Category Archives: Ace Jordyn

How to Write Non-Fiction Books for Profit

Ace Jordyn Non-fiction writing 1 Comment

How-to, self-help and inspirational non-fiction books abound. People write a non-fiction books because it’s faster than writing fiction, people pay money for information and they have something to share. But where does one start?

FIND THE PERFECT IDEA
Finding the perfect idea means knowing what kind of information people will pay money for. To find this idea you can:

  • find one question people really want answered. What is a frequently asked question that doesn’t have an adequate answer?
  • ask or survey your readers, friends, an interest group, fellow hobbyists. Ask what concerns them, what their problems are, and what they want to know.
  • participate on forums, ask questions, find out what the target group really wants to know, debunk a myth or misinformation.
  • do a how-to. Whether it’s cooking, software, athletics, fitness, weight loss, crafts, arts, writing, we all want either learn or improve upon skills.
  • find a blog topic that has lots of frequently asked questions. It may be opportune to have all those questions asked and answered in one spot.

KNOW WHAT’S SELLING AND WHAT ISN’T
Now that you’ve got an idea, it’s time to test it. Writing a non-fiction best seller means you must do the market research, understand the problem or knowing what people are willing to pay for. After all, you want to target those people who need your information.

Study the niche and the bestsellers within your niche either at a bricks and mortar book store or online.  Look at covers – what’s appearing on the covers of those ranking highest in sales? Who are the pictures of men, women, abstracts, pets, food appealing to? Analyze everything you can see – title length, font. The high ranking books will tell you as what appeals to buyers. Read the table of contents, tags and any information you can find. Most importantly, read the reviews! People will say why they liked a book but also why they don’t and knowing why they don’t may provide the best insight on what you should offer.

Check how many similar books there are and their rankings. If your idea has been done a million times before and the books aren’t popular, scrap it. There may not be a desire for such a book, but if you’re determined to write it, make sure you have a unique twist on it and that you’re answering a problem that customers have. Otherwise, it isn’t worth your time and energy to rank at 256,000.

WORK THE IDEA
You’ve got an idea now but aren’t sure where to take it. You’ve done your preliminary research, seen what the market is responding to, now what? Start writing. Ask more questions. Ask your target market more in-depth and specific questions. This may be in the form of a blog post, a survey or interviews to test the idea. Their responses will help you find the gaps in your information, broaden or narrow your focus and they will, most assuredly, ensure that you’re giving them information they need and are willing to pay for. Most importantly, you’ll be keeping them engaged in the process, anticipating the final result and they’ll be your first buyers.

GIVE THE IDEA FORM
Study the best sellers to understand not only what they’ve said, but how they’ve said it. Although I’m interested to see how movie stars and high profile people have written their books, I know that readers will give them more leeway when it comes to paragraphs of dribble and useless information. I personally don’t like how-to books filled with pages of blah, blah, blah. Expand on a point and explain a concept to be sure I understand it and its context,  but drivel for the sake of drivel, doesn’t work.

  • give it context and your personal touch by saying why you’re writing this – is there a personal story in this that will make it easier for people to relate to you and the book?
  • answer the question (s) by providing useful, helpful content. People buy non-fiction for the information, not for reams of literary prose. If you don’t know it, don’t make it up.
  • expand your answer with examples. Examples can be in the form of case studies or personal stories. Are there real examples from people you have helped or from someone who has solved the problem? Examples serve to motivate and inspire.
  • consider using step by step methods to provide solutions, graphs and charts to explain.
  • write with a view to entertain, don’t be dull and boring. A book that is easy to read, easy to scan with good grammar and editing sells better.

ENJOY THE PROCESS
Fiction or non-fiction, people will glean your enthusiasm for the subject in how you write. The more excited you are, the more fun you’ll have with the market research. Your enthusiasm will become infectious and people will want to buy it because they want to know what all the excitement’s about!

The key to writing a best selling non-fiction book is to know your market and to keep it simple while solving someone’s problem. And that problem may be as simple as fixing a bathroom sink or wanting your grandmother’s recipe for pickled beets. But no matter the topic, enjoy the process – enthusiasm is infectious!

 

 

 

Grants – Money to Write

Ace Jordyn Business No Comments

Big grants, small grants, grants for individuals or groups, writing, editing, professional development, retreats, workshops, literary festivals, delivery of and promotional activities – there are many grants writers can access. Applications for writing grants may not appear as formal as for other granting projects but the principles are the same. The following points will help you navigate through ambiguous jargon such as provide a summary of your creative purpose for using this grant, and how you will use these funds to assist in this process.

1) Follow the guidelines exactly. You can’t make the program fit you – you have to fit the program and that’s where the work in writing the grant comes. Never be creative on the format, too wordy, general, or too familiar. It’s a formal document and, like with editors and publishers, being silly or sloppy or not professional is reason for a rejection.

2) Answer only what is asked for. For example, the proposal may ask for your resume or your organization’s history. Focus only on that. This is not the section to talk about the problem and your solution to it, or how, in doing this project, you or the community will benefit. In the history/resume section, the funder is looking for experience, reputation, if your mission aligns with the funder’s values. So as an artist or writer, what have you done and accomplished that makes you a worthwhile candidate?

3) Current programs and activities. Focus only on what you’re currently doing. They want to know what you’re doing on a daily basis, the operational information that is relevant to the project you’re proposing. They want to know if you have the capacity to follow through on the grant monies. Don’t list programs/projects that aren’t current, weren’t successful, have no relevance or received negative reviews.

4) Target groups. If you must define your target groups, always be specific, never general and use charts and graphs if you can. If the funder targets a specific group, it’s because they’ve already determined there is a need and will know if you haven’t done your homework. As a writer, you may need to say what age group you’re writing for, what makes it unique from the current offering and if it’s for promotional purposes, what schools you’re targeting, age groups, etc.

4) Partners. A funder looks for the impact of individual and collaborative efforts, representation of the target population, and monetary or in-kind contributions. These are your partners. As part of a community group, your partners are obvious. As an individual, your partnerships are less obvious. Do you belong to writers’ groups? Is there any benefit that you can extend to them by what you’re doing, or that you can teach? You may not have project partners per se, but partnerships can be informal, in-kind like partnering with schools, book stores and writing groups as part of a promotional plan. Fatal flaws: non-existent partners, no letter of support from the partners, overstating a partner’s role.

5) Project description. A project goal is what you’ll finish between the start and end dates, and this may not be a product finished in its entirety. Objectives are the milestones that allow you to achieve the goal and form the program design.

A project description can be as tricky as a query letter. Not only must you describe planned activities with timelines and expected results/benefits, you must be concise yet speak to who you are as an artist. What are you aiming to achieve? What is your artistic process? How will this grant benefit you as an artist?

You may wish to start with a summary (a short paragraph) which addresses who you are as an artist, what you’re planning to do, why you want to do it, how much funding you’re seeking.

Be clear, detailed, yet precise. Ensure that your goals and objectives are realistic. For example, if you’re applying for a marketing grant, you’ll need to discuss the target audience, specific media and promotional strategies to reach that audience, if it involves travel (dates, location, promotional plans for those appearances,).

6) Expected results and benefits. For some granting agencies, this is where you set the scene by giving a brief profile of yourself to provide a paragraph resume about yourself to set the context of the application. This may include whether you are emerging or professional, which includes a brief synopsis of what you’ve done to date. What about you will give this project a reasonable chance of success and, how will it enable you to develop your craft or skills? Note: you may still be required to provide a more detailed resume.

7) The budget. Some funders give a small sum for development and don’t require a line by line account. But if they require line by line items, you must be able to explain and justify every item. Make sure every line item matches the objectives and meets the guidelines. For example, if travel is required, research airline, hotel and meal costs. If there are costs to research in a specific archive or museum, include them.

8) Support materials. Here, you sell yourself through the eyes of others. Supporting materials are memorandums of understanding from partners or collaborators, letters from experts in your field who can vouch for you and your work, or other materials such as scripts or story boards.

9) Other key points:

  • Project Start date – in some cases, activities can’t begin before the application is submitted.
  • Make sure you meet basic program eligibility guidelines such as geography/residency, discipline, target population (emerging, professional).
  • Allow yourself enough time to research and prepare your application.
  • Granting agencies may have consultants or they may give you examples of successful applications. Use them!
  • Jurors have limited time, so be as succinct as possible and follow the guidelines for the required information which includes formatting and number of copies.
  • Get a PROOF READER! Whether it is a spelling or grammatical error, an unclear statement, any minor thing alleviated is one less reason to deny the application. Questions a proof reader should ask (a juror will):  Is the purpose clear? Is it clear how the money will be spent and is it concisely stated? Do the goals provide a solution for the needs presented? Are the goals and objectives realistic? Are the objectives measurable?

Grants can be a big boon to your writing time and career. They are a lot of work to do well, but the rewards are well worth it.

Finding Your Aha! in Non-Fiction Writing

Ace Jordyn Craft & Skills The Writing Process No Comments

Welcome to November – it’s non-fiction month!

Writing stories – that’s what we do, most certainly! Then there are those non-fiction things that we’re forced to write to sell the creative. Back jacket book blurb, synopsis, query letter – which is the most frustrating one for you? Or, are they all understandably so? We’ll get some tips on those as well as cool information on things like ghost writing, blogging, writing grants and understanding those pesky editorial mark ups. Just to make it all easier and to make more sense, Adria Laycraft, our guest on Tuesday November 4th, will talk about the difference between fiction and technical writing.

No matter what we write, there is story to be found, even in non-fiction and our November 16th guest, Billie Milholland will tell us about that. There is even money to be made with nonfiction, as Guy Anthony De Marco, Colette Black and guest Tereasa Maille will show us.

I must confide that sometimes I find it very difficult to switch from writing pure fiction to writing the technical stuff especially when it comes to promoting my own work. But I’ve come to realize that I’m quite comfortable translating the technical/scientific to people. I see stories in whatever I write. As a speaker, on business planning, agricultural marketing and food safety/food science, that’s a great skill to have. I always can find the stories in the science and business to translate into easily accessible information. When I understood the story, understood my audience and what they needed, and how they needed to hear it, magic happened. The aha! moments abounded, faces furrowed with confusion would grin and light up. People became excited about the possibilities for they could now see themselves as part of the story.

That makes non-fiction writing much the same as fiction writing – there is a story to tell, there is information, ideas, feelings to communicate. The language and the rules may be slightly different but it always comes down to story.

So, I’m looking forward to November. Anything, any hint or aha! that helps me convey the non-fiction better is awesome. I hope you have fun with it too!

And as a special treat, Fictorian Greg Little will be launching his new book Unwilling Souls. Watch for that blog – it promises to be good!

Six Great Take-aways from When Words Collide (2015)

Ace Jordyn Business Conventions Craft & Skills The Writing Life No Comments

A con is only as good as what you take away from it. When Words Collide 2015 had a fantastic line up of guests and panels to serve it’s 600 attendees. The 2015 guests included Diana Gabaldon (historical), Daniel Abraham (fantasy), C.J. Carmichael (romance), Faith Hunter/Gwen Hunter (urban fantasy/thriller) and Brandon Mull (young adult) as well as literary agents and small/medium press publishers.

Between the workshops and the panels, it was a great weekend to boost the little grey cells. Here are six things I found interesting:

1) On using pen names
Writing is about meeting reader expectations and as a writer you need to be transparent when you set those expectations. So if you use your real name when you write urban romance, it’s best if you use a different name when you write in a different genre like science fiction. Why? Because each name tells the reader what to expect. If they buy a book expecting to read a romance and it’s science fiction, you’ll have one angry fan and you don’t want that. However, each name you use doesn’t need a separate website. Your readers will accept that you have different lines under different names. Beware though, that if you’re writing for vastly different genres, like children’s picture books and erotica, not only are different names appropriate but a different website would be too!

2) Subtext provides depth and foreshadowing
The best foreshadowing is done through subtext. Done well, subtext makes future events more believable, creates mood and adds resonance. Subtext is implied, not said or told. It is the implicit undertone that reinforces an unspoken idea. This whisper campaign plants the seeds of underlying emotions, plots, and things to come in the subconscious mind and gives us deeper levels of hidden meanings within a story. Objects, symbols, actions and character traits are a few ways in which to create subtext.

3) Agents are human!
Whether you’ve got five minutes or two to make your pitch, you still need to start with pleasantries and not simply barrel into the pitch. Make sure you’ve done your research on the agent or publisher you’re pitching to so you can say what’s special about that agency or publishing house and why you think you’d be a good fit with them. Above all, be aware that it’s not just the book they’re assessing, but also if you’d make an adequate partner. The book industry is a team sport but always, the writing has to be great.

4) The business of being published
There are three main areas: Writer (product creation); Marketing (distribution, sales, promotion, platform); and Business (financial, legal, taxes). The key being successful is to know who you are as an individual and to understand how much time you want to spend on each of the three areas. For example, how much strength does your personality have to market? Understand your weaknesses and get help in those areas. Neglect any one and your business suffers BUT above all else, your product is the priority because without a good product, the rest won’t work.

5) Tricks for a successful mystery
This list was long, but here are a few of my favorites: Limit the sleuth’s options by giving him a weaknesses such as emotional, relationship, or physical impairment; tighten the pace with imposed deadlines; raise the stakes, threaten characters; allow characters to make mistakes; understand that the victim is the key catalyst for the story happens because of that person and he is the solution to the crime; readers want to solve the crime with the sleuth so have fun placing and revealing those secrets, clues and red herrings to make the investigation interesting.

6) Those critical first pages
Whether the first page uses the dialogue, narrative style or action, every good opening must contain: an event that will prove pivotal later but isn’t finished; characters in conflict; a writing style that sets the tone of the story; strong, active verbs and words; immediacy or the tension of knowing that something is about to happen; and the bait of a great opening line. In the first five pages, start an event and then don’t finish it – that creates a story within a story such as an internal conflict hinted at and an external conflict implied. Offer a thread of information or evidence to the reader and force the reader to deduce its relevance. Above all else, you will never go wrong by opening with conflict.

Check this con out at: http://www.whenwordscollide.org/

When Words Collide