Write to Sell: Non-fiction Writing Fundamentals

by Carolyn Madison ~ April 15th, 2009. Filed under: Copy Editing & Proofreading.

Successful book marketing requires that you first write a book that others want to read. To help create that potential for success with your non-fiction book, focus on the following writing fundamentals:

Objective: What is your reason for writing the book? What do you want readers to experience while reading it, and what do you want them to do or feel as a result? Are you motivating them into action? Are you imparting knowledge or persuading? Do you want to encourage them? In the Preface, let readers know your reasons and objectives.

Audience: Define your audience, and keep them in mind as you write. Visualize people reading your book—ages, gender(s), education levels, and motivations for reading it. Do not target two vastly different audiences with the same book. For example, write for students about to enter college, or write for their parents; do not write for both audiences at the same time. Although the two audiences are interested in the same subject, they approach it from different perspectives.

Benefits: In the introduction, you might recommend how to use the book for maximum benefit. Let readers know how the book will benefit them. If the book works well for discussion groups or sharing with friends, suggest it.

Content: Outline your major topics and the concepts within each topic. What metaphors, examples, or stories will you use to bring your concepts to life? Identify any charts or photographs to include.

Scope: Define the scope of your content. Do you have enough fresh and unique content? Do you have interesting or timely content that you can present from a different or unusual perspective? Be sure the messages you want to convey actually warrant a book rather than a booklet or flier. You may need to bolster your content by doing more research. Or, you may need to narrow the scope, so it will fit into one book. If you have additional related content, you might deliver it in a follow-up book.

Delivery of Message: Determine the best way to engage your target audience. Find an interesting angle for opening your book with a “hook” to immediately entice readers to keep turning the pages. Write from your outline, adjusting as needed to achieve logical structure and flow. Use a voice and tone that your readers will embrace. Choose an appropriate formality level. Supercharge your creativity; it is not reserved exclusively for fiction. Reliance on clichés indicates a lazy writer who has somehow mustered up enough diligence to pound out a manuscript—bereft of imagination or inspiration. If your content is written on autopilot and does not spill out of you with innovation and purpose, readers will sense it. At the end, don’t stop writing abruptly. A summary or conclusion might complete the book and reinforce what readers have learned. Don’t leave readers hanging without an easy way to synthesize and implement the concepts.