There IS new under the sun!

“There’s nothing new under the sun.”

Whether you attribute those words to Shakespeare, Mark Twain, or the Bible, the sentiment rings true for many writers. When contemplating their content, many aspiring authors moan, “What do I have to say? Everybody knows this stuff already!”

Au contraire!

We need YOU! We need what you have to say, in your way, from your filter. Your expertise and experiences can help me, can help the world. How you approach your topic – even if that topic is something “everybody already knows” – is unique to the world and your vantage point is what others need.

Go wander a book store. Take a look at the cooking section or self-help section. Focus, for example, on healthy eating or weight loss. In general, don’t we all “know” that we can eat healthier and “know” all the ways to lose weight?

Not really. Books keep being written and books keep getting read because the message and the messenger matters. What you say is not how I say it. What you know is not what I know. Your gems of wisdom spark something in me. I can latch on to a nugget in your book and it propels to change my eating habits.

When the student is ready, the teacher appears.

I may have read a hundred books on your topic, but now, for whatever reason, I am ready to absorb the knowledge. Your book is at the right time for me, and presented in a way that makes sense and resonates with where I am in my life right now. Your book changes my life forever. I am grateful. Now aren’t you glad you wrote it?!

We can talk ourselves out of doing things all the time. The stuff we know and teach is second nature to us, so we assume it is to everyone else. Not so.

If you teach how to get more clients, you know how to do it. You’ve been living it. You think it’s easy. Maybe it is. Are there books out there on how to get more clients? Sure. You stop yourself. “Everybody already knows this stuff.” Wrong. YOU know this stuff. Others want to know it! They are waiting for your book to be the one that finally flips their switch.

My bookshelves overflow. I loved Stephen King’s On Writing. Does that mean I never again want to read a book about writing? Of course not. I loved Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird. Pieces of both of those books are forever part of me now.

Books matter. Your ideas and influence matter. If you have the desire to write a book, it is there for a reason. Don’t poo-poo it. Don’t belittle your wisdom. Don’t use the excuse that there is nothing new under the sun and you have nothing new to say.

Poppycock.

Listen to the radio. Heartbreak songs, make up songs, and falling in love songs. We never get enough.

If you want to write on love, grief, real estate, crocheting, spiritual authenticity, golf, or how to see the world on a budget, your words matter. What you bring out in you during the writing process will change your own life, and the book you create will enrich the lives of others. It’s an awesome journey. Don’t talk yourself out of it.

Maybe there’s nothing new under the sun. However, I discover something new every day. And many of those discoveries come through books. My eyes are now ready to see and my head/heart is now ready to comprehend. I am forever grateful those authors put themselves out there and shared their hearts. My world is forever better. I thank them. Someday others will be thanking you. Your journey awaits.

kellyepperson.com