Hi there. My name is Scott Duffy, and welcome to my book writing log. I have documented the process of writing my last two books on this site, and have started my third. This book will be called Visual Studio Team System In Action, and should be available in 2005.

Would I Do It Again?

It's hard to describe how difficult it is to write a book to someone who hasn't been through the process. It's not that people who've written books are any different from those who haven't. It's just that it's difficult to find a common frame of reference to compare it to.

For example, you could describe how snow feels to someone who lives in an equatorial country, because everyone knows what ice is. It wouldn't be too difficult to take that person from the coldness of ice, to the coldness of snow. You could also show them a picture of a snow-covered meadow. And so on. There is a common frame of reference.

But writing a book (or three in my case) has been one of the toughest experiences of my life. In the time since I started with my first book (which didn't even get published), I have developed a new love of writing. I keep a number of blogs besides this one, and I find time to write "something" almost every day.

But writing also requires discipline. It's hard to make a schedule up in Month 1, and stick to it for the next 5 months. Things happen. Life happens. Your wife will want to spend a day with you. The baseball playoffs will turn out to be extremely exciting. This discipline is especially required if you decide to keep a day job to pay the bills, since full-time writers will not have to spend 40 hours or more a week somewhere else.

So the sacrafice is clear: if you decide to write a book (and keep your job), you will be holding down two full-time jobs for several months. Can you work 16 hours a day? And what about donating one day out of your weekend? I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's like the TV show Survivor -- phyisically and mentally draining.

And what about the rewards? Well, first and foremost, there is the reward of having a published book. It will make your mother proud. You will get a certain about of fame and noterity from your friends and family. So, if nothing else, you'll have "something".

Second, there is money. Book publishing is a business (and a tough business to be in these days). Authors earn a percentage of the book sales. But very few books published (only handful per year) turn their authors into millionaires. Author's typically receive a certain amount as an advance -- $5,000 to $10,000 for first-time authors. Only a small percentage of books (1%?) earn their authors more than that.

I'm sure there are a few other benefits. Some people find writing therapeutic. So perhaps you'll save money on therapy bills. If you're lucky, you may be able to use the book to land a job. It might raise your stature among your peers. Consultants have used books to turn themselves into instant experts for decades.

Me? I am starting to think my authoring days are over. I'm not sure though. I might turn to it next time I am unemployed. Or perhaps an idea might strike me so hard that I almost HAVE to write a book. Who knows? It has been 6 months since I stopped writing my last book. There have been a couple of attempts to start a new one, but I just don't have the passion for it at this point. My current job is keeping me busy 12 hours a day -- that might have something to do with it.

Maybe in the new year...