Whatever the reasons are, write them all down.
Your list of reasons might look like this:

 I want to make money.
 I want to be famous.
 I want to publish the results of my work to gain the acceptance of my peers.
 I want to help people who do not understand the topic of my book.
 I want to write a book to help with my business and to demonstrate that I am an    authority on this subject.
 I want to leave a legacy of my thoughts and experiences for my family and future    generations.
 I need to express these feelings I have in order to grow as a person.
 I have a unique, imaginative story to tell that will captivate people.

This exercise will require you to look within yourself and face your motives. Perhaps you have been motoring along feeling that writing a book is simply your destiny. This exercise might make you realize that you actually would love to make big bucks out of the effort. Or that seeing your name in print to validate your ideas is essential. Honesty is the best policy here. Be true to yourself and your efforts. Get going.
Once you are finished with your list, let it sit for a day or more and then come back to it. Look at it with a fresh set of eyes to see if it is comprehensive. Ideally there will be multiple reasons for writing your book. Few people will have just one or two reasons.

SO I HAVE THIS LIST…
Take your list and evaluate its authenticity. Does it ring true about yourself and your ideas? Now put the reasons in order from the most important to the least important. The best way to do this is to ask yourself if you achieved only one of the goals, which would be the most essential one? Then do this with each point on the remaining list until you have them all in order.
Think about the goals at the top of your list. Can they be achieved through other means? If you were looking to be recognized as an expert in a field, would being a speaker achieve the results? If there are multiple paths to the same goal, are your skills and interests best suited to achieve this goal by book publishing, or perhaps by an alternate route? You might achieve the same goal faster or easier with alternate methods.
Look at the list and ask yourself if you achieved all of the goals except the first one, would you consider the project successful? Do any of the goals conflict with any others? What are the obstacles to achieving your goals? Time? Money? Expertise? Evaluate and plan how to sidestep the obstacles.

YOUR MOTHER TAUGHT YOU TO SHARE
While not required, it may be helpful to share your idea with a close friend or family member. If you decide to do this, use someone whom you trust, and more importantly, someone from whom you can accept frank and honest observations. Ask his or her opinion of the project. Ask about your motivations. See if he or she suggests additional ones that you did not include. He or she might also suggest ones you listed that may need to be revised or altered.
Carefully consider the feedback. Close examination is a difficult thing to do, and even more difficult to accept if it contradicts your perception of yourself.
Encouragement is important. If you choose to share the list, pick a positive, upbeat person, but one who is honest. Publishing a book is an extremely achievable goal if you are willing to spend the time and effort and have perseverance.
I am amazed by the nay-saying that I read in some books about your chances to publish a book. Most of the people who say this are published authors, agents, or editors.
You need to dream and to dream big. Expect the world, but also expect to work long and hard. However, if one of your goals is to be a New York Times best-selling author, and you do not make it, you will find that publishing a well-received, popular work is still a tremendous accomplishment.

VISIT BERMUDA, COLLECT RARE COINS, OR PUBLISH A BOOK?
Perhaps you will choose to self-publish your work. If so, the barriers to publishing are only your own dedication, time, and money. Your work can spring to life based on your efforts, and you can help direct it to its ideal audience. The mythical maze of finding a publisher or agent drops away.
I am amazed by the money that someone can spend on a luxury vacation or a hobby, and not realize that for about the same cost, he or she could publish a book. The publication of your book could well exceed the enjoyment and satisfaction of either a vacation or a hobby.
Now, this cost does not count the hours spent by you to create the book and market it. These hours and days can become your part-time job, your new hobby, or your raison d’être.

THE SINGLE THING
In the final analysis, whatever the Self-Assessment Quiz said, the final predictor of success will be your dedication. Tenacity, self determination, and resolution are the magic variables. These will be the factors that make your idea become a reality.
At one time, your parents might have said, “you can do anything that you put your mind to.” At one time it was true. I wanted to be an astronaut. It still sounds fun. But I have to face reality. At my age, this is not likely to happen (at least in this lifetime). Becoming an author, however, is one thing that it is never too late to do.
Start with a dream and an idea, assess your reasons for wanting to make it a reality, roll up your sleeves, resolve to finish the task, and make it happen. It will happen.

Excerpted from You Can Write and Publish a Book: Essential Information on How to Get Your Book Published by John Bond by Riverwinds Publishing, copyright 2006.