Here are ‘7 Steps for Writing a Nonfiction Book’ that will help you to progress with your book writing project.
1. Determine Your Topic
Decide what you want to write about, what are your strengths? What areas do you have expertise in? Remember to write about an area that interests others, a topical issue that is relevant to your target audience.
2. Brainstorm and Map Out Chapters
Sort out chapters and give each one a title. Write an outline for the intended content and write down what you want your reader to get out of each chapter. Make sure each chapter is in congruence to the purpose and subject of your book. Save a word doc in A4 format, give it a working title (don’t spend too much time of this – you may wish to change your title later) you are now prepared to write. Congratulations! Your manuscript is now in progress.
3. Begin Writing
Invest an hour each day in writing, this can be in any chapter (at this stage they are not numbered). Write whatever is in your head into brief paragraphs under a subtitle, each subtitled section might be around 300 words. When a chapter is complete you could have about 10 subtitles and a total of about 3000 words. If you aim for a book of 10 chapters and about 30,000 words in total. As books are usually printed in A5 size, your book will contain about 180 pages, making it the ideal ‘easy-read’ paperback style.
4. Rewrite
Before beginning your daily writing commitment, read over what you wrote the day before, make improvements, changes and do some rewrites. Mark Twain said, ‘There is no good writing, only rewriting.’
5. Set The Completion Date
After many weeks of writing and rewriting, set a deadline for completion. When you arrive at that date put the manuscript into your desk draw for one week. Do not go near it until the week is over.
6. Read Through One Last Time
After the week, bring your manuscript to the surface, and read through it one last time. Allow yourself to make any further corrections or changes that are needed. Allocate about 5 one hour sessions for this exercise.
7. Send The Manuscript to An Editor
Send your manuscript to an editor and have an open mind to changes and corrections; a professional editor can make the difference between a good book and a great book.
These 7 steps have become my book-writing system. Forming a ‘book-writing, habitual system’ makes the authoring process a simple procedure and helps you avoid the peril of so many would-be authors lost in the midst of an uncharted writing jungle.
-
About the Author:
Terry Anthony Smith is an accomplished Author, successful Self Publisher, Leadership and Management Expert and a Specialist in creating valuable promotional books for companies to build credibility and awareness. Terry has authored 7 non-fiction books including his highly popular books Impact Your World – The Power of Your Story and Reproductive Leadership. Terry combines his passion of writing and publishing by helping budding authors realise their publishing dream through his company Advance Books. Specialising in corporate book production, Terry has a gift for unlocking the expert knowledge hidden in companies and turning it into a valuable and marketable book that will establish them as a leading expert in their field. For more information log onto http://www.advancebooks.com.au
Article Source
