There’s a difference between writing fiction and non-fiction. I have learnt it over the years while writing both fiction in the form of poems, stories, novels, etc. and non-fiction in the form of articles, white papers, brochures, websites, books, etc. and other marketing materials.
When you write fiction:-
1. You need to create something unique, something different from the rest and something with twists and turns. I normally write my fiction story, first and I figure out my audience after I write the story.
2. You also need to build suspense, where you reveal everything at, or near the end. This is how you hook the reader in here, by creating suspense, as that’s what the reader expects here – to be entertained and made to go through a wonderful journey.
3. At the end, a moral is added to let the readers know what all this means and how the lesson learnt here can help them too. Sometimes it’s left as it is so that the reader can use their imagination.
When you write non-fiction:-
1. When you write non-fiction, you always write for a target audience. You want to write for someone after you find out; what they like, what they enjoy doing, and how the article or book or other marketing material you are planning to write, will help them.
2. Here you also reveal everything right at the beginning, either in the headline or in the first line, as you want to hook the reader in right away. This is because, unlike reading fiction, reading articles and marketing material is normally not entertaining and not planned and you want the reader to find your writing interesting and helpful right away.
The not so beneficial parts can be revealed later (after they get engrossed) in the writing, as this is not what the reader is looking forward to.
3. Non-fiction writing especially marketing material normally ends with a call to action, asking the reader to do something – this could be to buy something or download something or get a free coupon, etc.
These are the main differences between writing fiction and non-fiction. While writing fiction and non-fiction you need to keep these factors in mind and make sure you write them the right way.
Do you write fiction, non-fiction or both? Have you got any tips you would like to share with us? Do you know any other differences? Please share them with us in the comments box below?
One of the keys to a great story is the characters in it. The more unforgettable your characters are the longer they will stick in your readers mind and the more they will be talked about. You need to have several unforgettable characters in a story. It’s not just enough if you have one or two, almost all the important characters in your story need to have deep personalities. Your readers should be able to get to know them and understand them and feel the same emotions and feelings they feel while they read your story.
