Questions? Answers.
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FAQs
My goal is for every client to have completed all of the exercises in the Start Messy, Finish Mighty method and finish a first draft within twelve weeks, working between 5 - 10 hours each week.
However, the real answer to this question is that it depends entirely on you. My philosophy of working on a book is this: no matter how much I help you, no matter how much your book coach works with you, it’s going to take work, plain and simple.
That doesn’t mean the work has to be excruciating. (Hopefully, it’s mostly insightful and fun!) By using the Start Messy, Finish Mighty system, I finished the first draft of this book in about nine weeks. I worked consistently - but not every day - averaging anywhere from 5 - 15 hours / week. That included the research, compilation of notes, etc., that I needed to do to design the Start Messy, Finish Mighty system. I will note that I put in significantly more time as I got close to the end of the first draft; I was motivated and ready to get to the finish line.
My second and third drafts took me a bit more than two weeks of fairly dedicated time. (These were edits that I completed, before sending to my editor). In total, first, second, and third drafts took me approximately 11 weeks to complete.
While I would love to tell you in big bold letters that you’ll have your book written, edited, and published in just 6, or 10, or 12 weeks, that would be a lie. Some of you may go through the first few exercises and realize that your book is ready to pour out of you in just a few weeks. For others, you may need to dig in and do research, or interviews, or take pictures to include, which could take much longer.
But here’s what I can promise: if you stay committed and use the Start Messy, Finish Mighty system to set and plan how to work through your obstacles, and if you follow the Working Backwards steps, the entire process will be easier, faster, and more focused on your clients.
One of the biggest misconceptions about writing a book is that will-be authors feel like they need to take on the entire thing all at once. To that I say: you wouldn’t shove an entire cooked chicken in your mouth because you’re hungry, right?
Right. You’d choke, which would be very unpleasant, especially if the chicken was dry.
Your as-yet unwritten book is like eating a chicken. Bite off small, manageable chunks! Use the if-then planning discussed in Part 1 to help you break down the chicken, er, your manuscript, into edible bits.
Examples of how I did it: As I write this, my two boys are still too young to drive, but old enough to be involved in all sorts of sports and activities, which means that we’re on the go almost every night of the week. Often, other parents wanted to talk, so I decided on an if-then plan for myself: If another parent wants to chat during a practice and prevents me from working on my book, then I will nicely tell them I have to finish some research for a project. It worked every time.
Another instance I used if-then-planning: I try not to work on weekends so that I can spend time with my family, but sometimes I had extra free time. I instituted if-then plans for myself that I adjusted based on where I was in the writing process. For example: If everyone is occupied with other things on Saturday morning and I have some free time, then I will write at least three questions and answers for my FAQ document.
For me, some of the hardest moments came on the occasions when some or all of my family members were watching a t.v. show in the family room next to my home office. It was especially difficult when they were laughing together. Instead of relying on willpower, I used this if-then plan: If everyone is watching a show and I feel left out, then I will write one more <paragraph, section, FAQ, etc.> then go join them. Fortunately for me, we don’t have much time in our schedules for t.v., so I didn’t have to fall back on this if-then plan often.
Try it!
For so many reasons! First and foremost, AI is frequently wrong. Second, AI simply doesn’t have the wealth of client relationship experiences and stories that you’ve accumulated over the years. Perhaps you could put them into your favorite AI tool, but once you did, you would likely find that the tool doesn’t have the capacity to write in your voice. It may write well, and you may like the way it spools out information to you like a roll of paper towels knocked down the stairs by your cat. But when you read more closely, you’re likely to find that the words on the page aren’t actually what you would say.
Finally, given AI's tendency toward hallucinations, you risk putting your reputation and brand on the line when you write your book with AI.
I do advocate using AI as a tool for research, provided that you have personally confirmed the source material given that the tools often pull from the topmost - and often paid - search results on the web. We help our authors with this process by validating citations and searching for plagiarism with apps like Trinka.
Here’s a secret: when I started to contemplate writing this book, I didn’t believe I was an expert. I thought, “Who on Earth is going to listen to me?” But when my friend reminded me of how much experience I had, it gave me the seeds to write my book. Once I started doing research on why people don’t finish their books, I realized that not only did I need to share what I had learned, but I needed to coach them to write their own books…because, with my experience and research, I had become an expert in both.
You don’t have to feel like an expert to be one. You have a purpose, a story, and the solution to a problem that your clients need to hear. That alone makes you an expert.
Absolutely! Roland Media offers various packages that cover the full range of book coaching, editing, internal and external design, and publishing, as well as personal and professional branding through keynote and speaker training. If you already have a manuscript, check out our Mighty Manuscript package.
Once your manuscript has been written, edited, and designed, it’s time to publish! If you choose to publish with a hybrid publisher such as Roland Media, we’ll do all the work for you, including formatting, typesetting, cover design, KDP category selection, and actually getting your book published to KDP and out in the world.
If you opt to self-publish, you’ll manage the process and handle all of that yourself.
If you are vying to be traditionally published, you’ll need to send out query letters and find an agent willing to represent your manuscript in hopes of selling it to a publisher.
The sky’s the limit! You can use your book to promote your business by giving it away to prospective clients, or as a springboard to design workshops or an online course. You can use it to open doors to podcasts, speaking opportunities, interviews, or even a TedTalk!
The entire goal of your book is to help you expand your business and yourself as a professional. Are you going to become rich strictly off your book sales? Probably not. But will likely generate an abundance of opportunities, some of which you may never even thought of.
Start Messy, Finish Mighty is a six-step method based on research-backed motivational and goal-theory that walks will-be authors how to create plan to actually achieve the goals we set. It also utilizes the concept of Working Backwards, which I drew on from my long experience working at PricewaterHouse Coopers (PwC) and Sage Group alongside so many amazing people at Amazon Web Services, as well as the invaluable book, Working Backwards, by Colin Bryar and Bill Carr. I have also embedded well known techniques for outlining, translating your outline into a manuscript and editing.
The idea of “Start Messy, Finish Mighty” came when I realized that I had tried writing books for years and I never seemed to finish because I had too many random ideas floating around inside my head. I didn’t know how to get them all down in an orderly way, and always seemed too busy to do it, anyway. At the same time, I had burned out of my corporate job and suffered a severe back injury; I was pretty much a mess mentally and physically.
As I recovered, I discovered that I wanted to help people formulate into words the astonishing knowledge they have to offer the world and their clients. Just as I began researching why people don’t achieve their goal of writing a book, I had an inspiring meeting with my long-time friend, David Mammano, and we explored a few ideas. From there, Start Messy, Finish Mighty fell into place.
YES! I cannot express strongly enough how important a book coach is in the process of writing your book! Especially if you’re a first time writer, a book coach will not only serve as a cheerleader, they’ll help keep you on track, refine your ideas, ensure you have a good flow and structure to your book, work through high level revisions (and/or even act as your editor), and prepare you for publication. They’re an imperative part of writing.
I offer group coaching and a limited number of 1:1 clients (must be highly motivated!). If you’d like to book a 30-minute consultation session to determine if we’re a mutual fit, simply reach out through our Contact page.
Many clients may initially hesitate to be referenced in a book. Our approach is to provide any text (edited) to the client to approve so that they can be a part of the process. Unless the client situation is exceedingly personal or sensitive, most clients are more than willing to share their experiences, especially when they realize that they are benefitting from free marketing.
We always advocate that any client stories be told in a way that the client would never feel embarrassed or affronted by being represented in your book. Roland Media will not publish any client story that is unable to be told without being respectful.
Yes! While you may not be able to use real names, you are able to - and should - relay your business experience in a way that demonstrates your expertise. We advise our clients that they can discuss their examples in a broad way (e.g., if you're unable to name a particular company, state the industry or sector). You can also refer to someone by their title within that industry, rather than specifying who they are (e.g., "My client, a C-suite executive in the real estate industry...")
Yes! Writing without having someone - and preferably, multiple someones - edit your work is like trying to bake a cake without using some sort of flour. You’ll need to edit your own work, of course, but when you’ve spent so much time with your manuscript, it becomes very hard to see the forest for the trees AND the trees for the forest. In other words, it’s easy to miss both the big picture mistakes and the details.
A good editor will ask you questions, suggest that you remove extra stories that don’t help or move the story forward, pinpoint places that are too wordy, or where you’ve repeated yourself. Traveling the “full path” of editing truly makes the difference in creating a “decent” book versus an “outstanding” book. Be sure to go beyond just a single edit of your manuscript. Get multiple edits that assess, develop, nit-pick (line edit), copy edit your grammar and spelling, and proofread prior to publishing. And remember: no matter how great an editor you think you are, you absolutely need someone else to help you.
I will note that good editors are quite hard to find. In some cases, you may expect a developmental edit, when what you get instead is a copy edit. (See What are the different types of editing? FAQ for a breakdown of each type of editing.) Be careful who you work with, insist on samples of their work, and take recommendations from other authors whose books you find to be well-edited.
We strongly recommend using Roland Media (of course!). We offer the full range of editing services in conjunction with our various packages. To find out more, check out our Pricing page.
Certainly not (unless that’s how you want to, of course)
Some people can magically outline, in perfect order, every chapter, bullet, client story, key point, inspiring and humbling moment, and resolution, without pausing.
Yeah, I’m not that person. I’m guessing you aren’t either. That’s the beauty of the Start Messy, Finish Mighty system. It doesn’t require you to have everything captured in order. The whole point is for you to be inspired by the process, for client-centered ideas and stories to be triggered by writing out your FAQs.
When I came up with the concept of Start Messy, Finish Mighty, I was coming out of my own messy life situation, and I didn’t apply my situation to book writing at first. But as my own purpose of helping business professionals write their own books emerged, I began wondering why people often set goals (to write a book, for example), but never kept them. When I recalled how effective Amazon’s method of Working Backwards was for me and my co-workers, I knew I was on to something.
I’ve adapted the concept for the reality of writing a book and immediately began implementing the concept myself to see if it would work. Many of the if-then plans used as examples are my own. Likewise, I wrote both my press release and this FAQ document before anything else, then captured notes, ideas, client stories, and other thoughts along the way in my margins or in comments in my Google doc so that I could easily retrace my footsteps. It did seem messy as I was writing the document, but the more I wrote, the more refined it became. And once I was through with editing, I had a mighty manuscript in my hands, ready for publishing.
There are five different kinds of editing, outlined below. Note that your book coach will help guide you as you’re writing the book, and some of their suggestions will be in line with your editor’s; ideally, they’re working together. But unless your book coach specifically states that they will also edit your manuscript, your editor will do the heavy lifting of actually editing.
Editorial Assessment - Usually done early on in the writing of your manuscript, an editorial assessment will provide your key strengths and weaknesses as well as any big-picture issues with your structure and/or plot. The assessment will also confirm (and/or question) your book’s goals and themes, your book’s sellable / unique features, and provide holistic feedback with high-level suggestions.
Developmental Edit - Often called a “dev edit,” this type of edit will provide you with a detailed assessment letter stating the overall strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript, a narrative arc assessment, any thematic concerns, questions about the manuscript and/or goals of the narrative, and direct manuscript edits, including marginal comments and notes.
Line Edit - Line edits go into much greater detail than either an editorial assessment or a developmental edit. When your line editor reviews your manuscript, they will provide detailed marginal comments on every aspect (and line) of your document. They may have suggestions for stiff or unrealistic wording, tonal inconsistencies, run-on sentences, “tics” that may reduce reader enjoyment, and potential paragraph or section restructuring. Line edits are the most comprehensive edit you will receive for your manuscript.
Copy Edit - Copy editing focuses on readability, plain and simple. Your copy editor will make sure that your manuscript is error-free and adheres to a consistent style. They will review every line for clarity and accuracy, point out redundancies and suggest rephrasing of weak words, phrases, or sentences. They will also ensure conformance to an established style sheet, including number treatment, compound words, formatting, layout, and punctuation. (Style sheets may vary by manuscript and editor; the key is having a consistent style throughout your book. So, for example, if you prefer to use Oxford commas, which are the commas that come before “and” or “or” in a list of items, then the style sheet will specify that usage and the copy editor will ensure it’s consistently used throughout.)
Proofread - The final stage of editing is proofreading, which is the last pass in a read-through of your manuscript to ensure it is as error-free as possible. Now, let’s be real…no manuscript is ever completely error free, but a good proofreader will help eliminate any errors or oversights before you head to press. They will look at spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, or any other issues impeding reader enjoyment of your masterpiece.
While writing your document, we recommend either Google docs (for real-time edits with your editor), or Microsoft Word. There are many writing apps out there - Scrivener, Dabble, AutoCrit, Novel Factory, etc. - but many of them have a learning curve and may actually cause more confusion than help. That said, the Start Messy, Finish Mighty system will work with any app you choose to use.
Note, however, that when it comes to publishing, you will need to convert your files into an .epub file for the interior of your eBook, and a PDF for the interior of your paperback/hardcover.
If you’re looking for assistance, Roland Media can help you publish your book, or show you how. Check out our Services!
Typesetting is the process of formatting the inside (and outside) text of your books. There are many different styles, fonts, and applications of how you might want your book to look; if it’s sloppy, or you use a difficult-to-read font, your reader can get frustrated or worse, come away from your book viewing you as unprofessional.
Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) offers Kindle Create, which is a free tool for formatting e-books and paperbacks, however, we recommend using professional services to avoid any mistakes.
Important note: the very best thing you can do for yourself and for any editor/publisher/typesetter is to NOT try to overly format your manuscript as you write. Doing so will make for odd discrepancies in formatting, result in misaligned pages, etc. Simply write your document and format as little as possible!
When publishing, Amazon KDP accepts several formats, including .doc, .docx, .epub, .kpf, and .pdf files.
For eBooks: KDP’s preferred format is .epub for the interior of your book.
For paperback/hardcover: KDP’s preferred format is .pdf for the interior of your book.
If you’re looking for assistance, Roland Media can help you publish your book, or show you how. Check out our Services!
Great cover design is crucial! The dimensions, format, image quality, file size, and color mode are critical to ensuring that your cover looks professional. We strongly recommend using a professional who has experience in creating book cover designs.
Take a look at a book on your desk (you’re a writer now; you assuredly have at least one book on your desk, don’t you?). Whether it’s a paperback or a hardcover, you’ll see that the cover consists of three distinct, but connected parts: the front, the spine, and the back. KDP has strict rules around what they accept, and if the dimensions are off, or wrong, your cover art, no matter how pretty, will be rejected. An experienced cover designer will help ensure you get it right the first time.
For eBooks: KDP’s requires an RGB JPEG or TIFF file that is 2560 x 1600 px. You ONLY need a front cover design for an eBook.
For paperback/hardcover: KDP requires a single, full-bleed PDF combining the back, spine, and front cover, generally using RGB and having a 300 DPI.
Let us not beat around the bush: writing a book takes commitment, effort, and time. Some sites will say it's easy to write a book or they hide how long it takes deep in their FAQs. I believe that's bullshit.
We don't ever claim writing a book is easy. However, the Start Messy, Finish Mighty method is specifically designed to make it easier and more intuitive.
TIMELINES VARY BY SCOPE AND PERSON.
Our goal is for you to write a first draft within ~12 weeks, but that is dependent on your commitment to the process.
Time commitments will vary throughout the process.
Drafting: For some, a few hours a week is enough to get them what they need. Generally, we recommend time commitment of 5 - 10 hours per week for the first draft.
Editing, typesetting, and design times vary based on complexity. Editing may take 2 - 3+ months or more depending on your commitment to implementing your editors suggestions.
On the whole, minimally expect 6 - 9 months to write your book and see it come to fruition as a finished, published asset if you're starting from scratch.