Book Title Change Mid-Edit with Martha Tettenborn

What's it like to write a book, get connected to an editor and then find out you need to make major structural changes that happened to the author we're chatting with today. So if you love hearing from authors on what the process of writing a book and going through professional publishing process is like, this video is for you. Hey there, I'm Julie, the book broad from Book Launchers. Let's dive right in and introduce you to the fabulous author and YouTube bestie whose is the subject of this author spotlight.

Hi, I'm Martha Tuttenborn and I'm the author of Hacking Chemo Using Ketogenic Diet, Therapeutic Fasting, and a Kick Ass Attitude to Power Through Cancer. I published my book in November 2020 with the help of Book Launchers.

This book is such a great read, Martha. You crushed it and I'm so proud to know you. My mom, who who thankfully doesn't have cancer, read it and thoroughly enjoyed it because she's following the Keto Diet principles to improve her health. My mom gives this book five stars and that's saying something because my mom hasn't even read my latest book yet. It's okay mom. I love you even if you haven't read it now. Martha's book is her story of kicking cancer in the butt by using nutritional interventions to be stronger through her chemo treatments. She used her expertise as a registered dietitian to figure out ways for her to feel stronger through the treatments by following the Keto diet and by by doing intermittent fasting. The research she uncovered was pretty amazing. Now Martha came to us with a finished first draft and she has graciously volunteered to share what her experience was like coming to us with that first draft and being guided to make a substantial change. Take it away Martha.

I started from having started written a blog and the blog was called Powerful Beyond Measure and it was a an attempt to tell my story because I found that when I was diagnosed I really wanted other people's stories. The book was an extension of the blog and was much more about my story and how everything related to me. But as I worked with Book Launchers, it became evident that I needed to pivot my story to be aimed at my ideal reader. And from the very first time I met with Book Launchers, they were very clear on helping me to delineate who my ideal reader was. And from that point forward I had to find what Julie calls the hook of my book, what was going to make it stand out from all the others. And also I had to clearly write my book for My ideal reader.

This is a really common story, so I'm really grateful Martha was willing to share. So many authors are told to write a book because of their story and they aren't told the most important piece of that. The book might be about you, but it's not for you, it's for. For your reader. Thankfully, Martha was totally open to our input and adapted her material to really speak to her ideal reader.

Process of modifying that through the content edit was extensive, but it really did help me to create a better book when things were done. I'm very clear on the fact that this is a better book and more focused on helping others than it was when I started.

When you have a manuscript and you bring it to a company like Book Launchers and we suggest you make major changes like adjusting who the book is written for, that's not an easy thing. So I asked Martha to share more about that process with you so you can understand what that experience was like.

I needed to accept that I was no longer the center and that the things that had been particularly powerful for me weren't necessarily going to relate to my ideal reader. And that included things like my title. I was approached very diplomatically by the Book Launcher's team who said, how stuck are you on your title? Would you consider some input on improving your title?

And the title process was a big one for Martha. Her title was powerful beyond measure, the same as her blog. She was very connected to that title, but she accepted our input that it was the same as other titles on the market and we didn't think it spoke clearly enough to her ideal reader. It was also lacking some of the important keywords we wanted to see, so that it sold the book to the search engines as well. The search engines aren't buying the book, but the readers would find it through those search engines. She let us do a brainstorm and we sent her five possible titles. None of those were actually what she wanted, so she sent it around to her friends and family and people in her target audience. She got their feedback and here's what happened.

I took all that information, read it over, thought about it, and then went for a long bike ride and let the whole thing percolate in my brain. And by the time I came came home, I had my title hacking chemo using ketogenic diet, therapeutic fasting, and a kick ass attitude to power through cancer. And it says everything that I need it to say. It's not a cure for cancer. It's not even about cancer in general as much as it's about chemotherapy and using nutrition interventions, but also using spirit and attitude and gratitude to emotionally and mentally take yourself through the cancer process.

Oh yeah, I love the title and the COVID Way to go Martha. So now I asked Martha the question you've been asking me to include in these interviews and that is what is it like to work with book launchers and what advice do you have for anyone considering working with us?

It has been a very positive experience right from the get go. They are wonderfully decentralized in that they have experts that take you through each step of the book writing and publishing process. I had no idea going in that writing the book was probably the easiest part. The best thing I can say is be open to input from all of them because they are experts in their field. It doesn't mean that you just blindly say sure, but the process and the final decision is still yours. But be open to the suggestions that they have because they really do know what they're doing and your book will be better at the end than you ever thought it could be when you're writing.

Okay, are you ready? The next thing is pure gold, my friend. I am so excited. Martha shared this next point for you. I asked my favorite question what has been the biggest surprise in becoming an author? And here's what she said.

I felt unworthy to be an expert in the field of cancer or cancer metabolism. Despite a 35 year history as a dietitian and extra training in low carb, carb and keto and so on, I still suffered badly from imposter syndrome. But as I have done podcasts, I realize that I can be the expert in this field and I can be a person whose personal story and professional background meld perfectly to help make this information accessible to those who need it. That's probably been the biggest surprise and the best thing that has come out of publishing.

Becoming an author doesn't just make you an expert in the eyes of others, it makes you an expert in your own mind and by your own standards. So there's something magical about putting your expertise in a book and then talking about that subject over and over. You realize without a doubt that you are an expert and that you have a lot of value to offer others. I just loved that one. Thank you so much, Martha. Okay, so now you definitely want to meet Martha and get her book, don't you? Head over to her blog@marthatenborn.com, i'll put a link down below. You can grab her book and connect with her there and make sure you smash that thumbs up button in gratitude for her big shares today. Of course, while you're hitting buttons, also hit that subscribe button and turn the notifications on so we can hang out more often. And then head down and leave a comment about the biggest takeaway you got from Martha today. When you comment the day a video is released, you get entered to win some of our sweet noboringbookswag like our mug, our journal, our hoodie, and even a backpack sometimes. Oh yeah. Now after that, you need to watch this video on how to choose a great book title and subtitle. Or if you're good on that, meet another one of our fabulous authors for another spotlight right here. Go ahead, click the next video. You're super fun to hang out with and I'm excited to spend more time together. See you there.