Doing Something I Have No Business Doing

Last April, I wrote an article titled, "Cross-pollination Effect," which was an exploration into the power of making unexpected connections. After writing on the topic, the concept stayed with me.

A couple of months later, I began to think about writing my first book and it would be about cross-pollination in the context of human networking.

Cross Pollination is the intentional blending of ideas, expertise, and voices from diverse community members to cultivate richer, more meaningful dialogues and outcomes.

The idea sat in my brain for many months during which I have thought, "Grace, you are not a book author, nor have I ever aspired to be one. Why would I want to attempt a book?" I have no business trying to write a whole book.

Think, think, think.

On a quiet Friday afternoon in October, I had a moment of clarity. Why write about cross-pollinating when one can actually do it?

Cross-Pollination Project is Born

I thought, thought, thought, and finally came up with an idea that brings my desire to create with my passion for unlocking human potential via humans. Let's write a book together.

Over the next couple of months, a process and a product will happen: A group of people, including myself, will write a co-authored book about community. It's a topic near and dear to my heart, not to mention an integral part of who I am professionally.

The thinking and writing will be the process of cross-pollination. The resulting collection of writings will be the product.

And there you have it: cross-pollinating at its finest!

The Process So Far

WHO would be the authors?

I made a list of about 15-18 people I know and admire, and started to jot down what they are passionate about in the area of community building. It is vital that the group of authors is diverse in style, industry, and thought, while also sharing a passion for communities.

I was not looking for community professionals, per se, but those who have touched, built, and are part of communities. I was also very nervous about over-pitching or under-pitching the idea.

Incredibly, 10 authors said, "yes!" to the project and we are already busy ideating and writing.

What would be the structure?

You're looking at a COMPLETE noob here. I have no idea how a book gets written from start to finish, let alone how it will get published. I have much to learn.

What I do know is that I would like the individual writings to have the substance to stand alone, but also have the shared heartbeat of the collective. There must be a thread that runs across each authors contribution to this collective writing.

In the coming weeks, a vision for the final product will emerge.

What Excites Me

The unknown is exciting and was actually part of the pitch for this project. We live in a world of fast and clear deliverables. We want to get what we were promised.

The beauty of a project based on cross-pollinating ideas and people is that you don't know exactly what you are going to get!

What's Next?

In part, this is to hold me accountable to the completion of the project! The 11 of us will work on writing for the next couple of weeks, after which we will decide how best to publish the writing and make it possible for our audience to interact with it.

I cannot wait to unveil more of this project in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

CTA: What would you like to see come out of a multi-author Cross-Pollination project like this?