Listen to the audio version of this post on the Craftsman Creative Podcast.

Today I'm officially kicking off my next book project.

Wait, another book? Didn't you just release one last year?

Yes, and here's why I'm doing another - I see the most growth in my business when I'm actively working on a creative project and sharing the process in public, whether my last book or building courses or the recent podcast season I produced with Joe, the 10k Creator.

So, as I mentioned last week, I have a few projects on my plate. I'm raising a film fund (click here if you'd like to receive updates) and relaunching the course business as Lightbulb Courses (see the sponsor section below).

But there's something about a book that focuses my weekly writing, brings people along for the journey, and aligns with my values of sharing what I know with as many people as possible to help clear the path for those on the same journey.

With that, today I'll share the approach I'm using this time around to write my next book.

"Write the book that will build your business"
​~Lucy McCarraher

Find a Framework

I've had a few ideas for the next book, and knew that I wanted it to be an extension of my first book, Craftsman Creative: How Five-Figure Creators Can Build Six Figure Businesses.

The recent narrowing of my focus (and my audience) for my high-value consulting offer gave me the clarity I needed to decide on the outcome for the next book.

But I needed a framework to do a better job writing and publishing this time. My last book has sold ~200 copies, which isn't terrible but it hasn't moved the needle on my business as much as I'd hoped.

I looked to those who were using books strategically to grow their business, and as I turned to the stack of books on my desk, the one on the top was Scorecard Marketing by Daniel Priestley, which had been sent to me for signing up for Score App.

I saw that the book was published by Rethink Press, so I went down the rabbit hole and found their book, Bookbuilder: The definitive guide to writing the book to transform your business.

The title alone was enough to know that I had found what I was looking for. In that book they lay out a very clear method to writing and publishing your book. (I'm now considering working with them to publish the book, but that's a story for another day!)

With a framework in hand, I got to work on the initial planning steps of the next book.

Lay It All Out

The first step is to dump every possible idea onto a page so that you can then organize it. I started thinking through everything I wanted to write about, and then - more importantly - everything the intended reader would need to know and understand in order to get the outcome promised by the book title and subtitle.

Problem was, I didn't have that title and subtitle yet...

I started putting it all down using the awesome new Freeform app that came with the recent update to the MacOS and iOS.

Once I had all the ideas down, I organized them based on the suggestions in the Bookbuilder book and I could see everything start falling into place.

I could see the structure taking place. I knew I wanted to have a book based on the new MOVIE framework for building and growing creative businesses, so those became the main sections of the book. The grey blocks are the different 1,000-1,500 word chapters, and the yellow cards on the top are the different parts, which nicely align with the process of making a real movie - pre-production, production, post-production, and distribution.

Finding A Title

I was researching different movie related terms and one stood out among all the rest. The reason I loved it is because of where the term came from, and the meaning behind it.

• "highly popular and financially successful"
• "huge impact"

The term, as you may have guessed, is Blockbuster.

After workshopping the title a bit, I came up with the subtitle which perfectly captures the reader and the outcome the book is promising:

Blockbuster: Expand your creative business to seven figures and beyond

I'll take the lessons learned from 17+ years in the film industry and help creative business owners create the "huge impact" they've been working so hard for, by helping them make their businesses "highly popular and financially successful"

I'm beyond excited for this book. I'll be writing chapters and publishing them through this newsletter and on the blog over the coming months, which means - just as the last book - the first draft of each chapter will be free forever online for those who can't or don't want to purchase a copy or share their email to get access.

I'd love to hear if you have any questions about the process so far. Just send me an email at daren@craftsmancreative.co.

Ready to read the book? New chapters will be published here:

Blockbuster - Expand Your Creative Business To Seven Figures And Beyond

This book is being “written in public”, which means that chapters are published as they’re written. Click here to read the book announcement. To get new chapters by email, sign up for free here: Want to listen to new chapters as they’re released? Subscribe to the Craftsman Creative Podcast. Hype…

Craftsman Creative BlogDaren Smith