What to Expect When You’re Expecting to Write a Book

A few weeks ago, I came home to find my husband on the patio with an iPad and an iced tea, ready to watch the Preakness Stakes.

We like all sorts of sports. In “horse season” we usually watch the Triple Crown races (which also include the Kentucky Derby and last Saturday’s Belmont Stakes.) While watching the horses line up in the starting gate, I thought about all the effort that owners, trainers, jockeys — and the horses themselves — put into that day. It’s a lot of work just to get to the race. There are years leading up to the moment before the gun goes off. Sometimes generations.

And then of course, one horse pulls ahead and wins.

I think a lot about publishing, so my mind makes connections to it everywhere.

Watching the Preakness, I thought about how many horses run these big races. Up to 20 horses run the Derby; nine horses are in the Preakness; and up to 12 horses compete in the Stakes.

There’s not just one horse out there.

The same can be said for books. There’s not just a single relationship book out there. Nor is there just one health book, one personal finance book, one inspirational book, or one guide to making work more productive and fun.