On Writing and Publishing: Katrina McGhee
What it was like to write her first book—her process, mindset, structures, and what she would replicate next time.
When publishing company Wiley approached Katrina about a book on taking a career break, she almost deleted the email, thinking it was a scam. (Luckily she didn’t!) This is part two of our conversation. Check out part one here. —Steph
What was it like to write Taking A Career Break for Dummies?
It took me more than 500 writing hours over nine months to write the 100,000 words, and I don't even mean hours spent pretending I was writing and drifting off, looking out the window—I tracked how much time I spent actually writing.
It was messy and hard, and it was an expression of love and dedication. I wasn't coming from a writing background. I hadn't written short stories, I hadn't written my own e-book, so I had no evidence that I would write a great book (and I hold myself to high standards.) But I took it step by step. In the beginning, I experimented a lot, and I had to allow myself to own my wisdom and what I knew to be true.
One of the things I realized, as I went down the writing rabbit hole, is that I wrote better in the evenings—and I hated that truth because I like reserving my evenings for myself. I get tired after dinner and want to unwind. But that’s when it would get quiet. The energy would shift and, in that shift, if I sat at the computer, I could get in the zone and write for a couple of hours.
Quite honestly, the legal and financial obligations to finish the book kept me moving through the discomfort in times when nothing else could. Sometimes I cried; I was like, I don't want to be doing this. I don't know how to write anymore! But I knew I needed to complete a chapter a week, give or take, to hit my deadline, and I’m very grateful that I did not procrastinate because it was a tough beat. I was like, girl, if you fall behind, you're never going to catch up, so please don't. I feel very proud to say that I finished a couple days early.
You mentioned experimentation with the writing process. What did that look like?
There was a chapter that I’d outlined beautifully, then tried to write for four days and nothing would come. I freaked out. I got really in my head and thought it would never get written. Finally, I put it on the shelf and moved forward. When I circled back, I decided to do a Zoom call with a friends who is an expert on that topic too. Afterward, I transcribed our conversation, and that got my juices flowing again.
I also found writing retreats to be really helpful. When I would get stuck, going somewhere outside of my house, sometimes with another person and sometimes alone—with the goal of being in a cocoon to write—was helpful for the times when I needed an incentive and the space to focus. If I were to get another book deal (and decide to do this again) I would proactively plan retreats every month.
Tell us about the decision to publish a “…for Dummies” book. How did the deal happen?
Girl. Okay. Are you ready? This book came about because I had been planting a bunch of seeds and grinding away, building my business for five-plus years, when the publisher found me online. I think they’d read an article on Medium that was also syndicated to Thrive Global, and I had a feature in Forbes in 2017. Meanwhile, they were considering publishing a book on taking career breaks and needed the right author. All of these pieces came together in a way I could have never predicted.
One day an acquisition editor from the For Dummies series emailed me out of the blue. At first I thought it was a scam, like these people can’t just be sending randos emails about writing books, so I almost deleted it. But obviously I was wrong.
Are all of your coaching clients preparing to take career breaks?
Yes, probably 85 percent are, and I’ve supported more than 100 career breaks. I do have people who are attracted to my message and come to me for other things, but I have to feel in alignment to work with them (and all of my copy and collateral paint me in the light of a career break coach.) Often what happens is clients will rehire me for a different life transition, for example, what to do when they return from a career break.
What do you wish everyone knew about career breaks?
They are in alignment with the natural order of things, and they are insanely beneficial and fulfilling if you are intentional about how you use that time. There's such resistance around the idea of taking a break, but nature takes breaks—fields lay fallow, seasons ebb and flow—and even professional athletes take days off. They don't take days off because they couldn't hack it or because they're weak: they take days off to prevent injury and enhance their performance, and that's who we are too: we're mental athletes.
We shouldn't be grinding it out for all of our prime years, not thinking about what we want from life or giving ourselves the space to enjoy it. I wish people knew there was so much more to life than that.
What advice do you have for others who want to publish a book?
Get clear on your highest intention—your biggest, deepest why for what you’re creating. The reason I say this is because I had to sign away the rights to every single thing I put in my book as that is the process for the For Dummies brand. They are the ones sharing the content. They own it.
The biggest obstacle was making peace with the idea that I'd spent five-plus years developing my own IP on coaching people through breaks. Now, not only was I sharing it with the world, but I was giving away the rights, too? I had to find my deepest “why,” which is this: if I died tomorrow, everything that I’ve learned would essentially die with me. And I really want it to exist beyond me.
I felt like Wiley, specifically, was the best chance this book has to reach the right audience. When I got clear on that, I trusted that the universe brought this to me for a reason. If I publish my book in an act of service and love for others, then somehow it will work out.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.