How Writing a Book is Like Moving to a New Home

How Writing a Book is Like Moving to a New Home
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The rug at outside my sister’s new house

The rug at outside my sister’s new house

A lot of people write books. Last year, over 1 million books were released in the United States alone. That’s over 2,500 new books each day. Within the mix, there are books about writing books. I own at least ten that help authors reflect on the process, suggesting ways to have a more optimal writing experience. Amidst all this, I’ve found there isn’t much about how to relate to someone who is writing a book.

For the past year (or more), I’ve been working on a book. I’ve found many people interested in how it’s going, but not actually sure of what to ask. For instance, my mom. We talk all the time, but rarely does the progress of my book come up. When I questioned her on this, she said that she doesn’t want to put more pressure on me. She wants to be supportive, but doesn’t know what to say.

About the same time I embarked on my writing process, my sister began to house hunt. My mom was intrinsically involved in this process, so I decided to run with the analogy comparing her two daughters’ parallel life experiences.

“Well mom, writing a book is kind of like moving into a new home.”

Step 1: Narrow Down the Neighborhood

Real estate is all about location, location, location. School districts, neighborhood dynamic, access to public transport, proximity to nice restaurants. Choosing the right community to be part of is essential to one’s satisfaction with their new living situation. For my sister, she knew the several mile radius she wanted to be in, and looked at any house that came to market within that zone.

For a book, this means picking a genre. A genre is what you would describe to the sales clerk at the bookstore when they ask what type of book you’re looking for. My book is based on Big Shared World, a project where I traveled to 40 countries and asked over 700 people the same three questions about their values and worldview. The content of my book could fit several genres. Some people expected I would write an academic non-fiction, with the answers to my questions informing a formal research report of my findings. Others expected a picture book with quotes, something similar to the popular photo blog, Humans of New York.

I decided to join the bookstore neighborhood of narrative nonfiction, also referred to as creative nonfiction. It covers the story of the journey - from idea to inception, the travels and interactions, and finally returning home after such a transformative experience. Readers will travel with me and meet my Airbnb host in Barcelona, a Buddhist monk in Thailand, a social entrepreneur in Mexico City, a young mother in Kenya, and hundreds of others who shared their perspective along the way. The responses of the people are woven throughout to highlight key insights learned through these special human interactions. It may not be what some people expect to read, but it is the literary neighborhood that I felt most drawn to be part of.

Step 2: Choose the Layout

Homes come in all sorts of styles. Some people prefer traditional and must have a formal dining room, others want contemporary with big glass windows and minimal interior walls. Some people don’t want the hassle of a yard, and prefer the shared living environment of a condominium or apartment community. No matter how different styles can be, everyone knows that feeling during the home hunting experience when you walk in the front door and say, “This is it. This feels like home!”

For a book, finding the right flow of your story is the same. I have flipped through the pages of many travel memoirs and am constantly curious how the authors take readers on their adventures. Specifically I look for how they introduce a new place, show the passage of time, incorporate dialogue, and present their story. Some read like a journal with the story in real time, while others are told entirely from a fresh, reflective perspective well after the journey was completed.

Towards the end of my 15-months of on/off travel, I had the idea that my book would read the same as my journey had, with a home and away flow. I would travel, then I would come home, then I would travel - the Big Shared World journey had six main regional travel legs. By the end of these times on the road, I was ready to come home to rest, touch base with family and friends, re-charge my energy, and prepare for the next leg. I realized that readers will probably want the break from constant travel just as much as I did. Thus, the structure of my book would include a strong home and away component. As soon as I started to outline the story, I had that recognizable feeling, “This is it. This feels like home!”

Step 3: Establish the Mood

A person’s home is a reflection of who they are. Choosing the key pieces for a home is where it gets fun. Or overwhelming. When my sister bought her house, all free time went to furniture and lighting stores. She went to the same stores no less than ten times before picking out her main pieces. She brought my mom, her best friend, my brother and his wife, me. Just as there can be too many cooks in a kitchen, there can be too many opinions on a a dining room light fixture. In the end, I would describe my sister’s home style as comfortably elegant. After weighing all our perspectives into her decision, she picked out some beautiful chandeliers that are stunning focal points in her main living space. She also chose furniture and personal touches that are cozy and heartwarming. The flow of her home is intentional and balanced, with spaces meant to create a classy ambiance for entertaining, as well as spaces meant for play and everyday life.

Much is the same for a book as an author decides the key elements to include. Instead of going to furniture stores, I went to my 10 red notebooks full of peoples’ perspectives, and the tens of thousands of photos I took to refresh the imagery of the moments I was in. To run with the metaphor, it’s as if I had a giant warehouse full of furniture to pick and choose from to be the staples of each room. If I chose to use one interaction to be the focal point of a certain chapter, then I had to see which others would complement or contrast with it to have the best effect. It’s like finding the perfect bedspread, then needing to buy the right accent pillows to make it come together. And sometimes, as much as you might love a couch in the store, you have to admit that it just doesn’t fit in your home. It’s all part of finding the perfect flow.

Eventually, it starts to feel right. Just as my sister had moments where she could stand in the doorway of a room in her home and feel that it was finally complete, I imagine I have similar feelings at the end of writing a section or chapter when I can sit back, look it over, and feel that I chose the right components to get my point across.

Step 4: Bring in the Professionals

There is a lot a new homeowner can do themselves. And there are a lot of things that are easier to call in a professional for. From tearing down a wall, to mounting a tv, there are many people eager to help lend their expertise to a home project.

For a book, an author can certainly edit their own drafts again and again. But one would be wise to call in an editor to review the material with fresh, and professional eyes from time to time. Even before my manuscript was close to complete, I engaged with a book coach to review my work and give insight into the structure and narrative arcs of my story. In the coming months, I will work with a developmental editor and copyeditor to assure the inner workings of my story have been tended to with a keen eye for tying up loose ends, eliminating repetitive sentences, and cleaning up the book so that it shines!

But not all professionals are perfect. My sister hired electricians to hang her new chandeliers. Later that day, we were all admiring the light fixtures, and realized that they had centered one according to the room, not the dining room table. We could either move the table to an awkward place in the room, or we could get the professionals back to move it over about a foot. Finding professionals you feel comfortable with is one thing, and being able to sense when something they do isn’t right, is another.

Step 5: Organize, Organize, Organize!

For a new homeowner, they either love or hate the final stage of moving - organizing their new home! Lucky for my sister, this happens to be one of my favorite hobbies. I feel a sense of excited accomplishment when I find the perfect containers to make a space more functional.

For a book, the final stage is the time to edit, edit, edit! The story has been written, the professionals have given their opinions, trusted family and friends have given their feedback, and it is time to go through and make sure it all reads exactly as it should.

So where am I at?

I’m in my house – surrounded by the furniture I have chosen, with boxes and bags unpacked all around me. Some rooms are pristine, and I go to those rooms again and again to remind myself that eventually the whole house will come together like them. Some rooms are in a bit of a disarray. Everything is there, and I can see the vision in my head, but there are still a lot of hours I need to spend getting those rooms just right.

While my book will not be ready to print for several months yet, I am wrapping up on a pre-order crowdfunding campaign which has been like sending a “new address” card to everyone. If they want to keep in touch, they’re in. I share the feelings of sister’s excitement to host people in her new home, meet her new neighbors this spring and summer, and embark on life from her new place. For me, I look forward to what comes when my book is in hand, ready to invite everyone to come on in, sit awhile, and enjoy themselves in the story of my journey .

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