So You're Thinking about writing a book

If you are a creative person with something to say, there has never been a time when it is so possible to create a high-quality book on your own terms. It is perhaps also true that there has never been so much noise in the literary eco-system, so many books, so many voices, etc.

This moment presents a sort of unique conundrum, in that we believe there is a demand for well-written niche books that are cogent and beautiful and have strong voice, and that illuminate particular aspects of human experience. That is why we started a publishing house, Jaguar Imprints.

As we begin to expand the purview of the imprint to include new writers, we are interested in mentoring folks considering developing book projects that we would personally find interesting. We'd like to share some of the lessons we've learned and are learning along the way.

In this 3-hour deep-dive into the process of creating a book...

• •We are going to talk about creating better conditions for your creative flow, which include having a place you enjoy writing in (possibly many), writing habits, overcoming hesitations & distractions, writing partners, etc.
• •How to approach structuring a book as an iterative process. A lot of people get hung up on structure. Maybe the book is non-linear. Maybe it moves forward and back in time. Maybe it seems to diverge in too many directions. We'll talk about the power of finding an organic organizational scaffold for the book, a sort of meta-framework that you can use to hold it as a coherent structure.
• •How to find the right bite-size for your units of narrative. In fiction, the scene is the functional unit whereby story advances. In non-fiction, the unit is a bit different. If you can find a unit that is comfortable for you to work in, and that you can complete in a sitting, it makes things a lot easier because when the inspiration to write presents itself, if you only write half of a section, finding the flow to finish it can be a challenge.
• •Editing, what the f*ck... how to make editing less of a pain-in-the-ass. I think of this as the sandpaper analogy.
• •Refining your authorial voice. Because people are reading your work because they want to learn from you and to feel you. So how does your personality make it onto the page? How does the correct amount of your personality make it onto the page?
• •Some of the business-of-writing aspects that are good to keep in mind fairly early in the development of a book, particularly with respect to having a clear sense of your audience so that you are clear about how the subject and voice intersects with the listening of people you want to hear you
• •Some of the technical aspects of book production that are good to keep in mind from early in a book project as they will bear on its final outcome. This includes understanding the sequence of editorial process, figuring out book unit economics based on whether it will ultimately be black-and-white or color, hardcover or paperback. Even things like knowing the final trim size so you can select figures (illustrations) appropriately. IMHO having the most tangible and concrete sense of the impending reality of the final book hastens its arrival.

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: Gabriel is Founder of Hearth Science & Convener of the Restorative Practices Alliance. A connection phenomenologist and neural cartographer, he is the developer of the Hearth Science modality, and has led over 2,500 trainings at the intersection of neurophysiology and indigenous and ancestral lifeways internationally. He studied the craft of writing at Stanford University's Creative Writing Department, where he was mentored by National Book Award & Pulitzer Prize winning fiction writer Adam Johnson, Elizabeth Tallent, John L'Heureux, and studied with Franco Moretti, Director of the Center for the Study of the Novel. His writing has appeared in Psychology Today, and other publications. He is the author of:

• •Beginning at the End of the World (a novel), 2005
• •Transformation through Feeling: Awakening the Felt Sensibility, 2010
• •Inner Life Skills for Youth, 2011
• •Restorative Practices of Wellbeing, 2021
• •Keywords: A Field Guide to the Missing Words, 2023
• •Destoryer of Empire, Collected Poems, 2023
• •Origin Stories for Children, Children's book, 2023
• •The Neurobiology of Connection, forthcoming 2024
• •So, About that Death Cult you Joined, forthcoming 2025
• •The Archeology of Shadows, forthcoming 2025 or 2026
• •Can't Get Home, Stories, forthcoming 2025 or 2026
• •Sport of Kings: Elite Perfomance, Sovereignty, and Autonomics in the Game of Hands, forthcoming 2025 or 2026

He has also designed the covers of every single one of these books, because this is how he likes to roll. In 2023 he started Jaguar Imprints with award-winning book designer and typographer Kevin Barrett Kane. He stewards an eco-reserve in Northern California where Hearth Science is headquartered.