Tidbit: Non-fiction

5 Things I've Learned While Writing Non-Fiction

1. It's way too logical for my spaghetti-wired brain.

In writing non-fiction, you need to string thoughts together like beads on a string. One after another, not in a big 25-bead-pile-up of a clump. It doesn't feel particularly artsy. It feels like the words are constricted in a straight jacket and I have to be careful how I let them out or they'll run wild.

2. The spelling of names is important.

I'm using a lot of quotes. If I mess up one of those names and only put in one L when there should be two, or call someone Mick instead of Nick, I just might end up with a lawsuit on my hands. Or jail time. But I hear there's free wifi in the big house.

3. You can't just wing it; you have to follow your synopsis.

When writing fiction, if a fantabulous new idea comes your way or a character you didn't know about pops in for a visit, no big deal. In non-fiction, though, you can't jazz up the middle with a surprise because it will mess up the second-half of the book.

4. There's no killing off characters when you get stuck.

The thing about fiction is that when your plot jams up, you can just pull out a gun and blast away. That doesn't work when your main character is a concept.

5. Soundtracks don't inspire.

When I'm creating a fictional world, I always have dramatic music playing in the background. Even when I was a kid, I'd play records (remember those?) and draw pictures according to how the music made me feel. There's not a whole lot of feeling when penning facts. It's just, uh, penning facts.

All that being said, I am adding balloons and rabbits to my non-fiction to perk it up a bit. Will it sell? Who knows.

But it is a grand adventure.