Nonfiction done well changes a reader’s thinking and shows them your big, original brain.
If you want to sell this kind of work to a publisher, you don’t even need a finished manuscript, but you do need a smart proposal. A good one shows the editor what kind of thinker you are, not just what the book is “about.” You lay out the shape of the project, the argument, what’s new or urgent about it, and who’s going to read it. You have to understand who actually needs this book and why they’re looking for it now. Editors aren’t looking for expertise alone. They’re looking for sharp perspective—an idea that lives beyond the page, that gets talked about over dinner or brought up in a meeting six months after publication. If your book can do that, they’ll be interested.
You can write a book that carries weight and choose not to sell it to a press. You can self-publish. You can release it on your own terms, at your own pace, and still have it reach exactly who it needs to. You can build your authority by being specific, by staying visible, and by saying something nobody else is saying. Publishing it yourself doesn’t lessen its power. What matters is whether you’re saying something worth reading. Whether you’ve done the thinking. Whether the book earns its place.
Writing nonfiction to establish authority is a long game. You don’t rush it to have something to sell. You figure out what you know and then you put it in the kind of structure that lets someone else walk in, look around, and leave changed.
If you're serious about writing a nonfiction book but aren't sure where to begin—or whether to self-publish or go the traditional route—I offer one-on-one advising. I work with seven-figure entrepreneurs and CEOs, the kinds of people who’ve built recognizable platforms and want to add to their influence. I also work with people who’ve never shared their story out loud but know it’s time. If that’s you, book a call. We’ll talk about where you are, where you want to go, and how to get there.
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