Rest and relaxation help productivity, and that’s just one reason to be sure you have enough of them in your life.

The need to create is natural as moss on a rock. It’s often stifled and squashed in kids and adults alike, however. Sometimes just having the freedom to play around is enough to bring it out again. That’s how The Book Baker persona came to be.

Rest and relaxation for stress relief

Many a wife has shooed her husband out to the workshop to go tinker, or back to his computer to write something when he starts getting testy, because she senses that the pressure to create is building inside him. More than one husband has told his wife flat-out, “Go create something. You’re driving me crazy.” The Creative does, and feels better; the dynamic between them changes, and then they have some fun together. Rest and relaxation help productivity in the long run.

Who’s getting the stress relief here? Probably both spouses. Creating is a great stress-relief technique, among other things. When we don’t do something about that need, we end up more tightly-wound than a hummingbird in plastic wrap.

My husband was always more subtle about shooing me away from my desk than some people are to their spouses, but I know what he means. “How long has it been since you painted or wrote something? And I don’t mean for work, either.” I have to admit it’s been a while, because I just don’t have (take) a lot of time for it.

Too busy to relax

I have a lot on my to-do list, and it seems it never gets completely emptied. I edit millions of words a year. I write content for blogs and websites, and I coach some writers. I cook and clean, and I homeschool children.

I’m busy, I tell him. I don’t have time to do something “just for fun,” or “just for me.” The left-brain part of me says there’s work to be done, and the things that make money (or have good potential to) are the important things.

The part of my brain that holds my parent tapes seems to be on eternal playback, and they say, “Get your work done. All of it. Don’t stop for one minute until it’s done! Push yourself until you collapse [with chronic illnesses, I collapse often enough]. then you get to sleep, but only for four hours, because you have a farm to run here, and you have a family to cook and clean for, and you have school in the morning.” Yeah, my parental figures were relentless jerks to me. But hey, I developed a great work ethic! I also developed adrenal burnout, but that’s a story for another day.

Rest and relaxation help productivity

That part of my brain has been tamed quite a bit over the years, but it’s still there. It has to be convinced that doing something creative just for fun or relaxation, something which doesn’t appear to be productive actually is. Rest and rejuvenation are needed for productivity.

A friend game me the nickname “The Jenergizer Bunny” because I keep pushing myself as long as I can go (I sit in a chair and move my fingers all day—not hard physically, but with chronic illnesses, it’s about all I can do), but eventually even I have to stop and recharge. I need to nap most days and to switch gears from time to time. Everyone needs to switch gears and recharge somehow.

Art for fun

So when my husband asked, “How long has it been since you’ve painted or written something, and I don’t mean for work,” I’d often stop what I’m doing and go do something else, like play with paint on a canvas or paper—I don’t call it “painting.” That puts too much pressure on me to make it look good, or make something that’s real, or whatever—something that justifies the expense of the art supplies (as if helping me feel better and relax isn’t enough justification). I just called it rest and relaxation.

I’m just playing with paint, just like when someone is blocked with their writing, they might say, “I’m just putting some ideas down here, not really writing, it’s okay…” Or instead of with paint, I crochet or sew, or play around with “non-work” writing: maybe a few rhyming lines or a scene that’s not part of anything else… Before I know it, I’m writing, and that’s good, because that’s what writers do. We write. Your turn!

Self-care while writing a book is important, especially if you’re participating in some kind of boot camp or other intensive program. Your Book Bakery: 12 Weeks to a Manuscript lasts three months, and I encourage participants to participate in self-care every day and to reward themselves throughout the process.

Here’s some material directly from the Your Book Bakery manual I wrote just for participants in that program.

Choose three self-care actions you’ll take on a regular basis throughout this program. It will be indicated by this icon.

Choose three rewards you’ll give yourself:

• a small one you’ll partake of daily (a metaphorical cookie, if you will),
• a medium-sized reward you’ll indulge in once a week (a fictional donut),
• and one large treat you’ll give yourself at the end (the proverbial cake).

Here are the icons that represent them:

The lists below will give you some ideas for self-care and rewards, but feel free to choose your own.

Activities for self-care while writing a book

Pray or meditate to rest your mind.

Go for a walk.

Listen to music.

Take a bath.

Have a cup of tea or other warm beverage. Click the image to check out this delicious sampler pack.

Take a nap or go to bed early.

Get a massage, Feldenkrais, or other bodywork.

Journal or talk to a friend about how your writing is going. If you need help, book a writing coaching session here.

Rub peppermint lotion on your feet. Click the image for one that’s fitting for The Book Bakery theme.

Do some gentle stretching.

Get in a hard workout.

Eat a salad or other light, nourishing food.

Book an extra counseling session.

Sit in the park or other public place and smile at nature, children, and dogs.

Verbally list things you’re grateful for.

Go horseback riding.

Stargaze from a warm location.

Light a candle or fireplace.

Watch a few minutes of a video of fire or flowing water.

Cheer yourself and others on because you’re doing something wonderful, and it’s going to change the world.

Rewards

Ordinarily, reading is a great reward, but during this 12-week, intense program, you might want to skip anything with text when it comes to rewarding yourself for making progress on your book. If you do read, I hope you choose fun fluff. Only you can say what is a reward for you, and which things are small, medium, and large rewards. Here’s a list to get the ideas flowing for your self-care while writing a book. Add your own.

Music

Scented candles

Adult coloring books

Horseback riding

A Sunday drive

Candy

Acrylic paints—here’s a very inexpensive set to get you started.

Stationery

A disco ball

Going roller skating

Watching a movie

A new shirt

A new pair of shoes

A new ink pen (This Cross pen is a dream, and my favorite color. Click it.)

Sleeping in

Takeout

A gym membership

Having a party

Importance of self-care and rewards

What gets rewarded gets repeated. If you want to get your book written, you have to reward yourself for writing. And not just when you’ve completed the manuscript because that takes weeks or longer, but every step along the way. Vary the rewards—small, medium, large. Reward yourself before you write one day. On another day, give yourself a treat right in the middle of your writing session. Some other time, indulge immediately after your writing time is done for the day.

Please set aside time and a little money for self-care while writing a book. The rewards and care don’t have to cost much, and some things won’t cost a dime. Sleep is something that gets neglected but is paramount.

It’s so important to participate in self-care while writing a book. Take good care of yourself, especially when you’re doing something draining, and writing a book in 12 weeks or less is draining, even though it’s effective. Pamper yourself. Your book is worth it.

While the title of the book does tell you what it is about, you might be wondering about specifics. What is in Your Book Bakery: Making it easy to write a book?

What is in Your Book Bakery: Making it easy to write a book?

Yes, book titles should be in italics. Unfortunately, SEO doesn’t understand that fact, so in the heading above and in some places in the body of this post, I have it in roman text.

In Your Book Bakery (the book and the coaching program), you will find a recipe to bake a helpful nonfiction book. There are questions and other tools that will help you figure out who your audience is and what should be in your book. In Your Book Bakery, you will find plenty of space for writing, so you can put your answers and notes right there in the book.

So, to answer what is in Your Book Bakery, I’d say it really does have everything you need to write a book that is based on knowledge you already have. For a book that you’d need to do extensive research before you can write it, we have additional resources, but this book is still a great start even in a situation like that.

What it comes down to is this: If you can follow a recipe to bake a cake, then you can write a book. That might be the most important thing you discover when you see what is in Your Book Bakery. This realization can change your life: you can write a book, and it can be really simple (although not always easy) to do it.

Here is an excerpt from the beginning that lets you know what is in Your Book Bakery.

You’ll find puns, plays on words, metaphors, and silly sayings in the book and in my book-writing program, TikTok channel, and eventual podcast. First off, playing with words is fun. I often say, “Writing is exciting.” It doesn’t have to be the drudgery we learned to think it is. Also, playing with language in such a way is a sign of high intelligence. For that reason, I’m sure you will enjoy the instances of it in the book.

The entire book is a metaphor: baking is a metaphor for producing your book. I hope you find the process to be quick but measured, uplifting, and so juicy sweet.

You might notice that the book has three parts, like a three-layered cake. I hope the layers aren’t too lumpy. I’m doing exactly what I’m asking you to do: produce something imperfect now and perhaps refine it down the road. You can do it, too.

You’ll see that I mention many books in this book. As a writing coach, editor, publisher, author, and agency owner (how long is that list?), most of my favorite resources are books. It only makes sense that I’d mention books often. Also, most of the books I mention are some that I edited. The authors worked hard to create tasty morsels for their readers, including you. Please check out those books. Buy and review the ones that appeal to you. See the recommended books section.

Recipe for writing a book

Many books about writing are theoretical or high-level books. Author, writing podcaster, and former professor Kent Sanders praises me for teaching things that are “extremely practical rather than pie-in-the-sky theory.” He says I teach people how to actually do the things I talk about. I am thankful for his words because that is my exact intention with everything I do.

You don’t need another “anyone can write a book” book. You need a practical path to get it done. That’s this book.

This book is a recipe for actually writing your book.

It’s for coaches, consultants, subject-matter experts, and other leaders or helpers—even if you are just getting started. If you want to write a book that will help others, and if you know your topic well, this is for you—even if you hate writing. You don’t have to write your book to write your book. I’ll explain that later, I promise.

Those who need to do massive research before writing their book need something other than our 12-week program and should email Baker@yourbookbakery.com about a custom package. They should still read this book. Get your copy on Amazon (like many of the links on this website, this one is an affiliate link). Then you will quickly see what is in Your Book Bakery: Making it easy to write a book.

 

What your audience wants and needs

Think about the people you wish to serve. Consider what your audience wants and needs.

Maybe they want comfort, luxury, and ease. Many people want a quick fix, a special pill, or a magic bullet. Reasonable and knowledgeable people know that there really is no such thing and that chasing it will only result in heartache, broken promises, and empty bank accounts. What your audience wants might not all be feasible, but some of it probably is.

We are going to make some assumptions here.

• We will assume that you are honest and have good intentions. You’re not a scammer of any kind, right?
• We will assume that what you offer is of high quality. You didn’t dredge up some rusty object from the bottom of a lake, and you’re not trying to pass off a $1 plastic rack as a $100 over the sink rack like some companies in China did with Facebook and PayPal, correct?

• We will also assume that what you offer is appropriate for your audience. You’re not trying to get just anyone and everyone to buy your stuff, even if it won’t do a thing for them. Right? Good.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about what your audience wants and needs, and what you should do if they’re not the same.

Desire and offering

If what your audience wants is what you offer, fabulous. If they don’t want it, though, or if they don’t even know it exists or that it is for them, then you have a challenge.

You might need to educate them. That could take time. You also may have to sell them what they want first and later deliver to them what they need. We see this happen with products and services all the time.

Perhaps you know that your client really needs a solid project management tool, but what they want is dopamine hits. In other words, they want it to be fun to get their work done. Asana would be an example of selling them what they want and also giving them what they need. The colorful cartoonish creatures that fly across the screen sometimes when you click Complete on a task definitely make it fun.

I may or may not have created some miniscule tasks in Asana just to be able to check them off and have a chance of seeing a pastel narwhal zooming across my computer monitor. The hope that I might see zipping unicorn thingies may or may not motivate me to get my work done.

Think about what your audience members want. In some cases, they might not know what that is. It might not even exist yet. That was the case for many products and services before someone created them. I’ve heard that said about smartphones, MP3 players, and even cars. If something doesn’t exist yet, people may need to be led to want it. But instances like that are few and far between.

What they actually need

More often, people don’t know what they need. What they want and what they need are rarely the same thing. The “what they want” part is fun. The “what they need” part might not be. You know that people need a healthful diet, but eating things that taste like what they grew in (dirt) just isn’t enjoyable, so they don’t want it. Here’s another, more extensive example.

All humans need their blood sugar levels to stay within a certain range, or they’ll die. As a diabetic, to make that happen for me, I need exogenous insulin and extremely frequent monitoring. What I want is the opposite of all of these things that I had:

• fingers that are sore from pinpricks
• spending (wasting) two or more hours every day administering meds and testing my blood sugar
• needing to worry about where my blood sugar level is
• following doctors’ orders about timing my meals and meds rigidly and perfectly (Do they even know me?!)
• needing to keep my sugar too high overnight so I don’t have a low, have a seizure, and die
• the roller coaster of multiple injections daily, which led to ketoacidosis and time in the ICU

For a long time, I begged for an insulin pump with a continuous glucose monitoring system. I did have the pump at times, depending on the whims of our different insurance providers. When they pulled coverage and I had to go back on injections, I ended up in the ICU because I needed a better, steady insulin delivery system (a pump is a thousand times better than injections).

Now, I have what I want, which gives me what I need.

• an insulin pump
• a continuous glucose monitor
• an app that makes them communicate with each other

The system eliminates the need to poke my finger except in rare instances. It also eliminates the need to load up on carbs before bed (damaging my organs) to prevent an overnight drop in blood sugar. Imagine being afraid to go to sleep because you might die if you do. With the monitor controlling the pump and an alarm that wakes me when my blood sugar starts to drop, that fear was obliterated.

What your audience wants and needs won’t always overlap so neatly. These things also won’t always be so clear.

You need to know both what your audience wants and what it actually needs if you’re going to get in front of the members of it and sell your book and other products and services to them most effectively.

After you know what your audience wants and needs

So, you’ve determined what your audience wants and needs. What should you do when you realize that what your audience wants and what it needs are different? Sell them what they want. Then, once they are in your ecosystem, deliver what they need.

It’s not always easy. It could be the biggest challenge you face. For help figuring out this and other platform development issues, get a free trial to Platform Launchers.

The two brutal truths are that what your audience wants and needs are rarely the same thing, and it’s your job to get them what they need, which you may have to do by selling them what they want.

Join the next session of Your Book Bakery: 12 Weeks to a Manuscript, where we help you figure out what your audience wants and needs.