The Writing Room

You want to know how to write a nonfiction book. This is the challenge that we will overcome by the end of this tutorial. Writing a non-fiction book is like having that pesky wisdom tooth out. You endure a period of pain before finally deciding to get it out. Once it is out, a feeling of well-being washes over you. So it is with writing a book. You go through a long painful period telling yourself and maybe anybody who will listen that you will write a book, but you keep procrastinating. Finally, you sit and write what you think you want to write, then second guessing yourself over and over. But once you’ve got that book out of you and you've shared it with the world, a feeling of well-being washes over you. I know because I have gone through this process  twice  before. Alas, only a tiny fraction of people who resolve to write a book actually do so but that tiny fraction of people produce many books each year for avid readers.  Way back in 2013,  William Dietri...

  Let’s begin with a brief summary of what we have done so far.  In  Book writing 1 , we looked at the preliminaries that the new writer must consider before she or he begins to write. In Book writing 2 , we focused on writing non-fiction. We look ed at types of non-fiction, word count and an outline for a non-fiction book.  In the third writing tutorial , we focused on organising the content of a non-fiction book and in Book Writing Tutorial 4 - Point of View,  we help you to select your point of view for your book. After going through the previous three tutorials, you should have a sense of what your book will be about. Now that you know what you want to say, how do you say it? Point of view Your point of view is the perspective from which you tell your story. You may tell your story from a first person, second person or third person point of view. Whether you are writing non-fiction or fiction you will choose a point of view from which to tell your s...

  Letters of the alphabet are the building blocks of words. Words are the building blocks of sentences. Sentences are the building blocks of paragraphs. Paragraphs are the building blocks of chapters. Chapters are the building blocks of books. Writing is a puzzle but unlike a jigsaw puzzle that has its pieces already created for you and which you have to put in the right place to complete a pre-designed image, writing that is your own is created by you, word by word, with the final product often a blurry vision - at least initially. In this tutorial, we will examine the building blocks of the chapters in your book – the words, the sentences and the paragraphs and how you manipulate them to communicate your idea. You will learn to use these to write your book. Writing non-fiction – choice of words As a writer, your job is to use words to create images of your subject matter in your reader’s mind to help them to understand and appreciate the work that you create. Try to use “...

Writing is fun, when you get the hang of it. In these tutorials, I will show you how to awaken your writing skills that you have allowed too much rest. Before you engage with this tutorial, revisit Book Writing 1 , the first writing tutorial. Also, scavenge in the writing toolkit for other relevant information to guide you on your writing journey. In this tutorial we will focus on writing non-fiction. We will look at types of non-fiction and word count, as well as an outline for a non-fiction book.  At the end of this tutorial, you will be able to write an outline for your first non-fiction book. Writing Non-fiction - What is non-fiction prose? The Encyclopedia Britannica gives us a good place to start. It says that non-fiction prose is “ any literary work that is based mainly on fact, even though it may contain fictional elements”. It is writing that is “ intended to instruct, to persuade, to convert, or to convey experience or reality through “factual” or spiritual reve...

Welcome to Book Writing Tutorial 1.  Writing a book is hard work. Among other things, it involves writing, throwing much of that writing on the cutting floor, doing that over and over until you eventually capture the essence of your thoughts on your subject matter. You know this but you still want to try. Wonderful! Let’s get started. However, before you start the writing process you must do the following: 1. Clear your mind of worry about your writing. Don’t worry that what you write won’t be as good as another writer’s product. ‘Good’ is relative. What makes each writer’s work stand out are the personal assets that she/he brings to the project – personality traits, experiences, theories about the world and so on. Every writer has her/his set of assets that sets her/him apart from other writers. We learn this from the works that writers produce, works that evoke specific emotions in us; works that take us on journeys that we don’t want to end. So, don’t worry that your work ...

Every workman or workwoman needs tools. What tools does the writer need to get the writing job done? In this post, I will share with you the contents of my writing toolkit and show you why I have included them. First, I will define the writing toolkit.  Read on to find out what tools may be put into the writer's toolkit and why they are necessary.  What is a writing toolkit ? I define the writing toolkit as a collection of tangible and intangible things that the writer need s to have in place to get the writing job done.  Here are the tools that I have in my toolkit. Imagination For years, I have been putting tools into my writing toolkit without realising it. Now that I think about it, I realise that t he first tool that I put into my writing toolkit was imagination. I update it as the years go by. Imagination is the ability to:  visualise to see things in your mind that you haven’t experienced before  to process your experiences ...