Write Easier, Write Faster, Write Better, Part 1

Writing a book can be a full-time job (don't stop reading, this gets more optimistic). While listening to the an old episode of?Writer's Ink Podcast?(I was on?Episode 31: The Secret to Writing Nonfiction), I hear J. Thorn talk about how he sometimes?only?works on a book for weeks at a time.

Doesn't that sound divine? Maybe having an uninterrupted block of time to work on a book sounds heavenly to you (it kinda does to me, too), but that dog doesn't hunt in my world. In fact, I only ever get?one hour?at the most during any given day to write, review edits, or do any of the many other tasks associated with writing a book.

So if you have a career that's already taking up much of your day (obvi), rest assured I'm here to help! You don't need to run off to Bali for a few months to write your book. Indeed, you can write your book the same way you'd eat an elephant: one bite at a time! I have written a book on this topic:?The Nifty 15: Write Your Book in Just 15 Minutes a Day.

The purpose of this week's series is to truly help you write easier, faster, and better, no matter how much or how little time you have. You don't need to read my book, although it will offer more in-depth information to aid you. Also, it's been a few years since I wrote it (six), so the tools, ideas, and suggestions contained herein are slightly different.

Let's dive in!

My ghostwriter friends have shared with me that to capture an author's voice, they interview their subjects and record those interviews. The challenging part can be turning those hours of conversation into usable content.

Enter?Rev.?My author buddy?C.G. Cooper?shared how he can dictate 3,000 words in an hour, upload the recording to Rev, and then use the transcription to create a finished product. (Even my best hour of writing usually yields about 1000 words.)

I gave it a try and conducted an interview, laptop at the ready, using Rev to record--and it turned out great! It was just under $20 for the 15 minute interview, and with one wish-upon-a-Rev-star, I bought some credits and pressed "Transcribe." Imagine my delight when, within one hour, I had a complete transcription of the interview I can use for the book! Identified speakers, no typos,?ready to go! Money spent: $20, time and money saved: $A,LOT.00! I'm excited to do record more content without the downside and dread of having to write the words, and I'll be able to publish on time and with time to spare I can use for other projects (or napping...). I digress.

You may not have a ton of time to sit and write your book, but perhaps you have fifteen, thirty, or even an hour a day during your commute, time on the treadmill, or while walking your dog to dictate some words.

In case you're wondering, you don't have to do anything other than speak—no "open quotes," "new paragraph," or "period" commands like with Dragon Dictate (also a solid option if you use a PC). Just speak, transcribe, and go!

I hope this was helpful! I'll be back tomorrow with another tool you can use to write easier, faster, and better!

Honorée Corder | I help professionals write, publish, market, and monetize their books.

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