I'm Writing A Book! And I'm Half-way Done!

I'm taking a break from writing and editing to share the realization that I had this morning - I'M WRITING A BOOK!  And I'm more than half-way done with it too! 

In fact, I'm up to 75 pages now!   Excuse me while I pause for a minute to say HOLY CRAP!   And to cheer for myself! 

I'm doing it.  I'm really doing it this time!

And this has nothing to do with that NaNoWriMo thing (National Novel Writing Month) that other bloggers attempt every November.  While I commend them for trying to write a novel in one month, I know that I can't limit myself like that.  Nor could I handle that much pressure in four to five weeks!  Besides, my book is not a novel.

I can hardly believe I'm saying this but I'm writing a cookbook!  Yes, me a cookbook - a book with recipes in it.  All my life, I've always known that I'd write a book someday.  Yet never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that it would be a cookbook of all things!?  But that's what I'm doing!

This cookbook has taken me nearly a year to prepare for it.   And I've been writing, typing, editing, photographing and formatting every page for the past two months. 

It's more than just a book of recipes though.  It's me after all.  I talk about how I've become a real cook over the past year, how I freeze foods, how cooking healthier helped me trim my waistline and more.  I also have funny stories and photos inside and more than a dozen silly poems that I wrote about food.  So it's a cookbook packed with my personality!  :-)

I'm doing it all myself.  I'm typing every single word in the book.  I'm inserting every text box and each individual photo.  I'm taking my own photos.  I came up with the title, wrote my own acknowledgements page and decided on the subjects.  I am numbering the pages and indexing it myself.   Did I mention I'm doing it ALL?  And it's hard work? 

Although I'm now spending about four hours per day finishing this book, completely ignoring my three year old, not exercising, letting my house become filfthy and not answering my phone or email, I am loving this writing journey.  It's so very worth it!!!   I'm really enjoying this experience and seeing this project through from start to finish.  I'm not completely alone either - I'm lucky to have a few friends and kind souls to preview it for me and offer me feedback. 

One of the best surprises I've discovered is that the more I work on it, the more I relish in it.  The more time I spend on the book, the better it thrives.  With each new edit, I think of another tip to add or helpful way to convey something that I had not mentioned previously.  Although time consuming and often hair pulling, I like being involved in every aspect of this book. 

At first the book was just something I wanted to have for myself - a collection of my family's favorite recipes.  Then it became a book that I could give to family and friends as Christmas gifts.  As time continues on, I realize that my book does have the potential to sell and actually make money.  And, is that so bad?  Shouldn't I want to see compensation for all the hours and oven burns I received to compile the book?  Is all greed bad?  I'm conjuring up words utterd by Gordon Gekko in the film Wall Street....  "The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will save....the USA. Thank you very much."  

Okay, I'm exaggerating.  I'll never be like Gordon Gekko.  I doubt that my book will ever be a bestseller and that I'll be guest appearing on the Paula Deen or Rachael Ray shows.  That is not my intent.  I don't want to be famous.  I want the satisfaction of seeing my name in print, even if it's only because I self-published.  I want this book to demonstrate a few of my accomplishments from the past year.  I want to share what I've done and made with others in exchange for minimal dollars to cover the costs and my creative fee.  :-) 

So that is the plan!  My plan that is.  I'm in the home-stretch of writing my cookbook.  Then I have the index and final edits to do.

But now all these other question are coming up..... What will I charge for the book (after publish, print and selling costs from www.lulu.com/)?  How will making a profit from my cookbook affect my family's finances and taxes?  Should I create my own LLC?  What other things am I forgetting before I hit the "upload" button and put it in the hands of a distributor?   Do I really know what the hell I'm doing?  Will I somehow screw this up?

I'm nervous and scared and excited all at the same time!  Somehow I know it will all work out in the end.  The main point is that I'm doing it! 

I'm really doing it - I'm writing a book this time and I will finish it.  And it feels (pardon my language) fucking great!  :-)