The idea of sitting down to write anything from a 50,000-100,000 word novel is pretty daunting. The former consumes at least half a box of paper, the latter will eat up the entire 500 sheets.

Add in revisions, synopses and query letters…  that’s a whole lot of dead trees and empty pages to fill.

Even more challenging than completing the physical pages is the emotional energy expended creating a book.  As Red Smith said:  There’s nothing to writing.  All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.

500 pages.

Gulp!

This summer I visited Platform 9 3/4, the shop containing all things Harry Potter at King’s Cross Station.  In amongst the wands and Gryffindor scarves, I noticed something that – to me –  was truly magical. A poster containing the full text of of JK Rowling‘s Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone.

It so captivated me that I went back to the shop three times to look at it before finally buying it.  A poster, no matter how small the text, couldn’t contain the WHOLE text – 76,944 words – could it?

Well.. yes it could.

I might not be able to write a book as amazing as Harry Potter –  and the idea of facing 500 empty pages may be very intimidating – but I CAN write a poster.

And so can you!