Many of you out there have the means to write at length and feel you could write a book for profit. But sometimes the two toughest questions to answer are “What do I write about?” and “What do I write about that people would actually buy?”

The answers to both these questions are easily answered. Once you have the answers you’ll find that writing books is a simple straightforward process. You don’t need to spend hours and hours working on technique or subject material. What you do need to do is get your focus and just do it.

Let’s take a look at how this is done via common Q&A.

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I have a great idea to write a book but someone else has written about it already. Can I still write about it anyway?

Yes, of course you can. You’ll notice in many books that authors cite excerpts from other published works. Obviously they don’t copy word-for-word (that’s plagiarism), but if there’s something that needs to be mentioned to emphasize a point or two, it is completely OK to cite excerpts from other works – as long as you give due credit.

In addition, maybe you’ve read a book but thought, “I could have written this much better.” In that case, go ahead. All authors have to start somewhere, and there isn’t a single one of them that hasn’t taken influence from other works. Just remember never to plagiarize.

I have an idea but it’s only for a very limited audience. Should I even bother writing about that?

Yes. I’ll put it to you this way: Let’s say you want to write an instructional book about a subject that is very particular and very niche market. If you’re relatively sure (or absolutely sure) you can write about it better than anyone else, do it. You have the knowledge. Share it out and make a buck in the process.

Going niche is not a bad thing. If you are “known” for particular subject matter, this will create more of a following for you in the long run. The more knowledgeable you are, the better.

What does “write about you know” really mean?

You’ve heard the phrase “Write about what you know” a million times, however nobody clearly explains what that actually means.

What it means is answered in the previous question. If there’s something you know and know very well, someone will be willing to pay you (by a book sale) for that knowledge.

However, this does not mean you need to write about everything. As an example, maybe you know how to reupholster car seats, so you write about that and not about the whole car. You concentrate simply on what you know best.

Tip: Do not “overthink”

If you think too much about what you’re going to write, you’ll never get started. Keep your subject on the simple side, open up your word processing app and start. Even if you have an idea with no title, that’s fine – worry about that later. Just get to it.

Places where you can sell your book

The two places I’ve found are the easiest to get your books ready-to-sell are CafePress and Lulu. Both are easy to use.

Remember the following about books

Compared to making videos or recording audio, books are the easiest to produce because it doesn’t require anything more than what you already have. There is no equipment or software you need to purchase. All you need to do is get your ideas out on the written (or typed in this case) page.

Need software? If you don’t have Microsoft Office, consider OpenOffice or AbiWord. Both are free!

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