Making transition from non fiction to fiction

So what was you motivation for deciding to write fiction?

I have a Masters degree (and 20 years experience) in technical writing and instructional design, and I've had a non-fiction book published. Now I'm focusing on fiction. Yup, the transition is difficult, but it can be done.

I *do* recommend that you read fiction, though. If you don't read the genre you're writing in, how would you know whether what you're writing is fresh and appropriate for the market?

How do you define success?

bigreader65 said:

Seems like one can achieve a greater degree of success with fiction. I don't know of any non fiction that have reached the heights of say, harry potter or Hunger games.

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Given that very few of us end up in those shoes, I suggest you compare midlist. Non-fiction has many profitability advantages including that you can price it a lot higher and still sell well, and specialist knowledge easily gives you a leg up on the competition.

I write mainly fiction by preference. My one non-fiction book is my best earner as measured by profit per annum. By far.

bigreader65 said:

Right now success is defined as monetary first, and second to entertain the reader for awhile. I'd love to write simply to please myself, but that may not pay the bills.

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I'd suggest that monetary success is a product of entertaining readers, so aim for the entertainment (in a broad sense) first.

bigreader65 said:

In my teens I read countless fiction books - all of Stephen King's at that time, all of michael crichton, plus dozens of others. Problem is that was a very long time ago and none of it is clear in my mind. Hopefully the foundation of how it works is still with me.

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Sounds like the 80s? (Because those are the books that were popular when I was in my teens.) As painful as it is to say, that was nearly 30 years ago. The style of writing that they did then isn't the same as what's published now. Additionally, every genre has tropes and popular subjects. You need to know what is expected, what's overdone, what's considered passe.

bigreader65 said:

Right now success is defined as monetary first, and second to entertain the reader for awhile. I'd love to write simply to please myself, but that may not pay the bills.

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As one non-fiction writer who has made the transition to fiction, let me be the second to tell you this (after the poster above). One does not write fiction for money unless one is blessed with a saintly patience and an angelic work-ethic, and the luck of the Irish.

It is a very different kind of skill-set you need; language is just one bit of it. It is like… being a brick-layer who wants to move into sculpture production. Yes, both work in stone, and possibly even marble, but you certainly need different skills be successful in either field.

If your primary motivation is money, then I'd suggest the stock-market. You'll have far less hassle, and far fewer frustrations, to reach your primary goal. If money is your only motivation, then prepare to be frustrated and disappointed and poor.

bigreader65 said:

In my teens I read countless fiction books - all of Stephen King's at that time, all of michael crichton, plus dozens of others. Problem is that was a very long time ago and none of it is clear in my mind. Hopefully the foundation of how it works is still with me.

Right now success is defined as monetary first, and second to entertain the reader for awhile. I'd love to write simply to please myself, but that may not pay the bills.

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It's what you been reading since your teens that counts. It's never too late to start reading fiction, and to keep reading it until it soaks in.

Honestly, it's one heck of a lot easier to earn a good living writing nonfiction than it is writing fiction. Nonfiction not only sells extremely well, well enough to make a fair number of writers rich, there are far more nonfiction markets, and a far larger demand. But as with fiction, you have to write the kind of nonfiction that sells well.

I'm a firm believer in writing for money. Money is the primary reason I write. But I also believe in being realistic about it. Incredibly few fiction write even earn minimum wage, let alone earn a living, double let along get rich.

Even those who do manage to earn a living writing fiction usually put in a lot of years earning nothing before it happens.

Whether you write nonfiction or fiction, you have to have the talent, you have to have the knowledge, and you have to be ready to fail completely. Where writing is concerned, I don't believe in odds, and I don't believe in luck, but the fact remains that only a miniscule few have what it takes to even earn a scrape by living by writing fiction.

I'd also say that whether it's nonfiction or fiction, if you aren't writing for yourself, you probably aren't writing for readers, either. You're the one who has make it marketable, which means writing something YOU would want to read if someone else wrote it.

There isn't a thing in the world wrong with writing for money. There isn't a think in the world wrong with playing pro basketball for a living, either. Those who decide they' re going to write for money probably have about the same chance as those who want to play pro basketball for a living.

Still, I'm all for trying it. Just remember that you have to learn how to write fiction, just like a painter has to learn how to paint portraits. It's going to be hard at fist, and maybe always. You may have to write a dozen novels before you write one that's anywhere close to pro quality, if you ever do. Most do not.

The only answer is to read every bit of fiction you can get your hands on, sit down and write each and every day, and hope you have the talent and the dedication to see it through.

I've always found non-fiction so much easier to place than fiction; and one doesn't have to finish the book before pitching it, which is always good. Because if it doesn't sell you've not spent nearly so much time on it.

Also, if you're expecting your writing to bring in a good amount of money, think again.

UK Study Shows Precipitous Decline in Authors' Incomes

What they're saying. In order to write any type of thing well, you first have to be familiar with that type of thing as a reader.

So go out and read a whole bunch of fiction that's been published new in the last 10 years or so. That will give you a better handle on what type of fiction you want to write, and how currently successful writers construct it.

The main difference between fiction and "how to" non-fiction is that fiction isn't an instruction manual but a story. IOW, it's a whole different focus, with a different set of priorities and a different tool-kit. No reason you can't be good at both, but it may be hard work at first till you master your new skills.

And as others have pointed out, fiction is by no means the golden road to fame and fortune. For every one that wins the success lottery (for modest definitions of success), a thousand sink without a trace. If you don't really like fiction and want to write it for its own sake, don't waste your time.

bigreader65 said:

Anyone made the transition from non fiction to fiction?

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Working on it.

The issue with switching up is more mental than anything else. Pretty much, any good fiction writer writes because they have to. They have a story to tell. If you don't have a story, there's no reason to write it.

It does get easier the more you do it. But you might want to check the threads on favorite writing books and blogs and start doing some reading about the craft of writing. How to craft a character, a storyline, a fiction outline, a hero's quest and so on. Screenwriting books are helpful as well, it basically fiction for the eyes.

Good luck, and don't write any books that make agents choose you over me.

Jeff

WeaselFire said:

Working on it.

The issue with switching up is more mental than anything else. Pretty much, any good fiction writer writes because they have to. They have a story to tell. If you don't have a story, there's no reason to write it.



Jeff

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If yu don't have a story, you make one up. That's what fiction writers do. If people wrote because they had A story, they quit after one book or one short story.

And I doubt anyone "has" to write. I sure don't. I don't have a single writer friend who does, either. I doubt such a person exists.

Good fiction writers write because they enjoy reading, enjoy writing, and have the talent to take advantage of something they enjoy doing, or simply because it's a better way of earning money than digging ditches. No one is going to die, or cease to function, if they get put in circumstances that stop them from writing. People who think they "must" do something are usually living lives that are too comfortable. A lot of people out there live lives where the only thing they have to do is to find a way of keeping themselves and their children alive until tomorrow.

Non fiction writers also have the ability to become experts in their fields and develop a platform. I have never seen a fiction writer on the Daily Show or most other late night TV. (Colbert has had the winner of the Newbery.) Many writers who earn a living from their writing, earn that living through speaking engagements.

Fiction writers are only experts in their books and writing fiction (in terms of being invited to speak on a topic).

For these reasons, I'm considering making the transition the other direction.

Debbie V said:

Non fiction writers also have the ability to become experts in their fields and develop a platform. I have never seen a fiction writer on the Daily Show or most other late night TV. (Colbert has had the winner of the Newbery.) Many writers who earn a living from their writing, earn that living through speaking engagements.

Fiction writers are only experts in their books and writing fiction (in terms of being invited to speak on a topic).

For these reasons, I'm considering making the transition the other direction.

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None of that matches my experience. I've seen far more fiction writers on talk shows than fiction writers, probably five times as many. I don't know any fiction writer, not one, who earns a living, and even part of a living, trough speaking engagements. If you aren't already famous and well off as a fiction writer, no one is going to pay you enough to matter to come speak. And fiction wirters are just as much experts on all sorts of things as nonfiction writers. Often more so.

As for building a platform, fiction writers don't need a platform, and darned few nonfiction writers can build one that matters, anyway. Far more often than not, a nonfiction platform is something you're already an expert on, and you can't just transition to that, you have to go out and earn it, most often by getting a degree, and/or working in that filed extensively.

Sat Nam! (literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

Non-fic writer here, working on fiction. In my case, I'm in it for what I have to say, and sometimes stories say it better.

The main change I've noted is the level of detail. In non-fic, you go into exhaustive detail about ONE topic and skimp on everything else or don't mention it at all. In fiction, you world-build, even if what you're writing is based on real life planet earth. That means you have to put in a whole lot of detail that a non-fic person doesn't usually give the time of day. Things like, whether there's a table lamp next to the sofa or not...for the character to turn on at the appropriate moment.

As nearly everyone else says, it's easier to place and sell non-fic. Don't set your heart on money if it's fiction you want to write. Set your heart on writing a good story and let the money follow if it will.

Otherwise, play the stock market, buy investment property, etc.

Blessings,

Siri Kirpal

Huh...have you read Farmer in the Sky?

I think that's the sort of book you should possibly consider when going from non to fiction. It's a highly detailed science fiction book, which does a lot of explaining about how space and settling wild planets works. While your knowledge might not be in this area, you can still use the knowledge that you have to create a fiction that makes your readers feel smarter, or perhaps use it to create a fictional society whose culture rests on what you know.

Basically, try science fiction. Or maybe a story about guys in your profession, I suppose.

I made this jump. I wrote non fiction for many years -- presentations, memos, chapters of books, books, etc. I also ghost wrote non fiction for other people.
Now I do both. As you have already discovered, they are a different animal.
One skill that you probably have that will serve you well: planning. Laying out the story/message will come easier to you.

As you have probably discovered, there are many different approaches to writing. Some people use a simple summary of the plot, others use detailed chapter outlines. Each to their own. But if you do decide to go with the detailed approach, you can likely use the same overall approach you used in non fiction.

One thing that may be difficult in the transition: non fiction writers, especially technical writers, often have more experience with a linear timetable (this happens, then that happens). You might want to experiment with breaking out of that from time to time if that is how you write.

I agree with what others have said. You need to read more fiction, especially in your genre. That being said, even someone who is writing mystery or fantasy can learn from great writers like Barbara Kingsolver.

I'm juggling both fiction and non-fiction right now. I began with fiction, writing short stories. Gradually increased to novellas, then novels. Then I started writing short articles for a mental health newsletter and stuff for my sewing blog/website. In time, I realized I was actually good at explaining the basics to newbies, so I started selling sewing tutorials to online trade journals. Now I write both novels and magazine articles, along with a non-fiction book I'm working on. I've heard it can be difficult to switch back and forth between fiction and non-fiction, but I've never had much trouble. I just read a little of what I wrote previously, then pick up where I left off.

That said, fiction and non-fiction are very different crafts. To use a musical analogy, perhaps one is like playing the piano, while the other is like the violin. Both are music, yes, so many of the elements are the same, but at the same time, playing the violin is quite different from playing the piano.

With writing, grammar and punctuation tends to be the same, although style rules may be different. But if you're switching to fiction, you have to master dialogue, characterization, description, plotting, subplotting, conflict, pacing, foreshadowing, etc., things that are non-existent in non-fiction. I would suggest reading, not only current novels in your genre of choice, but also some books on the above-mentioned topics. Here's a few of my favorites, just to get you started.

Dialogue
Characters, Emotion, & Viewpoint
Plot & Structure
Description
Thanks, But This Isn't For Us
The First Five Pages
Your First Novel

Practice.

I've made the same transition. I wrote about sports for sites such as Bleacher Report and Yahoo. I got tired of crap writing getting huge web hits and went off on my own.

Since you have had stuff published, start drawing ideas from there and incorporate them into plausible stories. Write about what you know.

You have two advantages over a completely new fiction writer. You know how to research and you know how to produce under pressure.

Read. (I need to do more of that.)

More importantly, write. Take whatever is in your head and create. Flesh things out as you go. Characters and plots develop when you fill the page.

Absorb what people on this board say. Of all the writer boards I've glanced at, this is the first one I signed up for. I was struck by how honest they are here.