
both parties
• Solo or with a wingman? The pros and cons of
collaboration

28. Session Three:
Non-Fiction - The Hungry Market
• Being - or becoming - the expert?
• Pursuing a subject - or letting life happen?
• Scratching itches - or entertaining?
• How much to tell and what’s next?

29. Session Four:
“The Great American Novel”
• Great or not-so-great? What you need to know
getting started
• Mainstream or genre? Which way should you go?
• Defining your audience and picking a “voice” and
point of view
• Getting the sale – and then promoting your work

30. Session Five:
Establishing an Online Presence - Plus
• What makes yours unique?
• Beating the competition for “eyes”
• Balancing content and entertainment
• Doing-it-yourself…or…?

31. Session Six:
Social Media-Challenges and Opportunities
• Everyone is doing it
• Vote early and often
• Building a following
• Sustaining momentum

32. Why Write?

33. “History is what the historians and writers say it is.”
Norman Polmar
(Forty books – and counting)

34. Why Write?
• History is what writers say it is – what you say it is
• Picking your medium
• A suggested building block approach
• Due diligence the easy way
• If you do nothing else – Bill Terry

35. “There are authors and artists and then again
there are writers and painters.”
Ian Fleming
How to Writer a Thriller

36. I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.
Rudyard Kipling
The Elephant’s Child

37. Some Things to Consider Before You Write
• Who are you writing for?
• What are you going to write?
• Where are you going to write?
• When are you going to write?
• Why are you going to write?
• How are you going to write?

38. “Storytelling is as human as breathing. Literature, since
it emerged 4,000 years ago, has shaped the lives of
most humans on planet Earth. We are what we read.”
John Sutherland
“Book People”

39. So Many Outlets – So Little Time
• A wide array of online media
• Newsletters
• Alumni magazines
• Professional journals
• Popular magazines
• Newspapers
• Portions of non-fiction books
• Non-fiction books
• Short stories
• Novels – of all kinds

40. “Now, if you’re getting all fired up and ready to pound the keys, I
might inject a word of caution. Actually, this word comes from my
wife. For most of us, writing is not a team sport. An article for a
trade journal or a short story is no big deal, but if you find
yourself writing a long piece or a book, you probably ought to
have a chat with your spouse. For most of us, writing means
closing off the other people in your life for several hours a day
and it’s something you may want to talk about before you begin.”
Dick Couch
(Fifteen books – and counting)
Shipmate, April 1993

41. With That Caution in Mind
• Telling stories – the oldest profession
• Telling stories – like your life depended on it!
• We all grew up on stories
• Life is a narrative
• The test: So you’re in a bar with your friends…

42. One Way of Approaching This
• Article in an alumni magazine
• Article in a trade journal
• Article in a professional journal
• Newspaper articles
• Non-fiction
• Novels
• Conference proceedings
• ….

43. Mr. Clancy said none of his success came easily, and he would
remind aspiring writers of that when he spoke to them. “I tell
them you learn to write the same way you learn to play golf,”
he once said. “You do it, and keep doing it until you get it right.
A lot of people think something mystical happens to you,
that maybe the muse kisses you on the ear. But writing isn’t
divinely inspired — it’s hard work.”
Tom Clancy
Quoted in the New York Times
October 2, 2013

44. Due diligence the Easy Way

45. “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time
or tools to write.”
Stephen King
(49 books – and counting)

46. If You Write Nothing Else

47. My Personal Hero:
and What Made Him So

48. “Listen, Stephen King used to write in the washroom of his
trailer after his kids went to sleep. Harlan Ellison wrote in the
stall of a bathroom of his barracks during boot camp. Elmore
Leonard got up at 5 AM every morning to write before work.
Every time my alarm goes off at 5 AM and I don’t want to get up,
or I would rather sit down after work and play a videogame, I
think about those guys. Take care of your family. They need you
and love you. Make time for them. Then stop screwing around
and finish your damn book.”
Bernard Schaffer
Whitechapel: The Final Stand of Sherlock Holmes

49. Work
Life
Passion
Do they…can
they…intersect?

50. A bit of a leap-ahead to books…

51. Industry Insider Perspective on Books
• Few industries have changed as much as publishing
• These changes are still working themselves out
• The changes present challenges – and opportunities
• If you know the landscape – you tilt it in your favor

52. Where and How Do Books Get Published?
• Legacy publishing houses
• Amazon and its imprints
• Academic houses
• Vanity presses
• Self-Publishing on your own

53. Who Are the Legacy Houses?
• Penguin Random House
• Harper Collins
• Simon & Schuster
• The Hachette Book Group
• Macmillan

54. What Are the Amazon Imprints?
• Amazon Encore
• Amazon Crossing
• Montlake Romance
• Thomas & Mercer
• 47 North
• New Harvest
• Amazon Publishing
• Grand Harbor Press
• Amazon Children's Publishing
• Little A
• Jet City Comics
• Lake Union Publishing
• StoryFront
• Waterfall Press

55. Where and How Do Books Get Published?
• Legacy publishing houses
• Amazon and its imprints
• Academic houses
• Vanity presses
• Self-Publishing on your own

56. Helpful Resources
• Writers on Writing (I)
• Writers on Writing (II)
• NYT Book Review
• NYT Book Review – Last Page

57. And finally….

58. “Some men want to die with their boots on. When I
cash in my chips, I want to be slumped over the
keyboard. And they can plant me with my word
processor. I may wake up and want to write about it.”
Dick Couch
(Fifteen books – and counting)
Shipmate, April 1993

59. Next Week

60. First - and Essential - Steps
• Content-hungry media
• Repurposing and building content
• Building relationships with editors – a win-win for
both parties
• Solo or with a wingman? The pros and cons of
collaboration

61. Optional Homework Assignment
for Next Week
• A significant number of writers who eventually write
books begin their careers by writing for journals and
magazines
• Pick a magazine you enjoy, and write a short letter to
the editor pitching your idea for an article
• Send it to me by Tuesday, April 8, and I’ll put in into
our slides for next Thursday
• Don’t struggle with this – give yourself no more than
thirty minutes