Make Sure Your Nonfiction Book Will Be Read

Your first step in creating a book proposal is to ask yourself the same questions an editor would ask:

Is this book needed? In broad terms, readers seek instruction, information and entertainment (and ideally some combination of all three).

If the book is needed, can you quickly appeal to that need? In other words, will a reader be able to glance at the book and quickly realize, "I need that" or "I'm interested in that"?
How many people are interested in the topic? Does your idea appeal to a wide national or special-interest readership?

Of the people interested in the topic, how many would naturally seek information about the topic in book form? For some topics, books provide a natural format—cookbooks, biographies and so on. For others, people might first turn to other information sources—television, in-person advice from clubs, etc.

Is the subject matter "big" enough to warrant full-length book treatment, or would it work better as an article or a booklet?

Can the book be produced economically? For example, large-format, full-color hardcover books are expensive to produce.

By answering these questions, you will better be able to "picture" your project as a needed, compelling, potentially profitable