From Fluff to Facts: My Unexpected Journey into Non-Fiction Writing
How a Fiction Lover Learned to Embrace Research, Deadlines, and the Art of Straightforward Storytelling
If you know me, you know I love good fantasies, daydreams, and delusions—whatever you want to call them. My brain loves coming up with different stories and scenarios—sometimes to my own detriment, but I can’t help it. I love my imagination. I love creating stories in my mind and putting them on paper.
I love fiction.
I love writing it, reading it and getting lost in it. Non-fiction, though? I’ve never been a non-fiction girly. Non-fiction reminds me of school reading too much. And who likes school-mandated reading? I know I didn’t.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good biography or memoir, but those are like a once- or twice-a-year type of read. And while I’m an occasional reader of non-fiction, I never saw myself as someone who would one day write non-fiction, but when a friend gave me an excellent connection for work-for-hire contracts, I couldn’t pass it up.
Cut to me writing my first (of many) middle school grade non-fiction books. Here’s my journey from world-building writing to “you need a source for that” writing.
First, non-fiction writing is like writing a school paper; at least, it is to me it is.
So, you’re given a lot of instructions on what they want to see. They also give you the topic and word count, but you must do everything else… cough, cough, all the research. And anyone who knows me knows I don’t want to research a topic if I’m not interested in it.
And it wasn’t that I wasn’t interested in the topic given to me because I was; it was the fact that I had to research them, and everyone who knows me knows I don’t like being told what to do.
Writing these books was challenging, but more so because of personal reasons instead of the fact that they are nonfiction.
Now, the research part was easy. I found the women I wanted to write about and made an outline detailing the topics I wanted to highlight about them. I sent it to my editor and got feedback like don’t use that woman, or we think you should use this woman. Once that was squared away, the writing started.
Now, remember, I am a world-building type of writer, and non-fiction is about the facts. I thrive on imagination, fluff, and my voice. I was writing about the facts, but I was adding my spin to it, my voice. That is not what they wanted. My voice didn’t matter, which it shouldn’t have, but since I’m not a non-fiction writer, I didn’t realize that because fiction is all about the fluff in your voice.
They wanted the facts, no fluff! And I’m all about fluff! So, there was a bit of back-and-forth before the editing process could begin. Not to mention, I couldn’t stay within the word count limitation.
We finally got the copy the way they wanted, and then they hit me with editing! I thought I had already started the editing process about six drafts ago. The joke was on me; I hadn’t.
The editing process was brutal. I had to create a bibliography, which made it feel even more like school writing. I needed a source for every fact I put in the book. Even if it was a well-known fact, I needed a source. So, the editing process was longer than I expected it to be, but it was fun. It was fun removing the fluff from my writing and getting down to the facts. It was fun knowing I didn’t have to add more or embellish.
Over four months, I wrote two non-fiction middle school grade books. And yes, the second one was easier than the first because I knew what was expected of me, but when it was all said and done, I was like, that’s not for me. I don’t think I’ll do it again. I love fluff and my voice way too much.
But I lied. A year later, they asked me to write three more books, and I agreed. Don’t ask me why I said yes. I just did. Maybe I needed the money, or perhaps I liked non-fiction writing more than I thought. And that was it. I love writing. I genuinely believe I can write anything if I put my mind to it.
I ended up enjoying nonfiction writing. It’s easy, blunt, and straightforward. It’s about the facts, and as a Sagitaurris, I’m all about the facts.
As writers, we often box ourselves into one or two genres. But here’s what I’ve learned: try them all. You never know what you might enjoy—or what you’re capable of. Writing non-fiction pushed me out of my comfort zone, and while it’ll never replace my love for fiction, I’m glad I gave it a shot.
So, here’s my advice: embrace the unexpected. Even if it feels like a school assignment, you might surprise yourself.
