Anyone can write and everyone is an author! This presentation gives you an overview of how you can get started and write your first book. This presentation is written with first-time authors in mind with main focus on writing a technical book.

1. McGraw-Hill Author Workshop, 23rd
August 2014, CBE
How to write your
first (technical) book
Ganesh Samarthyam!
Author, corporate trainer, and
independent consultant

2. Can I write a book?

3. If you can write, you're an author!
Just like Nike’s mission statement - every one is an author!

4. If she can, you can
If she can
write, you can write
too!

5. If I can, so you can
If I can, you can
write too!
I am second from left (wearing glasses)
Deep C, S G Ganesh, BPB Publications, 2002!
http://amzn.com/8176565016

6. But “why should I write a book”?

7. Get known
❖ Visibility!
❖ Credibility!
❖ Respect !
❖ …

8. Learn & gain expertise
❖ Gain in-depth knowledge !
❖ Become an expert!
❖ Have fun learning new things!
❖ …

9. Earn some extra income
❖ Regular royalty income !
❖ Tax free returns (up to 3 lakhs)!
❖ Secondary income (i.e., salary++)!
❖ …

10. Get a sense of achievement
❖ Way to express your passion!
❖ Sense of achieving a concrete
result/milestone !
❖ Leave a legacy (i.e., make your mom
proud)!
❖ …

11. The writing process

12. Hmm, okay, but how to write the book?
'Begin at the beginning, the
King said, very gravely, and
go on till you come to the end:
then stop.'
Quote from “Alice in the Wonderland”

13. Step #1: Get a book idea
Your !
interests
Your !
skills
Market !
need
Ideal book topic
E.g.: Java, Smalltalk, Ruby,
Python, C, C++, Scala,
Swift, Objective-C, …
E.g.: Mobile app development, iOS/
Mac OS, Game development, …
E.g.: Certifications, Apple
products, Job search, …
Developing games in Swift

14. Step #2: Develop content
Create training programs
Write articles and blogs
Take notes when experimenting
Give talks or presentations
…

15. Step #3: Fill the book proposal form
BPF is sort of an “application”
Helps publishers decide on your
proposal
Iterate over several times to refine it
Remember: This is the key step in
publication process
https://www.mheducation.co.in/downloads/assets/Book%20Proposal%20Form.pdf

16. Step #4: Contact an editor
Contact editor of the publisher you
are targeting
Check linkedin, publisher website,
etc for contact details
Send sample chapters + BPF
Talk to the editor (over phone/email)
to improve the proposal
…

17. Step #5: Sign contract & follow prod. process
Sign the contract
Deliver the draft
Support copyediting
Proof-read pages
Support production
Check the terms before
signing the contract
Stick to the committed
schedule and deliver the
draft manuscript
“Developmental edit”
may happen if writing
needs much improvement
Check if editorial changes
are fine and “sign-off” (next
step will be creating
“camera ready” copy)
Finalise “cover page
design”, sign copyright
documents, etc.

18. Step #6: Celebrate the success
May sound cheesy, but
this is the best part of writing
a book - getting it out in the
market. Celebrate.

19. Step #7: Aggressively promote the book
Request online reviews (e.g., amazon.com)
Reach out to potential bulk
purchasers (e.g., libraries, training institutes)
Reach out to your readers (e.g., write
articles, speak in conferences)
Promote your book online (e.g., search
engine optimisation, create website, blog, tweet, …)
Relax: Its okay to “blow your own
horn” once in a while

20. Parts of the book

21. Anatomy of a book
❖ Title!
❖ Dedication!
❖ Table of contents!
❖ List of illustrations, tables, etc !
❖ Foreword!
❖ Preface!
❖ Acknowledgements!
❖ Chapters!
❖ Appendices!
❖ Bibliography/references!
❖ Index
⎬Frontmatter
⎬
Backmatter

22. Title should reflect
the book’s content
Tip: If possible, make it catchy (or
“remarkable”)

23. Dedication: A way to
say thanks
Tip: It need not be serious
Joseph J. Rotman, ‘An Introduction To Algebraic Topology’

24. Acknowledgements:
Another way to say thanks
Tip: Make sure you thank each and
everyone who has contributed to the
book (even in a small way)
C.S. Lewis, ‘The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe’

25. Front cover is the face of
the book - make sure it
looks good
Collage of diagrams from our book!
Thanks to: Tushar Sharma
Tip: See if you can add a “personal
touch” to it

26. Book writing: facts and fallacies

27. Fact or fallacy?
You must be a born writer
to write a book
Of course, anyone can write a
book!

28. Fact or fallacy?
You can become super
rich by writing a book
There are of course exceptions
(e.g., J K Rowling) !
"
In general: Yes, you can make
money, but not get rich by
writing a book

29. Fact or fallacy?
There is NO “one-right-
way” to write a book
Yes, there is no such thing as
“one-right-way” to write a book!
"
There are different ways to
write a book - find what works
for you and stick to it

30. Different approaches to book writing
Start from the first chapter
Take random notes and later ”stitch” them
together
Work in a quite place for days together
No dedicated time - write whenever there is
some free time
Directly type in a word processor
Write it in a notebook and then type it in a word
processor
Directly write it in the book format
Create presentations or write articles and later
convert into book
Get acceptance from publisher and then start
working on the contents
Complete the draft and then reach out to the
publishers
There is no “one way” to develop content - find what works for you and stick to it

31. Fact or fallacy?
You need to actively
promote your book
As an author, your work does
not stop with writing !
"
You need to aggressively
promote and market your book

32. Fact or fallacy?
You need to learn to use
specialised writing tools
before you write a book
MS Word is more than enough
for writing !
"
[You can learn to use
specialised tools as you gain
more experience]

33. Tips for writing

34. Tip #1
Plan ahead and allocate
time to write your book
Rule of thumb: it takes 2X
time/effort to complete
writing your book !
"
[given X is your initial estimate for
completing the book]

35. Tip #2
It takes a team to write a
book - so find co-author(s)
It could get lonely to write a book !
"
There are always exceptions (e.g.,
D. Knuth) who can write tomes
on their own, but in general,
partner with right one(s)

36. Tip #3
Be prepared for rejections
- just move along!
J K Rowlings’ Harry Potter was
rejected by 12 publishers!
"
Agatha Christie struggled for 5
years before landing her first
publishing deal

37. Tip #4
Choose a topic that you are
good at + passionate about
Just because you are good at
something doesn't mean you should
write a book on that. !
"
If you are not passionate about the
topic, the challenging task of writing
the book will wear you out!

38. Tip #5
Write a book that is
“useful”, “helps” people,
or makes a contribution
It could be teaching
programming, a cook book, or
just a bunch of tips and
techniques

39. Tip #6
Make sure there is an USP
(Unique Selling
Proposition) for the book
It could be the first book in the
market, only book for the
subject, a novel approach to
the topic, …

40. Tip #7
Organise your thoughts using
“mind-map” tools (and other
available tools for writing)
“Mind maps” are especially
effective in organising and
stream-lining your thoughts !
"
Find and use such tools (if it
works for you)

41. An example
Mind map created for our book “Refactoring for Software Design Smells” !
Thanks to: Tushar Sharma

42. So, what are you waiting for?

43. Get, set, …. go!
“Dash Parr” (in the movie Incredibles) started running like crazy once he discovered he could run

44. That’s how I did too
Once my self-doubt got cleared, I also started running

45. If you can write, you’re an author!
Just as Remy gets to become a cook by believing in “anyone can cook”

46. You can write too!

47. ganesh.samarthyam@gmail.com
@GSamarthyam
http://bit.ly/sgganesh
Ganesh Samarthyam