Here we are almost at the end of 2007 – did you write your book this year?

If you didn’t manage it in 2007, decide that you’ll write your book in 2008, and start writing it, in 20 minutes a day, on January 1, 2008.

There’s an enormous amount of help available for you at every stage of writing your book, but YOU need to put pen to paper, and put one word after another.

Here’s someone who did it. The Advocate – www.newarkadvocate.com – Newark, Ohio reports that when she started writing her book: “The characters soon came to life on the computer. My advice to aspiring writers would be to write about something you know and to thoroughly research the subject. If you are writing a memoir, search your own memories, and ask family members to contribute theirs. My best resource was my 90-year-old aunt, who shared stories with me. I also researched history of the times so I could weave it throughout the story.”

Everyone can manage 20 minutes a day: in your lunch hour, on the train, before you go to bed – just start writing.

Start anywhere, write anything. All creative work seems like chaos, but you’ll be surprised that if you persevere, your book will take shape.

Writing a book to cure depression? If you’re a writer, it works. A book takes you away from whatever miseries you’re confronting – it stops you thinking about yourself.

How We Met: Julie Burchill & Sara Lawrence notes: “I had had a particularly bad week and was staying with her for the weekend. On the Monday I was so miserable that I sat on the edge of her fishpond, thinking, ‘Maybe I should chuck it all in and become a lawyer.’ That night Julie said, ‘Baby, why don’t you just write a book?’ For the next three months I sat at my desk and wrote two-thirds of my book – I owe that to her.”

Not only will writing a book get you out of depression, it’s also a great confidence booster. Writing a book is a real accomplishment.