Four Critical Factors in Writing a Nonfiction Book

A warm welcome to guest blogger, Joan Hoffman, EdD, author of Ready, Set, Counsel A Practical Guide to Being a School Counselor In the Real World. Here are Joan's recommendations for what it takes to produce a finished manuscript for a nonfiction book.

As I thought about writing a book, I realized there are four critical factors that need to come together in order to get to a finished product. Missing any piece will make your writing more challenging and may keep you from completing your book. The first is passion—your strong emotional tie to your topic, the belief in your knowledge base and ability to write on the topic.

The second is vision, which lets you refine and focus your topic to give you a clearer picture of exactly what you want to write. Through refining and focusing, you will be able to develop your elevator sentence—a short statement about your book, the clear picture of what you want your book to be. As people ask you what your book is about, you only have a short time before they glaze over or start yawning because you are going on too long. Just because you find your topic fascinating doesn’t mean others necessarily agree. If people want to know more, they will ask.

The third factor is tenacity. You need the energy and determination to complete your project. I found I had to cope with frustration and even stopped writing for a while. My passion reasserted itself and brought me back to continue on my book-writing journey. Without this piece I might never have completed my book.

Of course, you need to dedicate yourself to the book; it won’t write itself. I found it helpful to write down short-term goals. When you write the goal, it becomes a commitment, unlike thinking about a time line. I also found it helpful to give myself small rewards along the way. It might have been a manicure, a special night out, or even a warm bath. Do whatever works for you as a motivator.

Since I had passion, a clearly defined vision, and tenacity, all I needed was a plan. I thought I had a plan by outlining, re-outlining, and writing my chapters. However, as I took Bobbi’s class, I discovered that I had much left to do and, in fact, had made this harder than it needed to be.

There was the necessary research to see if there was even a market for my book. How disappointing it would have been if I had spent all that time writing only to find out there was already a glut on the market. Thankfully, there was not. Chapter summaries would have clearly defined my walk through my book, instead of writing, rewriting, and merging topics. I encourage you to follow the path defined by Bobbi’s book. It will certainly shorten your time to get to completion.

I can’t begin to tell you how rewarding it is to complete the query letter, proposal, and book. It’s so wonderful to actually see the finished product and know that it happened because of your dedication, blood, sweat, and tears. No one else could write your book. It is uniquely you! Success!!

The Fifth Edition: Five Times Tougher Than the First

The good news is that my little book, How to Write a Nonfiction Book: From Concept to Completion in 6 Months, is selling on Amazon and my website. The other day I counted my remaining copies and realized it is time to start thinking about the next edition. That’s about all it took; I haven’t thought about anything else since then. The seed was planted.

So, I packed up my new MacBook and went off to my latest dog-sitting gig, full of ideas for what I might add to the content. It seems the longer I teach, the more I realize how much I have to learn. The article sites I contribute to are goldmines of information, new perspectives, and advice on how to get from your first book-thought to your first book-signing. I read other people’s wisdom and find myself newly inspired. There is so much to share with aspiring authors who buy my book or sit in my classes.

Every time I revise what was once a pretty thin eight-and-a-half-by-eleven-inch workbook that focused primarily on how to write a book proposal, I add more to the other key aspects of writing, publishing, and promoting a nonfiction book. There are so many good books and so many experts, it’s a bit intimidating to publish what I want to say. Yes, it’s true; even veteran writers feel that way!

The first questions I ask myself are what do authors want to know? What are my students, clients, and book buyers asking me, and have I answered their questions in this book? I look for gaps in the text, and I find them. Why do I have to write a proposal? Do I need an agent? How do I find one? What should I send to a publisher? What is involved in writing a memoir? What’s the difference between POD publishing and self-publishing? And on and on.

Yesterday, I received an e-mail from a member of my writers’ group with her query letter to a publisher attached. “What do you think?” she wanted to know. “Let me get my thoughts together,” I wrote back and immediately set off on a research and writing journey that culminated in an article, as well as a new section for my book. This was undoubtedly much more than she ever wanted to know; but, when I tried to answer her question, I realized I didn’t really know enough about book query letters to do so.

The first edition of my little book was easy as pie to write; the second a little more difficult; and so on. It has taken me five editions to realize that the best way to learn about your subject is to write about it. I am dedicating this book — if I ever finish it — to my writers group, students, clients, and book buyers. Thank you all for continuing to ask questions I can’t answer without some serious thought.