5 Tips when writing a non fiction book

You probably won’t have any trouble finding general  tips and guides about writing in general but when it comes to writing a non fiction book some important issues are often overlooked.  Here a 5 tips to help you get your book written.

1. Identify a successful writer (or writers) who can be your role model.  Is there a book by another author in a separate subject area or field that you liked and thought was well written?  Analyse what you liked about it and adapt it to suit your own style.  Are there big names in your field that have a reputation for engaging and informative works?   If you are not sure who to look at then consider two authors I often refer people to.  These are Malcolm Gladwell and Bill Bryson because they each have very distinctive techniques that  clearly work.
2. Protect your writing time.  If your book really is important to you then the time you allocate to it should not be given up or lost without a  fight.
3. Engage the audience at an emotional level early on.  Non fiction by it’s nature is factual but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t have a strong emotional dimension to it.  What will enthuse, inspire  excite and entertain the reader?
4. Don’t try to be creative and analytical at the same time.  I believe this is one of the causes of the infamous “writers’ block”.    Get into the writing flow first.  Later go back and take a critical look at what you have produced.   Even if you throw it away, the next draft will be better.
5. Redraft until you have eliminated all critical comments.   It’s not uncommon for professional authors of books to redraft eleven or twelve time.  At each stage the aim is to raise the manuscript to the next level by eliminating flaws and not just the dreaded typographical errors but serious concerns and issues raised by those who review the manuscript.  Try to work on complete versions rather than do piecemeal fixes.

I wish you well with your book and hope these point help you with it.