Confession: I gained 15 lb writing my first two books
Writing books is a long-term commitment to a solitary and sedentary activity. If you have a sedentary day job like me, then it can be a double-whammy for your health, as well as your social life.
Weight gain
After collecting notes for more than a year, I wrote my first book in an intense 3-month stretch. The 214-page first edition of Email Marketing Rules consumed nearly every night and every weekend. I gained 5 lbs. during the writing of it.
The second 322-page second edition of Email Marketing Rules took more than 6 months of nights and weekends to write. I gained 10 lbs. this time around.
It wasn’t just that I was sitting for 12+ hours a day. It was also that it was a series of sprints—pushing to get a draft out to beta readers, pushing to get a round of edits done, pushing to get the jacket copy finished, and on and on. For me, hitting those deadlines meant lots of caffeine and sugar to fuel late nights.
Neglect of family commitments
At the same time, I also bowed out of various family outings and pushed more household responsibilities onto my wife Kate. She was understanding with the first book, but not so much with the second.
Kate is super-understanding and supportive, but it’s fair to say that, after 6 months of shouldering an outsized percentage of parenting and household duties, she was pissed. She also knew this wasn’t my last book.
I vowed to do better. I promised not to opt-out of family activities and to wrap up evening writing sessions by 9-ish. For the three subsequent nonfiction books I’ve published and two fiction books I’ve written, I’ve kept my word.
That has required longer time-horizons for books, but I think more planning and development has been better for the quality of my books as well. And it has certainly been better for my health, as I was able to drop all the weight I’d gained.
Resolve to write healthier
Some activities like writing can be hard on your body. Both real and self-imposed deadlines can make them even harder. As you set your goals for the year ahead, make sure you’re not unintentionally sacrificing your health or family responsibilities.
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