Julie Silver MD
Greg Bledsoe MD
Steven Knope MD
Gary Taff MD
Ashley Wendel
Franz WiesBauer
Setu Mazumdar MD
Arlen Meyers MD
Ken Cohn MD
Mike Woo-Ming MD
Jeff Barson
Joe Halcomb MD
Fred Tobis MD
Maria Simbra MD
Lisa Tener
Mark Kroll PhD
Gautam Gulati MD
Barry Silbaugh MD
Craig Koniver, MD
Michelle Mudge-Riley DO
Zubin Damania MD
Michael VanRooyen MD
Bob Uslander MD
Pamela Wible MD
Ryan Flesher MD
Hatem Abou-Sayed
3 CommentsSuccessful Physician Authors
How to go from taking a 3-day course to becoming a successful author.
As I prepare for the Harvard CME publishing course this year, I am reviewing "success stories" to present to the attendees. What the attendees will want to know is "how to go from taking a 3-day course to becoming a successful author".
If you are wondering the same thing, consider this piece of advice that makes writing incredibly powerful: Show, Don't Tell. What this means is that while it's helpful to have an explanation, sometimes the thing that helps the most is giving a specific example.
In this post, I want to "Show" interested readers some of the success stories. The best way to do this is to take you to the websites of the successful past course attendees. There have been so many, that it's hard to choose which ones to highlight. Nevertheless, here are a few examples of past course attendees who have gone on to do amazing things with their writing:
- Richard Baer, MD (www.SwitchingTime.com)
- Paul Ruggieri, MD, FACS (www.PaulRuggieri.com)
- Jill Grimes, MD (www.JillGrimesMD.com)
- Loron Olson, MD (www.MagneticFire.com)
- Diane Radford, MD (www.DianeRadford.com)
Of course, not everyone who comes to the Harvard publishing course is a medical doctor. There are many others in healthcare who attend and go on to become successful authors. Here are a couple of examples:
- Sarah Allen Benton (www.HighFunctioningAlcoholic.com)
- Jeff Brown, PsyD (www.DrJeffBrown.com)
As you look at these websites, you'll be able to decipher a lot of information about who these writers are and what they've been able to accomplish. The websites don't tell everything, but they offer terrific examples of how to become a successful physician author!
Reader Comments (3)
Are you going to write a book "some day"? Stop mulling over it, and START WRITING! For years I had an entire book outline in the back of brain, and kept waiting for the perfect weekend to push the rest of my life aside and write. It never happened. Instead, committing to writing a mere fifteen minutes per day, every day, is what truly kicked me into gear. Once you have your first page, then chapter- trust me, that will be the motivation you need! If you are a medical aspiring author, I strongly encourage you to invest in Dr. Silver's course and learn the language and tools of the publishing world.
I had been writing the first draft of my book “Understanding the High-Functioning Alcoholic: Professional Views and Personal Insights” for several years. As I neared the end of this writing process, I realized that I was lost—I had no idea how to actually get my book published. I received an email about this course at exactly the time that I needed it and enrolled in the course ready to learn what steps to take next. This course was the beginning of an amazing publication journey that led me to some really interesting interviews and opportunities to both increase awareness around the topic of alcoholism but also to spread the word about my book—including on The CBS Early Show, in a NY Times Jane Brody article, on NPR radio interviews and more. Months after I had stopped using a publicist, media traction had been created and I was casually checking my email one day and received an email from a producer at The Oprah Winfrey Show—I was shocked. My dream had always been to talk about my personal story of addiction and recovery and about high-functioning alcoholics on Oprah—while realizing that it was a longshot. In August 2009 (re-aired in October 2009) I was interviewed by Oprah and it was a once in a lifetime experience. Additionally, I was even asked to write extensively for Oprah.com about alcoholism and to provide resources—they even included a book excerpt on Oprah.com! http://www.oprah.com/showinfo/The-Diane-Schuler-Story-Was-She-Driving-Drunk
I cannot praise Julie and her Harvard CME publishing course enough. In choosing the faculty, she has put together a great variety of expertise in the publishing industry. For those thinking about writing, or who have started a project but need some structure and direction, attending this course can provide impetus and momentum. I found both the lectures and workshops to be very valuable. There are great opportunities for networking. Attending the course has helped me shape my memoir and introduced me to other venues for my writing. I learned recently that a piece I wrote will appear in "Chicken Soup for the Soul: Here Comes the Bride" to be published May 2012.