Identifying your why for stronger nonfiction writing (Part 2) — We all want to write a book people will read. For fiction authors, the goal is to entertain, enthrall, and occasionally educate. For nonfiction authors, the goal is (usually) to impart some wisdom, help a reader who may be in a similar situation, help the reader improve themselves, or educate. …

Identify Your Why For Stronger Nonfiction Writing (Part 3) — Step One on this journey of writing a book is to figure out what you want to write about. Step Two is writing and editing the book. Step Three is sharing it with readers and the world. This article series is all about Step One, but it will also get…

Identifying Your Why for Stronger Nonfiction Writing (Part 1) — I have random piles of books scattered throughout my house that I’m planning on donating. Some were gifts, some impulse buys, but most (unfortunately) are nonfiction. I’m a re-reader, whether that is fiction, mystery, or nonfiction. I’ve got nonfiction books on my shelf that, when I first read them, I…

What it is and why it’s important — I’ve develop edited a lot of nonfiction books over the years covering the same topics and I’ve noticed something important. The secret sauce holding my attention isn’t the people they interview, the research they include, or the statistics they share. …

End each chapter in a way that moves the reader through the book — In a recent post, I covered how to conclude a good non-fiction story or chapter, but memoirs are different. You’re telling a story that is real, that actually happened, and you want to make sure your reader continues to the next part of it. …

Top four nonfiction conclusion tips to leave the reader feeling satisfied, while still hungry for more — I never knew how flexible I could be in a stressful moment until the day we walked sight unseen into the AirBnB we rented while work was being done on our new house. My idea of a kitchen and the owner’s idea of a kitchen significantly differed and his fell…

The IRAC method is the perfect way to structure nonfiction chapters — I’m at a point in my life where I am seeing the serendipity of past choices come to light in real time. This could be as large as previous job as an online marketer, a skill set I now use to market my book and my website (not yet successfully…

Quick writing tip to write for the reader, not for your mom When it comes down to it all, the most important part of anything you write is that someone reads it — and your mom or family member(s) don’t really count here — and gets something out of it…

It is easy to get something that seems easy wrong, or something like that — Much like any legal system, the English language is complicated and comes with all sorts of caveats. We’ve all seen the memes and sayings on mugs where ‘i’ comes before ‘e’ except after ‘c.’ But that rule only applies to forty-four words and the exceptions to it cover at least…

Six quick tips to keep your readers hooked on the page — You have an idea — a really good idea — for a book, but it’s not a fantasy sci fi rom com with a twist, it’s a book about ant life, or how to invest, or any number of amazing and interesting nonfiction themes and topics. You do your research…

Tips to grab readers’ attention and increase engagement — It is easy to connect with a reader as a fiction writer: make them care and then kill off a character. (Just kidding… sort of). With nonfiction, it is a bit trickier, especially if your topic is more technical than others. You can’t just “show, don’t tell” your way to…

Have you ever done something in a different order in the morning and then had to think hard as to whether you put on deodorant or not, even though it was something you did every morning? …

Have you ever read a book, a really heavy philosophy book or one that discusses what I call big brain ideas and thinking, and walked away wondering what it all meant? No? Just me? Okay, so maybe this part doesn’t apply to you, but in case it wasn’t just me…

Learn how to express yourself as clearly and simply as possible — I’ve read a lot of rough writing in my career. I’ve even written it myself. …

How to use the Jigsaw Method to determine themes, chapter structure, and chapter content — You want to write a nonfiction book and you’ve pulled together a lot of information — research, interview notes, TED talks, your own experiences. And potentially (hopefully) you’ve written them in some form of narrative, even if it’s just summaries of the research. Now what? How do you take all…

How I created my cover design when I didn’t have a clue what it should look like — How do authors design their covers? What process do they go through to get to that final image? Most of the authors I’ve spoken to all know exactly what they want and only refine it later when it comes time to design a cover. I could not say the same…

How to be a successful author, or at least how to figure out the best path for you based on your purpose for writing and how you write — A Twitter poll circled a while back, asking people who they write for: themselves, the readers, or fame and fortune. The answer came back, as these things do, a mix. …

How to figure out your book codes and categories on publishing platforms for your self-published novel — So, you’ve written a book and are about to publish it on the many platforms available. Just like the card catalog of old (I can still hear the sound of flipping index cards), online and offline book retailers catalog your book based on the genre(s) you give them. That genre…

Have you ever taken a road trip to explore areas unknown and not had a map, a phone or navigation in your car? I once visited my dad, who lives in the middle of nowhere and he was directing me to a specific local highway (pre-cellphones & gps) and his…

Try These Tips to Mix it Up You want to write a good book, but what does a good fiction novel look like? It’s engaging. It’s compelling. You can’t put it down. It’s like gorging yourself on an entire package of cookies without realizing it. No? Just me? Okay. How about it’s like mixing a cake using…