Want to Write a Book about your Life?

When people have been on a transformational journey, experienced loss and suffering and have come through it all with strength and a new awareness and now they want to write their ‘story’ as a book full of guidance to help other’s overcome their hardships, they often say out loud: ‘…this will help so many people’, and secretly think the book will be a huge success, (the media and even Oprah might call!) the first thing I say to them is:

There is a major difference between writing a book about an Experience vs your Life Story and here is why:

It is understandable when people are happy and proud that they showed courage to overcome something sad or negative in their life and turned it into a success like one young woman who came to me and wanted to write a book about her experience with grief and how she got through with affirmations and prayer.

She had lost a loved one early in her life and at the time it seemed the darkness would never lift and when she finally got through it all, friends and family told her she should write a book about her story so others in similar situations can take heart and perhaps use her experience and find their way out of darkness.

It seems a lovely thing to do but here is the truth…

Writing a book about a personal story to ‘help’ others and expect there will be ‘many’ who would like to read it is like expecting to win the lottery top prize with just one entry and here is why:

1.- Firstly, unless you are already a well-known personality, no one knows you so why would people want to read your story?

When people like Oprah or Tony Robbins write a book about a personal story, there is a marketing machinery in the background to raise attention for the book and the topic, even a personal story, and the book was long ahead of writing carefully planned with a specific outcome to be achieved.

This is a key aspect for Clients who get my help to write their book. My first question is always: What outcome do you have in mind?

This question is followed by a deep dive into all aspects of the person’s life and experience.

As I help the client unravel details about their book idea we discover, step by step, key components of how to write that book AND how it will need to be marketed to make it known the book exists.


2.- Secondly, there is no such thing as ‘many’ people. Whatever is to be seen, recognized or purchased by people, there needs to be research done before the thing is created.

This applies for setting up a business or buying in new products to be sold as much as it does apply to writing a book.

Who exactly and specifically will want to read your book about your life story and experience and why?

For example, when Oprah writes a book, it is most likely designed to attract new and more viewers to her show.

When clients of mine write a book, their answer to the question: ‘What outcome do you have in mind?’ reveals exactly who they need to write the book for.

For example, instead of helping ‘everybody’ overcome trauma, digging deeper and deeper into what type of trauma, trauma experienced in what way or at what age, it might become apparent it is much more specific about rage.

Now we have a more specific reader for your book in mind and that helps to focus your marketing towards making it known to that reader, that your book exists.


You see, that’s a crucial piece missing by so many people who want to write a book about an experience!

The crucial missing piece is knowing what exactly YOUR point of difference in your story is and the way my book writing, publishing & marketing framework helps, is by bringing together the outcome you want to achieve with your book.

The outcome hints at who you need to write your book for and from that knowledge we can research what exactly those prospective readers are looking for and where they would search for your book.

Now you can write and market position your book to make it the success it deserves, and who knows, your now targeted marketing efforts may well bring the media knocking on your door for interviews about your story!

And if this resonates and you’d like my help, simply book a first free chat about your book idea.

Let’s discover together what your next steps might look like.

Click here to book a chat with me