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Turner Publishing Company - Jean Marie Stine

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"If you follow only a third of Jean's advice, you'll have a successful book." --Jeremy Tarcher, Publisher Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc.

"After Jean reworked my first draft, paperback rights sold for $137,000." --Timmen Cermak, M.D., author of A Time to Heal: The Road to Recovery for Adult Children of Alcoholics

Mastering the craft and understanding the mechanics of writing self-help and how-to books is the key to getting publishers to take notice of your work. Now, in the first guide to writing self-help and how-to books, Jean Stine offers an insider's view of this growing genre. Her easy-to-follow program takes you step-by-step through the complete writing process. You'll learn the importance of:
* Structure and Style
* Clear, easy-to-understand exercises
* Creating catchy and compelling titles, subtitles, and chapter headings
* Using lists, charts, and graphs to maximum effect
* Checklists and other interactive elements
* Writing a proposal that sells
* Negotiating permissions for quotations, photos, and illustrations
* Preparing your manuscript for presentation to a publisher
Partial table of contents:

WRITING AND SELLING SELF-HELP/HOW-TO BOOKS.

What You Should Know about Writing Self-Help/How-To Books.

Selling Your Self-Help/How-To Book Made Easy.

THE BASICS: TITLE AND OUTLINE.

Finalizing Your Title and Subtitle.

WRITING A SELF-HELP/HOW-TO PROPOSAL.

How to Write a Proposal That Sells.

WRITING THE SAMPLE CHAPTER.

Chapter Writing Step by Step.

Style Made Easy.

Lists Made Easy.

SELF-EDITING SELF-HELP/HOW-TO BOOKS.

Editing Your Manuscripts the Lazy Writer's Way.

Getting Friends to Troubleshoot and Edit Your Manuscript.

SELLING SELF-HELP/HOW-TO BOOKS MADE EASY.

Submitting Your Book for Publication.

SIMPLIFYING PERMISSIONS, CROSS-REFERENCES, ILLUSTRATIONS, CHARTS, TABLES, AND FRONT AND BACK MATTER.

Permissions to Quote and Reprint.

Appendices, Resources, and the Index.

Sujets

Authorship

Writting

Disciplines

Language Arts

Informations

Publié par	Turner Publishing Company
Date de parution	02 mai 2008
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780470346143
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0850€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Writing Successful
Self-Help and
How-To Books
Writing Successful
Self-Help and
How-To Books
Jean Marie Stine
This text is printed on acid-free paper.
Copyright 1997 by Jean Marie Stine Published by John Wiley Sons, Inc.
All rights reserved. Published simultaneously in Canada.
Reproduction or translation of any part of this work beyond that permitted by Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act without the permission of the copyright owner is unlawful. Requests for permission or further information should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley Sons, Inc.
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Stine, Jean Marie.
Writing successful self-help and how-to books / Jean Marie Stine.
p. cm. - (Wiley books for writers series)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-471-03739-7 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Authorship. I. Series.
PN147.S795 1997
808 .02-dc20 96-26886
Printed in the United States of America
11 12 13 14 15
To Jeremy Tarcher For ten wonderful years no girl could ever forget
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part One Writing and Selling Self-Help/ How-to Books
1 What You Should Know about Writing Self-Help/How-To Books
1.1 It s Easy, It s Rewarding-Do It!
1.2 Twenty-One Skills You Will Acquire from Reading This Book
1.3 Why Self-Help and How-To Books Are Alike
1.4 How This Book Will Help You
2 Selling Your Self-Help/How-To Book Made Easy
2.1 One Chapter and a Short Proposal-All You Need to Sell Your Book
2.2 Five Good Reasons to Sell Your Self-Help/ How-To Book before Writing It
2.2.1 Zero Work and Saved Time
2.2.2 Publisher Input-Before Writing
2.2.3 Two Chances at Success
2.2.4 Publishing Schedules
2.2.5 The Best Strategy for Writing Your Book
Part Two The Basics: Title and Outline
3 Finalizing Your Title and Subtitle
3.1 The Right Title Guarantees Success
3.2 The Billboard for Your Book
3.3 You, Too, Can Create a Bestselling Title
3.4 What Makes an Irresistible Title?
3.5 How to Generate a Bestselling Title
3.5.1 Identify a Problem or Lack
3.5.2 Make a Promise
3.5.3 Offer Hope
3.5.4 Be Informative (How-To Books)
3.6 Finalizing the Title for Your Book
3.6.1 How Professionals Look at Titles
3.6.2 The Self-Help/How-To Title Checklist
3.7 The Words below the Title: Subtitles, Reading lines, Shopping Lists
3.7.1 Subtitles
3.7.2 Reading Lines
3.7.3 Shopping Lists
3.7.4 Picking Your Descriptive Phrase
3.8 Troubleshooting
3.9 Formatting Your Title Page
4 Outlining a Self-Help/How-To Book
4.1 How a Chapter Outline Helps Write Your Book
4.2 The Five Ways of Structuring a Self-Help/How-To Book
4.2.1 The Programmatic Book
4.2.2 The Recovery Book (Self-Help Only)
4.2.3 The Evolutionary Book
4.2.4 The Component-Based Book
4.2.5 The Exercise-Based Book
4.3 Five Shortcuts to Better Outlines
4.3.1 List the Main Points You Want to Make
4.3.2 Look for Missing Elements
4.3.3 Look for Similar Elements-and Reorganize
4.3.4 Look for Main Themes and Minor Themes to Develop Chapters
4.3.5 Make Use of Your Leftovers
4.4 Outlining Your First and Last Chapters-A Special Art
4.4.1 The First Chapter-Hooking Readers with a Preview
4.4.2 The First Chapter Checklist
4.4.3 The Last Chapter-Bringing Your Book to a Successful Conclusion
4.5 Finalizing Your Chapter Outline
4.5.1 Organizing a Chapter into Sections
4.5.2 Organizing Your Sections into Subsections
4.6 Secrets of Irresistible Chapter Titles, Headings, and Subheadings
4.6.1 Descriptive Titles
4.6.2 Titles That Reflect Your Approach
4.6.3 Two-Part Titles: The Best of Both Worlds
4.6.4 Keep it Specific
4.6.5 Put the Reader in Your Chapter Titles
4.7 Preparing Your Outline for Submission
Part Three Writing a Self-Help/How-To Proposal
5 How to Write a Proposal That Sells
5.1 The Sales Pitch for Your Book
5.2 How Proposals Help You
5.3 Proposals Save You Time
5.4 Selling Your Book to Publishers-Helping Publishers Sell Your Book
5.5 What s in a Proposal?
6 Writing Your Overview
6.1 Making Your Self-Help/How-To Book Sound Like a Must-Have
6.1.1 The Hook
6.1.2 Attention-Grabbers
6.2 Writing the Overview
6.2.1 Your Potential Market
6.2.2 Why Your Market Needs the Book
6.2.3 How Your Book Fulfills Readers Needs
6.2.4 How Your Book Will Benefit Its Readers
6.2.5 How You Can Substantiate Your Claims
6.2.6 Your Book s Special Features
7 Making Your Proposal Clinch the Sale
7.1 Answer Publishers Questions about Your Book-Before They Ask Them
7.2 Comparing Your Book with the Competition
7.3 Estimating the Size of Your Audience
7.4 Describing How Your Book Can Be Marketed
7.5 Showing How Your Book Will Promote Itself
7.5.1 Talk Shows
7.5.2 Newspaper and Magazine Articles
7.5.3 Reviews
7.5.4 The World Wide Web, E-Mail, and Electronic Bulletin Boards
7.5.5 Your Own Media Experience
7.6 Estimating Length, Format, and Time of Completion
7.6.1 Describing Front Matter
7.6.2 Describing Back Matter
7.6.3 Describing Illustrative Material
7.6.5 Estimating Length
7.6.6 Estimating Time of Completion
7.7 About the Author-Establishing Your Credentials
7.8 Enclosures-Sales Enhancers
7.8.1 Endorsements
7.8.2 Questions Your Book Answers and Benefits It Will Bestow
7.8.3 Benefits
7.8.4 Visual Aids
7.8.5 The Visual Aids Enclosure Checklist
Part Four Writing the Sample Chapter
8 Chapter Writing Step by Step
8.1 Picking Your Sample Chapter
8.2 The ABCs of Chapter Writing
8.3 A-Encapsulating What It s about in a Hook
8.3.1 Hook l: Have You Ever?
8.3.2 Hook 2: The Case History
8.3.3 Hook 3: The Provocative, Dramatic Statement
8.4 B-Writing the Body, One Heading at a Time
8.5 C-Bringing Your Chapter to a Conclusion
8.6 How Long Is a Chapter?
8.7 Beyond the Sample Chapter
9 Style Made Easy
9.1 Five Keys to a Winning Style
9.2 Writing Person to Person-Conversational Style
9.3 A Warm, Supportive Style
9.3.1 Be Nonjudgmental (Avoid Language That Stigmatizes)
9.3.2 Be Reassuring and Optimistic
9.4 Writing the Reader into Your Book
9.5 Style-Keep It Simple
9.6 Developing Nonsexist Language
10 Headings and Subheadings
10.1 Using Headings and Subheadings to Keep the Reader Reading and Highlight Key Ideas
10.2 Five Shortcuts to Great Headings
10.2.1 Phrase Headings in Everyday Language
10.2.2 Create Headings That Are Lively and Intriguing
10.2.3 Coin a New Word or Phrase
10.2.4 Make a Bold Promise
10.2.5 Keep Headings Upbeat
10.3 Five Steps to Dynamic Headings
10.4 The Lowdown on Subheadings
10.5 Differentiating Headings and Subheadings
10.6 When to Use Headings and Subheadings
11 Lists Made Easy
11.1 Bulleted Lists-Making Facts Your Bull s-Eye
11.2 When to Use Bulleted Lists
11.2.1 Highlight Buried Points
11.2.2 Preview a Connected Series of Issues
12 Case Histories and Quotations
12.1 Using Case Histories and Anecdotal Stories to Strengthen Reader Identification
12.1.1 Illustrate
12.1.2 Inspire and Motivate
12.2 Writing Anecdotal Stories
12.2.1 Introduce the Anecdote
12.2.2 Use Names
12.2.3 Characterize
12.2.4 Describe
12.2.5 Recap
12.3 Keep It Short and Focused
12.4 Use Multiple Anecdotes
12.5 Actual Stories or Composite Stories?
12.5.1 Pros and Cons
12.5.2 Disguising Real People
12.5.3 Creating Composites
12.6 If You Must Use Quotations
12.6.1 Using Quotations Effectively
12.6.2 How to Attribute Quotes
13 Checklists, Quizzes, Exercises, and Other Interactive Elements
13.1 Interactive Elements-The Heart of Your Self-Help/How-To Book
13.2 A Checklist of Interactive Elements
13.3 Making Interactive Elements Just Like Being There
Part Five Self-Editing Self-Help/How-To Books
14 Editing Your Manuscript the Lazy Writer s Way
14.1 Editing Your First Draft Like a Pro
14.2 How to Use the Lazy Writer s Self-Editing Checklist
14.3 The Lazy Writer s Self-Editing Checklist
15 Getting Friends to Troubleshoot and Edit Your Manuscript
15.1 How Friends Can Help Make Your Book a Bestseller
15.1.1 The Reader Is Always Right
15.1.2 One Step to a Zero-Defect Book
15.2 About the Manuscript Troubleshooting List for Your Friends
15.3 How to Use the Manuscript Troubleshooting List for Your Friends
15.4 The Manuscript Troubleshooting List for Your Friends
Part Six Selling Self-Help/How-To Books Made Easy
16 Submitting Your Book for Publication
16.1 How to Find a Publisher
16.2 Submitting through a Literary Agent
16.3 Submitting the Book Yourself
17 Putting Your Manuscript in Professional Form
17.1 Giving Your Book the Professional Look
17.2 One Last Sales Tip Before Packaging Your Book for Submission
17.3 Packaging Your Book for Delivery
17.3.1 Proposal Submission Checklist
17.3.2 Completed Manuscript Checklist
Part Seven Simplifying Permissions, Cross-References, Illustrations, Charts, Tables, and Front and Back Matter
18 Permission to Quote and Reprint
18.1 It Only Sounds Complicated
18.2 Getting Permissions-Let Them Do the Work For You
18.3 When Do You Need Permission to Reproduce?
18.3.1 For Illustrative Material
18.3.2 For Printed Matter
18.4 Three More Tips for Trouble-Free Permissions
18.4.1 Start Early
18.4.2 Where to Get Them-Look on the Label
18.4.3 Ask Your Publisher for Help
19 Introductions, Dedications, Prefaces, and Other Front Matter
19.1 Front Matter-Putting Your Book in Context 19.1.1 The Front Matter Checklist
19.2 Title page
19.3 Dedication
19.4 Table of Contents
19.5 List of Illustratio