Do you want to make money on the book you plan to write? Do you have the intention of publishing your book and marketing it to become a commercial success? Here are my six preparatory steps to complete BEFORE starting your manuscript.
These tips are part of the "How to Write a Book" series of articles, which includes these topics: 1.
Know What Type of Book You Want to Write 2.
Do a Market comparison 3.
Complete a Title Search 4.
Create an Outline 5.
Write a Query letter 6.
Start your Book proposal This article will focus on the first step only.
Step 1.
Know What Type of Book You Want to Write Will your book be a factual work such as a biography or a "how-to" book, or will it be a fabricated novel that focuses on narrative, character and plot? The first step is to know what genre your book fits best.
A genre is a division of a particular form of art or literature categorized according to criteria particular to that form.
Genres are vague categories with no fixed boundaries.
Literary works are recognized as having character similar to the principles of a genre.
If you need help deciding upon a genre, go to Wikipedia.
org and type the word "genre" into the search window.
There are more than 60 genres listed and have links explaining the criteria for each.
Within the categories of fiction and non-fiction there are a multitude of other sub-genres.
Even though genres tend to flow into one another you will do well to decide what genre your book best fits.
This will help you in your market comparison and in querying a publisher or literary agent.
Some books might be classified as either fiction or non-fiction.
For example, your story may be based upon a true story, but the names, places and story has been changed enough that they are not recognized and the story appears to be fictitious.
There may be more than one genre that your book seems to fit so, be sure to write down all possible genres that might work for your book.
You'll need this list when you go to step two and start your market comparison.