Why Novelists Should Try Their Hand at Nonfiction

A lot of new novelists assume that writing nonfiction just isn't for them. Fantasy writers look at essays, commentary, or instructional material and see a separate discipline reserved for specialists. Meanwhile, they stick exclusively to fiction while ignoring one of the strongest tools available for building an audience and sharpening their prose.
That reluctance can cost them more than they realize. But it's not a price they need to keep paying.
A majority of successful novelists throughout history also wrote nonfiction. C.S. Lewis wrote literary criticism and Christian apologetics. Tolkien produced lectures and essays. Robert E. Howard filled letters with commentary on boxing, history, politics, and civilization. 
Even pulp writers who never gained industry accolades often supplemented their storytelling with published nonfiction.
Authors once understood a simple principle modern writers frequently ignore: Readers want to know how a storyteller thinks.
A novelist who can articulate his ideas clearly outside fiction gains several advantages at once. 
Developing authority
Readers begin associating you with insight in addition to entertainment. 
Building a catalogue
By writing nonfiction, you create regular material capable of drawing attention between book launches. 
Improving communication
Having nonfiction output strengthens your ability to communicate theme and conflict with confidence.
And most importantly, nonfiction forces you to write clearly. Many fiction authors hide weak thinking behind atmosphere and aesthetic flourishes. Nonfiction strips away those paper shields. When you endeavor to explain an idea directly, there's nowhere to hide logical flaws.
That degree of exposure can be uncomfortable, but that discomfort serves a valuable purpose.
  • Tweeting threads about heroism can give you sharper insight into heroic characters
  • posting about medieval warfare can impart better command of battle scenes
  • writing essays on technological trends can provide stronger footing for science fiction ideas. 
In short, nonfiction strengthens the intellectual foundations of fiction.
And let's not forget the business side. Those blog posts, essays, and newsletters all create opportunities for regular audience contact. They reduce your dependence on launch week spikes, and form ongoing relationships with readers. And those readers tend to become loyal supporters rather than casual customers.
Too many authors still cling to the old KDP-era fantasy wherein simply building out your digital bookshelf guarantees discoverability. Those days are over. Today's writers need direct audience relationships, and nonfiction provides one of the best methods for building them.
Fortunately, fiction authors already have several advantages when dipping their toes in nonfiction.
Novelists understand pacing. They know how to maintain reader attention across long stretches. If you've written a single novel, odds are you have stronger storytelling chops than journalists trained to write sterile corporate prose. 
A competent storyteller can transform historical analysis, publishing commentary, or cultural criticism into compelling reading. All it takes is investing the material with tension, rhythm, and personality.
Remember: Good nonfiction still tells a story.
That doesn't mean manufacturing fake drama or stuffing every article with melodramatic rhetoric. The key is understanding progression: Every paragraph should draw the reader toward a conclusion. So state your case plainly. Support it carefully. Avoid hedging every sentence with timid qualifiers. At the same time, resist the temptation to posture as an infallible authority. Certainty without substance evaporates under scrutiny.
Many beginning nonfiction writers merely stack information. Strong authors guide the reader to a revelation.
So before publishing nonfiction, ask four questions:
  1. What point am I making?
  2. Why does it matter to the reader?
  3. What evidence supports the argument?
  4. What conclusion should the reader reach?
If any of the answers are hazy, the piece is not ready for publication. Rewrite until your arguments and conclusions are crystal clear.
Now let's address the elephant in the room.
What nonfiction subject should you cover?
It's gonna sound cliché, but write what you know.
Start close to your genuine interests. Got a penchant for history? Theology? Literary criticism? Write about it. Discuss the themes in your own fiction. Examine the stories that influenced you, and analyze cultural trends relevant to your genre.
At the same time, avoid pontificating on the controversy of the day just because it's currently popular. Readers can spot cynical trend chasing right away. An author who suddenly pivots into fashionable outrage farming usually gains fleeting attention at the expense of long-term credibility. That way is a countdown to irrelevance. So don't set the e-drama egg timer.
Don't underestimate how regular nonfiction writing can pay off during crowdfunding campaigns. Because audience members who regularly read an author’s commentary get personally invested in his success. That's why many authors who succeed on Kickstarter maintain blogs, newsletters, podcasts, or video channels alongside their fiction.
None of this is to advise abandoning fiction. Storytelling remains the chief calling of most novelists. Yet nonfiction can boost your discipline, clarify ideas, and strengthen audience relationships.
So if you're hesitant to write nonfiction because you feel unqualified, ignore the nagging doubts and start anyway.
Write clearly.
Write regularly.
Write about subjects worth discussing.
And remember: Readers you've informed when you pen essays are far more open to being entertained when you tell stories.
The Debt Reckoning Kickstarter is now live, and already 50% funded in 1 day! Featuring a limited Special Reward available only through Memorial Day weekend, including the Kickstarter-exclusive eBook, paperback, hardcover, signed Collector’s Bookmark, acknowledgment credit, and a personalized signed inscription label from me.
Don't miss out. Back the book now.