Welcome to the blog of author Tricia Goyer!

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Thursday Tip...Writing Non-fiction

My all-time-favorite advice for writing non-fiction!

Craft something specifically to meet the felt-need of your audience.

Just as if you wouldn’t knit a sweater that fits YOU and sent it out to others trying to sell it, so you don’t craft an article or book proposal with your fit in mind. Or a one-size-fits-all. Who really believes that?

I think “package” when I create a proposal. For example, when I wrote a parenting book for Gen Xers (Generation NeXt Parenting), I thought about their fit. I use 80s song titles, short chapters, lots of input from Gen-Xers as side quotes, and I write about topics that fit them.

When I wrote for teen girls (My Life, Unscripted), I centered everything on the drama of their lives. The book is about writing their own script for their lives. I crafted actual scripts from my teen years … ones for them NOT to follow. I use screen writing themes and carried these over for my chapters. And I describe the Bible as God’s drama. I also included comments from real-life drama from girls. Teen girls LOVE this book. Gen Xers love the parenting book … because it fits them. They think, “Finally, something just for me!”

1 comment:

Jen's Journey said...

Haven't been good about getting goals accomplished this week. Had a 3-hour school board meeting to cover tonight, to list one hurdle. But, did manage 816 words in an hour and 15 minutes typeset. Phew! And that was with interruptions. Tomorrow night promises to be better, for now. :)