Many people who are new to self-publishing would rather write a nonfiction book than a fiction book. That’s not the case with everyone, of course. But, there’s something about writing nonfiction that seems less daunting than writing fiction. After all, you’ve no doubt written nonfiction before, at least in some capacity. You’ve written essays for school and things like that.
It’s also the case that writing nonfiction can be very profitable. There are tons of hot selling books on Kindle that have been written by self-published authors. I will caution you that it might be easier to make money with fiction on Kindle. But, that’s not to say that there’s no money to be made with nonfiction. There certainly is – as long as you know which book topics are likely to sell.
It’s always better to write something you’re more comfortable with if that means you’ll actually get the writing done. There are many people who want to self-publish, but who are too intimidated by trying to chase the hottest or best topic that they never follow through and write. If you feel confident that you can write a nonfiction book, then this is the best way forward for you.
Besides, it’s not all that difficult to write a nonfiction book when you have a good process. The first step is figuring out what’s going to sell in the first place. Once you know that, you can create an outline, do your research, and write the book.
I think that if you go through the process I’m about to lay out for you here today, then you can easily write a nonfiction book that has a great chance of going on to become a hot seller on Kindle or other publishing platforms.
It doesn’t matter whether you’ve ever written a book or a report or anything like that before or not – this is the method you can use and run with. The beauty of the method for writing that I’m going to lay out for you is that it works for those who are experienced in writing and those who are not experienced in writing.
Plan Ahead
I caution you that this method isn’t going to be sexy or groundbreaking. It’s very simple and easy to follow… If you’re willing to follow through. Please don’t skip ahead and think that you can eliminate the steps of planning and outlining or anything like that. These steps are very crucial to easily writing a nonfiction book.
One of the biggest problems people have when they set out to write a book is that they assume they can just write it off the top of their head. That just creates confusion, disorganization, a lack of cohesiveness, and (most likely) a poor book all the way around. That is –if you even get the book written in the first place. Planning ahead eliminates many of these problems, almost completely.
The first thing you have to do is research which exact topic you want to tackle. I’ll assume that you already have a general genre you’re going after. Take a look at which books are selling well in that genre or subgenre. If you can get excited and motivated by the fact that a certain topic is selling really well, then you will be more likely to follow through and release the book because you know there’s money at the other end of this.
Not only should you research which topics are selling well, but also pay close attention to which books are self-published that are selling well. Take a look at their table of contents and what they have included. Also, go through their reviews, both good and bad, to get a feel for what people in that audience want in a book – what they like and don’t like.
Outline and Research
Now you have a book idea- make sure you take a unique angle with that idea. Sure, you want to go after a tried-and-true sub-genre of book, but you need your own unique idea to run with so it stands apart from the books that have already been released.
Then, once you know your exact book topic and the angle you’ll take with your book, you can start to research. Research facts and figures to include in your work. Do some digging to make sure your book is very well rounded.
Start to brainstorm your own ideas and things you want to include in your book. Brainstorm based on things you’ve researched and read as well as things you already know about your topic.
Once you have your research and the ideas you’ve brainstormed, start to organize those ideas into an outline.
It’s best if your outline includes an introduction, several body points, and a conclusion. The exact way you organize your book depends on the genre and the exact type of nonfiction book you’re writing.
Outline really well and really thoroughly. That way, you won’t have to think while you’re writing. Everything you need will be right there – especially if you organize your research and additional thoughts within the outline.
Don’t be afraid to spend some time on this portion of the process. Spending time on the research, organizing, and outlining part of things will save you time when it actually is time to write.
Write Your First Draft
Now that you have planned ahead, researched, and outlined your book, it’s time to get started writing. Write your first draft by following your outline.
Note that just because you have an outline doesn’t mean that you can never deviate from it. You absolutely can. You might find that you are more creative and more spontaneous because of your outline.
The basic structure is there and you won’t have to wonder and worry about what should come next. This can allow more creative, better ideas to flow through. Be flexible and always think of your audience at the top of everything you do while you’re writing.
Your first draft won’t be perfect, so don’t fret about it. Get your ideas down on paper.
Edit Your Draft
After you’ve written your first draft, go through and make any changes you need. Edit for clarity, organization, structure, and more. Proofread for spelling and grammatical errors.
Add any other ideas you’ve come across and anything else that will make a great addition to your book. Ask yourself whether the book as it stands will really serve the needs of your audience. You’ve done enough planning that you should be fairly certain that it will.
More Tips for Easily Writing a Nonfiction Book
The great thing about nonfiction is that you don’t have to come up with an entire plot or anything out of thin air like you do with fiction writing. With nonfiction, the facts are there, your feelings and opinions are there, and the needs of your audience are there.
It can really help if you approach writing your book a little at a time. Once you have your outline, you can break your outline apart into chunks you will work on a little at a time. Maybe you’ll focus on the introduction one day, a body point the next day, additional body points after that, and the conclusion the day after that. Or, maybe you’ll break it down into even smaller chunks.
Do whatever will work with your schedule. You might only have 15 minutes to work on a particular day – that’s okay. Your outline is in front of you and your work as well organized. You can get something done even if you only have 15 minutes to work in a day.
Every day, chip away at your book little by little. It will be done before you know it. If you’re writing a shorter book or report, you can even write one of these in a day. For example, I often advise people to consider writing “one problem, one solution” style books to publish on Kindle and elsewhere. You can write one of those in a day because they are so highly focused.
A big part of this is mindset. If you have the tools and strategies you need to easily write a book, it can give you a huge boost in mindset. You should start to see that it’s easier than you think to write a book.
Many people think it’s impossible to easily write a book and that they’ll never be able to do it. But, when you break the process down into its simpler parts and really have a great strategy for doing it, it’s something you can absolutely accomplish.