I recently conducted a survey for writers and received several comments and questions about the whole issue of book concepts.

Below I’ll copy some survey responses and offer my reflections and advice.

“I have several book ideas but can’t get focused. I am unsure what topic people would be interested in hearing about from me.”

This was by far the most frequent concept-related question, and it came in multiple forms:

• “How do I know my idea is worth writing about?”
• “How do you decide what to write about?”
• “I’m not sure my concept, my ‘big idea,’ is good enough (a) to actually help others and (b) to not embarrass me.”
• “How do I narrow down a topic given my vast array of experiences?”

I really appreciate these questions. Who wants to write a book others won’t find interesting? What a waste, right?

Well, maybe. If an author pens 50,000 words on a topic no one is interested in, that would be wasteful, not to mention a real bummer!

But if an author publishes a 500-word blog post to discover its topic is not as interesting as others, would that be wasteful? If you do a five-mile run to train for a marathon, is the file-mile run wasteful because it’s not the actual marathon?

Photo by Lê Tân on Unsplash

My point is this: often the fastest way to discover what’s of interest to your audience is to begin creating and publishing content. New York Times bestselling author Mark Batterson told me his blog posts are his test balloons. His blog posts help him gauge reader interest in different subjects.

So my advice is to start writing and start publishing. If you do this consistently over a period of time, you’ll begin to see a pattern of interest (and disinterest) that you can take as a cue for what to write your book on.

“How will I know when I’m clear enough on my idea to move forward to the next step?”

Another great question. When you can map out a working structure of chapters, and when you have something to say in each chapter or know ways of finding out what you have to say, you’re ready to move forward.

“How can I be different from the other numerous books on the same topic?”

No one has your voice.

I remember asking blogger and bestselling author Jeff Goins if there was room for another blog on writing and publishing.

He pointed to late-night talk shows. They all do about the same thing. The host delivers a monologue and then interviews famous people. So why are there so many of them? Because each host has their own way of doing it, their own style.

Stephen Colbert is known for his political satire, Jimmy Fallon for his silly antics and games, Jimmy Kimmel for his droll manner, Conan O’Brien for his sheer goofiness, and so on. The viewing public has room for all of them and more.

Another case in point: witness the explosion of comedians on Netflix!

It sounds like something Mister Rogers would say, and the truth is he’s right: You’re unique because you’re you, and there’s only one of you. Write on!

“Who can I talk to about my ideas and have that person(s) be honest and tell me if the idea is a good one?”

Your readers.

“When your thoughts go in several directions, how do you know which way to go?”

The fun thing about writing is you get to explore multiple directions.

Think about blogging or vlogging or podcasting as an artist’s sketches before beginning a masterpiece. The artist does a lot of sketch work before approaching the main canvas.

You need some room to move around in, some area to explore. Graham Wallas said, “How can I know what I think till I see what I say?”

So don’t be befuddled. Be inspired! Have fun, write, write, write, and enjoy the process.

Do you want to write a book?

I couldn’t help noticing a trend in these comments and questions from writers. And the trend is that writers want a sure thing before they begin writing their book. That’s normal. Again, we don’t want to waste our time. If we’re going to spend hours on hours writing a book, we want to be sure it will have a decent reception.

There’s nothing wrong with this in and of itself, but I think it’s also important to ask ourselves, “At what point does my concern move from a healthy sense of caution to a smokescreen for avoidance—in other words, fear?”

If you are asking concept questions because you don’t really want to write a book, that’s fine! No shame! I encourage you to own it and seek out a different calling.

If, on the other hand, you’re asking concept questions because you feel an internal pull to write a book and you’re scared, then it’s important to own that too.

I wish I could take away the fear, but to the best of my knowledge the only way to fight writerly fear is to do the work in spite of it. The fear may never go away completely, but if you write, at least you’ll have something to show for it. That’s my wish for you.

Question: Now that we’ve tackled several questions about book concepts, I’d love to hear about the book you’re writing or thinking about writing. You can leave a comment by clicking here.