In 2005, I decided to write my first book. I had some free time and I always enjoyed reading and writing as a hobby. I was not interested in publishing it or to make a profit. I just wanted to put some of my ideas down on paper. I didn't care if no one reads it. It was for me to explore. I completed the book about 6 months later and forgot about it. I wrote the book using Microsoft Word and it was quite a large document with over 100 pages of text. I divided my book into chapters on various topics that interested me. I named the title "Common Sense of a Conservative". Sometimes later, a friend of my commented that it was redundant. After starting to use Squidoo for a while, it occurred to me that the concept of Squidoo lens can be used to publish my book - one chapter at a time. Not every book will fit this format. A long novel that you read from front to back would not lend it self to the squidbook format. A large book with lots of words would also detract from this idea. In my mind, the perfect book for squidbook would be a book that has small chapters perhaps with only a few screenful of text. A book with many unrelated topics. A book that you can jump around and read each chapter independently. My first book happens to fit this format very well. It consists of 42 chapters. That translates into 42 lenses. I decided to publish one chapter a day. It will take me about 40 days to complete. It will have two great side benefits. It will allow me to create many new lenses and it will allow for dynamic feedback from my readers. Never before, in any book format, traditional paperback, ebooks and online books, were there the opportunity for the readers to directly interact with the author. With squidbook, you can do just that. I provide a guestbook module at the end of every chapter. Any reader can submit a comment or correction or a question. I can respond within a day or choose not to respond. I have the total control. I can also modify the content easily. A mistake can be corrected almost instantaneously. It is like a "blog" but much more. A few others have picked up on this idea. A directory has been started where people can add their squidbook to various categories. I also started a group for Squidbook authors. I will have more to say about groups in another chapter.
Some interesting observation after I started on this project. I found this process of publishing one chapter a day a very good way to promote my writings. By including a table of content in the first introduction, I can let the reader know what is coming down the pike. They can read the introduction and decide if it is something they would be interested in. They can examine the table of content and check back at a later date when the chapter of interest is available. It would increase traffic to my lens. This current squidbook "How I became a Squidoo Addict?" is a great example. I am writing on the fly one chapter a day. I am writing about my experiences using Squidoo and publishing on Squidoo. How great is that?

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