Many people – maybe you – think about writing a book, but the goal seems out of reach. It’s a long process that requires commitment and perseverance. You may have to confront difficult feelings that arise when you awaken long-buried memories.

But there’s nothing like the feeling you get after you’ve pushed past those barriers and you see your story in print.

I've helped several authors realize their dream. I'm almost as thrilled as they are when it appears on Amazon or I get to hold it in my hand.

If you’re thinking about getting into print but are hesitating, here’s a reminder of why you need to just write it:

4 Benefits of (Finally) Writing Your Book

• It Defines Your Legacy

A book is a written record of your experiences and memories, your life’s journey and the people who came along with you.

Your children and grandchildren will know what life was like when you were growing up and can meet relatives they never knew – an important consideration these days, when families are so splintered and children are lucky to know more than a few relatives outside their immediate family.

One of my most memorable book clients is Evelyn Walg Grunberg, who wrote about her life as a child of the Holocaust in I Have Lived My Future. It tells the story of her family’s escape from the Nazis and other harrowing events that brought lifelong pain and emotional isolation. Evelyn wanted to write the story so her family would know where they had come from.

I know how satisfying it can be to preserve precious family memories. A few years ago, I had the journals of my late uncle, Jim Kelly, published as a memoir of his life, from childhood through his service as a Catholic priest and after he left the clergy (but not his faith). It was a longtime dream he had been unable to realize. I’m proud to have enabled our family to read about Jim’s life in his own words. Now we will always have him with us.

• It’s the Ultimate Promotional Tool

Hand someone a book instead of a business card and you have their attention. Your business can use it to reach new markets, tell your origin story or celebrate your founder. A non-profit organization can attract supporters and donors by writing about its mission.

Another client, Heather D. Mahoney, wrote the interactive Designing Your Life’s Roadmap, a tool in her mission to help women recalibrate and create lives of meaning and purpose. It’s helping her to find new clients and expand her profile in her market.

• It Lets You Control the Story

History, it’s said, is written by the winners. Writing a book is your chance to set the record straight on events and experiences from your perspective.

Stake your claim to your story; if you don’t tell it as you remember it, somebody else will.

One of the first authors I worked with was Valerie Padilla, who shared her journey to her Christian faith in Little Girl Lost. The road wasn’t easy. There were family conflicts, risky behaviors and doubts, but Valerie could finally explain what she was led to discover about herself and help others find it, too.

• It Helps You Make Sense of It All

Writing about difficult experiences is cathartic. Putting everything on paper – “writing through the pain” – helps you understand what happened and put it to rest.

My uncle’s book has helped our family understand Jim’s struggles in deciding to leave the priesthood. Another client I’m working with has lived for decades regretting a failed relationship in college. Writing her autobiography has enabled her to work through her feelings about that and other events.

You don’t have to have dramas like these, but every life has issues. A book can help you figure out yours.

What’s Your Story?

Growth in the self-publishing industry makes it easier to get into print today, and a sub-industry of editors and designers can help you create something as professional as anything you’ll find coming out of a traditional press.

You don’t have to hire these experts to get published, although I strongly recommend you do. The important thing is to get started telling your story and sharing it in a lasting way.Text.

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