To Blog or Not to Blog?

Victoria Dunckley, MD first started blogging on her own website to share information with patients and parents. When she moved her integrative psychiatry practice and opened a new office in Los Angeles, the blog helped her grow the practice. The blog also brought in consultation work with patients from all over the country, and has led to expert witness work, as well.

The posts on her blog eventually evolved into ideas for a book. When I first met Dr. Dunckley and began working with her, I suggested she pitch a blog column to Psychology Today as a way to increase her reach and national impact and meet her goal of "increasing awareness about the ill effects of screen-time."

It would also help make her book proposal for her book, Reboot Your Child's Brain, more attractive to agents and publishers. She did so and the result is her Mental Wealth Column on PsychologyToday.com.

At first, she blogged tangentially about her book topic with posts on topics such as misdiagnosed bipolar disorder,  how electronic screens can contribute to tics and 10 rules for safer cell phone use, so as not to give away all the information in her upcoming book. However, over time, she began to blog more specifically about electronic screens and their effects on children's brains and mental health--including what she has termed "electronic screen syndrome."

Indeed, her high profile blog posts contributed to landing a top agent and a book deal with New World Library for Reboot Your Child's Brain. Even before that book comes out, though, her blog has already helped her have a powerful impact. Dr. Dunckley reports, "I've received emails from people all over the world telling me how a particular article has helped them. Those emails make all the effort worth it! Blogging has also helped sharpen my writing skills and has led to supportive connections with like-minded individuals."

So, should you be blogging? Here are some reasons to blog and a few reasons not to:

Reasons to blog:

1. Blogging can help you reach a large group of people with your ideas and make an impact.

2. Blogging can help hone your writing skills.

3. By inviting comments you can find out more about how your audience/readers think and what they want to read about.

4. Comments and other responses to your blog can help you clarify your own ideas, explore new avenues or see things differently.

5. Your blog can attract a large audience of fans who are then interested in buying your books, attending your seminars or hiring you as a consultant.

6. Your blog can attract media attention: more and more the media are finding experts for radio and TV shows through searching the web. Your blog helps them find you as search engines like Google love CONTENT and your blog is full of relevant content.

7. Your blog can attract patients or clients to your medical practice or business. Again, search engines like Google are looking for websites with lots of relevant content. Websites with extensive blogs and tagged with appropriate "keywords" win out on Google.

8. Publishers LOVE authors who blog, especially if you are reaching a large audience.

9. Blog posts can be short--less time cnosuming than writing a magazine article, for instance.

10. Blogging is a great way to be viewed as a thought leader--and rightly so.

So, why wouldn't you blog?

a. Blogging takes some time. You will need to figure out where that time will come from and schedule it in for blogging to work.

b. You don't get paid. Sure, some people have ads on their blogs, but that can detract. In general, you don't get paid directly for blogging.

c. You may need to learn a few new skills--beyond writing, you'll need to learn wordpress and get some sense of how search engines work so you can make your posts "discoverable" on search engines like Google.

d. You'll want to blog with some consistency or it's harder to develop a consistent following of readers.

I hope none of these reasons deter you. Basic blogging skills can be learned in a day and the benefits are many--to your medical practice, your business and your own personal satisfaction.

If you want to learn more about blogging and other forms of reaching the public with your medical knowledge, join me at Harvard Medical School's CME course on writing and publishing: Achieving Healthcare Leadership and Outcomes through Writing and Publishing March 31-April 2 atthe Fairmont Copley Hotel in Boston, MA.

There, doctors who are also bloggers and published authors, as well as agents, acquisitions editors and other experts in the publishing industry, will guide you in the many writing opportunities available to doctors and others in the health professions. You'll also have many opportunities to share your ideas with us one-on-one and receive guidance for navigating this exciting arena.

Doctor, Should You Be Writing?

There was a time when a handful of doctors wrote books. Now, many doctors' books have graced the New York Times Bestseller list. And there are even more opportunities for doctors to write and reach an extraordinary number of people--through blogging, publishing online articles, or writing newsletters--to name a few.

Doctors decide to write for various reasons--from the desire to reach more people with the valuable health information they have to offer to supporting an entrepreneurial venture to the joy of tapping into their creativity. I've known a doctor who increased funding for his medical research, others who segued into a speaking or consulting career (actually, he did that, too!) and still others who saw the writing as more of a satisfying creative outlet.

As Harvard Medical School's CME publishing course is coming up in just over a month, it's the perfect time for a doctor to explore the itch--or dream--to write. The official title of the course is Achieving Healthcare Leadership and Outcomes through Writing and Publishing.

Here are a few takeaways and tips from past graduates of Harvard Medical School's CME writing and publishing course:

From Donna Hicks, PhD, author of Dignity: "Only write about something that you know. You cannot fake authenticity and authenticity is what sells."

Hicks' book Dignity: Its Essential Role in Resolving Conflict was published by Yale University Press and Hicks reports, "Publishing Dignity has changed my life. Becoming an author catapulted my credibility exponentially. Three years after publishing my book and I am in just as much demand as the first year. I love giving talks about a topic that I feel so passionate about. You can't shut me up!"

Martha Rhodes attended the Harvard course two years ago and her book 3,000 Pulses Later: A Memoir of Surviving Depression without Medication was featured in the New York Times, Psychology Today online and many other publications. The book's publication has led to paid speaking engagements where she has the opportunity to reach more people with her message. Her biggest takeaway:

"Understand who your audience is – visualize the exact, specific person you want to read your book and why you want them to read it. And the biggest takeaway? — Just proceed!"

And Leslie Shapiro's attendance led to writing Understanding OCD: Skills to Control the Conscience and Outsmart Obsessive Compulsive Disorder which is being published by Praeger Publishing. She suggests anyone considering writing a book to ask yourself, "If you don't write it, who will?"

You don't need to be contemplating a book to attend. You can find out more about writing articles, blogs and more at the course as well.

The course will be offered March 31 - April 2 at the Fairmont Copley Hotel in Boston, MA and includes sessions on understanding the publishing industry, narrative writing in healing, how to write a memoir, writing a book proposal, publishing choices, how to write compelling prose, using social media and more.

Click here for more information on Achieving Healthcare Leadership and Outcomes through Writing and Publishing.

Publishing Beyond Your Wildest Dreams: An Interview with Carrie Barron, MD

As we near the date of Harvard Medical School’s CME Publishing Course (March 14 – 16), I’m excited about seeing colleagues again and even meeting some of my current clients whom I have not yet met in person. I recommend the course to almost anyone writing a book about health or well being—it’s a fabulous place to meet agents and publishers—and to learn so much about the publishing industry in a short period of time.

Authors get feedback about their book ideas—and often end up with a much better sense of both what their  book is (what I call the book concept) and what they need to do to become successfully published.

Today, I’ve interviewed Carrie Barron, MD—co-author with her husband Alton of The Creativity Cure, which was published by Scribner and came out in hardcover last Spring. I met Carrie at the Harvard course a couple years ago and began working with her on her book concept and book proposal. Here's

her story.

Lisa: Why did you want to write a book?

Carrie: I spent many years scribbling thoughts and ideas on pads and blank documents and wanted to organize them into something. I was fascinated by creativity all my life--read about it, researched it, lived it as a former singer. In my private practice as a psychiatrist I was struck by how people’s moods and feeling about living could dramatically improve if they were involved in a creative process.

Lisa: Were there specific goals that motivated you? Opportunities you hoped the book would open up?

Carrie: I wanted the opportunity to write because I enjoy it so much.   Writing is a way to explore, to understand, to gain perspective and even to heal. Also, I felt that this information could be helpful to people who were trying to find ways to feel better--less depressed, less anxious--and not having any luck. Creativity has been called “the original anti-depressant.”

Lisa: When we met at Harvard Medical School’s CME Publishing Course you’d mentioned that you’d been playing with the ideas for a book you were calling, “I’m Creative But I Can’t Create.” Can you say more about where you were with the book when we met?

Carrie: Before Harvard Medical School’s publishing course I had many, many pages but no organization.  I had titles, essays, ideas, inspiration but not a coherent package. I didn’t know how to write a proposal. I didn’t have an outline.

Lisa: What did you want to accomplish by attending the Harvard course?

Carrie: I wanted to turn an idea into a product, to have an effective method of writing- meaning a free, letting go part and a structured, crafting part and to learn how to balance them.  I wanted to have a writing life and to be able to maintain it. I also wanted to learn about the whole world of writing and publishing because while writing it self is joyful, getting it out there is a completely different thing.

Lisa: What did you get out of the course at Harvard?

Carrie: I learned an enormous amount about writing from the editors and writers themselves.  I realized the importance of promotion and social media and how to integrate this into the process in a way that feels organic. I met editors and agents with a wealth of useful information. I met many people with interesting ideas. The most surprising things I learned were that I could handle “pitching,” that the idea does not have to be perfect and that collaboration with the right person can make all the difference. I met you, Lisa, and Jeanne Fredericks, who became my literary agent. You helped me clarify my book concept and craft my book proposal and Jeanne became our agent—and negotiated a six figure book contract with Scribner. It has been thrilling to work with the Scribner team.

Lisa: Any exciting opportunities that have come out of being a published author?

Carrie: So many things!  We signed with Scribner.  We have had about thirty- five appearances including talk radio, panels, lectures and presentations. We’ve have contributed to articles published in The Atlantic Monthly, Parade Magazine and others, have a regular blog on Psychology Today, spoke at The Maker Faire, the Zoomer Conference in Toronto, on the Dr. Alvin Jones radio show and recently participated on a panel on Creativity and Mental Health at the Cactus Café at UT Austin. The talks are exciting—people ask  fascinating questions that really make us think.  Other writing opportunities have arisen.

Lisa: Like?

Carrie: We’ll be collaborating on some interesting projects that will focus on using Your Own Two Hands and the value of True Connections to other people. The paperback is coming out in the summer. Frankly, I realized all my goals and beyond.

Lisa: Anything you’d like to say to someone who’s considering attending Harvard Medical School’s CME publishing course March 14-16 in Cambridge, MA?

Carrie: This course changed the entire course of my career. It was fun, informative and stimulating from start to finish. If any doctor has dreamed of writing, the HMS course is the place to go.  And don’t forget to sign up for the pitch fest because it is the best preparation for what’s to come!

Doctor, You Should Write A Book...Or Should You?

As a physician, there are many good reasons to write a book that draws upon your expertise. 

For example, physician authors I've had the pleasure of working with have:

- Developed their keynote speaking opportunities

- Secured large increases in research funding for their projects

- Grown their practices (even when that may not have been their goal!)

- Shifted their one-on-one practice to one that is based on offering courses, teleseminars, information products or other models that have given them more freedom in how they use their time

- Landed on national TV and become sought after for their expertise--both by media and conference planners.

And much more.

But should you really write a book? Not necessarily. Only if you can answer "yes" to the following 5 questions:

• You have a new perspective, fresh voice, something new to offer, proven system, compelling success stories or address an audience that has not been served well by other books.
• You're committed to put time aside consistently to get the writing done.
• You're interested in writing--even if you don't think you're a great writer, you don't dread it!
• You're willing to learn something about the industry and get input from experts (more on this in a moment)
• You're willing to actually promote the book--whether through a blog, online course, speaking or some other venue--and you'll need to start building your following before the book is even published--often before you even get a book deal.

If you do decide to write a book, where do you start? My top recommendation is the CME publishing course through Harvard Medical School. There, you'll get a sense of the specifics required--from how to write a book proposal to how to write for a trade audience  to how to develop your following. You'll also have the opportunity to meet top agents and publishers looking for books on health-related subjects. As faculty these folks are not just there to hear your pitch but also to help you formulate your book concept. You'll also meet course director, Julie Silver, MD, as well as professionals who can help you get the pieces that may be missing in your background--whether it's help with learning to write better and editing your manuscript, formulating the book concept or developing an online following.

If you're even thinking of writing a book, I highly recommend this immersion into the book writing and publishing world, March 14-16 in Boston, MA. See you there?

Should I Self Publish Or Look For A Traditional Publisher?

The most frequent question I hear from aspiring authors is, "Should I self-publish or traditionally publish?"

Which publishing option will better suit your needs? If you don’t answer this question when you begin writing your book, you may end up doing a great deal of extra work. Authors who intend to self-publish can simply write their book, but those who intend to traditionally publish need to write a book proposal first, particularly for a nonfiction book.

A book proposal can take almost as much work as writing your book–and the time and resources you put into writing a great proposal can make the difference between no publisher and finding a publisher, or between a small advance (maybe $3,000) to a much larger advance (low- to mid-five-figures and up).

So, how do you make that important decision?

1. To interest a publisher, you almost always need a platform (think big: a following of tens of thousands of people or even hundreds of thousands is ideal). You may reach these folks through the your blog, high profile blogs like Psychology Today, WebMD or the Huffington Post, an e-mail list, your newsletter, public speaking, radio, TV, a print column, or a variety of ways, but you need a strong following to interest publishers nowadays. If you don’t have one, are you willing to create one now, before you pitch your proposal? If not, self-publish this first book.

2. If your story or subject is unbelievably compelling, it’s possible that an agent and publisher may see the media potential and be interested without a current following–but not terribly likely. And they will most likely still want you to develop a following or platform before publishing.

3. Okay, let’s say you have a following, should you definitely traditionally publish? Not necessarily. Assess your situation: look at time, money and other important needs to determine whether to self-publish or seek a traditional publisher. For starters, take these things into consideration:

• The biggest benefit of a traditional publisher is their distribution channels: they will get your books into book stores (ideally).
  • It’s easier to get publicity as an author on major TV, radio and in national print publications if your book is traditionally published. Usually, at the upper echelons of media coverage, it’s hard to get publicity for a self-published book (but not impossible).
  • A traditional publisher does lend credibility to your book.
  • A traditional publisher has experience with book covers, layout, editing (some publishers do more editing than others), marketing and other aspects of publishing–you’ll have to learn many of these things, or find a qualified professional, if you self-publish–and you’ll need to beware of people who are not that competent.
• If your goal is to build your business and use the book as a multi-dimensional business card, you’ll want to self publish.
  • You’ll make more money per book self-publishing.
  • You’ll have more control self-publishing.
  • Any mistakes can be corrected faster by self-publishing.
  • You’ll have your book much faster, generally at least two years faster, if you self-publish.

Sometimes people assume that a traditional publisher will handle all the publicity and marketing for your book. Wrong. Either route, self-publishing or traditional, you will be responsible for marketing and promoting your book.

"What about e-books?" you may ask. We'll save that for another post...but certainly e-books are a viable option nowadays--depending again on your goals.

Please share your experiences with publishing--including any pros, cons or cautionary tales. And, of course, ask your questions...

How To Manage - Or Save - Your Online Reputation

Controling your professional reputation as a physician.

Dr. Julie Silver recently posted about my colleague, Rusty Shelton’s comment, “Your reputation is what Google says it is.”  She asked me to provide some guidelines for managing your online reputation. The first thing you need to do is research: What is that reputation now? Rusty calls that part of your “Online Brand Audit.”

What comes up on the first page when you Google Your Name or Business? You want it to be:

1. Positive

2. An accurate representation of your brand, including the image and attributes you want people to associate with you and your business.

3. Likely to resonate with your target audience(s)

Rusty suggests you put yourself in the shoes—or mind—of a New York Times reporter or TV talk show producer. I might add a conference organizer. When they’re looking for a trusted source or a speaker and find you on Google, what will they see first? How about if they Google your name?

• Will they see videos?
• How do these represent you?

If the first video they see if a six year old interview when you were first getting your feet wet, you might want to find a way to get other videos to show up sooner than this one.

So, how do you manage your reputation online and shift what people see?

1. Respond graciously to a poor review, indicating that you strive for patient/customer satisfaction, you’re so sorry they had a bad experience and you’d like to make it up to them by x. Of course, if there are any legal implications, check with your attorney first.

2. Ask happy patients, clients and customers to write positive reviews. They can review your business or practice at sites like RateMDs, Yelp and Yahoo! Local, Healthgrades, Angie’s List and Vitals. Never have anyone write a “fake” review. There are legal implications in addition to the moral one.

3. Blog: The more you blog, the more you create content on your website, so that your own website and blog posts tend to come up on the first page.

4. Add videos on your blog and website and use appropriate keywords to help these videos place in search engines.

5. Blog for high profile sites: If you blog for Psychology Today, WebMD or the Huffington Post, you’re likely to have those posts come up high in search engine results—a nice credibility bump for you and it gives you control of what people see.

6. Be sure to claim your listings on search sites such as Google Local, Yahoo local, etc.

7. Note any Facebook photos of you posted by friends and relatives. You should be able to at least “untag” yourself in photos. You may also want to request them to be taken down.

8. Put your best videos on YouTube and tag them with keywords. YouTube videos tend to rank high.

9. If you find something that doesn’t represent your brand or image, see if the person is willing to take it down, replace it or fix it. It may not be as heinous as a bad review, but it could be something that no longer represents you.

Searching online for the phone number of a very reputable and conscientious literary agent I know, I was shocked to see her name come up next to some un-complimentary remarks in a Google listing of a website that rates agents and editors and “outs” the bad guys.

When I clicked on the actual page, it looked fine—so it just “appeared” she had a bad reputation because of the way the website’s listing came up (some issue with title tags, I assume). I immediately e-mailed her to let her know about the issue. She did know and was working with the website owner to fix that misleading information.

So, if you see something bad, don’t panic. Even if you can’t get it taken down, you can work on these other strategies to drive it to a lower ranked page. Take control of your online reputation today.

Here are some additional resources on the subject:

New York Times Article   Mashable Post

Here's a free webinar for physicians on protecting your reputation

Writing An Introduction Or Chapter 1: What To Say & How To Say It?

Are you writing--or thinking of writing--a book or article for the general public? Have you thought about how to begin?

One of the biggest mistakes I see in the first draft of a nonfiction / how-to book is that writers often either start out by providing too much background to readers or they don't provide enough--and just launch into advice. What your readers really want to know is whether you can help them with their problems. And they want to feel they can trust you.

Whether you are writing a book or an article, your initial words offer an opportunity for you to forge a connection with your readers and present yourself as an authority on your subject.

A successful introduction motivates your readers to read on and provides a sense of what readers can expect from the rest of your book or article. If you feel overwhelmed by how you can provide all that in your introduction, don’t worry—if you think like your reader, you should find the job much easier to accomplish.

In the introduction your reader is trying to find out:

1. “Will this book help me solve my particular problem, challenge or goal?”
2. “What kind of results can I expect to get by reading this article, self-help book or how-to book?” Or “What kind of experience might I expect in reading this piece?”
3. “Does the author have some kind of system to help me and is it something I can easily learn, use and incorporate into my life?”
4. “Will this article or book be enjoyable to read? Is it entertaining? Moving? Approachable and informational?”

Your reader also wants to know about you:

1. “Has this author helped many people? And what are his/her credentials?”
2. “ What kinds of results have other people gotten with the author’s system or work?”
3. “Do I like this author? Do I relate to him or her?”
4.  “Most importantly: Do I trust this author?”

Your introduction should:

1. Motivate your readers to invest their time (and perhaps money) in the article or book
2. Inspire your readers to envision what they might get out of the piece
3. Begin to develop a relationship between you and your readers
4. Help readers understand how the book or article will help them
5. Tell readers how to get the most out of the book (less necessary in an article)

Starting on page one, you want your writing to come alive for readers: show your readers through by providing details and actions that help readers draw conclusions. When you tell (“He wasn’t taking well to treatment.” “Jane loves her doctor.” “The side-effects bothered her.”), you’re not making your story real for your reader. You are blandly telling information. This format makes the article or book two dimensional. When you use the five senses to show your reader, the information pops off the page. Be sure to fill your introduction with plenty of stories that make your points and your readers will become engaged.

While I talk about an introduction for a book, you may prefer to skip the introduction and start with chapter 1. After all, some readers skip introductions because they expect the meat of the book starting with the first chapter. So, feel free to start your book at chapter 1 if you have such concerns.

Leave a comment and let’s hear from you:

• Have any questions on writing an engaging introduction or first chapter?
• Any tips you’d offer others on writing an introduction?
• Want to share something you did with your article or book’s first chapter?
• Or a writing challenge you’re experiencing right now?