Can I ask you a question? Why do you want to write a book? Seriously, do you even know? What’s your purpose for doing so?

•     To create a beautiful work of art?

•     To tell your life story?

•     To outline your message?

•     To serve as an expert calling card?

•     To give you recognition as an expert?

•     To instruct in a straightforward, how-to manner?

•     To impact other people’s lives and affect radical change?

•     To improve your business status, marketability, and profitability?

Because your Why for writing a book—and you have to be very honest with yourself—will help determine what type of book you’ll write, what genre.

Here’s the deal: If you want to create a beautiful piece of art, to have someone finish your book, set it down in their lap, and dream for days about the power of your words, the unforgettable images, that character seared into her psyche, you’re not going to write a how-to book, at least not likely.

If you’d like to outline your message and be seen as an expert in your field, you’d be silly to write a novel, unless you’re hankering to pen a parable. (A parable is a short(ish) story that illustrates a moral attitude or religious principle, an example of which is Bob Berg’s The Go-Giver.)

If you want to explain how your mother’s knitting obsession ruined your childhood, despite making you the man you are today, you’ve got a couple of options, which we’ll discuss another time. 

There is no “right” motivation for writing a book; it’s different for everybody. Be brutally honest with yourself. It’s OK to want to be seen as an expert, not an artist. You can yearn to tell your life story, not teach a useful skill, without labeling yourself a first-class narcissist. Don’t make life harder for yourself by ignoring your real motivation. Truth is good.

Writing a book is a process. From time to time, you’ll question yourself and the relevance of your words. Other people will offer suggestions or opinions that will stir up doubt. Go back to your Why. Use it as a touchstone to ground yourself.