A lot of us have extra time on our hands these days – whether that is a good or bad thing depends on the circumstances.  Either way, many people are searching for ways to better utilize their time than sitting in front of the TV, playing video games or spending too much time on Instagram.

While online classes on Zoom can stimulate the mind, you can also use some of your free time to write a book. It may sound like a taunting task, but if you find something you really enjoy talking about, whether it’s your business, a hobby, food, politics, golf, Byzantine art, the whereabouts of Paris Hilton, or simply yourself, you can find yourself immersed in the writing process.  Getting started is difficult – but once you set up some dedicated time in a comfortable place and start jotting down some notes on your topic(s) of choice, you may find yourself eager to get started.

Of course, the obvious questions are: Why am I writing a book? And, who’s going to read it?  There are many answers; here are three of them:

1. To promote your business
A book can serve as a marvelous marketing tool. If you write about what your business does, without making it a 200-page advertisement, you can educate your audience on the topic while selling them on what you specifically can provide. A financial planner might write a book on the latest ideas on retirement planning, providing key information and offering his/her own perspectives.

Another example might be a cookbook from a restaurant, a caterer, or someone who has a drawer full of great recipes. A little story of the business or simply how you came to have such a treasure trove of recipes can add some additional “flavor” to the book.   Are you giving away your secret sauce? No, not necessarily – but you are whetting their appetite to try your cooking.

Whatever your business does, there is an audience out there interested in the subject matter. Whether you manufacture dolls, sell futons, build houses, detail cars or provide legal services the key is providing information while letting readers know that if they need more personalized attention you are there to meet their needs. Businesses that have books are also held in higher esteem when it comes to generating interviews and gaining much needed free publicity.

2. To share Your Passion or Expertise
This is your opportunity to step away from your job, career, or business and write a book about something you’re excited about. There’s nothing wrong with sharing what you know and love, by letting people in on what makes your interests so exciting.

A business leader wrote a book on bicycling because he simply loved cycling across Europe. A teacher wrote an intriguing book about F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby. The book became a documentary. A marketer and a tech engineer teamed up to write a series of cookbooks using ingredients from a well-known food emporium – the book was hugely successful as were the follow-ups.

People share their passions for several reasons. While some want to build a side career or start a new one, others may want to do speaking engagements, run workshops, or start a social media group to share their interest with likeminded people. Such an endeavor may be a way of meeting people or may simply be a labor of love which can provide a marvelous sense of inner fulfillment… or all of the above.

3. Tell Your Story
Memoirs are very popular today.  In fact, Jennifer Grey just finished a soon to be released memoir, in which she may answer the burning question: what happened to her film career after her marvelous role as Baby, in the 1987 smash hit Dirty Dancing?

Writing a memoir is a way of capturing your own personal story. In some cases, if your story is unique, engaging, or beneficial to others who have had similar experiences, it may interest publishers, which means your story can be read by a large audience.

However, most memoirs are written primarily for friends and family. They bring forth family memories while also adding stories that younger members of the family may not have heard before.  What separates the better memoirs from the many that are self-published each year are the choices of experiences to include and those to set aside.  The better memoirs tell the best stories which, in some cases, can be motivational to their readers.

Conclusion
Sure, there are other reasons to write a book. For example, you may love fiction and have the idea for a novel that you’ve been kicking around for years; this could be a sci-fi story, romance novel, adult fiction, or one that fits any of the popular genres.  Writing a novel is not easy. It takes a lot of dedication, but it can be very rewarding should you complete one.  Perhaps you want to write a children’s book. Children’s books typically don’t take long to write, but they do need to be geared to a narrow age range, have a positive message, and include good illustrations. Hint: if you don’t draw very well, find someone who does.

The point is, if you find a good, or even mediocre reason to write a book, go for it. Set aside some time for writing, create a schedule, a rough outline and start putting your ideas on paper. It can prove to be fulfilling, fun, educational, cathartic, profitable, and/or even open new doors.

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Rich  Mintzer is an author and ghostwriter of over 75 published non-fiction books. He is also a writing coach and teacher. He was born and raised in New York City, and is still living nearby.