Nonfiction Ideas

There are a large number of books given to others as gifts and perhaps never read by the person who buys it.  Any book could fall under this category, so perhaps the best way to get your brain thinking is to list some of the many special occasions where gifts are given.  Here are a few occasions, but by no means is this list complete:

Birthdays, Weddings, Anniversaries, Bachelor and Bachelorette parties, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas, Graduation, Housewarming, New Baby, just to name a few.  What book could you write that could be given away as a gift?  Could you slant your existing book so that it would appeal to gift buyers?  What other gift giving occasions can you think of?

Newspapers are another good source of book ideas.  Keep on top of the news as much as you can.  There are thousands of newspapers; some are specialty newspapers dealing on specific topics such as business, finance, show business, etc.  Barnes and Noble has a good selection of newspapers from around the country, and you can even special order newspapers from around the world.  You can also check your local libraries and read the newspapers they have available for free.  Most newspapers also have their own web site and you can read most of the major stories.  To start searching and browsing for newspapers, go to http://dir.yahoo.com/News_and_Media/Newspapers

Read letters to the editor to see what is on everyone’s mind.  Read newspapers from other states and other countries as well.  Your topic will need to be big enough to be a book and not just a magazine article.  It is a lot easier to think of magazine articles as a result of reading newspapers, but keep looking and it is likely you’ll get a good idea for a book from a newspaper as well.

Everyone’s life is different in many ways.  Some of us are lucky and go through life with very few setbacks.  Others go through life with what seems to be endless setbacks, tragedies and struggles.  If you have survived the tough parts of life, there are other who would love to know how you did it and how you can help them as well.  What tough parts of life have you lived through?  What obstacles have you persevered and overcome?  Have you survived the death of a close loved one?

Are you struggling with disease or other terminal illness?  Have you been through a major ordeal and have learned how to cope?  Survive a disaster or catastrophe?  Writing about your traumatic experiences will not only help bring some psychological relief to you, but it may also help you financially.  It’s a win-win situation all around.  You help yourself by writing about your problem, you help others cope with a similar problem, and they help you by supporting your book financially.

Think back on your life and make a list of the trials through life and what you have survived.  It’s a tough world out there.  As crowded as this planet is, you can be sure others have gone through or are going through similar problems and could use your help.

Take advantage of a movie’s popularity and write a book about a movie or series of movies.  You could write about an actress, a certain genre of movies, movies that are horrible, or the best movies of all time.  Focus on a specific director such as Steven Spielburg or someone else with a different specialization that works in the movie industry.  There are a lot of potential things you could write about relating to the movie industry, but the one thing in common is a lot of marketing money has already been put behind the movies and people behind the movies.  Hitch a ride on their fame and fortune and perhaps you’ll be on your way as well.

Like it or not, we’re all going to die someday.  There is no way around it, not even for celebrities, politicians and other famous people.  So, why not get ready to cash in on their death?  Who are your favorite famous people?  Are they getting old and about ready to kick the bucket?  Start writing a book about them and have it ready to sell when the grim reaper finally comes for them.  When someone famous dies books about that person will start flying off the shelves.  Take a look at what books are already out there, and perhaps you can make book with a slightly different twist or spin.  There are more famous people out there than you can shake a stick at.  Check out Yahoo’s directory of people at:

http://dir.yahoo.com/Society_and_Culture/People

Passion should be first and foremost with you when finding a nonfiction book idea.  You must have passion in the subject you want to write about, or else it is likely you will give up or will turn out a book that is not that great in quality.  There are millions of subjects to write about with people willing to pay for them, so why waste time writing about something you’re only lukewarm for or makes you miserable?  Write to please yourself.  It is tough enough to write a rough draft of a book, let alone finish it completely and publish or get it published.  Make sure you are passionate about what you are writing about and it will help you tremendously along the way.

So, what are you passionate about?  What do you enjoy?  What do you love?  What excites you?  What gets you up early and keeps you up late at night?  What are you good at?  Questions like these should be kept in mind when looking for a subject.  You should stick with subject areas that you are passionate about, as you will not have time in your life to write everything.  If you were super productive and could write and publish 2 books a year and you started at age 20 and lived till you were 80, you will have written and published 120 books.  For the average writer, this is very unlikely, but it illustrates the point of why you need to stick with subjects areas that you are passionate about.

When you browse the bookstore or library, stay with subject areas you are passionate about.  If you are interested in another subject area, that is ok, but make sure when it comes down to picking a topic it is something you are passionate about and not simply interested in.

Start a list right now of things you are passionate about, good at, etc.  Hobbies?  Enthusiasms?

What books do you love to read?  What books have you read that you have loved?  What books have you read over again and again?

A lot of writers might be tempted to write a book in the hopes of making a big pile of money. You might luck out and do so if you are passionate about it.  If you are not passionate about your subject, you will likely abandon the project and move onto something else.  Do yourself and everyone else a favor – write something you are excited about.  You are really providing a product to the public, so don’t short change them by writing about a subject you are only sort of interested in.  It is also likely you won’t finish a book that you hate or are only lukewarm about.  Stick with subjects you are passionate about.