How-To Writing: From Inspiration to Publication
How-to books may seem matter-of-fact, but they can be some of the most inspiring projects to work on because they are born from our favorite hobbies and our secret obsessions. Inspiration can come from anywhere: a flower in your garden; a birthday card from your grandmother; the design on an antique tea-pot. Learn how to mold that wisp of an idea into a concrete project that is ready to submit to a publisher.
Where to find inspiration and ideas
Keep a file - paper or digital - to keep track of ideas as they come to you
Inspiration is nice, but not necessary
Ideas may come from anywhere:
- Assignments and jobs
- Suggestions from friends, editors, or agents
- Books and articles by other authors
- Topics that dont fit into current projects but are intriguing
- Anything and everything, keep your eyes open in stores, on hikes, at the office, etc.
How to tell if an idea is best for an article or a book
- Complexity
- Length
- Have you read articles on your topic? Did they seem shallow given the potential depth of the topic?
- Is there a large enough audience for the level of detail in a book?
Where to find information to flesh out your idea
- Internet - searches, discussion groups, online publications
- Library - dont forget about interlibrary loan
- Bibliographies - what sources are listed in related articles and books?
- Interviews - Friends, colleagues, experts in the field you are exploring
- Field trips - dont get carried away at this early stage, but satisfy your own curiosity
How to know when youre ready to submit a query
- Can you describe your idea in 1 or 2 sentences?
- Do you have a clear, concise outline of topics or chapters?
- Do you have a good lead, or introduction, to catch the attention of editors and agents?
- Are all of the obvious questions answered?
- Do you have all of the material required by the publisher or agent youd like to work with? Check their guidelines carefully.
- If youre writing a book, make sure your proposal is finished before you send out queries so you are ready for a yes answer!
Tips for writing clear and concise instructions
The heart of how-to writing is the step-by-step instructions for completing a task. While the introduction, background, history, and other topics in a book or article can be fascinating and fun to write, you cant succeed at how-to writing if your reader cant follow your directions.
I have not found any books specifically about how-to writing. General guidelines for good writing apply to writing instructions. The techniques of technical writing, usually focused on computer or software manuals, also apply to writing low-tech instructions such as cookbooks, crafts books, and do-it-yourself guides for homeowners.
Reference: The Fine Art of Technical Writing by Carol Rosenblum Perry (Blue Heron Publishing, Inc.) This basic book covers the topics above in more detail. Some chapters may seem elementary to experienced writers, but the author does a very good job discussing the organization, consistency, and structure required for good how-to writing.
Four keys to writing successful instructions
1. Clear, simple writing.
Keep the instructions simple and pared down to the skeleton. Save any background information for the introduction, an appendix, or a separate chapter.
2. A thorough understanding of the task or procedure.
You must know everything about the task you are trying to explain, down to the minute details or you risk the possibility of leaving out important steps. For best results, do what ever you are trying to explain and write down each step as you go. Dont trust your own memory. If you get stuck, try explaining the task to a friend by phone or email.
3. Your ability to put yourself in the place of the reader.
Imagine that you have just purchased a book or magazine with your project included. What do you already know? What are you expecting to learn? What materials would you already have on hand? How much advanced preparation would you be willing to go through to complete this project?
4. Willingness to test your instructions on readers of varying skill levels.
Dont assume that because you, or other experts, can follow your directions that a beginner will also be successful.
Three steps to prepare for writing
1. Get to know your audience.
What is the level of knowledge of the intended audience? What is their situation - is this information something they need for their job, or something theyll use for a hobby? Information or steps that may seem obvious to experts are not obvious to beginners.
2. Organize your material.
Will you present separate projects with step-by-step directions, explain individual techniques, or describe the parts of a piece of equipment? Have you chosen the organization best suited to the needs of your readers?
3. Outline, outline, outline.
List the projects, techniques, and procedures you will explain. Perform each task and list all of the materials, steps, and pre-requisites.
Consistency is key
Use parallel structure and consistent formatting. Visual organization is almost as important as the words. You cant depend on your publishers art department to organize your material for you. Write your instructions so they naturally flow into the correct structure.
Terminology
Dont be sloppy with terminology. While it is sometimes considered poor form to use the same word many times in general writing, it is very important to be consistent in how-to writing. Define any new or unusual terms the first time they are used or in a glossary, and dont vary from those terms.
Tables
Use tables to organize reference information. Brevity is key. No sentences here, just list the relevant information in rows and columns. If you need more text, use a list instead. The heading examples below are organized in a table.
Warnings and notes
Safety should be first priority in all how-to writing. If your projects or procedures have any chance for personal injury or property damage, make sure you include clear and highly visible warning notices. Talk to your publisher to find out if they have any legal requirements or guidelines for dealing with potentially dangerous equipment or procedures.
Headings
Use parallel construction and capitalization in each level of heading. Pay careful attention to levels of headings and nested information. Use headings to break down larger chunks of information into smaller modules.
Examples of Heading Constructions for a Knitting Book - first level heads the same in all, second level heads vary in structure:
How To
- How to make a slip knot
- How to cast on
- How to knit
- How to purl
- How to sew a sweater
- How to weave in ends
Gerund
- Making a slip knot
- Casting on
- Knitting
- Purling
- Sewing seams
- Weaving in ends
Imperative
- Make a slip knot
- Cast on
- Knit one row
- Purl one row
- Assemble the sweater
- Weave in the ends
List
- Slip knots
- The cable cast on
- The knit stitch
- The purl stitch
- Seam techniques
- Yarn ends
Task overviews
Provide an overview of each task before the detailed instructions. The overview may describe the purpose of the task, explain how it fits into a larger task, or introduce new terms and tools used in the task. Include any personal notes, tips, and interesting tidbits in the introduction to each task. Keep this information in a separate paragraph from the main overview.
Steps
Make the steps for completing each task as concise as possible. Break down steps into individual components. Dont clump too much information into one step.
Lists
Make instructions easy to scan by using lists. Used numbered lists for sequential steps. Bullet lists are best when the order of items is not critical. This document uses both.
Illustrations
Some of us learn best from text, others from pictures, still others from hands-on experimentation. Include enough information in different formats to meet the needs of all types of learners.
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These notes are from a presentation I gave at the 2003 Women Writing the West Annual Conference. I quickly converted this from Word to HTML, so please excuse me if some of the formatting did not convert properly.
