I’m about to say something crazy: you probably have more than one book inside you. “But Brandy,” you’re thinking, “I haven’t even written ONE book! How do you already know there are more in there?”
Well, the truth is, I don’t, for sure. But as you think about your book’s focus, consider narrowing it down to one big idea. I bet you have two, three, or even four big ideas that you’d love to combine into one book. I’m here to tell you right now that your ideas are probably better served by writing multiple books than by cramming all of your valuable thoughts into one.
Here’s a secret: people read books to seek an answer to a specific problem. Readers are overwhelmed when a book tries to fit too many answers to too many problems into one single book. It diminishes their experience as a reader and muddies their ability to move forward with the solution they were looking for in the first place.
On top of that, books with more than one focus are harder to position and market. Books about many things are just as difficult to market as books about nothing! Trust yourself. You will sell more books if your book has a clear, concise focus.
You know how people LOVE to say “That’s apples and oranges?” They say it when they’re asserting that two topics aren’t equivocal. Apples and oranges are both delicious, and they both might be worth writing a book about. But you’re not trying to make a fruit salad, you’re trying to position yourself as the expert on one kind of fruit at a time.
“Okay, but I don’t even know if I know enough about my focus to write a book on just one thing!”
I’m here to tell you that you do. If you didn’t have the knowledge or expertise about your focus, you wouldn’t feel compelled to write a book about it. Don’t try to overcompensate by tossing in unrelated facts and stories. Stay confident in your knowledge of your focus and know that you do know enough to write this book.
Are you worried that now you have too many books to write? This can be a good thing! Once you find your first book, considering the other topics you wanted to write about can help you easily find your next book. To know which topic to write about first, focus on your reader. Knowing who your book is for and what they will achieve from reading your book will tell you which book of yours they need first.