A new book journey begins

As the work on one book comes to a close, the shoots of a new book start to emerge

Although Physiotherapy Otherwise has only just been released, and few of you have had any time to read it, planning for a follow up has been in the works for for some time.

Years ago I’d thought about writing a three book series, with each book critiquing physiotherapy from a different angle. The End of Physiotherapy (EoP) would be a historical critique, Physiotherapy Otherwise (PO) would be sociological, and the third book would come from a philosophical or educational direction. Now I’m not so sure.

There’s so much more to say about physiotherapy. But whether the new book will stick to the three-book idea or depart entirely is still up in the air.

Whichever direction it goes in, I know that a new book is there, waiting to be found.

I love long-form writing. But that doesn’t mean it’s not hard work. Writing is definitely hard work. And that puts a lot of people off I think.

It’s not helped when all you see is the finished product, and the hours of mundane reading, crafting, and polishing seem to have been achieved by some act of divine intervention, like a shoemaker who wakes to find the elves did everything for him overnight.

There’s also no culture of academic non-technical book writing in physiotherapy, unlike in medicine, nursing, and psychology.

So perhaps reading about the struggles, moments of inspiration, and the technical workings of writing a book (not least the ideas taking shape), will help demystify the process, and encourage more physios to give it a go.

My plan, then, is to try to make the process of going from conception to delivery more accessible and open, and share some of the trials and tribulations of what will probably be a three or four year journey.

I’ll post under a new section of the CPN Herald site called ‘The Third Book’, and if these musings aren’t your cup of tea, you can always unsubscribe from this sub-section while still getting CPN updates and the weekly Digests.

The first post will sketch out where I’m starting from: what I already think the book will be about and what I plan doing first. As much as anything, I’m keen to collaborate and shape the book around a community of ideas. So if reading these pieces sparks some inspiration, I’d love to hear from you.

Oh, and happy New Year 😁.

Dave Nicholls. Auckland, New Zealand.