I wrote a book
It’s called TAKE IT EASY™ – and more tips for the dedicated improviser. Writing it, rewriting it, editing it and all of that… it’s been a long process, and it’s still not published yet. But it’s so close…
I’m less than 2 weeks away from launching my IndieGoGo campaign, which I’m using as a presell mechanism for the book. That way, when I go to the printer and they ask how many copies I want, I’ll have a pretty good idea, because people will have already bought and paid for their copies. No submitting manuscripts, no waiting, just doing it my damn self, and getting the right amount of books directly to the people who want them. No middle man.
Pretty smart, huh?
Maybe. We’ll see.
A long time coming
I’ve been working on the book, off and on for more than two years, assembling elements, writing stories and insights, trialing exercises, noting the results. Rinse. Repeat.The biggest period of that was when I was working as an improviser and improv full-time. Over the last little while I’ve been like: “OK, I’ll just finish this off and put it out there, how long can it take?” teacher for much much longer.
Most of the material was put together when I was working as an improviser and improv full-time. More recently I’ve been like: “OK, it’s almost ready. So I’ll just finish this off and put it out there, how long can it take?“. Turns out, a long time. Because that was over a year ago.
But now the text has been finalized and is now being proofread, the designer is laying out the template, I’m preparing the campaign page… and we’re on our way. So this is really the final push. The book is a brisk, slender, fat-free 30,000 words, but still: this feels big.
I’ve had some trusted friends read and give input on the text, and they really like the book (and provided some great input that made it stronger), I’ve been studying up on how to run a successful crowdfunding campaign and set a reasonable target (400 books). It all seems straightforward and doable, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
The hardest part of TAKE IT EASY™
It has been a struggle putting this book together, adding, subtracting, clarifying, rethinking, enriching, shaving it all down. Of course, at other times it’s flowed pretty easily, but all together, it adds up to boy oh boy, this writing stuff is hard.
And yet: there’s so much more sweat and more tears to come.
I’ve recently discovered that running a crowdfunding campaign is a pretty hefty undertaking. But by then, I’d already committed myself (in my mind at least). I’ve been preparing the campaign page and stuff since June, and there’s still a bunch more to do before launch on 1 September.
And then, as of launch, I’ll be managing the campaign, and promoting obsessively (while trying not to be annoying about it). Hopefully I haven’t misjudged the market, and there are at least 400 people in my extended network who want to improve their improv with some fun insights and ideas, and cool exercises they may never have tried before.
One more thing
If the IndieGoGo campaign is successful, and I sell enough copies, then there’s one final step: actually sending this book out into the world. That part is scary. But it will also be awesome, because then the process will be done.
But it’s still a while off. So for now, just prepare for more news about the book (which, by the way, is a work of near genius).
