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Twitter Review of “So You Want To be a Writer?”
A talk by Chua Hong Koon @ Crest Christian Bookstore Corner
By Tienny Teh, with inputs from Wang Chu Qiao and Annabelle Ang-Bok
Chua Hong Koon, Publishing Director of Armour Publishing, has been in the publishing industry for over 30 years. However, it was just three and a half years ago that he started publishing Christian books. He began and ended his talk with prayer, and at the end of it I had a much better understanding of what writing is about, how a writing career is possible even without outstanding talent, and my own desires to write. I really found the workshop portion of the evening very helpful. This article summarises the talk and the things I found most helpful about it.
Chua began with a question: “What is the best job in the world?” He directed the question to his ten-year-old son, who replied that he thought it would be to be a doctor or lawyer because they earn a lot of money. To which Chua responded, “The best job is when you do something one time, and get paid many times. …you may be having a holiday, enjoying playing golf, be visiting another country or doing missionary work somewhere, and you are still being paid. Somebody is working for you while you are doing some other things. …do it one time, do it well.”
The best example, Chua explained, is God Himself. God allowed the Bible to be written once. Till today, it is still among the top best-sellers of all time, in its various languages and versions. It is a similar story with the Classics and Shakespeare. If God (or those other writers) took a 10 percent royalty on each sale, that would amount to a staggering amount of money! And the best way to learn how to write a good book, Chua said, is to write one.
But how does one know if one is a writer? According to Chua, if you are called to write, you will be able to do it. The Apostle John was called to write, as mentioned in Revelation 1:17-19. So were Moses (Exodus 34:27) and Jeremiah (36:2). Consider that we wouldn’t expect a fisherman like Peter to be able to write, much less write as well as he did. Alternatively, you might have enjoyed writing since childhood and have turned out to be good at it.
What happens if you enjoy writing, but are not a good writer? You can be a writer, Chua believes. You can work with a publisher and the publisher will help you.
Chua then pointed out that pastors, teachers and lecturers are potential writers. When they teach in person, they can only benefit a certain number of listeners at a time. But if they write, they can reach a much wider audience. Chua wants us all to rise up and write more god books. No matter what kind of writing style you have, you are sure to have potential readers somewhere. The world is so diverse. It is filled with so many types of people. You can not please all of them. Some will find your material good, and some will criticise. You just have to accept it, he said.
So, what about topics? If you are passionate about a certain topic, leadership for example, you can write about leadership. If someone is very passionate about collecting stamps and travels to many places to collect stamps, his or her knowledge might turn into books after a number of years. You need to write about something you are passionate about, Chua said.
Chua also went on to talk about personal stories. Each person has a story to tell, something he or she has gone through that is unique. A book will share experiences and lessons that others can learn from.
And if you are considering types of books, Chua shared, there are all types of (Christian) books that you can write: non-fiction and fiction, topics that are useful to the general public, collections of articles written over some time, collections of essays or articles written by various writers, collections of journals or diaries, etc.
Writing a good book, Chua said, is like running a marathon. Discipline and determination are needed to finish a book. Many people want to run marathons, but few complete the course. Chua referred to Robert M, Solomon’s The Race to drive his point that we need to have the right focus to write, but that many are sidetracked from it due to family, work, and other hobbies. Normally a runner preparing for a marathon has a coach with him. Similarly, a writer needs someone to go along with her. So find a publisher and an editor to help you to commit to writing the book and meeting the deadline. Chua then recommended another book: Why Procrastinate? by Teo Aik Cher.
If you are not a good writer, Chua said, you can employ a writer to help you put in writing what you want to say. You can share your royalties with the writer or just pay him or her a salary. Work out a framework from your idea and use that framework as you work, but if you’re not too sure about where you’re going, just keep writing.
Chua used the workshop segment of the evening to share guidance on how to write a good book. He talked about publishing choices and their advantages and disadvantages. He also talked about how to approach and work with a publisher, and he even taught the basics of how to write a publishing proposal and prove your credibility. Chua also talked about copyright issues regarding book titles. Finally, he reminded all of us who are interested in writing to focus on writing a very good book. We should not be afraid to spend the time needed to write a good script and find the right publisher.
I found Chua’s talk very interesting. It was very helpful because he gave a lot of real life examples. I like that he would refer a writer to another publisher if the writer had written about something not related to his publishing scope. As I’m currently working as a freelance illustrator for children’s books, and concurrently working on an illustrated children’s book of my own, it is essential for me to have the right focus and to be able to meet my deadlines. I feel excited after this talk even though I’m definitely more of an illustrator than a writer. Even though my imagination works better with pictures than with words and my passion is more for comic books, this talk was very practical and gave me an understanding of the industry, and will help me in working towards my goals.
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