Nonfiction Book Style

Let’s start by defining two major types of books: fiction and nonfiction. Fiction includes literary stories (the classics), poetry, drama, mystery, romance, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and more.

Nonfiction books are based on fact or on the opinions of the author. Not based on a story made up to entertain, as fiction would be, nonfiction is usually written by a subject matter expert.

Books are defined by their topics, by their audiences (books for children and young adults can be either fiction or nonfiction), and by their buyers. Trade books are intended to be sold mostly to and through mainstream bookstores and libraries. Textbooks are written for schools and are categorized as El-Hi (for elementary and high school students) or for the college market. Mass market paperbacks such as romance novels are sometimes in bookstores, but they’re predominantly found in grocery and discount stores. Two other book categories are those sold directly through book clubs and mail order, along with other products. Religious books are bought in Christian and mainstream bookstores.

Nonfiction falls into many style categories that include: •   Autobiographical/Biographical—your own life or that of another person •   Informational—eating right to slow the aging process •   Nonfiction Narrative—your experience running a business or coping with a particular challenge •   Persuasive—your opinion on an event that has already happened or on what should happen in the future,  hoping to  influence the opinions of others •   Procedural—how to conduct a job interview, step-by-step •   Reference—definitions of terms or proper etiquette

Is your book a narrative nonfiction on business that will be published as a trade paperback? Or is it a reference book on nutrition that will be published as a hardcover?