Successful Nonfiction: Tips and Inspiration for Getting Published

by Dan Poynter

Successful Nonfiction is a collection of pointers and affirmations for those nonfiction writers who view their books as "products" and their readers as "customers." Self-publishing guru Dan Poynter... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1568600615
• ISBN13: 9781568600611
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Para Publishing
• Length: 142 Pages
• Weight: 0.54 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Another Great Book by Dan

This book is loaded with great ideas to improve your non-fiction publication. I found this book very useful and helpful when I wrote my first book in 2003. Highly recommended. Zev Saftlas, Author of Motivation That Works: How to Get Motivated and Stay Motivated

Another Poynter Winner

In Successful Nonfiction publishing guru Dan Poynter practices what he preaches. Handsomely made and cleverly written, it is at once an abundantly useful book and a fit example of how to do it right.Poynter abandons the traditional chapter-section-subsection organization of most non-fiction books and instead deals with 124 aphorisms, one per page. The aphorism is stated in a header line, restated in a subtitle, then explained in a few sentences. A pertinent example is narrated, and finally a suitable quotation is appended. Different typefaces distinguish the five elements on each page.The result is a book that reads quickly yet conveys much pertinent information. The reader's attention does not flag and useful advice is located without difficulty.The one-page-per-topic organization is not unique. It enjoyed a vogue in the 1960's and 1970's in documentation of systems. NeverthelessSuccessful Nonfiction utilizes the format as well as we have seen it done.Some of the topics are repetitive, and occasionally the advice borders on contradiction. But the overall impact is positive and instructive.This is a candidate for the most handsome book offered to us forreview. The gold embossed cover with French flaps, the pertinent cover illustration, the distinctive endpapers and of course the excellent interior design set a standard to be emulated. Yet it retails for a low price. True, the cover art does not reach the highest standard. But this is praising with faint damn's.We strongly recommend this book to authors, self-publishers, and those who simply admire well-crafted books. The content is provocative. Additionally it sets a new level for design and presentation of the paperback nonfiction title.

You Need this Book

If you are a nonfiction writer then you owe it to yourself to read Dan Poynter's book before you get started. It was a revelation to me. Every single page had useful advice and the resource list at the back of the book is a gold mine of information. The ideas on getting peer reviews as you write, not being afraid to give away books at first and knowing that a bad review can actually be a good thing are all contrary to what I learned in my college writing classes but they make sense. Dan Poynter is a master at what he does. Kimberley Lindsay Wilson, author of 11 Things Mama Should Have Told You About Men.

Dan Poynter's Greatest Hits!

Dan Poynter has written several books on self-publishing and this one is like a "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff for Writers." If you don't like reading a lot of text and just want simple, clean advice than this is your book. When I buy a book I'm looking for handy practical advice and some things that I like in this are: Make your book worth the money page 23, Keep your book to yourself at first page 33, Leave a legacy page 58, Write what interests you page 75, Attend writers conferences page 100 and much more.While I own and recommend Mr. Poytner's other fine books, I think that this one is the one that writers will read over and over again. I like the format and the content. Simple. Simple. SimpleIf you're a serious nonfiction writer you don't want to miss out on this one. It's Dan Poytner's Greatest Hits CD.

"Must" reading for all aspiring non-fiction writers.

In Successful Nonfiction: Tips & Inspiration For Getting Published, author and publisher Dan Poynter shares his many years of personal experience and professional expertise to explain how to successfully write a work of nonfiction regardless of subject matter, topic, category, or content. Poynter shares 38 tips on how to write; 11 tips on why you should write; 4 tips on why your writing project should be a book; 21 tips on what to write; 7 tips on doing research; 9 tips for building your book; 3 tips on copyright; 10 tips for finding the right agent or publisher; 6 tips on book promotion, and a great many more "tips, tricks & techniques" of inestimable value for the aspiring writer seeking to break into print. Successful Nonfiction is impressive, "user friendly", and very highly recommended core reference title for any personal, professional, academic or public library writer reference collection.