Let's Be Tacky and Talk Money.

I hate how crass I feel talking about money and writing.

Somehow, it’s okay to talk about it when it comes to investment banking or accounting but not with writing. It’s fine for the guy at the deli to say, “That will be $12” when handing you a sandwich but it’s not fine to say you want to make money from your book.

But that’s crazy. We all need money and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting more of it.

Even if we’re writers.

When I tell people it’s far better to write a book that will build their authority because bringing in millions is far better than bringing in hundreds through their book sales, often they’ll look at me like I’m the tackiest person alive. They want to be creative and write from their heart so how dare I sully their pure goals with my foul talk of dollars? The thought bubble above their head reads: I will not sell out the way this woman has.

But I don’t think wanting to be compensated for your work means you’re a sell-out; I think it means you value yourself. Unless you’re financially set and know what you’re getting into, a book should be more than volunteer work.

“But I want to help people,” some will say, as if helping people and making money are somehow mutually exclusive.

One of my first clients, Chris Joseph, looked at me like I was crazy when I told him this. We were publishing his first book, Life is a Ride—a memoir about how his experience finding an alternative treatment for pancreatic cancer. I told him I thought he should become a cancer coach and use the book to attract people to hire him.

I don’t know for a fact that he thought I was being tacky but I do know he was against the idea.

And yet just this week, he wrote in his Substack about his journey to becoming a cancer coach.

My point is: never say never.

And my second point is you may be in the Pre Book Blur.

What is the Pre Book Blur?

Well, if you’ve been writing a book—which can mean anything from handwriting you can barely read on a napkin to 500+ pages—and have a sinking feeling you’re not going in the right direction, you have some of the the symptoms.

If you been talking about writing a book for anywhere between one month and 30+ years, you have some the symptoms.

If you’ve been told you need to write a book and it rang true but you’ve made no movement to start, you have some the symptoms.

And I’m here to offer you a treatment.

Maybe you’ll feel relieved the way I did when I got a diagnosis for the batshit behavior I’d been up to (alcoholism). Like with alcoholism, the Pre-Book Blur is a self-diagnosed condition. And if you haven’t heard of it before, that’s not weird because I just coined it.

I meet more people who are suffering from this condition than not. And I believe there are one of six potential reasons why some suffer for so long:

1. They don’t know who to ask for advice

2. They’ve asked too many people already and received conflicting or confusing information

3. They’ve convinced themselves that despite no professional book writing or publishing experience, they don’t need help

4. They’ve convinced themselves, despite the nagging voice inside them, that publishing a book isn’t a priority so they can focus on it later, only half understanding that later may never come

5. They’ve convinced themselves that their idea is SO good that a traditional publisher will acquire their book, despite the fact that they don’t have a big audience so it’s a lost cause since traditional publishers don’t care about how good an idea is; they care about how well a book will sell

6. They’re scared (although number 6 is probably sprinkled throughout the other reasons)

These people remind me a bit of the alcoholics who are always going to get sober tomorrow. They know they could change their lives but they simply don’t. And I get it. Change is uncomfortable. It’s easier to stay where you are than to step into your greatness.

And if you’re not writing the right book, I promise it’s way better to stop now and get started on the right now. You can probably use at least some of what you’ve already written in the wrong book and just altering the angle so that it helps build your authority can mean it works for you for the rest of your instead of just sitting on a shelf collecting dust.

So if you’re in the blur, I have some medicine for you. And it’s free.

While not everyone can afford Legacy Launch Pad writing, editing and publish services, anyone can use our free Unique Authority Book Concept Generator.

Here’s what can happen if you get out of the blur and into creation:

In the last few weeks…

I’ve watched one client hit the top of Amazon, land feature stories in top magazines and tour the country.

Another has appeared on Sherri Shepherd’s show and gathered hordes of folks at his events.

Another was featured in Entrepreneur and Los Angeles magazines.

Previous clients have, respectively, added half a million dollars to their annual bottom line within a few months of the book release, appeared in the New York Times, launched $10k-a-gig speaking careers and so much more.

I promise you that your biggest block is you.

Oh, and the blur. The pre-book blur sucks. Too bad there’s no solution.

Oh, whoops. I already told you one.

If I’m wrong about you, please tell me in the comments!

Oh and that Unique Authority Book Concept Generator is here.