I Could've Finished My Book in Half the Time—If I'd Known These Two Lessons

05 Oct 2025 #writing

It took me 131 days to finish the first draft of my next book.

That’s 4 months and 8 days from creating a new file to typing the last word. I could have finished two books in that time. James Altucher challenges his podcast listeners to finish a non-fiction book in 30 days. By that standard, I could have even finished four.

Looking back, two lessons could’ve cut that time in half.

#1. Make it a priority

At some point, finishing the first draft felt like a mission impossible.

I was balancing multiple projects at the same time: I was blogging, growing my LinkedIn account, staying active in a ghostwriting community, and coding on the side.

After realizing I was exhausted from juggling all those projects, I focused only on my blog and the draft to keep momentum, even when all other projects suffered.

#2. Take one step a day

Of course, writing a book is a daunting task. It’s worse when you try to finish multiple projects.

Some days, life gets in the way and you can’t write. But take a small step toward finishing your book every day. Maybe it’s finding beta readers, scrolling Amazon for cover inspiration, making promotional material, or running a poll on social media to choose a title.

One small action every day. That’s all you need. Even if that action is not writing. Your book will thank you. And I would have finished my book in half the time.