Part 1 of 7: A Book Concept Takes Shape
When I tell people I’m writing a book about adoption, they inevitably reply, “Oh, I’ve always wanted to write a book.”
Most of us have a book brewing inside of us, just waiting to get out. And most of us assume that all we have to do is write our New York Times #1 bestseller and publishers will come knocking. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work that way.
During the next seven posts, I’ll share insights I’ve gleaned during my journey through the book publishing business. One caveat: My story is my story. You could talk to a thousand different authors and you’d hear a thousand different variations of this story. So, while I will share tips that budding authors will find helpful, keep in mind that the trail you blaze through the book publishing business will be uniquely yours.
I’ve dreamed of writing a book ever since I can remember. When I was in sixth of seventh grade, I taught myself to type on my mom’s manual Olympia typewriter (which I still have and my 10-year-old thinks is totally cool) and pounded out short stories.
Ten or so years ago, an idea for a book began jelling in my mind. I would write a book for the grandparents of adopted children, I thought. Grandparents are key players in a child’s life, and many people of grandparenting age have negative perceptions about adoption stemming from long-outdated adoption practices.
I didn’t think I’d have enough material for a full-length book, so I decided to write a booklet and self-publish it. I outlined my booklet and drafted some of the content.
During that time, my freelance writing career took off. I began contributing regularly to several magazines – a couple of computer magazines and a credit union magazine – so I put the grandparents’ booklet on the back burner.
But I kept thinking about it, reading about adoption, and cramming file folders full of all sorts of adoption-related information. I also wrote magazine articles about adoption-related topics in order to build up my publishing credits.
For more news and information about adoption, please visit my Website, www.laurachristianson.com, or my Christian Adoption Blog at adoption.com.