Writing a book

Okay, maybe I'm delusional and this'll never happen, but it's just an idea I've been throwing around for the last couple of days:

I'm a college student, and having read some of the awful sh!t my professors have written (and make us buy for $50 - $60) on subjects such as political parties, U.S. foreign conflict and similar topics, I've realized that I'm motivated enough, intelligent enough and 'good' enough to write a book. And I think in that respect, I'm very unique: I'm a college student with a unique opportunity to conduct research for a book, and I think I'd make a good author whose work people would want to read, because I'm not some stuffy intellectual - I'm a normal college kid who talks like a normal person.

Anyway, my first idea for a book is on the voting habits of college students and how they affect elections as a whole. Now, most people figure that college students don't vote, which is true, but I'd like to find out whether their political efficacy is more or less prevalent than that of the general population, and whether or not they have more or less impact on political campaigns than the average citizen.

Additionally, I'd like to take a look back at college students of yore: in the 20s and 30s, did students vote? What about earlier than that?

I think this would make an excellent topic for a book, and coming from the pen of a college student (or one who's recently graduated, by the time I might finish the book) it would make for a unique reading experience.

I've read about agents and publishers and all that stuff, but I'm not really worried about all that right now. What I want to know is whether or not AT thinks it's feasible for me to write a book, and whether or not you think the public would be interested in reading it.

Thanks!
Mike

 

[minendo]

Anyway, my first idea for a book is on the voting habits of college students and how they affect elections as a whole

That's a pretty specific topic for a whole book. Sounds more like a long essay or perhaps a chapter of a book.

 

[Pudgygiant]

Is it feasible? Yes.
Is it easy? NO.

My dad's best estimates (he was thinking about writing a book on a computer topic which I would rather not disclose) were that it would take him between 6 months and a year, with at least half of it being pure research. This is extended further if you work alongside it.

If it's needed and good then there's a big payoff though.

 

[MaxDepth]

It's not the article I wanted (Time.com's search engine is very weak) but here is one about voting habits on a campus.

Most kids these days protest because its a chance for them hook up instead of making a stance.

 

[DaveSimmons]

My dad was a published author (textbooks and nonfiction, plus some magazine pieces) and he finally retired from writing after the market got too brutal.

Can you write your book? Of course.

Can you sell your book to a publisher and then to the public?

For 99.99% of books published today the marketing is by far more important than the contents or quality of the book. In order to sell a book you pretty much have to be or have one or more of
- very photogenic
- famous or infamous, a celebrity of some sort
- an impressive and marketable position in some area, such as high political office
- connections to some publisher's editor or exec who will champion your work
- Oprah or some other media giant to champion your work
- very good luck

Unless you manage to have one or more of the above, you'll have a hard time even getting publishers to look at your proposal for a book. Slush piles are overflowing, and sales of books by unknowns are too low to interest publishers much.

 

[Descartes]

I participated as an author for Wrox Publishing before they went bankrupt, but being a technical author makes it considerably easier to get published I'd say. I will be authoring short books for Microsoft in the coming months as well, but again, it's easier to get published.

If you have a story that already has fair notoriety it's considerably easier to get published as well. I would just contact some publishers and push the idea. Most of the publishers I've interacted with simply require a prospectus, a table of contents, a few sample chapters perhaps, and a vitae.

Sorry I'm not of more help.

 

[SackOfAllTrades]

Originally posted by: jumpr
I've realized that I'm motivated enough, intelligent enough and 'good' enough to write a book. And I think in that respect, I'm very unique: I'm a college student with a unique opportunity to conduct research for a book, and I think I'd make a good author whose work people would want to read, because I'm not some stuffy intellectual - I'm a normal college kid who talks like a normal person.

Sorry to say, but it sounds like ego driving your motivation, good luck with that.

First thing I would do is talk to the dean of my political science department, ask for any advice or help. Then ask your professors for advice and help also, they should be able to help you even though they "write awful sh!t."

 

[AreaCode707]

I was an agent for a couple of years in the very recent past and what DaveSimmons said is 100% true. The market sucks right now, but it's better for nonfiction than it is for fiction. PLATFORM sells the book. If you can get known as an expert on the topic, get some articles published, get some national attention, show up on tv a few times, get some quotes from famous authors supporting your book, place yourself exactly right, etc, you can sell your book. Otherwise, the chances are really slim.

 

[OIKOS]

Originally posted by: HotChic
I was an agent for a couple of years in the very recent past and what DaveSimmons said is 100% true. The market sucks right now, but it's better for nonfiction than it is for fiction. PLATFORM sells the book. If you can get known as an expert on the topic, get some articles published, get some national attention, show up on tv a few times, get some quotes from famous authors supporting your book, place yourself exactly right, etc, you can sell your book. Otherwise, the chances are really slim.

.....this got edited by the mod??