- Are you writing a book about your personal story?
If you're trying to share a story and do it in a way
that benefits others as much as it respects
the people you're writing about,
then this video with special guest author,
Shelley Buck is for you.
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Hey there, I'm Julie the Book Broad from Book Launchers.
We're your professional self publishing team
helping you write, publish,
and promote a non-fiction book that will help you
have a huge impact on your readers,
and done right will also help you grow your brand,
build your business, and make you money.
The best part?
You keep all rights and royalties.
All right, today is a special video for you.
My guest Shelley Buck is the co author of
"Leave Your Light On:
"The Musical Mantra Left Behind by an Illuminating Spirit".
When her son Ryder was diagnosed with cancer
and the journey went to unimaginable places,
she poured her heart into writing their story.
Her lessons in parenting through tribulations
combined with the power of Ryder's larger than life spirit
offer profound messages for living in the light.
Sharing a story of loss and celebration
of a loved one's life is quite difficult to do,
and she did it in a way that really pays tribute to her son
and offers massive value for her readers.
So I thought she'd be a great person to hear from
on how to do that.
So please Shelley say hello
and let everyone know who your book is for.
- This book is for anyone who needs the courage
to be who they really are,
no matter what challenges they're facing.
This is my son Ryder's legacy,
which we brought to life so others could see
what it means to leave your light on.
- Her book and this story is something really special,
and I highly recommend you check it out.
Her son Ryder beat cancer only to die in an accident
a few months later.
Shelley was not only brave enough
to share her story and what she learned
from Ryder in her book,
she was also kind enough to share her writing lessons
with you to help you position a personal story
for others' benefit.
Here's what she had to say about how you write
a personal story that will benefit the reader.
- This book was originally the journal I wrote
from the time Ryder was diagnosed with cancer
through his ultimate triumph over it, and into the beyond
after his accidental death a few months later.
What was really important to me was painting a portrait
of Ryder and the light he shone from the day of his birth.
His refusal to be anything but himself
through all that life threw at him, taught me so much.
In fact, it was this light that carried me through my grief.
So my advice to anyone sharing a personal story
is to find the big picture in the details of your experience
and share that and stay on point.
It will help you identify your audience as well.
It's kind of like leaving the trees,
going up on a mountain top,
and looking down at the whole forest.
Book Launchers has a wonderful staff of storytellers
and writers to help you.
Once you've identified your audience
and you know who will be most helped by your story,
focus on them during the writing and afterwards,
during your book launch.
It's important and really critical
that you identify your audience.
- I love the visual aspect she gave to you
to picture that audience,
but she really nailed the point there.
Your personal story becomes valuable to someone else
when you know who you're writing it for.
And you always, always, always think of that person.
Thinking of your audience while you write a book
is vital to the success of your book.
My suggestion is to keep working on it
until you have a really clear sense
of where your readers will be found.
For example, a book like Shelley's you can easily see
how parents of children with cancer are a clear market,
but so were people dealing with grief.
Where do these people hang out?
What are they listening to, or paying attention to already?
Podcasts, groups, associations.
As long as you create a core message around the book
that has everything to do with offering value
and insight to that reader,
you're gonna be able to write your personal story
in a way that is appealing to those target readers.
But until you can clearly see
where you're gonna find readers,
you don't have a clear enough audience.
That's kinda my litmus test.
If you can tell me where your readers are hangin' out,
then I'm feelin' much better about who your audience is.
Her book started as a journal which was written for herself.
But to have that message go wide,
she had to write the book with a clear audience.
And with the help of her co author, Kathy Curtis,
I think they did a beautiful job of bringing
that core message to a group of people
who really, really need it.
So you've all been asking me to make sure I ask our authors
what the experience of working with Book Launchers is like,
and how to make the most of working with us.
So I asked Shelley.
Here's what she had to say.
- Book Launchers offers an amazing array of talent,
knowledge, and process management
to support your journey and beyond a successful book launch.
While they can do it all,
I would advise you to bring as much clarity as possible
with an idea of who your audience is.
Don't try to be all things to all people.
Be you, bring your message, and let them help you do that.
I found Book Launchers eager and willing to help
elucidate your project.
- And my favorite question, Shelley,
what has been the biggest surprise to you
after you wrote this book?
- The biggest surprise for "Leave Your Light On"
has been the vast array of people
that have been drawn to it.
From young adults launching into their adult lives,
facing whatever challenges they're facing,
whether it be a life-threatening disease,
or just the challenges of becoming an adult
and separating from their parents.
To those parents who are either caring for a child
with a life-threatening disease,
or just launching their child into adulthood.
And then there are the grieving parents,
or people who are grieving any loss.
We've been thrilled by the vast array of people
that have been drawn to this book.
- Thank you for sharing with us, Shelley.
If you wanna buy Shelley's book, which I highly recommend,
or you wanna reach out to Shelley personally,
you can find her at ryderbuckmusic.com.
I will link to it in the description below.
That's ryderbuck,
and it's R-Y-D-E-R, buckmusic.com.
There's a contact form there,
so if you wanna send her an email you can do that,
as well as purchase her book in all formats,
including audio.
Did you appreciate Shelley sharing her story with you today?
Of course you did.
So please hit that thumbs up button,
and head on down to the comments down below
to say hello and share your gratitude with her.
And of course, if you have questions,
you can post them there too.
And when you comment the day a video is released,
you'll be entered to win some sweet
Hashtag No Boring Books swag.
We have new videos every Tuesday and Friday
so make sure you catch every one by subscribing
to the channel and turning on those notifications.
I sure enjoyed spending time with you today.
Would you like to hang out a little bit more?
Great, okay.
Maybe you'd like to meet more of our authors.
This link right here is to a playlist
of all the authors we've interviewed so far.
You're gonna meet so many fabulous folks
that we've been lucky enough to work with at Book Launchers.
Or if you're wondering how to tell personal stories
without hurting people's feelings, or getting in trouble,
this video on personal stories in your book is a must watch.
Click on the one you wanna watch.
I'm really looking forward to seeing you there.
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