On Writing

"There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."

That quote is usually, and probably incorrectly, attributed to Ernest Hemingway. Whoever said it was spot on. Writing is painful at times. Despite that (sometimes frequent) pain, I love everything about it.

I have recently, for at least the dozenth time, sat down to write a book on reputation and brand management. This time will be different--?? ???????? ??????????? ????? ????????. Commitment, baby! I'm deep into "mind mapping" it. (If you use Apple products, MindNode is a terrific program to facilitate mind mapping.) This process is daunting, and fun as hell. I like the way the book is shaping up so far.

Jay Baer stole my title when he published Hug Your Haters--which is a fantastic book. I cherish the autographed copy my friend Vanessa Murray got me. I have some title ideas and think/hope the right title will present itself as I write. Until then, there is a metric shit ton of work to do. Always Take the High Road is a philosophy I believe in, both in life and during the work I did in reputation and brand management. It's a strong title contender, and will no doubt be discussed at length in the book, no matter the title. Until that title surfaces, it is simply <<INSERT TITLE HERE>> in the mind map and outline. Clever, huh?

I'm more motivated than I have ever been to get this book out of my head--where it has lurked, taunting me for over a decade--and onto paper. Or a screen. Whatever. Special thanks to Valerie Garcia and the recent 1000WATT Branding & Marketing Summit for unknowingly providing the push to GET IT DONE.

I'm posting this on the interwebs to hold me accountable. After all, I can't publicly state that I'm writing a book and then not finish it. Who wants to come across as an abject failure on an internet that never forgets?

Feel free to give me a nudge now and then. Brandon Doyle does that well, please don't stop. Nudges help, and I need your help. This is fun, hard, exciting, and terrifying.

Especially when you come across something Ernest Hemingway did say to an aspiring writer: “You shouldn’t write if you can’t write.” Geeze dude, lighten up. Have a drink...

Yes, I co-opted the title of this post from Stephen King. I loved that book. Please don't sue me.