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Home Hydroponics: Small-space DIY growing systems for the kitchen, dining room, living room, bedroom, and bath” is my third book on hydroponic gardening. Most hydroponic gardens look like a maze of PVC pipes, including many hydroponic garden designs described in my previous books, but in my latest book I detail 14 different DIY hydroponic garden designs that heavily prioritize the aesthetics of the garden while maintaining their functionality.

My first two books were written concurrently with one semi-self published and the other published by Cool Springs Press/Quarto. My latest book was also published by Quarto. I was very fortunate to be recommended to Quarto by fellow garden blogger Shawna Coronado, who I met at a garden blogging event. Shawna has authored many books and when she found out Quarto was looking for a hydroponic expert she recommended me. I had a few calls with Quarto to discuss potential book ideas then I drafted a table of contents for approval. Once approved we got into all of the details like timeline and photography.

All through high school and college I absolutely hated writing. I never would have imagined writing a book but the fact that my book deals were generated from my expertise in hydroponics and not my writing prowess oddly increased my writing confidence. I knew Quarto would help with proofreading/editing to ensure I met at least a minimum level of ‘readability’ haha and I could focus on the quality of the content.

I typically write a book over four to six months. The first two months are primarily focused on garden design, construction and maintenance which total around 30 hours per week. Then I transition to writing which starts around 20-30 hours per week for months three and four then jumps up to 30-60 hours per week in the last two months. I set chapter completion benchmarks throughout the writing months to help ensure I’m on pace. I’ve always been a procrastinator and unfortunately, I’m most inspired to write when up against a deadline. I don’t limit my writing to specific days or times of day, sometimes I work best early in the morning and other times I’ll work late into the night. Oddly I find I’m most productive when working in loud busy spaces like bars and restaurants.

For images, I primarily rely on hired photographers. I also source some images from stock photo companies and hydroponic equipment manufacturers. For graphics, I rely on the publisher’s art director and graphics team. I do provide some input on images and graphics but I know my expertise is primarily in hydroponics/gardening so I gladly accept assistance with photography and graphics from others.

I currently do not have plans to write any additional books. The book writing process is exhausting and each time I’ve finished a book I promise myself that I’ll never write another… so far I’ve had a hard time keeping that promise to myself.

I personally do not actively work towards obtaining book reviews but my publisher does distribute some free copies to get early reviews. Reading book reviews can be difficult but my experience as a YouTuber has helped thicken my skin. People are far harsher in YouTube comments than they are in Amazon book reviews haha. Fortunately, my books have generally been well received with high ratings and positive comments so if I do find myself feeling down after reading a negative review I can simply scroll up to read a positive one haha.

Audio. I like doing physical tasks like gardening while listening to books. Unfortunately, my books are not well suited for the audio format as they rely on photos for DIY build guides.

I really like Tom Standage’s “A History of the World in 6 Glasses” and “An Edible History of Humanity”. The last book I read was the horticultural textbook “Plant Empowerment”… I primarily read educational books and journal articles.

I wish I had advice but I personally feel like I stumbled into being an author. Perhaps try to make friends with other authors?