Non-fiction writing will give you leverage, clarity of thought, and human connection.
Which things to write about? Here are some approaches to presenting your ideas in a first draft. Focus on:
- Counter-intuitive
- Counter-narrative
- Shock and awe
- Elegant articulations
- Make someone feel seen
Then you rewrite to amplify resonance for the reader. Stories/analogies/examples/using an authentic voice
You can incorporate a hook in the intro. A good introduction should accomplish the following:
- Establishing a shared context
- Surface a problem and what’s at stake
- Explore the problem’s significance
- Tease a clever solution
It’s more efficient to speedrun through a bad first draft and improve it later than to try starting from completion. It’s normal if few ideas come to mind immediately. You’ll discover that the majority of your ideas arrive while writing—not before. You write in order to think.
So don’t assume you’ll have the full picture when starting. Just by getting started you will identify many gaps and new ideas!
Try these two questions to get unstuck:
- How can I make this point more convincing?
- What are the interesting implications of what I just said?
In the rewriting process he emphasizes writing simply. If you write simply you cannot hide lack of ideas behind complicated words. One key idea per sentence.
First rewrite for clarity, then succinctness. Aim for a high Signal versus noise ratio. You can try doing verbal summaries of paragraphs, or ask a friend to read your draft and summarise it verbally.