How The Best Selling Authors Choose Topic and Title Of Their Book
Sample of a best selling book
One book that really fascinated me and in that matter millions of people around the globe is the book by Robert T. Kiyosaki’s, the international best seller, If You Want To Be Rich and Happy, Don’t Go To School. I am not so concern about the content of the book which is more about gearing yourself up on your journey to financial freedom. I am pretty much concern about the way Robert designed the title of his book. It indeed is meant to be controversial yet instantly rewarding the reader with an audacious promise. Two lessons emerge from this book. First is the topic under which he has written his book and secondly the title itself. We closely observe the topic and title and see how you can design your own title.
Choosing Your Topic
Choosing a topic that you are either very knowledgeable or passionate about is key to creating a book that will be informative and profitable. But you also want to take into account your target market before you even begin to write. Publishing your book first and later identifying the target market is like trying to fit a square block into a round hole. Decide what niche you want to target, identify their needs, and base the topic of your book on those facets.
In my experience, non-fiction books that are bound to sell well are the ones that you write NOT for your own publication pleasure or satisfaction but the ones you write because many other people are looking for that information. Because they demand it, they will buy it. It’s as simple as that and the Economic Law of Demand and Supply perfectly fits in this scenario.
I have been writing for a Californian based self-publishing site called Hubpages for two years for three reasons. First is for publicity, second is for income and third is for pleasure. I have been publishing in a diverse market simply to see the feedback and work backwards to find a niche or topic that I am passionate about and that many people demand and so create a good market potential. Years of sleepless nights and hours or sitting in front of the screen rewarded me greatly. I have invested time into studying the global information market and my discovery is exciting. Listed below are topics which have greater market potential given the viral nature on internet and highly sophisticated marketing devices and strategies used in this century.
Highly Demanded Topics
· Making Money (Wealth creation)
· Sex (Dos and DONTs, how to attract opposite sex)
· Leadership Skills (Business, religious and political leadership)
· Relationship Advice (dating and marriage and relationship break ups)
· Religion
· Technology (Latest gadgets or devices that makes life easy)
· Health and Personal Development (Body, mind and spirit)
Many best-selling nonfiction books may fall under one or two of these topics. You will find that my first instant best-seller Maximizing Your Personal Confidence and Motivation-For Unlimited Success falls under personal development which is a highly sought at topic. Look at Robert Kiyosaki’s If You Want To Be Rich and Happy, Don’t Go To School or my favorite one Rich Dad Poor Dad. These books fall under Money or Wealth creation which is very highly sought after information in the whole world. So they sold out like hot cakes. John C, Maxwell’s Leadership book 21 Irrefutable Rules of Leadership as well Stephan R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of highly Effective People also became all-time best sellers. Dr. Myles Munroe’s books which are mixture of scriptural and leadership skills are instant best sellers. And there are millions of books that have hit best seller list under those topics listed above.
Ok. Ian. What about million other books that are written under the same topic as I choose? This is a question I often get asked in my business seminars. My answer is simple. Be Different. How? Let’s start with the title of your book.
Crafting Your Title
When Robert Kiyosaki first came out with his book If You Want To Be Rich and Happy, Don’t Go To School, a publisher suggested he change his title to The Economics of Education.
Compare these two titles;
Title 1: If You Want To Be Rich and Happy, Don’t Go To School
Title 2: The Economics of Education
Some questions to ponder
· What title makes you go woh!…Can this be true?
· What title gives you answers you are seeking before you even complete reading the book?
· What title promises you something?
Obviously title 1 is more exciting as it already gives you an answer even before you complete the book and it even promised you that if you want to be rich and happy, don’t go to school. It has what I call the ‘woh factor’. Titl1 sells itself.
Title 2 leaves us all confused as we have to understand two different things. The Economics and then Education in order to tie economics to education and see a holistic picture. The title isn’t bad but it lacks the ‘woh factor’ as I always say in my business seminars. Title one may appeal to a wider audience and stand better chance of selling out more whilst title 2 maybe highly relevant to academics and student of education and economics degree in colleges. Unless you already have million dollars in your account, you can travel the world to convince all the academics as well as education and economics students to buy your book and make it hit the best sellers list.
It your product lacks the ‘woh factor’; you may end up selling less of or even nothing. The ‘woh factor’ is the feeling of excitement or even bliss someone feels when something instantly capture his or her attention. We go woh! That’s fantastic. Or woh! That’s brilliant. Or woh! I am flattered.
Psychologists call it ‘Ha-ha’ experience. “Ha-ha, I’ve done it”. Or “Ha-ha, I’ve found it”. King of South African Reggae music, the late Lucky Dube, describe it in a song as ‘feeling irie’. In tok pisin, a common language of command in Papua New guinea, it is described as ‘Bel Kirap’….Seen, felt and described in difference ways but all refer to the excitement caused by seeing something appealing to either one or few of the five human senses; see, touch, feel, hear and smell.
Title is the first thing the readers read about your book. Therefore it must sell itself instantly to the prospective buyer. You maybe be asking “So how do I do that?” I’ll show you a simple yet powerful formulae soon enough. There is no way to measure how much profit is directly attributable to the creative title, but it’s safe to say the eye-catching title may draw at least a few people or even more in to take a closer look at your book. It is logical that the more people you draw in to look at your book, you have better chance to sell more copies of your book. The book market is a competitive one, so your title should stand out from the rest if you want to hit the best-selling list and reap greater rewards of fame, wealth and legacy.
Trick to craft an eye catchy title
Over the years I have written and published online as a professional freelance writer and with the feedback I get from my readers, I have devised a simple, yet powerful formulae to write catchy article titles. I use the same formulae to write title of my ebook How To Earn $10 Daily in Hubpages and in less than 3 months sold 600 copies alone in Papua New Guinea at a cost of $8 per copy. The book is still selling best in Papua New Guinea and I will soon get it sold at Amazon.com, which is the biggest online retailer in the world.
You may find the tricks fully discussed in this hub. Craft Your Title To Stand Out Among Others.
Hope You learn some simple tricks here.
Ending remarks
This is an piece from my soon to be published book Write Your Way To Fame, Wealth and Legacy...The book discusses four stages in writing but then goes on to marketing your book and then investing your earned income into passive and portfolion income. Its more than just a writing book, its a business or rather wealth creation pathway the book reveals.