30 tips for ebook writers and authors

Section 02: Generating Ideas and Research


So, you know what "topic" to write about, but how do
you come up with WHAT to write about that topic? You
may have identified "making money" as your topic, but
what will you write about "making money"? Will it be
Internet related? Stocks and bonds? Direct mail? Home-
based business? Fundraising?

And when you narrow it down to the actual subject, what
kind of information will you share in the eBook?

That's what this section will hopefully help you to
decide by exploring some ways to generate ideas and to
do some research.

6. Brainstorm To Get Other Folks' Ideas. Whether you
get family members, a group of friends, or other
writers together, brainstorming is a wonderful way to
beat Writer’s Block. When you are stuck, make
brainstorming fun. You can sit and just start throwing
ideas out or make a game by putting ideas in a hat and
then passing it around to read or act out.

We call this a "mastermind" session. And you'd be
absolutely amazed at how productive it can be. Folks
throw out ideas that you never even thought of. They
offer opinions that you weren't even close to
considering. Why? Because they think differently than
you do. And that can be a good thing.

Are you having trouble generating ideas for your eBook,
or expanding upon what you are already writing about?
Get a group of folks together (or even ONE person is a
start) and ask questions. Explain what you are writing
about and ask for suggestions, ideas and opinions.
Voila -- with the wave of a magic wand, you've got more
ideas and a fresh perspective to write from.

I know. I know. When I say "research" you envision some
guy up late at night with fifteen books open, 5 empty
Coca Cola cans (he needs the caffeine to stay awake!)
and an anxious look on his face.

Research scares the heck out of most folks. It sounds
too much like doing a term paper for a trigger happy
high school English teacher with a red pen in her hand!

But, it doesn't have to be that way. Let's look at some
(slightly less painful) ways of getting ideas for your
eBook.

7. Use Childhood Memories. Here's a great exercise. Sit
down with a pad and paper and start writing down
childhood experiences. Start with a specific age and
think about the school attended at that time, the
friends you hung around, the style of the clothes you
wore, a favorite pet, anything you can. You will be
amazed at how many ideas you can develop that can be
useful to you in writing, or that spawn other ideas for
your eBook.

Just as you revisited your own childhood, talk to other
family members or friends and ask them to share stories
about their upbringing. For example, one writer asked a
close friend from Israel about her experiences as a
child during World War II. What unfolded was a
wonderful story of determination, as the friend shared
how her family had withstood persecution and survived
horrible ordeals. Just like that a new chapter to an
eBook was added, "How to Overcome Opposition: 7 Secrets
From A Survivor."

Wow -- it's amazing how looking at childhood memories
(and ALL past experiences) can be used to develop ideas
for use in your eBook content.

8. Listen. Listen to people. Whether you're shopping,
at the job, or in the gym, listen to what people are
saying. What subjects are being discussed? What seems
to be important to other people? Many times, you will
get ideas based on everyday discussions. Having good
listening skills is a huge benefit to writers.

Don't forget the kids. Kids are innocent and provide a
sincerity that is often missed with adults. If you have
children of your own, nieces or nephews, or friends
with smaller children, sit down and just talk to them.
Believe me -you will hear all kinds of things that will
soon get you out of Writer’s Block. They possess such
great imaginations that they will actually help yours
kick into high gear.

Attend a workshop. Listen to a teleseminar or
conference call. Sit in on a class. Do an interview.
Absorb information that other people are sharing and
extract IDEAS that you can use yourself.

9. Analyze Data. Conduct some analysis with people who
can contribute to the topic you are writing about. Do a
survey. Take a poll. Ask questions. Have them ASK YOU
questions. Compile all of the information and you've
got even more ideas for writing your content.

For example: I know of a marketer online who wanted to
put together an eBook for newcomers to the web to help
them learn how to do business online. He had a half
dozen or so ideas about what to share, but that was
all. He knew that "newbies" have a lot more questions
than that! But, he didn't know what they were -- being
an EXPERIENCED web marketer, he took a lot of "basic"
things for granted.

So, what did he do? He sent a SURVEY out to people on
his newsletter list and the lists of his online
marketing friends. The result: Over 200 questions that
newbies wanted answered! That's around 195 more "ideas"
than he started out with. And that's also a GREAT way
to come up with new ideas...ask questions and have
folks ask you questions.

10. Watch TV or Movies. TV is another source for ideas.
As you know, television covers anything and everything
and if you're struggling with Writer’s Block, there
will be something that will help spur your mind into
action. With 598,000,281 different stations to watch,
you're bound to find something helpful! :o)

If you want to write an eBook on snakes, sit down and
watch the Discovery Channel. You will gain a ton of
important information and once again, you can determine
what wasn't covered. If the show covers the detailed
information on the top 10 venomous snakes in the United
States, why not do research on the next five. Ideas are
often found by using the ol' remote control!

11. Play The Alphabet Game. Here's another great idea
generator exercise. Starting with the letter “A” in the
alphabet, literally start thinking of events, places,
people, items, verbs, etc., that start with that
letter, which are related to your eBook topic. The goal
is to go all the way to “Z.” This is a great way to
shake loose Writer’s Block.

For example: if you are writing an eBook on internet
marketing, here are some ideas...
A = affiliates
B = build a list
C = conversion
D = digital products
e = ezine
f = follow-up
g = google.com

And you would complete that all the way through Z. Do
you think any new ideas could be generated from such a
list? Of course! Try it -- you can thank me later.

12. Conduct Interviews. Find some interesting people in
your church, school, work, or even family and friends
who have had a unique experience in life and conduct an
interview with them. Sometimes we think we know someone
well until we take time to talk to him or her – really
talk. For example, one young woman interviewed her own
mother. She thought she knew everything about her and
her life but during the course of the interview, she
discovered cherished pieces of her life that she didn't
even know existed.

Her own mother had her ears pierced at age eight, in
1935, by Chief White Feather, the grandson of Chief
Sitting Bull. He lived in Indiana down the street from
her and took a real liking to her. The daughter had no
idea! Interviews will unearth all types of buried
treasures. And look for EXPERTS in your field of
interest. Ask them a handful of questions and then use
the entire interview as an actual part of your eBook.
That's what I did with Eye-Popping Popups.

I asked a half-dozen prominent web marketers how they
were using popup windows to make sales. I gave them 10
questions and then published their exact responses in
the eBook. It ended up giving me about 20 pages of FREE
content, and free publicity for them.

Until the next post.....
Brian Ankner (non-guru)