Why do people write books? There’s probably a thousand different reasons. In my case, I’m writing a book to nourish my life purpose – ‘to challenge the status quo, and make a difference to the health and happiness of all creatures (humans and animals) on the planet’. And boy am I glad I have a strong anchor here. I genuinely want to help people. Thousands (maybe even hundreds of thousands) of people, using my unique skills, experience and passion when it comes to better health. If this reason for writing wasn’t so deeply entrenched in my purpose, I am almost certain I would have thrown in the towel. Why? The easiest way to describe it is a total roller coaster ride. 

How hard could it really be? Hard. You have an idea, you have passion and you even have skills and experience. But it takes more than that to write a book. Here’s what I think it takes from my personal experience. I’d love to hear from any fellow writers who have similar or different experiences, as one thing’s for sure, being part of a community of writers is the reason I am still on my path and getting closer to publishing my debut manuscript – a book to help women thrive and better manage the symptoms of perimenopause. 

Grit & Determination

Now I thought I had this part in the bag. I mean, I literally ran for 42.2 km last year – if you can do that you can do anything right? Running a marathon is the ultimate in grit and determination. You can’t get through the grueling training schedule, strength and conditioning, emotional ups and downs, and the actual race itself without a tonne of these two attributes. Writing a book is a whole new level. You need to put in hours each week to make inroads. And just like marathon training, you sometimes go two steps forward to go three steps back. I have lost count of the amount of times I restructured the book, tweaked the manuscript, added in a new section, cut a section out, or woken up with another idea or concept that must be included. But, as frustrating as that felt at times, it was worth it and will continue to be. My book is so much better for it, makes so much more sense and will be that much more valuable for you, my readers, as it has been created to help you with some of the most troublesome parts of your perimenopause era. 

Resilience – getting back up one more time than you get knocked down

This one has been part eye opener, part imposter syndrome and part disbelief. And sometimes all three of these feelings at once. There have been times I’ve thought I would throw in the towel. To clarify what I mean here – welcome to the big wide world of publishing. What a steep learning curve. It can well and truly knock your confidence around to receive no response when you send in work you have poured your heart into. The disbelief part I want to hold on sharing until I am published – so stay tuned on that front. After picking myself up (several times) after feeling quite literally knocked down, it’s safe to say I’ve weathered the storm. As much as I didn’t enjoy the grind of getting to where I am in this process, the set backs, the knock backs and the internal self-doubt, I have come out the other side. I have written a manuscript that will help people. I’m proud of that – and it will get into your hands – I’ll make sure of it.  

Self-kindness

You often learn the most in life through challenging times. What I’ve mostly learned is that I don’t stop enough to smell the roses. Writing a book is an epic feat. I’ve seen stats that say around 3% of people who start writing a novel actually finish it. I am fortunate to have joined a great writing community – The Expert Author Community – run by the awesome Kelly Irving. This group has taught me so much, but above all is that kindness goes a long way. I’ve had so much wonderful feedback from this group and I love paying it forward and helping others at the same time. I know it will be all worth it when I have that lovely book in your hands. 

Forgetting (to a degree) what other people think

Recently, I read the new Mel Robbins book – The Let Them Theory. Ask my friends, I will tell you all about it if you’re interested! While the theory is not new science, the concepts in the book have had a profound impact on my way of thinking. The general concept is that you can’t control what others think and do. Writing a book and putting it out there is scary. What if no one likes it? What if people find mistakes in it? What if someone thinks my book is rubbish? Chances are people may think some of these things. I cannot control that, so I have to just let them think that way. But I need to ‘let me’ not be troubled by it. I can hand on heart say that this book has not been written lightly – and I know I’m serving up my best work, that expert editors will help me further craft and make even better. The reason why I say to forget what people think ‘to a degree’, is that I do need to care what my reader thinks. I’ve immersed myself in my readers’ life to ensure I help them navigate the most challenging parts of perimenopause, and that I need to care about.

So, there it is. If you have ever wanted to put pen to paper, this may give you a small insight. I say it is all worth it, but I’m not quite there yet. I’ll be sure to keep you updated along the way, in my bid to get this book into your hands as soon as I can.

I hope to release The Australian Perimenopause Action Plan in December 2025!

With love

Sarah x