One Page: Writing a Book Proposal, Part 1 - Define Your Subject and Market

(This is Part 1 in my series Writing a Book Proposal. I'll be sharing with you each week the steps I'm taking as I write my own non-fiction book proposal. I hope this series will help another aspiring writer!)

Define Your Subject and Your Market

I never imagined that my first serious attempt at publishing a book would involve a non-fiction book; I've always dreamed of writing Serious Fiction, or, at the very least, Sellable Fiction.

But finding the time and the mental space to concentrate on fiction is difficult in this season of my life. My family comes first; escaping to made-up places populated by colorful characters is something I have scant time to pursue as a mom to three.

So why non-fiction, then? I knew you'd ask that.

The appeal of non-fiction writing versus fiction writing to me during this busy time in my life is threefold:

*Non-fiction writing (like blogging) is something I can more easily multi-task during my days.

*Non-fiction writing offers a very different market audience than Serious Fiction.

*Non-fiction writing isn't as emotionally charged for me. I can get over myself much easier in this format.

The appeal is much different, but the hoped result is the same: a published book.

So with that out of the way, let's get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we?

Define Your Subject

No matter what you're writing (fiction or nonfiction), you need to have a subject.

Obvious?

Yes, but it still needs to be stated, especially since plot wheels like this original one are still popular wannabe writer tools.

Myself, I subscribe more to the, "What If?" type of fiction writing, where a what if? situation is crafted into a story that is character-driven. You can read more on this approach to fiction in Stephen King's On Writing, an excellent book on...well, writing. I highly recommend it. Even if you're not a fan of King's work, you can't argue with his success.

For the non-fiction book proposal I'm starting, my subject is one I know well: parenting.

But those books are totally overdone, Marianne, you're saying.

Yes, they are. I'm in full agreement. But they are overdone because every day, someone becomes a new parent (more on that in the Market section).

My idea came to me as most good ideas do - my mind meandering down rabbit trails while my legs pumped up the hills in my neighborhood. Running is one of my favorite things to do because while I'm speeding chugging around, burning off those three cinnamon rolls the extra helping of whole-grain pasta, my imagination is free to run wild.

I came home that Sunday afternoon and scribbled the idea on a scrap of paper, then got back into the swing of mommying. Later that night, after all the weefolk were tucked in bed, I grabbed a notebook and started scribbling until I had the makings of a chapter outline.

No matter what your subject is - whether you're writing a non-fiction book or a novel - once you've finished the creative scribbling that comes with a fresh idea, take those thoughts and distill them down into a one or two sentence overview of your book.

You need to know your product to sell it; as much as you adore your pretty words, if you want to sell 'em, you've got to step back and see them as a sellable product, not just your life's opus.

And with that said, let's move onto your audience (market).

Define Your Market

Start easy. Ask yourself - would I buy/want to read this book?

I'm assuming that you're an avid reader already. If you're not, start reading now. Go on, click away from the blogosphere and go pick up a good book. Try something by Dickens; his characters and wit are still relevant and boy, he sure knew how to write sellable material.

In all seriousness, if you aspire to be a good writer, you must read. 'Nuff said.

Now, if you think your future book is something you'd read, ask yourself if five people you know well (other avid readers ) would read it, too.

If the answer is yes, good. You may be onto something. But let's dig deeper because what you want is an idea that is the same but different.

What do I mean?

Well, publishing is big business. Publishers like material that is original in some way, yes, but still fits into a genre they can easily market to their customers. Material that is the same (ie: young adult romance novel) but different (ie: Stephanie Meyer's mega success with her Twilight Series - who new vampires could be such compelling characters?) is what you want.

You need your subject to to be have that little twist that makes it stand alone, an original, fresh take on a well-marketed genre.

So how do you find out if your idea will grow into a book that's the same but different than the other books in its market niche?

You do a little research: go to the library, visit your local bookstore, skim the listings on Amazon.

And you go with your gut instinct; if you're an avid reader and aspiring writer, you know a good idea when you see it.

My non-fiction book would fall into the Parenting genre, a market loaded with titles. Yet new ones are published every season - why?

Because there are always new parents out there, looking for ideas, inspiration, how-to, and humor. New customers are made each day, one positive pregnancy test at a time.

While I hope my idea is a great one, I'll need more than just a spark of imagination to send to a literary agent. It's time to get started on the not-so-fun part of writing: the hard work.

Next week, I'll talk about Writing an Overview. I encourage you to follow that link over to a very helpful post on how to write a book proposal by Nathan Bransford , a literary agent for Curtis Brown, LTD. I'll be following his steps (why reinvent the wheel, right?) throughout this series.

I'll hush up now and let you fine readers have the floor. Comment with your ideas, thoughts, links and what you've done that's worked (or hasn't) when writing a book proposal.

Thanks for reading! You guys rawk!