10 Tips for Publishing Your First Non-Fiction Book

Have you ever thought about writing a non-fiction book? It’s more possible than you may think. As the author of two traditionally published books, I want to share some of the secrets of success with you. There are multiple ways to get a book out there – and a variety of reasons why you might want to do so. Self-published or traditionally published, a book is a lot of work but if it’s something you really want to pursue, you can definitely make it happen. 

Start by determining why you want to write the book. If it’s for money or fame, think again. Even the largest advance for a first time author won’t last long. So you need heart and purpose behind the book before you even begin. Second, do you have the expertise in the subject matter to thoroughly and accurately write about it? What makes you a good person to write this particular book? That’s something to confidently map out. Third, do you have a sufficient target market that might be interested in reading it? Will it be helpful to a specific group of people in some way?

Once you’ve answered those questions, you’re ready to start the process of moving forward with your book idea. Here are my 

1. Start with a book proposal. Even if you plan to self-publish, a traditional book proposal will help you immensely in shaping and honing the focus on your book. Grab this book for reference and fill in the framework in every section. This will help you begin to organize everything in your brain.

2. Interview experts. Be sure to speak to experts and others in the field you are writing in to get their perspectives on the issues you cover. You want to ensure you are on track and, by including others in your research process, you can help gin up excitement for them to help you later when the book comes out.

3. Study other successful books in the marketplace. What kind of person will want this book? Look to similar books marketed toward the audience you are going for. What gaps need to be filled? What are people wishing were in these other books? You can check Amazon reviews, for example, to figure this out.

4. Sketch out your target reader. Create a character sketch of the person you are writing this book for. Who are they? How old are they? What do they do in their daily life? What is the problem they are trying to solve by reading this book? How can you speak directly into their lives? Give them a name, a job, a family. One of the best bits of advice I’ve heard is to write your book to ONE person.

5. Use the notecard method. Before you just start writing, there’s a lot of brainstorming to do. Once you’ve mapped out the book proposal, you’ll have chapter ideas set. Write each chapter on a notecard. Then, put your ideas for stories, quotes, anecdotes, statistics  or imagery on separate cards to pair with the chapter. This way, when you sit down to write each chapter, you have a significant amount of ideas and inspiration to pull from, rather than staring at a blank piece of paper. 

6. Block out writing time. If you are writing a book on the side (and most people are!), you’ll want to block out specific time just focus on the writing. Otherwise, it will get swept aside as you tend to your “real job” priorities. For me, this meant taking Saturday mornings at a coffee shop to focus exclusively on my books.

7. Keep a notepad (or digital notepad) with you. Some of the best examples in books are often little anecdotes that writers introduce from their own lives. Often these are small moments that may slip by us if we don’t write them down immediately. So be aware of things that could play into your subject matter. Collect relevant quotes, news stories, ideas and whispers of life that might be a good fit for a certain chapter.

8. Use an organizational program like Scrivener. Rather than keeping everything on a Word document, I recommend getting an organizational program that lets you separate chapters and easily find notes, references and swap things around. I found this very help in keeping thoughts and chapters clear.

9. Don’t forget the arc. This may not be fiction, but non-fiction needs an arc too. Otherwise, why else will people keep reading the book? Consider how you will challenge readers to stick with it until the end. What is the last chapter going to say that will be as useful as the first? End each chapter with a little mystery or draw for someone to continue on to the next.

10. Always remember the reader. This may seem obvious, but because it’s *your* book, it’s easy to forget that this isn’t for you at all. Consider how each chapter, story or piece of information helps the reader solve the problem they have. You want the reader to walk away feeling like they have made steps forward with whatever the problem is. 

This is a quick list of just a few things I’ve learned over the years, but I can promise putting some of these things into practice will take you a long way. It’s been said before that the only difference between those who succeed and those who don’t is that those who succeed just kept trying longer. 

If you have a book idea, it’s possible to make it a reality. By being diligent in the work and standing firm on your purpose, you can one day see your name on the cover of a book!