How To

GCG’S SPECIAL OFFER FOR AUTHORS OF HOW-TO BOOKS:

100 fliers FREE with your order of one hundred or more perfect bound books. Mention the code WEB FOR HOW to your Publishing Consultant when you place your order. The 5.5 x 8.5 flier will consist of your book cover on the front, an excerpt (of your choosing) from your book on the inside left page and an order form on the inside right hand page and your book’s back cover on the back page of the flier.

How can I do what you are doing?

dreamstime_xs_17585798#2C6F

That is the essence of what your reader is looking for in your How-To book. Clarity and organization are the hallmarks of a good How-To book. When diagrams and illustrations are used they should be clean, clear and understandable. Photos are sometimes a better option. Additional resources in the bibliography or resource page that point your readers toward more information may add to the credibility of your book.

How-To books are as popular as the need they address. Are there a lot of people who want to know what you know how to do?

“How To Win Friends And Influence People” is a perennial top seller.

“Teaching your Toddler to Bowl” might not have such a universal an appeal. Defining your potential readers, how many there are likely to be and the best methods to reach those readers with information about your book is a good way to decide how many books you want to print.

HELPFUL HINTS FOR AUTHORS OF HOW-TO BOOKS:

-Decide early on if you will use illustrations or photographs to show how a particular procedure should be done. These may have to be done and redone in order to get the clearest demonstration, so build in the time to get it right.

-Consider whether you will need a glossary of terms that might be unfamiliar to the reader or use an occasional footnote to explain the term.

-Your chapter titles should be clear and memorable, making it easy for the reader to reference the particular part of the process that they may need.

-If your book is intended as a step-by-step guide to doing something physical (how make paper for instance) consider a coil binding that will make using it this way easier.

-Make sure that your cover clearly conveys what kind of book you have written so that the reader’s expectation is fulfilled. Quilting for Beginners is not the same thing as Create a Classic Heirloom Quilt. Let your cover guide the reader to choose the right book.