I’ll never forget the first time I went to Times Square.
My friend and I were just out of high school. We went to New York to see as many Broadway shows as we could fit into our three-day weekend.
Arriving in the evening, we checked in, threw our bags in the room, and ventured forth. Neither of us said much, we just knew we had to get to the center of it all.
When we rounded the corner at 46th and Broadway, the whole world opened up to me.
Everything was light and color and movement. I was powerless but to stop and stare.
I saw there the convergence not only of roads but perhaps of all the cultures that ever existed, all the people who ever lived.
In some ways I can still divide my entire life between before I went to Times Square and after I went to Times Square.
When you begin using elements of fiction in your nonfiction, the transformation can be equally profound.
You can go from writing relatively dull prose to writing that has depth and color, writing that lights up the imagination. Writing that draws readers in and keeps them wanting more.
So what are these elements of fiction?
Following are 10 things nonfiction writers can learn from fiction writers:
1. The best reason to write anything is to provide an experience that is superior to everyday life.
The best reason is not to convey information or teach or express yourself. Those reasons take shape and assume their proper place when they are subordinate to the goal of providing a meaningful experience for readers.
2. The importance of first lines cannot be overstated.
They either welcome readers in or throw up roadblocks.
3. The power of narrative is powerful indeed.
Tell stories. Tell lots and lots of stories. Make them sufficient in length to make your point, and not any longer than that, but tell them. It’s almost cliché anymore to point out that what we all remember from any sermon we’ve heard are the stories. The rest evaporates.
4. A key question is this: Is it filmable?
If it is, it will engage our imagination. And if our imagination is engaged, so are we.
5. “Omit needless words.”
Thank you, William Strunk and E. B. White.
6. Bring us into an experience.
Don’t write at a distance. “As soon as I hear the word about in someone’s writing,” writes Natalie Goldberg, “it is an automatic alarm. ‘This story is about life.’ Skip that line and go willy-nilly into life in your writing.” You can’t bring us into an experience unless you yourself go into it first.
7. The writer is an experience architect.
This goes back to my first point a bit, but here I have in mind the superstructure of your book, seen best perhaps in your table of contents. Your table of contents is a window into the experience your book provides. This is true not only on the level of how interesting your chapter titles (and sometimes chapter subtitles) are but also in terms of how your content flows, the progression of your ideas.
8. Just keep writing.
Novelists seem to understand better than other writers that sometimes you have no idea what to write. But you sit down, you write anyway. It is in the writing that we see what’s there. No shortcuts. No escape.
9. It’s all about the characters.
People relate to people, so as often as you can, help us do that.
10. Drafts upon drafts upon drafts.
Make sure you give ample time to the editing process. In fact, I’d say the first draft should be about 30 percent of the process. That means 70 percent of the process is editing and rewriting and other adventures in the art of draft making.
What do you think? Do you agree? What else can nonfiction learn from fiction? And do you see ways that these elements can enhance what you’re working on?
Tweetables
“The power of narrative is powerful indeed.” And other lessons for nonfiction writers… [Tweet that!]
“It is in the writing that we see what’s there. No shortcuts. No escape.” [Tweet that!]
Thanks for the tips. I’ve been pondering how to give life to nonfiction writing.
This is a great list! Your point in number 3 is my favorite: “Make them sufficient in length to make your point, and not any longer than that, but tell them.” I read non-fiction almost exclusively and sometimes I feel like writers put their stories in as an after-thought because an editor told them it’s important. Sometimes a story is so short that I wonder why it’s even there and sometimes it’s so long that I am mentally begging the author to get to the point! It’s a fine art to be able to integrate stories seamlessly.
One way I test the readability of what I write is by speaking it out loud, as if to an audience. I read every blog post before publishing this way, and I’ve been reading my proposal chapters like this. If anything trips me up when reading as if to active listeners, it must be changed. I suppose this is like your question “Is it filmable?” This one would be “Is it speakable?” I’m sure that doesn’t work for all types of writing, but I find that the type of writing I do is far better when it’s speakable as well.
Oh, that’s brilliant, Natasha! Absolutely! I find that I sometimes go into, mmm, we’ll call it “illustrious author” mode when I’m writing. I’ll use really highfalutin language and sound like someone completely other than me! Speaking it, as I do often, keeps me honest. If I don’t write it the way I say it, then I should change the way I write it.
It’s funny you mention this here because of what happened as I worked on this post. My laptop monitor suddenly went on the fritz as I went to write this. Computerless, I began speaking my blog post into a voice recorder app on my phone–you know, just to make some progress until I was back online. When my computer came back up, I listened to the recording and started typing. Like I said, in this case I was forced into it, but it might be worth trying on purpose in the future. Speak it, then write it.
Thank you!
Now…how to convince high-school textbook writers to practice all of the above ;)–reading homework would be so much more entertaining and memorable!
Hear hear!
Love everything about this. Bookmarked! I write both and love the way they play off one another. I especially like the tip about it being filmable. I always try to imagine what I write that way. On number 6, I am reading a very popular non-fiction book right now and I love the content, but I feel no connection with the author and it completely changes how I view the book and if I would recommend it or not.
What your comment raises for me is the importance of creating an emotional connection with our readers. That comes from telling stories and not keeping ourselves at a distance from our writing. We have to dig deep and write with feeling.
I had to smile when I got to #2, because as soon as I’d read the first line of this blog post I thought “Oh, that’s a good first line.” Way to demonstrate your points in action! 🙂 Truly, all around, a great post, for fiction and non-fiction writers alike.
Thanks, Amanda, glad you liked it. I worked HARD on that first line! Have yourself a great weekend.
I agree completely! I would probably add “Use dialogue, too!” A conversation compels me to continue reading.
Yes, “use dialogue” is a great one! I just finished reading a business book called Remarkable! and the whole book is essentially one long conversation between a mentor and a younger business man. So much more effective than dry step-by-step instructions.