Aug 19, 2026 · 25 min · 9 segments
For this last Summer Shorty episode, Fin explains the process of writing an education book. Social media: - Facebook page…
Finola WilsonHost
Okay, so the first thing that has to happen, obviously, is you have to have an idea for a book.
And this is actually, for me, it certainly was something I just realised I'd already had an idea, and I'd already written something before I realised it was kind of book worthy.
But having an idea for a book means having an idea that other people haven't had, or haven't had in quite the format that you're you're thinking about it, you know, or you have an idea that's newer or different.
It is about feeling kind of the whole that is in the market because you do have to sell your idea to somebody else.
And this was my first book, Closing the Disadvantaged in School, my first solo book.
This was what that was because I had written a professional learning pack about close and disadvantage gap because I knew it was an issue and I had already written it and it was, you know, kind of like a little mini book.
But, you know, that had already been created because I'd been thinking about this problem for a long time because obviously it's a really, really big issue.
So that actually what I've done is I've taken research and I've put it together with practice because there were books out there on closing this disadvantage gap, but they were either really, really academic focused on the research, you know, going into the research in great detail or purely practice based.
Mark Rowlands is a big author in this field and he's, he's worked in local authorities where they, they use books, a process to close the disadvantage gap and his was very focused on the work that he had done so and that's what all my books are about is is about taking that practice and that research and putting it together and making it possible and accessible for teachers to actually understand what the research says but then do something with that research in their own classroom But the next step in the book process is you have to take your idea and you have to sell it to a publisher.
Okay, so the first thing that has to happen, obviously, is you have to have an idea for a book.
And this is actually, for me, it certainly was something I just realised I'd already had an idea, and I'd already written something before I realised it was kind of book worthy.
But having an idea for a book means having an idea that other people haven't had, or haven't had in quite the format that you're you're thinking about it, you know, or you have an idea that's newer or different.
It is about feeling kind of the whole that is in the market because you do have to sell your idea to somebody else.
And this was my first book, Closing the Disadvantaged in School, my first solo book.
This was what that was because I had written a professional learning pack about close and disadvantage gap because I knew it was an issue and I had already written it and it was, you know, kind of like a little mini book.
But, you know, that had already been created because I'd been thinking about this problem for a long time because obviously it's a really, really big issue.
So that actually what I've done is I've taken research and I've put it together with practice because there were books out there on closing this disadvantage gap, but they were either really, really academic focused on the research, you know, going into the research in great detail or purely practice based.
Mark Rowlands is a big author in this field and he's, he's worked in local authorities where they, they use books, a process to close the disadvantage gap and his was very focused on the work that he had done so and that's what all my books are about is is about taking that practice and that research and putting it together and making it possible and accessible for teachers to actually understand what the research says but then do something with that research in their own classroom But the next step in the book process is you have to take your idea and you have to sell it to a publisher.
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