Make Your Own Nonfiction Book
Maybe you’re not so much about telling stories as sharing knowledge. Whether you want to make a self-help book, a manual, or a history textbook, self-publishing is the ideal method of sharing your particular expertise with the world. Below, we’ve included the specifications for our favourite nonfiction book layout – feel free to use them if you’re having trouble deciding on your book’s format!
Template Ideas
Classic textbook
Channel the innate authority of a classic textbook to share your knowledge with people. This template is pricey to make and ship, but it has the gravitas of an encyclopedia.
Professional
A respectable, no-nonsense template. More portable than a hardcover, whilst the larger-than-average size still makes it an imposing presence on the shelf.
Efficient
A template designed to strike the perfect balance between portability and readability, whilst minimizing shipping costs and maximizing your profit margins.
Nonfiction Cover Ideas
Nonfiction covers will of course vary a lot depending on the subject matter. But you know that already. As usual, we recommend checking out books similar to yours to get a sense of what the general aesthetic is like.
Of course, your main goal with a non-fiction cover is to clearly communicate exactly what type of knowledge you’re offering potential readers. It’s probably also a good idea to hint at how you’re going to communicate this. Is it going to be traditional, serious, and by the book, or are you going to take a more unorthodox approach?
Motivational
If you ever hang around the self-help book section, you’ll have seen how a huge number of them have covers consisting of bright colours, bold fonts, and even bolder statements.
These covers usually cut straight to the chase and try addressing a problem that potential readers might have. Another strategy common with these books is having a very edgy title that demands attention by virtue of its word choices (e.g. ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck’).
Narrative
For nonfiction books that still involve some sort of narrative, like history, a case study, or even a biology book focusing on a specific animal, you might want to go with a cover that has some dramatic flair.
This might help you attract readers who aren’t specifically looking for a book on your topic but are intrigued by the way in which you present it. Of course, if you’re writing within a niche academic subject and know your readership, then do whatever you want!
Business
Sometimes, no-nonsense facts and logic are what people are looking for in a book. Whether it’s something like a manual, conveying precise instructions, or a maths book that doesn’t leave much open to interpretation, it’s a valid choice for many authors.
Fortunately, this is something that can easily be communicated with a good cover. While this type of book is probably the one least dependent on its cover to reach the right audience, it never hurts to put some effort into making it look good.
You can also get helpful tips on formatting your manuscript and designing your cover on our blog!
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