Begin.

I am writing a book. If that’s true, then that makes me a writer. And what do writers do? They write.

This is me writing. I’m not afraid of writing. I’m not a stranger to writing either. I write all the time: I write for my highly successful Skillshare classes. I write content for my growing YouTube channel. I write to myself in my journal. I write occasional blog posts on my website. But something seems different about writing a book.

Nobody minds if I write something on an “easy” platform like a blog or in the caption of an Instagram post. I just write, hit publish, and then it exists. Nobody can block me from doing it. This is the power of the Internet at its best — it’s democratic and allows every one of us to bypass the gatekeepers.

Gatekeepers. These trolls guard the Industries, the mysterious castles where fortunes are found. I’ve already infiltrated the Illustration Industry, and the Online Learning Industry. I defeated the trolls and they had to let me in. Now I stand at the gates of the Publishing Industry, that huge, nebulous realm where thousands have made their fortunes and millions more have died trying. These trolls seem scarier than the others.

The Gatekeepers of the Publishing Industry have told me that this should be a very difficult process (writing my book) and my chances of success, in even finding a publisher to consider my ideas is almost nil.

But the Gatekeepers did tell me one thing: if you are a writer, than you must write. If you’re going to write a book, then you need to write every day. So this is me starting to write, deliberately, toward the book.

Let’s just start there. I’ll tell you more about my book idea next time. I do have a vision, and I think it’s gonna be good! For now, however, I just want to start here, and, importantly, include you in the process. All my greatest creative achievements, including my illustration work and my online classes, have been successful because others were involved. Some were there helping me shape the actual content. Others were there asking questions I realized I could answer. Many others were there on the other end, reading, viewing or watching what I made and telling me it helped them, sending their appreciation.

One of the most important drivers of creative success in my life has been the awareness, real or imagined, that I was creating for an audience. That what I was making or saying mattered to at least a handful of others. And it is in that spirit that I now begin this quest.

It is your engagement, your responses, your encouragements to things I’ve made that really helped build my confidence — primarily as a teacher and guide to the creative life—and I can’t imagine going into this book without your continued involvement.

So as I begin to write this book, I want to include you in the process. Please join me as I set out on this difficult journey. It’s going to be hard, it’s going to challenge me in new ways, but most of all, it’s going to be fun!

How can you be involved? Honestly, right now, just exist. I can’t write a book without an audience. I believe — I know—you are out there. Maybe just let me know with a comment, or an email, or a retweet. Add your email to my newsletter list (I don’t have a newsletter yet but I have a nice collection of emails so far and plans to start soon!).

I’m excited to start this book, and thankful for your support. I don’t know what will happen next, but I know it’s going to be good.