Have the desire to create and share your ideas but not the know-how of writing a book? Then take a peek at the process of choosing a type of nonfiction book to write.
This topical guide is part of the knowledge I give to authors in my book coaching program – so enjoy!
Starting out, mulling over ideas
There are already millions of books published, making it hard to choose the type of book to write, so here’s a question: what is the one thing that none of them already have?
ANSWER to mulling over ideas:
Your experience is the thing that is unique. Your writer’s voice will also shine through.
Choosing the Best Book Type to Write
Breaking down complex and dry topics, a good writer draws out the ideas for their reader to digest. This is best done with a particular model. If you don’t choose a good model to begin with, your book will wander. It can possibly annoy a reader who likes one type of books, and half-way through the type has changed.
Tips Book
Tips books can be good, especially if prefaced with a note on why we need these tips and how to use the content.
Power Marketing was in this style, with 60 tips on marketing a small business, but I extended the part about business advice a little too much in the front.
To write a great ‘tips’ book, you need to go deep on your knowledge, not turn to online chatbots. You can do this by using either of these ways:
- Old school: Brainstorming topic groupings with a felt-pen Mind Map.
- New school: Use Wispr Flow, a clever tool which helps to smooth the writing as you talk into the microphone.
A Progression Type Book
This self-help book shows how a person develops an area where they once had no affinity and we see how they develop through a process of discovery, a challenge or adventure. So, some kind of change took place – whether internal or external.
This is apt for a memoir, like My Year of Living Vulnerably (Rick Morton).
The Sleep Fix (Diane Macedo) – tells about her terrible sleeping and investigation into what makes us sleep, and advice on how to fit these new solutions into our lives.
A progression book is ideal if you’ve gone through a life transformation and come up with some gems for others.
‘How to’ Style, with advice and framework
Insider advice style, with a direct voice (‘you’) can be ideal for a senior coach or business owner. Usually the focus is on solving the individual’s most common problems and preventing some of the pitfalls in starting out that you witnessed or experienced. It is normally written in the ‘you’ (direct) voice.
Excellent examples are:
Ready to Soar by Naomi Simson – Note: this also contains her experience, but we’re looking at proportions here.
Bounce Forward by Sam Cawthorn
Reading these books, you’ll soon see the way the author (with help from an editor) has given the best of their story and also laid out a framework for the readers to follow. Highlighted pull-outs and quotes make it more enjoyable to read and easier to take in.
You’ll find some keys to writing a Self-Help book on my own blog below.
Exercises Based Style
The reader is taken through from why they must change, to various exercises that will help them self-develop and envision. If you want them to overcome fear of something, then helping through a particular exercise, like NLP, anchoring, journal prompts, etc, will help them do this.
These can be little exercise walk-throughs at the end of a case study example and inspiring content. It’s very individual whether a person would like to do these exercises, however, I would warn against putting lots of lines in trade books. This is because a lot of people feel funny about writing in a book they bought. Save some trees and let them write in a notebook.
Examples:
The Face Within – Sue Lester
Your Dream Life Starts Here – Kristina Karlsson
Insider Experience Style
The Insider Experience model is similar, but with the focus on the author’s lived experience. This can actually be effective and get cut-through, if told in a narrative or other relatable way.
Examples of this style are (first is my client’s book):
Navigating Change: Adeniyi Borire
Wealth Magic by Peter Spann
Business as Unusual: Anita Roddick (uses pull-outs in the text, bolded quotes)
The Step-by-Step Model Book
Another style of book is the Model book. No, not fashionistas but your very own diagram, acronym or concept. For instance, Amplify is a book about podcasting, with a step-by-step system built around the acronym.
Whatever it is, make it yours and never borrow someone else’s special code. You can conjure up an acronym up with a generator (or better yet, use your grey matter). The model is normally explained at the beginning of Chapter 1… along with a nice diagram.
The ‘why’ you need it is as important as the ‘what’ it is.
The step-by-step model book lends itself to case studies that prove the model works. Do you have clients that have solved their problems with your help? There might be a model hiding there, in plain sight.
Points of note for this style. Model books tend to be:
- Very reader-solution focussed
- Very targeted to their stage (a beginner or slightly experienced)
Examples:
Amplify – Ronzley Vas (see my book review)
Share Your Passion (7 Stages to Leverage Your Expertise) – Renee Hasseldine
Eat That Frog – Brian Tracy
Summary
Now that we’ve discussed some types of nonfiction books you could write, it’s important to note one thing: Stick to one type!
If you don’t stick to one type, then it’s hard to reach the right market segment and you also might confuse the book browser or reader. Read more on the Niche Effect here.
Jennifer Lancaster coaches authors on how to write a book, through regular monthly Zoom sessions and targeted writing feedback (developmental work). Also offering low-cost training through the Book Creation Self-Publish course.