Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with writing and nonfiction

Lookin' for words in all the wrong places

Madamina — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:53:09 -0800

Between my iPhone's Stanza app and the loooooong quiet days ahead of me in the office during the holiday season, I'd like to read some stuff online. Any suggestions? I'm basically looking for good stories: things with a bit of a narrative that will keep me wondering what happens next. They should be easy to get into and not particularly deep (I will likely be interrupted a lot).

Nonfiction: longer articles with a bit of a twist, like New Yorker or Vanity Fair pieces about interesting people or events. Not commentary (unless it has some sort of unique backstory).

Fiction I've already enjoyed on Project Gutenberg: anything by the Brontes and L.M. Montgomery. I've also read pretty much everything that appeals to me (thus far) in the Harlequin online reads library, although I don't generally read paper romance novels.

I've seen this thread and this one too.

Thanks!

Short passages of particularly strong or weak nonfiction prose?

cymru_j — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 08:04:34 -0800

In search of short passages of especially strong or weak nonfiction prose! I’m hoping to build a composition class around short examples of effective and in effective writing. I'm thinking of passages of about 1-6 sentences.

We'll look at excerpted passages as a class and analyze what makes them more or less effective. Maybe we'll even try rewriting them in various ways to note the effect.

Passages from well-loved (or well-hated) prose stylists are very welcome, but bonus points for writing whose quality seems surprising or out of context, i.e. poor writing where one might expect strong (from a respected magazine, author, columnist) or good prose that pops up in off-beat venues (blogs, advertising copy, tabloids, etc.).

Any comments on why said prose is effective or ineffective are also welcome.

Thanks very much, guys!

Am I doing this write?

Anonymous — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 09:33:26 -0800

In writing a research book, how far along should I be before approaching publishers, agents, etc? Help needed to get my nonfiction pop culture centric book into bookstores I am working on a research book that is beyond the scope of what most part-time writers would do. The book covers a popular pop culture topic. I have interviewed over 30 people one-on-one for the research and plan to interview over 20 more. My end result will be something similar to the book "Crystal Lake Memories" found here

I have written the first few chapters of this book now and I'm wondering what the next steps are. Due to the amount of painstaking research and the trouble of scheduling some of these interviews, I expect the research portion will take at least another year, perhaps more, and the writing can in many cases happen in parallel.

I would like to ideally approach the publishing branch of the media corporation who's pop culture work I am covering to see if there is interest on their side in publishing it "officially". From my interviews I have relationships with many of the principles at said corporation (yet they don't know the scope of my project, the real reason behind all these interviews, and they help me set them up anyway), and if they were interested it would also open more doors on research; however, I'm also worried about them seeing the idea and using in-house staff to do it without me.

All my research and writing is unique and certainly falls under "fair use" so I am certain other publishers could publish this book, but from what I've read in other questions that would involve an agent, etc.

So for non-fiction works like this, what is the protocol? Should I continue to work on the book until done and hope afterward someone is interested in the work?

If you have more questions I've set up the e-mail nonficfordummies@gmail.com

Thanks.

How do I break into writing nonfiction books?

jonp72 — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 13:42:53 -0800

My dream is to write nonfiction books, but I have more book ideas than I know what to do with. Does anybody have any advice on how to find an agent or even just somebody knowledgeable about the publishing business who could give some good advice about which book ideas would work and which ideas would fall flat? How does one get past the query letter stage, when you have multiple outlines and chapters and book ideas, but you don't have a finished book?

Who are the best feature writers out there?

reenum — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 09:21:10 -0800

Who are the best magazine and newspaper feature writers, past and present? I've been on a magazine and newspaper kick lately. I've gotten tons of articles by Michael Lewis, William Langewiesche and Jack Hitt. For sports, I love Gary Smith. I also like to read the in-depth articles put out by ProPublica.

Could you suggest others who write deep, delving pieces about a subject? The subject itself doesn't matter; I care more that the writer have the ability to engage a reader and explain a situation or subject in an interesting way.

Thanks!

Sociology of subculture recommendations.

Ufez Jones — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:02:01 -0800

Can you recommend some books to me similar to the sociology-of-a-subculture style of Hunter S. Thompson's Hell's Angels, Sudhir Venkatesh's Gang Leader for a Day and Bill Buford's Among the Thugs? While I realize that the three samples I've given share a common theme of exploring a particularly violent subculture, that's not a prerequisite. I'm more interested in the "outsider meets group, befriends and hangs out with group, tells about experiences shared with group for x period of time" aspect. Any group is fine by me, so long as the book is well-written. Thanks.

Listen to me and I'll write it down

parmanparman — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 11:24:00 -0800

I write like I talk and so my writing is not great but my spoken stories are magnetic. Help me put these stories to paper! I have been challenged to write a very short book of true tales of the last 16 months of my life. But, whenever I sit down to write I get terrible writer's block. However, I can go into a room and use my voice and body language to be an amazing storyteller.

I am thinking maybe the way to do this book would be to be interviewed and then transcribe the interviews. But, how and where can I find someone in the Washington, DC-area who would want to interview me and could, theoretically, draw my stories out into the open. I guess I could always be drunk when I do it! Seriously, suggestions are welcome for ideas and alternatives.

How to safely get an endorsement?

CollectiveMind — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:06:21 -0800

OK, I've posted on this subject before. Each time, I'm a little further along. Here is where I am right now. I've been working on a book since March. The idea upon which the book is based has been getting a lot of attention recently and has consistently been in the news for about four years. After a recent post about some impending national publicity, it was suggested that I create a proposal and find an agent to help distribute the book. The agent I found says that the marketing portion of the proposal needs to have endorsements about the book from authors a publisher would recognize. This is to prove that the agent isn't the only one who thinks the idea is viable.

So, I've searched the Internet for the email addresses of all of the authors of the books I compared to my own in the proposal. Agents want this done to show a publisher that few or many books on a subject might show market potential. Anyway, I've found the email addresses for the authors of about half of the books in my proposal.

Should I have any hesitation of explaining this possibly novel concept to established authors who write books on parallel concepts in hopes of getting their endorsement? Are their endorsements likely?

Quality nonfiction writing courses (online)?

OlivesAndTurkishCoffee — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 19:52:19 -0800

Can anyone point the way to a reputable online writing course that deals with the mechanics of good writing (not plot, character, narrative, etc)? My friend writes very engaging plots, replete with well-developed characters, but her prose needs work.

I've convinced her to try a writing course. We haven't yet been able to find a suitable course that teaches the mechanics of excellent prose (rather than plot, character, etc).

We've already explored all the print resources (On Writing Well, the Economist style guide, Strunk & White) and I've taken a look at this question on remedial writing, but it seems she needs a real teacher to help her along.

She preferes something online, reputable, and something that deals specifically with the mechanics and non-creative side of writing. Think grammar and sentence structure bootcamp.

Any pointers would be greatly appreciated!

Can I have my creative cake and eat it too?

mynameisluka — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 22:33:08 -0800

Working writers: how do you carve out time for fiction? Here's a question for working writers. I've managed to turn my passion into a full-time life as a freelance writer. I do corporate stuff, copywriting and marketing pieces, journalism, and I'm thrilled to be working for myself at something I adore. My real passion, however, is fiction, and like so many others, my real aspiration is to complete and sell the novels that have been niggling at me for years.

Trouble is, at the end of the day it's really difficult to transition from non-fiction to fiction and from have-to-I-get-paid to want-to-so-I'm-disciplined work. I find myself using my sore wrists and zonked brain as an excuse...and I'm starting to get scared that I'll never achieve my dream of being a working novelist.

I'm wondering how other writers approach this dilemma. Is "suck it up" the only answer, or are there some tips/tidbits/tweaks I'm missing?

Stories 'bout learnin

Saxon Kane — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 15:42:32 -0800

I'm looking for short stories/poems/creative non-fiction and the like about school, schooling, education, and/or learning to write/self-expression. Should be suitable for college freshpersons.

A new way to look at the world...

reenum — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 08:23:42 -0800

Looking for books that talk about aspects of society or culture in new and interesting ways. I loved Freakonomics, I love the work of Malcolm Gladwell, but I'm not really sure how books in this vein are categorized.

What I like most about the above are the new and interesting way they look at sometimes mundane subjects or are able to find connections between seemingly unrelated topics.

Any suggestions on similar types of books from the hive mind?

Thanks!

Good nonfiction books about Seattle?

The corpse in the library — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 09:53:52 -0800

Recommendations for well-written narrative nonfiction books about Seattle? I'm currently enjoying Peter Hessler's Oracle Bones, for example. So like that, but about Seattle. (Which would make it an entirely different book, yes -- I just mean I like his style.)

Report please.

NekulturnY — Sun, 27 May 2007 06:26:10 -0800

Bookfilter. I'm looking for recommendations on great nonfiction writing by reporters. Browsing through amazon.com's non fiction list is a bit unsatisfactory, especially in the "true crimes" section. There's a lot of five starred books that are supposed to be great, but I'm not looking for gore, or macho tales by mobsters breathlessly written down by a Rent-A-Hack.

I'm looking for great reporting, a story that's been fleshed out to perfection. I promise I won't get upset if the author isn't the greatest stylist in the world.

Examples I've enjoyed: a few books by Mark Bowden ('Black Hawk Down', 'Doctor Dealer', to a lesser extent: 'Bringing the Heat'); Robert Caro's writing on Lyndon Johnson and Robert Moses, David Simon's 'Homicide' and 'The Corner'. 'Fast Food Nation' by Schlosser.

I like crime writing, but will read anything if it's well done, even books on American sports that I don't understand (I hear good things about 'Paper Lion'). Recommendations, HiveMind?

Books about writing non fiction

BradNelson — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 06:49:56 -0800

I need recommendations on books about nonfiction writing. I hope to, in a few years, start working on a nonfiction book. I've done research and writing in college (earned a history degree), but want to understand a bit more about writing an actual book. I would want to write something readable, not an academic-style in-depth reference work.

I would like to find some good books that talk about writing styles and other such things. Not something that gets bogged down in how to organize your book, but just focuses on style, tone, structure, et cetera.

Writing Nonfiction and Children's Literature: Do you know of any good literature ABOUT these subjects?

0bvious — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 11:11:50 -0800

I am looking for well regarded books/scholarly papers about writing. Most specifically in the areas of Nonfiction (the essay style of article writing) and Children's Fiction (for a young adult audience). Any tips? Go as far and broad as you can. I'll be off to the British library tomorrow, so the sky is the limit. I am currently undertaking a Masters Degree in Creative and Professional Writing.

Having written an essay on 'The Problem of Dogma and the Power of Myth', I would now like to assess my article/essay style against writing theory.

As part of my course, I have also written an excerpt from a Young Adult Novel, and would dearly like to read up on some of the literature surrounding the genre.

Thanks in advance...

A Very Strange Christmas

iced_borsch — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 15:23:51 -0800

What offbeat and/or slightly strange publications would be receptive to non-fiction writing submissions about Christmas? I wouldn't mind throwing together some essays and/or informational pieces about "the weird side of Christmas" to submit to a paying magazine, Web site, etc.

Any ideas?

What is your personal narrative?

loiseau — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 07:13:33 -0800

Do you have any recommendations for solid creative non-fiction magazine columns or the like? I'm a writer and I really enjoy both reading and writing personal narratives like the NYT's "Modern Love" column or the Nerve "Personal Essays" section... the kind of thing which is sometimes called "creative non-fiction".

With a view to both finding new regular reads and finding new markets for my own writing, I'm looking for recommendations for this style of magazine writing, or anything you think is related and worth exploring. I'd prefer stuff I can read online for free, but I'm not particularly excited for Joe or Jane Blogger, unless they're professional and write in a more thoughtful memoir style, rather than this-is-what-my-kid-did-today.

Thank ye!

Writing biography or history

Tin Man — Thu, 18 May 2006 11:19:56 -0800

How would I write a biography or history book? The general idea seems like a fun one, but I'd have no idea where to start. First problem: picking a subject. Second problem: how do you do historical research into a person or topic? I have no idea how to begin something like this, even though I was a history major and have a law degree, both of which involved some research skills. It seems like a big undertaking, but it's something I'm curious about.

Favourite non-fiction?

reklaw — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 15:06:12 -0800

What's your favourite piece of non-fiction ever? For a class, I've been asked to find and analyse an example of a great piece of non-fictional writing, preferably from a book.

Now, I could have done this easily if it was fiction (I have a whole shelf full of fiction I love), but for non-fiction I'm drawing a big blank. What I'm looking for is something that isn't necessarily inherently interesting so much as very, very well-written.

So what should I be reading? Huge bonus points if it's online somewhere (maybe Project Gutenberg, for older stuff?). Thanks!

Writing Nonfiction, how does one organize it?

TwelveTwo — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 22:45:37 -0800

I think it would be a kick to write a nonfiction book. Any advice on how to organize one? To specify, I'm looking for both advice as well as any recommended books on the topic. Also, if people know of any books that are great examples of organization, that would also be a great help. But please, nothing about publication.

What is the professional life of a travel writer really like?

Irontom — Tue, 15 Jun 2004 15:00:54 -0800

Do we have any travel writers in the house? Is it really the life of glamour and ease that thetravelwriterslife.com claims?

Since I suspect it's not as easy as one might suppose after digesting that page, I have more questions: Can you tell me what it's like? How you got started? What kind of money you pull in? Any advice for a day-dreaming prisoner of "the man" who thinks he can write and wouldnt mind travelling more often than he does? Anything?