Help Writing Nonfiction Archives -

Your Characters’ Desires Drive Your Story

July 19th, 2019Sarah Lovett2 Comments

Whether you are writing a novel or a memoir, the most important question you must answer is, What do my characters want? You’ll begin with your primary characters–your protagonist and major antagonist–and work from there to other characters. Little Big “Wants” If “what they want” seems like an easy question to answer in your stories, think again. Sure, a detective in a crime story wants to catch the bad guy and close the case. The lonely widower wants to find love. The superhero wants to save the world or at least her corner of it. Those goals (aka desires aka …

The Beta Review Process

May 21st, 2019Cynde Christie0 Comments

When you complete your first draft and your substantive edit, the next step in the book writing process is the beta review process. What is a beta review? This process involves having a number of people read your manuscript in its draft form. At which point they provide the author and editor with very specific feedback on what worked and what did not work in the manuscript. In short, as I tell my authors, the beta readers find the holes that we can longer see. Preparing for the Beta Review To begin this process, I ask my author to choose …

How do I Organize my Chapters in Nonfiction and Memoir?

September 1st, 2018Cynde Christie0 Comments

First, you have a great idea for a nonfiction book or memoir. You’ve done the research, compiled the notes, or lived the life you want to share with your readers. Now what? Your chapters are in rough draft form, (hopefully you have been working with an editor so they are not too rough), but how do you know the best way to present this information to a reader so that they will get the most out of what you are trying to impart? How do you make the story or non fiction study flow? Do you start at the beginning …

How do I make the information in my book flow in an understandable way?

May 30th, 2018Cynde Christie1 Comment

Information in the Nonfiction World When you decide to write a nonfiction book, you generally have some information to impart. Whether your book is about teaching the reader how to build a better mouse trap or understand their deepest feelings, nonfiction books by their very nature, are about information. They are filled with facts of some kind. After all, if it was all made up, it would be fiction! The exception to this rule is narrative nonfiction, or creative nonfiction. This genre includes memoir and historical fiction based on factual events and people. While the book is based on fact, …

You have your data, now what? A lesson on Data Organization

March 30th, 2018Cynde Christie0 Comments

Data Organization You want to write a nonfiction book. You have selected your topic and you have done your research. Now you have lots of data, but what exactly do you do with it? How do you turn information into a book? Well, first you have to decide on what your data tells you. What is the conclusion you have drawn from your research? And how does that translate into a usable message to your reader? The Three Steps Remember the first three steps in preparing to write a nonfiction book are message, target audience and voice. So, your next …

Finding your Non-fiction Voice

October 17th, 2017Cynde Christie4 Comments

Writing a non-fiction book is a huge undertaking whether you are writing a memoir, a self-help or expository text. Unlike fiction, you do not get to make things up. What you write has to be factually accurate. That is what makes it nonfiction. Unless, of course, you are writing a narrative memoir. While you are aiming for factual accuracy, you can only write your own truth. Depending on what genre you are focusing, you have to determine the non-fiction voice in which you will write your book. The most important element in finding your non-fiction voice is who you …

Writing a Memoir: Write the Journey

October 1st, 2017Sarah Lovett3 Comments

You’ve logged the miles and now it’s time to write the journey. Writing a memoir is your opportunity to share a transformational story or collection of stories from your life’s journey. You’ve logged the miles, and, along the way, you’ve faced challenges, taken risks, failed, given up, risked again; until, finally, you emerged transformed in some way. You’ve reached a crest where you can see 365 degrees around you, and you pick out the faint trail of your passage all the way back to your beginning. You know you have a story to share with others. Where do you begin? Begin at the …

Choosing Your Target Audience: A Must In The Writing Process

August 24th, 2017Cynde Christie6 Comments

What is a Target Audience? And why do you need one? If you have decided to write a non-fiction book, you have expertise in a subject of broad interest or you have lived through a compelling experience and have come out the other side having learned something of great importance to share with the hopes of improving your reader’s lives. Who do you want to reach with your book? That is your Target Audience. As a non-fiction and memoir coach and editor, I have been blessed to work with some amazing people who became even more amazing writers. Some authors …

Welcome Non-Fiction Writers to Cynde’s Blog!!

July 3rd, 2017Cynde Christie0 Comments

Writing a non-fiction book? Let’s talk! Welcome to my non-fiction blog! I am a writing coach and editor for non-fiction authors. I have been helping non-fiction writers follow their dreams for three decades and believe me I have seen the gamut of topics! My blog postings will answer the most common questions that I have encountered in my many years of coaching and editing. My posts will cover all types of non-fiction: business, medical, law, finance, self-help, memoir, spiritual, political, academic, health, and anything else that comes down the pike. As you read my blog, if you are struggling with …