Five Reflections on Publishing Compelling Narrative Non-fiction
In 2017, I self-published my first non-fiction book with a small but much-needed grant from Singapore’s National Heritage Board. As I had always loved writing, I went on to write more non-fiction books and children’s books, picking up experience along the way.
My father was surprised in discovering how popular my books turned out to be. Like most people, he initially thought I would only sell a few copies, but he turned out to be wrong. I have gone on to sell literally thousands upon thousands of books. A publisher even once said to me: “You are our secret weapon.”
I have learnt and gained a lot of experience in writing and publishing compelling non-fiction, but, at the start, writing and publishing were like jumping recklessly off a cliff and building a fully-functioning aircraft, complete with bells and whistles, on the way down.
This “building-an-aircraft-while-falling-off-a-cliff” metaphor is often associated with an entrepreneur’s challenges of establishing a new start-up, but it also accurately reflects a new author’s experience.
With the benefit of hindsight, and from real-world experiences I picked up along the way, I can share five reflections that will go some way to help you in writing and publishing compelling narrative non-fiction.
(1) Who is Your Target Audience?
Any author has to accurately answer the question: Who is the target audience?
This question is not as easy to answer as it may seem.
Often, aspiring and even experienced writers write about topics or themes that interest them, without thinking about their readership.
I can fully understand that people are deeply passionate about topics and themes that are close to their heart.
However, doing so is like putting the cart before the horse. The fact of the matter is that an author needs to understand his audience to create compelling narratives that will reach them. Non-fiction writing in particular has to serve the needs and interests of readers.
This is where research of this nature has to come in, in addition to research on the topic and theme of the book. Conducting research to better understand your potential audience will help you better pitch your book project to publishers, and also help you understand what form — trim size, quantity, price point — makes sense for your book.
How many such readers are out there? What is your “addressable market”? What is your geographical “catchment” area? Do you even have a market?
By the time I wrote my third book, I was able to tell the publisher the target audience I was reaching out to, their numbers, and who would potentially buy such a book. I even knew which gender would buy the books, and generally how young they would be. Having a rough sense is better than not knowing at all, and having accurate data is better than having a rough sense.
(2) Ride a Wave
My second reflection: if it is possible, tap into an existing movement or mood.
For example, one of the most surprising book successes in Singapore in 2018 was Teo You Yenn’s This is What Inequality Looks Like. By any measure, this book was a phenomenal success in Singapore, sparking conversations on themes like poverty, inequality, and dignity, and was very, very, very popular. It was one of the bestselling non-fiction books of 2018 and sold more than 25,000 copies.
It’s clear that Teo is an experienced author and academic. In fact, she is a professor.
However, her book’s phenomenal popularity was arguably not just due to her talent or charm, but due to the prevailing mood of the time, which was a boiling sense of unfairness and inequality in society.
I have benefitted from a national movement too. If I’m honest, when I managed to sell and distribute ~2,500 copies of my family history books back in 2019, it was partly because that year was the Singapore Bicentennial; Singapore was then commemorating 200 years since Sir Stamford Raffles founded modern Singapore. This meant that historical topics and early pioneers were rather popular then.
From what I have seen and experienced, I think tapping into an existing movement or mood goes a long way in helping authors come up with compelling non-fiction.
(3) You Need an Existing Platform
My third reflection is that, even before you begin writing, or go to a publisher, you already need to have an existing platform and a strong personal reputation.
What does it mean to have a “platform”?
Basically, it is like “street cred”, or credibility, or expertise in the topic or theme; existing popularity or experiences writing in the topic or theme; and a strong connection with the potential readership.
Put another way, it helps if you are famous or known… before you can become famous or known. Are you already an authority or expert on the subject? At the very least, you need to have some kind of connection or engagement with an audience. Mainstream publishers often look for writers who already have an existing platform and relationships with their readers.
To be fair, I managed to build a small platform from scratch. It’s entirely possible to do so, but generally more famous or known people produce more famous or known books. This is a hard truth.
When I first started out, it was difficult to reach out to readers in the beginning. For example, I had to build a mailing list one email at a time, and network with people and make connections, one person at a time. Slowly, but surely, over my many public talks and engagements, I have gradually built up and strengthened my platform.
In a digital age, writers can also use social media to reach out to more people who would be interested in following them.
Today, things are much easier for me now that I already have a mailing list of people who are supportive of my writing. I have a small, but passionate following (I am deeply thankful for these amazing people). And I still keep growing my influence and community, bit by bit.
To publish compelling narrative non-fiction, start by first building up or strengthening your platform.
(4) Marketing Matters
My fourth reflection is that writers should prepare a detailed, comprehensive, and implementable marketing plan in advance. Marketing matters and cannot be just an afterthought.
Arguably, a large part of what makes any non-fiction compelling is actually the marketing that surrounds it. For example, my own usual practice is to begin collecting blurbs (i.e. endorsements) in advance, when my manuscript is almost ready. I prefer to be ready with the blurbs at my fingertips, before I am asked for them. When people you know or trust have written nice things about your manuscript, they provide you not just with an endorsement that can be used for marketing, but a confidence boost.
Also, my other practice is to draft up a few media press releases and try to reach out early to the media. Are there any interested journalists who might want to cover your story? This is especially useful because crafting your own press release literally forces you to think about what makes your writing newsworthy, appealing, and persuasive. This is not as easy as it seems.
What would interest the media? What angles can the press take to feature the book? What would work for social media (as opposed to mainstream media)?
If you have funding available or your book project could reach out to a larger market, it might even make sense to explore getting a media or PR company to assist you. But you would have to scrub the numbers and financials carefully to make sure.
Publishing a successful book requires thinking through about promotion and marketing in advance. As a publisher once told me, it’s all about promotion and marketing. I agree.
(5) Consult Others
Finally, there’s great value in consulting people, especially fellow writers. Better still if these writers are in the same niche area as you (or are writers of “comps”, namely books that would sit next to yours on a bookshelf at the bookshop).
The reason is simply that you will be able to obtain useful advice and guidance from them if they are friendly. Writers can help each other; there’s strength in numbers. You are not alone.
Even if others are not writers, it is still useful to consult widely and obtain input. The general point is that others may hold useful alternative perspectives that will enhance and enrich your manuscript, especially if they know some things you don’t.
We don’t know everything, so taking a humble, consultative spirit is best.
For my book, My Father’s Kampung: A History of Aukang and Punggol, I benefitted greatly from having Robert Yeo, one of Singapore’s foremost playwrights and poets, look at my manuscript and give me pointers.
He happened to live at Aukang when he was younger, and I was writing about the community stories surrounding Aukang and Punggol. He added much value and relevance to my book.
I also consulted the President of Genealogy Society of Singapore; the Singapore Seah Clan Association; the kind people at Montfort Alumni; author Cyprian Lim; researcher Bryan Goh; and many, many others.
Their collective help and kindness in sharing their personal stories, and giving me leads that turned into stories, helped my book touch the lives of many more people.
The book ended up sparking joy in many readers who reminisced about their kampung (village) days, when Singapore was less developed than it is today.
Concluding Reflections
In conclusion, to publish compelling narrative non-fiction, my experience has taught me that a writer has to (1) first identify and understand the target audience; (2) tap into an existing movement or mood, ideally one that appeals to readers; (3) develop a platform, ideally before publication; (4) prepare a detailed marketing plan to promote the publication; and (5) consult fellow writers.
With these success factors in place, writing and publishing non-fiction becomes a lot easier. While not all reflections may be directly relevant to your situation or context, I trust that they will go some way towards helping you.
Thank you for reading.
Cheers,
Shawn Seah
(The original story was first posted on my Medium blog on 3 June 2021. This story was updated on 12 August 2023.)
