what is presentation novel

How to Write a Presentation of a Book

How to Write an Eighth Grade Book Report

Book presentations are a staple of the educational process. Book reports and presentations help show that you comprehended the book and can apply that knowledge in a constructive way. Writing a book presentation requires an understanding of basic grammar and writing rules while also giving you some creative freedom in how you want to tackle the subject matter. Writing book presentations is likely something you'll have to do multiple times during your educational career.

Read the book you're writing the presentation on from cover-to-cover. Don't rely on abbreviated notes or other people's summaries of the story because you'll miss out on both the author's own voice as well as possibly vital story points.

Pick an approach for your presentation. If you will actually be discussing the book in front of the class, you can write a presentation in first-person perspective as a character from the book. A more traditional approach is a third-person narrative so you can discuss the story, characters and author from a more neutral viewpoint.

Write a brief overview of the book and discuss any importance it has to history or to culture. Include the year it was published, number of pages and what genre the book falls under.

Describe each of the main characters in the book and talk about how each influences the story.

Provide an explanation of your perceptions and thoughts regarding the book. While the rest of your presentation may be in third-person, you can usually write this section in first-person since you are discussing your own specific thoughts and feelings.

Conclude the presentation with a closing paragraph discussing the most important lessons learned from the book and what you think the most important message is that you gained from it.

• Some book presentation assignments will have very specific requirements regarding structure and style. Review the criteria thoroughly before starting your presentation to ensure you will be in compliance with all requirements.

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Michael Davidson started writing screenplays in 2003 and has had a screenplay professionally produced. He has also studied martial arts since 1990 and has worked as a licensed security specialist. Davidson has written articles for various websites. He is a graduate of Michigan State University and holds a Bachelor of Arts in advertising.

How to make a book presentation

When it comes to promoting and selling your publication, book presentations play a major part. Are you interested in finding more about how to create a well-structured presentation ? Luckily, you landed on the right page. This article helps you understand the process behind making a successful presentation in Flipsnack. Just keep in mind the next steps we’re going to debate and enjoy the process. So, to cut a long story short here are 5 useful tips on how to make a book presentation:

• Select a book. Decide on what book you want to make a presentation .
• Collect information. Make a research about the author’s biography, reviews, and other books.
• Start designing the page layouts. Flipsnack offers a fantastic online editor.
• Add interactive elements. Integrate video, captions, hyperlinks, and other interactive elements in your design.
• Download or publish it online. Display your book presentation publicly or private.

I was recently asked to design a book promo in both Indesign and Flipsnack, to show publishers how well Flipsnack works for them. I chose one of my favorite authors, Donald Miller.

About Donald Miller

This book presentation is focused on the work of Donald Miller, who usually writes about his life experience and his struggles, in a friendly way. His stories inspire people to fall in love with life and to live it at the highest level. He is better known for the New York Times Best Sellers: “Blue like Jazz”, “Million Miles in a Thousand Years”, but he’s written many other great books. I encourage you to read them.

His most recent publication is Scary Close, and it is the main focus of my book presentation .

Below you can see what I designed.

Because I like how the project turned out, I thought I should give you some tips on how you can make similar book promos.

Using Flipsnack for a book presentation

Flipsnack is a complex tool for creating brochures, newspapers, magazines, and books. Whether you are a professional designer or a high schooler the process of ‘“ how to make a book presentation”  has never been easier. You just have to select a template or create the presentation from scratch, choose the page layouts, to arrange the text and images on the page, add the photos and make it a flipbook . Then publish it and share it on social media or via email with your wide audience. With the help of Flipsnack you’ll be an expert at designing fabulous academic presentations in no time.

What should a book presentation contain?

There is some important information that every book catalog or book promo should contain.  It should present some interesting info that will entice the reader to buy the book. The content shouldn’t be too long or too short. Here are some ideas of what could be included in a book promo:

• Book presentation
• Main characters description
• Other books
• Interview with the author

Conclude the presentation with a closing paragraph sharing the most important lessons learned from the book and what you consider the most important message that you drew out from it.

Nowadays visual marketing is very important, so try to turn your book presentation into something beautiful, fascinating, with a design that matches the writer’s style.

How to integrate interactive elements in your design

When you design a publication in Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, etc. reserve some white space for the interactive elements. Make interactivity a part of your design, and you’ll be surprised of what a big improvement it will bring to your project.

These text blurbs are great for highlighting quotes, for additional information, or for short descriptions. I used captions in the biography section to add some information about Donald Miller’s photos.

What is so great about captions is that you can use them to bring more color and contrast to your designs. Captions will also help you save space, by not revealing all text at once. This way, your design will have room to breathe.

Readers will love to click on captions to see what they reveal. The caption has that element of surprise, that we all love.     

For the book presentation I chose a video tag, through which readers can watch an interview with Miller about his new book “Scary Close”. Tags are a great tool for adding videos or images to a design, because they are small and you can place them anywhere on the page. Just like captions, you can use them to de-clutter a design, prevent visual noise, while keeping all the needed information on the page. To catch the readers’ eyes, tags use a subtle blinking effect.

“Buy This” Button

If you’re showcasing other books of the author you should make it easy for readers to buy them. You can do that by just adding some buy buttons . Insert the Amazon URL, (or any other URL for that matter) and with just one click the user will be able to buy it.

Buy buttons are very easy to use and they are very practical. They can help you sell, and that is the ultimate goal of any book catalog or book presentation.  

Video Widget

After you read some paragraphs of an interview you probably become curious about how the writer would say those things. You don’t have to search for videos on Youtube, because with the video widget you can have it play right there on your page. You just have to reserve some space in your design for this. You will not regret it.

This is how you can use Flipsnack to create a digital book or interactive experience for readers, which will make them interested in buying the book. Also if you are searching for a platform with a good reputation to sell your work, Flipsnack is the right place for you. Now you can sell and publish your publication in no time. The first step when setting your work for sale is to connect your Flipsnack account with Stripe. The second step is to set a price for the publication. Usually, the price of a digital magazine varies between $3 – $6, depending on the page number of the publication and then c hoose the right preview pages. Make sure the pages included in your preview edition share enough information, so your readers are attracted to purchase it.

After you set your publication for sale, you can find the statistics in the Stats section in your account. With the help of Flipsnack reaching readers from all over the globe has never been easier! Learn more about how to sell your digital magazines here!

All of my books are taken from Jewish sources. My writing is taken from the Sages who shapes the Jewish people in the past through today.

That was cool thing about a books

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7 Tips to Write a Killer Book Presentation

Jul 11, 2020 | Marketing , My friends' Guest Posts

Sometimes, a book you have written draws enough attention that you are asked to speak about it to an audience. You may be asked to present as a subject expert, talk about your material at a conference or convention, present at a book fair , or give a quick presentation as part of a book signing.

As they say, more people are afraid of public speaking than of death. Which means that most people would prefer being in a casket than giving the obituary.

And now, you’re going to be in front of an audience discussing your written work. For many writers, this is a daunting task, to put it mildly.

What public speaking feels like for most people

Still, with a bit of planning your presentation can be impactful and successful. In fact, as you prepare to make your presentation, you may find that your writing skills are quite useful. You can leverage those skills by following these seven tips to write a killer book presentation.

1. Use Your Storytelling Skills

The people attending your presentation want to know the story behind your book. What motivated you to write it? What was the inspiration behind the characters? Is the book inspired by real-life events? Is there a specific message you are trying to send? How do you go about writing?

That’s a lot of great information to share, but if you give your audience a laundry list of factoids about your book and writing, you’ll likely bore them to tears. Instead, use your writing skills to tell the story of the book . Weave in the most important details in a way that keeps your audience engaged.

Oh, and if you have an upcoming book that’s related to your current one? Weave a bit of a teaser for your new book into your presentation.

2. Add Visuals

Every good presentation has visuals. First, you’ll add an interesting element to your presentation. Visuals make your presentation more engaging . You’ll keep the interest of the visual learners in your audience, and better illustrate the points you are making.

3. Learn About Your Audience

Before you prepare your presentation, consider your audience . First, who are they? What is their demographic? Why are they coming to see you? Is there a particular message you are expected to communicate with them? Are there any questions that you should plan on answering in your presentation? What is it that you want them to take away from the event?

Remember that no presentation should be an exercise in self-indulgence . Your goal should be to meet your audience’s needs by giving them the presentation they are interested in listening to.

4. Write a Presentation That Matches Your Personality

Here’s a bit of a conundrum. You want to cater to your audience, as mentioned above. On the other hand, you also want to be genuine. Your content should interest your audience, but you shouldn’t have to put on a mask to do that .

As a writer, you have your own unique personality. You have a unique voice. Remember, you are presenting yourself. There’s no need to put on a fake persona to do your presentation . This is true, even if your presentation style seems to contradict with the personality of your book.

Instead, consider carefully your personality and demeanor. Then, write a presentation where your true self is an asset to that presentation rather than a distractor. Believe it or not, many seasoned writers find this a challenge. You may need the assistance of a professional editor and proofreader to help you present your true voice. Before you select a professional to help you, though, take a look at online editing services reviews so you make the right choice.

If your personality is a bit on the introverted side, delivering a presentation may feel intimidating. However, it may be easier than you realize. There’s something comfortable about immersing yourself into something you know better than anybody else. You have mastered your own written work. Nobody can interpret it or tell the story behind it as you can. Those facts alone may be enough to help you feel comfortable giving a presentation.

5. Use Action Words

You already know that small changes in your writing can change its impact significantly. For example, it’s more impactful to use a strong verb than an adverb. That’s why the sentence, “He ran out the door very quickly” is not half as effective as, “He bolted out the door.” It’s also why words like victorious, enraged, devastated, embittered, and bubbly help readers visualize your story better than happy, sad, or angry.

The same concept applies to your presentation . Choose verbs over adverbs almost every time you can. Rethink your adjectives. When possible, choose words that most closely describe the moment. Avoid adjectives that can be applied generically to a wide range of situations. For example, the word “happy” could be used to describe somebody who found out that can green beans are on sale. It can also be used to describe somebody who just witnessed the birth of their first child. In the second example, however, the word happy is just insipid.

Finally, use the present tense whenever possible as you write your presentation. When you describe what happens in your book, you want your audience to be in the moment. One rule of thumb to follow is that, if it happened in the present tense in the book, it should happen in the present tense in your presentation.

6. Get Inspiration From Great Presenters And Authors

You won’t be the first author to stand in front of a group for a presentation or question-and-answer session. Many people have done this before. That’s a good thing because you have a wealth of examples to draw from for inspiration. One of the best ways to prepare for your presentation is to watch similar presentations from other authors. The goal isn’t to copy what you see. Instead, it’s to look for elements that make each presentation more engaging and allow the presenter to make an emotional connection with the audience.

Here, the key is choosing the right authors to emulate. As you look for author presentations for inspiration, focus on authors who write in the same genre as you, appeal to a similar demographic, and have a personal style similar to yours.

Once you find presentations to review, take notes. Pay attention to body language, use of words, and tone of voice. Make a note of the most memorable things the author says, and where the audience appears to be most interested.

Finally, don’t put too much pressure on yourself to be as polished and perfect as the presenters you see. Many of them have years of experience in presenting their books in a variety of formats across a variety of media channels. It will take time and practice for you to get to that level. In the meantime, the folks coming to see you are already interested in your book and in what you have to say.

7. Be Prepared For Questions

Most book presentations are going to contain some sort of audience participation. Keep this in mind when you write your presentation. How are you going to approach this?

One option is to make a list of questions you believe the audience is likely to have for you. If you think you’re going to be nervous, it could be helpful for you to plan your answers ahead of time.

If your idea of interacting with the audience isn’t so intimidating for you, there are some things you can do to increase that interaction. First, consider leaving a few things out of your presentation. Chances are, at least one curious member of your audience will bring up the point and ask about it. You can then use this as a jumping point to cover that ground.

You can also use a question and answer session as a bit of an intermission. Rather than putting off all audience questions until the end, ask for questions in the middle of your presentation . It could break things up nicely.

Finally, you can turn the tables a bit. Ask your audience questions . What is their favorite plot point? How does the book relate to their lives? Who is their favorite character?

Final Thoughts

It is quite an honor to be asked to give a presentation about your book. This is a great way to let your current readership get to know more about you and your process. You may also be able to increase your reading audience.

At the same time, this can absolutely be a daunting process. Fortunately, you can help yourself immensely with a bit of planning and preparation.

The tips above will help you write a presentation that is engaging and allows you to be yourself. Follow the suggestions above, and your audience will enjoy your presentation thoroughly!

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Having trouble seeing this post or reblogging? Just go to my basic-format blog .

I am preparing a book presentation!!!

A book presentation and this is very helpful!

Thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed it!

Thank you, I am preparing a book presentation and this is very helpful!

Yay! I’m so glad you found it useful 😀

Excellent tips. I’m not afraid of audiences–but that doesn’t mean I can’t do better with them!

I know what you mean. I’m used to public speaking but even so appreciate a few tips!

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Novel writing ,

How to present a manuscript.

By Harry Bingham

The Art And Craft Of Beautiful Manuscript Presentation

Manuscript presentation makes a big difference to the way literary agents receive your work. Yes, sure, agents are looking for wonderful writing above all, so in that sense the way you format your manuscript is secondary . . . but getting an agent is hard , so you may as well make sure that first impression is a good one.

And of course remember this: literary agents aren’t mostly looking to accept a manuscript . They’re looking for early warning signs that say this author hasn’t taken enough care to be worth reading further. So the lousy presentation of your book’s cover page can screw up your chances of success before your book has really given itself a chance.

Sounds scary?

It doesn’t need to be. Follow the tips below and you’ll be fine.

What Is A Manuscript?

There’s a difference between a manuscript and a book, and it’s much the same as the difference between a writer and an author. A writer is anyone at all who writes. An author is a writer whose work has been published.

The same thing is basically true of manuscripts / books, so a reasonable definition of the word ‘manuscript’ would be:

A manuscript is the text of your novel (or work of nonfiction), before  that text has been turned into the finished book.

In the old days, when the industry still worked with paper, the manuscript was literally the stuff you printed off on your home printer. When I sent my first manuscript out to literary agents, the damn thing ran to more than 180,000 words and it was  enormous . Over 600 pages of printed paper, as I recall.

These days, your manuscript may well never be printed off at all, anywhere.

Quite likely, you will work away at your manuscript on a laptop. You’ll send it to an agent by email. Any editorial work will be conducted by email and an e-copy of your manuscript. When the thing is ready to go out to publishers, it’ll go as a computer file, only.

It’s referred to as a  manuscript  though: it’ll only become an actual book once it’s been typeset and bound (and becomes an actual hard copy, dead-tree book), or once it’s been formatted and packaged up as an ebook. (As a matter of fact, I think some of the kudos that still attaches to trad publishing as opposed to self-publishing has to do with the way it marks out that transition.)

Format Your Manuscript Professionally:

• Use double or 1.5 line spacing
• Use a standard font
• Make sure to use font size 12
• Use standard margins
• Chapter breaks should be marked by page breaks
• Insert page numbers
• Indent paragraphs
• Don’t overuse the ellipsis… Or, exclamation marks!
• Title pages should also include your name, contact info, and wordcount

Manuscript Basics

So your manuscript is basically just a computer file that lives (for now) on your home computer only, but may in time come to sit on the e-reader of your literary agent and (you hope) a whole bunch of editors too.

While the manuscript remains on your laptop and nowhere else, then you can format it just as you please. There are no rules at all. No one will see. No one will care.

I know one (really good) literary author who has poor eyesight and weirdly bad spelling. So he types in a huge font size – Arial, size 16, often all bold – and just ignores the spelling errors.

If he sent out his work out like that, it would make a terrible first impression on anyone reading it. But he doesn’t. That’s just the way he works.

So manuscript formatting rules only apply when you’re ready to go out to agents . . . and even then, you need to realise that there are no  rules , exactly. There’s no standard manuscript format. No required novel template that you have to follow, or else . . .

So the only real rule of manuscript presentation is a simple, ordinary one:

Your manuscript should look like a clean, professional document.

If you obey that one single rule, you’ll be just fine. That said, there’s a follow-up quasi-rule, which can be expressed as:

You probably want to set out your manuscript in a way that is most helpful to a literary agent.

Those guys read a lot of new manuscript submissions, so if you make their life harder, you are – even if just in a small way – acting against your own best interests.

Ways you can make an agent’s life easier include:

Helpful choice of filenames

Maybe the file on your computer is called novel.doc, because you hadn’t settled on a title when you started to write. That’s fine – plenty of my novels have started out that way too. But remember that an agent may be looking at your submission alongside 50 others. So don’t call your documents novel.doc / synopsis.doc / query.doc – you’ll confuse the agent almost instantly. Best practice would be to name your file something like  The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald, first three chapters.doc . [Except I think that title might already have been taken . . .]

Clean, clear title page

I’ll give more detail on that in a second

No unnecessary additional text

Your manuscript is just a working document, that has – prior to publication or the offer of a book deal – no special status in life. So don’t write dedications in here. Or Author’s Notes. Or long acknowledgements. If there”s a really compelling reason why you need to do these things, then OK. But in most cases, all that stuff can wait.

Easy readability for the main text itself

More on that shortly as well!

Oh yes, and I should probably also say that in the screenwriting trade, there  are  fierce and important rules about formatting. They matter because of an equation like this: length of screenplay = run time = production costs. That equation does not apply if you’re writing a novel or nonfiction book, and the result is that the publishing industry requirements about format are much looser. And quite right too!

How To Format Book Title Pages

Applies both to novels and non-fiction books.

Your title page should contain:

• The book’s title in a large font
• A subtitle, if the book has one. Most novels won’t.
• A quick genre specifier, if you want it. “A crime thriller”, for example. I’ve added “A novel” to the page below, only because this page was prepared for the American market where “a novel” is quite often used as a kind of subtitle.
• The book’s rough word count, rounded to the nearest 1,000 or 5,000 words
• Your contact info (Email, phone, address) in the bottom right hand corner, or otherwise somewhat secondary

It doesn’t need anything else. It doesn’t need and shouldn’t have a copyright notice. (See an example of the title page for one of my novels.)

Oh, and NO ARTWORK. Unless you are a professional illustrator, say, you just want to keep the front cover bare of anything except text. Remember that the publisher, not you, will decide what the final book looks like, so sticking your own imagery on the book will, in most cases, look a awkwardly amateurish.

Epigraphs , dedications, acknowledgements and all that kind of stuff can be left for when your book makes it into print. At this stage, you really don’t need that kind of thing. If you really must put in an epigraph, you can certainly do so on the second page or (probably italicised) on the cover itself.

Your cover page would ideally not have any page number on it but, as you can see from the image, I didn’t bother eliminating the number from my title page. It’s no big deal.

Manuscript Text Formatting Guidelines

Follow this broad template, and you’ll have a happy literary agent . . .

The following guidelines will mean that you deliver the kind of manuscript that any literary agent will instantly consider professional and easy to navigate. If you want to deviate from any of these exact strictures, you probably can.

The golden rule is to deliver something that looks like any normal, professional document AND one that is laid out like a book, not a business letter. (ie: indented paragraphs not line breaks in between.) And even that rule about indenting the paragraphs is often not followed by first time writers.

But are literary agents going to turn down great work just because they don’t love the paragraph formatting? Of course not. So don’t worry too much.

OK, enough preamble. For a nice looking manuscript, you want to present it in something like the following way:

• Make sure to use double or 1.5 line spacing.
• Use a nice ordinary font. (Times New Roman, Garamond, or Georgia are all good choices. Arial is quite common, but maybe better avoided as sans serif text is just  harder to read at length .)
• Ensure that you use a font size no smaller than 12, and no larger than 14.
• Use standard margins. Your existing defaults are probably fine, but check.
• Chapter breaks should be marked by page breaks, so each new chapter starts on a clean sheet.
• You can mark each new chapter with a number, if you care to. Or anything at all, really, just so long as it’s clear what’s going on. (If you’re worried about how long your chapters are, or how many pages are in a novel, then  read this  and put your mind at ease).
• Don’t forget to insert page numbers (though, truth be told, all that matters less now that everything happens in e-form. It’s still a nice touch.)
• Indent paragraphs (using the tab key or the paragraph formatting menu – don’t rely on the space bar). Do not leave a double space between paragraphs except as a section break.
• Oh, and don’t overuse the ellipsis (“…”) or the exclamation mark. Professional authors use those things very sparingly.

This page shows my own choices: a nice looking chapter header (but mine is a lot fancier than you need.) Modest paragraph indentation, I like 0.3″. A personal, but not wacky font. (I usually use Garamond, though I’m not quite sure what I used in this example!) Line spacing that’s clear, but not too spacey. (I generally use 1.5 line spacing, though you can go as low as 1.25 if you really want.) Plus a nice neat page number, of course.

It would be good practice to include your name and the title of the book in a header or footer, though I haven’t done so in this image.

Oh, and did you notice that the very first paragraph in that page was  not  indented? That’s technically correct and looks quite classy . . . but don’t worry if you haven’t done it. At that level, no one will care. (And that’s one big thing to remember about manuscript presentation. You need your work to look clean, professional and literate. If you check those boxes, then you’re fine. Really, truly, nothing else matters – except the quality of your actual book, which needs to be amazing.)

Manuscript Format: Dialogue Presentation

This isn’t a full guide to dialogue format, so  do check more complete sources  if you need, but for a quick refresher:

• Dialogue counts as new paragraphs, so it should be indented.
• When speech by one character is interrupted by a descriptive line, and then the speech continues, this all counts as one paragraph. Begin the next paragraph with the next speaker.
• Use single quotation marks for dialogue. When dialogue is followed by ‘said X’ or ‘chortled Y’ you should not capitalise either the  s  of  said  or the  c  of  chortled.  This is true even if the dialogue ends with an exclamation mark or a question mark.
• If the speaker quotes someone else within dialogue, you show that inner quotation with double inverted commas. Like this, for example:  ‘No,’ said Hugh patiently. ‘What Sophie actually said was, “Go to hell, you bloody idiot!” Words to that effect anyway.’
• For more help on writing dialogue in the first place, then  nip over here .

Again, though, that rule about quotations within dialogue is hardly ever going to matter . . . and no one at all will care if you get it wrong. It’s your novel or non-fiction which matters!

Dialogue Format: An Example

   ‘This manuscript is nicely presented,’ said the agent.    ‘Indeed it is,’ said the publisher. She paused briefly, to strike off a few zeros from an author’s royalty statement. ‘It is well presented. And intelligent. And beautifully written.’    ‘But Oprah won’t like it.’    ‘No, indeed. Nor the Chief Buyer at Walmart.’    ‘So we’ll reject it!’ they chorused, laughing wildly.    Their limousine swept on through the rainy streets, leaving a faint aroma of cigar smoke and Chanel no. 5 lingering on the mild springtime air.

Use the example above for guidance – or, if in doubt, open any paperback book. The way it’s laid out is the way yours should be.

Manuscript Presentation: Punctuation Basics

Your presented manuscript needs flawless punctuation. A few last tips.

• There is one general rule for punctuation. It is there to help avoid ambiguity.
• Commas are tricky, but often missed out before names. Get into the habit of putting them in and you will avoid absurdities like the ones noted by Lynn Truss in  Eats, Shoots and Leaves .
• Hyphens are an endangered species, and only the writer can save them. Again, it is vital to avoid ambiguities and absurdities – for instance,  the white toothed whale . Is it the whale or the teeth that are white?
• It is a good rule to avoid lists of adjectives but, when you have them, check to see if any should be hyphenated. You can have a dining room, but a table there becomes a  dining-room table .
• Semi-colons are also endangered, yet can bring a deal of subtlety to a writer’s style. A semi-colon links two related sentences; the second often elaborates or adds context to the first. A semi-colon is stronger than a comma, but not as strong as a full-stop.
• Colons are used where one sentence introduces another. The rule is simple: use the colon when one sentence introduces the next.

The three mistakes that  our editorial team  sees most commonly are these:

1. Not Enough Use Of Commas

Commas are like a tiny pause within a sentence and they can divide sentences into little blocks of meaning. They can make (especially) long sentences much easier to parse and comprehend. And commas are free. Use them!

2. Use Of Commas Instead Of Fullstops/Periods

Yes, we like commas, but commas aren’t there to divide one sentence from another, if you use commas where you mean to use fullstops (periods), you will end up with sentences that never seem to end, writing of this sort will drive your editor mad, punctuation-related homicides are rising sharply as a result. (*)

3. Misuse Of Apostrophes

The mistake which will have most agents screaming has to do with apostrophes. These are simple, so get them right. (‘It’s’ means ‘it is’,  It’s raining , for example. ‘Its’ means the thing belonging to it,  The mouse gnawed its cheese , for example – and ‘its’ is correct. No apostrophes are added to other possessive pronouns like his or hers, either.) If you’re unsure, look these things up.

* – Oh and if you wanted to know how that sentence ought to look, it’s like this:

Yes, we like commas, but commas aren’t there to divide one sentence from another. If you use commas where you mean to use fullstops (periods), you will end up with sentences that never seem to end. Writing of this sort will drive your editor mad. Punctuation-related homicides are rising sharply as a result.

If you wanted a semi-colon instead of a period after “mad”, that would be very elegant and your editor would probably want to give you a kiss. Instead of shooting you. Which has gotta be a win, right?

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you prepare a manuscript for submission.

There are many things to consider when preparing your manuscript for submission as manuscripts have to be formatted quite specifically. The first and most essential thing is to ensure that your manuscript has been thoroughly edited and is as well-written as possible. Manuscripts tend to be written in Times New Roman font in a size 12 and are double spaced with no separation between paragraphs (though each paragraph other than the very first should be indented). The most important thing is that the text itself, and the formatting, are clear and readable, and you have provided all the necessary information somewhere within the manuscript.

What Is The Proper Format For A Manuscript?

A well-formatted manuscript will feature A4 pages, should have a font size of 12, be written in a legible font (such as Times New Roman), have regular margins, indented paragraphs, and be double spaced. Manuscripts also include a title page, a header, and page numbers and each line of dialogue should be indented and should start on its own line.

How Many Pages Should A Manuscript Be?

The number of pages in, and the general length of, a manuscript varies considerably in terms of genre, topic, readership, and many other important factors. Most manuscripts tend to be around 70,000-120,000 words long, which equates to around 250-450 pages. But children’s books are generally far shorter (especially ones written for infants!) while certain books, such as fantasy and historical fiction, are much longer than that.

Writing a book is hard. Getting an agent is hard. Getting published – well, that’s still harder.

And getting well published? Actually making a career out of this thing? That’s never been even remotely easy, and (if you’re talking about traditional publication) may be harder than it’s been for decades.

So get help. Don’t start spending crazy money, but get help.

If you’re eager to polish your manuscript, but aren’t sure where to start, get help from an experienced professional editor with our Manuscript Assessment Service .

About the author

Harry has written a variety of books over the years, notching up multiple six-figure deals and relationships with each of the world’s three largest trade publishers. His work has been critically acclaimed across the globe, has been adapted for TV, and is currently the subject of a major new screen deal. He’s also written non-fiction, short stories, and has worked as ghost/editor on a number of exciting projects. Harry also self-publishes some of his work, and loves doing so. His Fiona Griffiths series in particular has done really well in the US, where it’s been self-published since 2015. View his website , his Amazon profile , his Twitter . He's been reviewed in Kirkus, the Boston Globe , USA Today , The Seattle Times , The Washington Post , Library Journal , Publishers Weekly , CulturMag (Germany), Frankfurter Allgemeine , The Daily Mail , The Sunday Times , The Daily Telegraph , The Guardian , and many other places besides. His work has appeared on TV, via Bonafide . And go take a look at what he thinks about Blick Rothenberg . You might also want to watch our " Blick Rothenberg - The Truth " video, if you want to know how badly an accountancy firm can behave.

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Exposition in Literature: Definition, Examples, and a Complete Guide for Writers

by Joe Bunting | 0 comments

How do good stories start? In the middle of the action? With a slow buildup to the action? What would you say really is  the literary definition of exposition, and how can knowing it help you write better stories?

Exposition is a literary term that deals with how to start a story .

In this article, I’ll define exposition, talk about how it fits into the dramatic structure, give examples of exposition from popular novels, plays, and films, and then give a few tips on how to use the exposition best in your writing.

Let’s get started.

Note : this article contains an excerpt from my #1 best-selling book The Write Structure , which is about the hidden structures behind bestselling and award-winning stories. If you want to learn more about how to write a great story, by mastering storytelling musts like the exposition literary definition, you can get the book for a limited time low price. Click here to get The Write Structure ($5.99).

Exposition Literary Definition

The exposition is a set of scenes in a story that are meant to introduce the audience to the characters, world, and tone of the story. It is relatively short, and no major changes occur during these opening scenes.

While we will focus on how exposition works in a narrative in this article, the term is also used in music, marketing ( expo), and academic, expository essays, where it relates to a comprehensive argumentation for a theory or idea.

Origin of the Term Exposition

The word exposition originates from two Latin words expōnere , meaning “to display,” and expositio meaning “a setting forth.”

The combination is helpful to understanding to what is happening in the exposition of a story: the setting forth of a display, like how an author brings forward the pieces of a story, including the characters, the setting, and the key details of the plot before the story truly begins.

The music world gives us clues as to what is happening in an exposition, too. An exposition is the first section of a fugue or sonata form during which the main melodic themes are introduced for first time. In the same way, in a story, the exposition can be the place where the theme and the main ideas are first stated.

Synonyms for exposition in storytelling include introduction (used by Freytag) and sometimes hook.

Knowing the origins of the exposition literary definition can help you purposefully use exposition in scenes structuring your story.

Where Exposition Fits in the Dramatic Structure

At The Write Practice , we talk about the six elements that make up dramatic structure. They are:

• Inciting Incident
• Rising Action/Progressive Complications

In dramatic structure, the exposition occurs at the beginning of the story and is meant to set up the inciting incident, which is a moment where the action kicks off in the story.

How Long Is the Exposition in Most Stories?

Since stories are about change and values in conflict, the exposition, which contains no change, is necessarily quite short.

Most exposition is just two or three scenes, and in some cases, as short as half a scene.

For example, in  The Hobbit , there are just a couple of pages of exposition before Gandalf shows up and invites Bilbo on an adventure.

Think about how this works well in the story as you recall the exposition literary definition—how it establishes the Shire, the tone for the novel, and the quaint setting that will drastically shift once Bilbo leaves home.

Exposition Examples

Here are a few examples of exposition in literature:

Example: The Exposition in Romeo and Juliet

In Romeo and Juliet , the exposition is actually fairly long, even longer depending on where you put the inciting incident (Freytag puts it earlier than I would, but then, Freytag has a different way of thinking about story structure ):

• Servants of the two leading families in the city, the Montagues and Capulets, feud in the streets.
• Romeo, a young son of the Montagues, is depressed after being rejected by a woman, and his friends attempt to cheer him up.
• Juliet, the daughter of the Capulets, chafes at her parents setting her up with a man.
• Romeo’s friends convince him to attend a party at the Capulets’ house.

At this party, Romeo meets Juliet, and falls in love at first sight, creating the inciting incident. This is when the main action of the play begins.

But it isn’t until the fifth scene that the inciting incident occurs, which makes this one of the longer examples of exposition.

Note: Gustav Freytag argues that the invitation to the Capulets’ party is actually the inciting incident, which would make the exposition a bit shorter, just three scenes. I get this, from a certain perspective, since it’s the party that throws the two families together irrevocably, but I think that event is dwarfed by instant attraction between the two lovers.

Exposition Length : four scenes

Example: The Exposition in  Gravity

In contrast, the film  Gravity , about an astronaut attempting to survive a disaster in space, has an exposition that is quite short.

The story begins with Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and astronaut Matt Kowalksi (George Clooney) who are on a spacewalk on the Hubble Space Telescope.

But their spacewalk is interrupted when a missile strike causes a chain reaction of space debris that threatens to destroy much of the spacecraft around the planet.

This missile strike and the space debris chain reaction occurs right at the end of the first scene, meaning the exposition is less than a scene long.

Exposition Length : less than one scene

6 Tips for a Great Exposition

Now that we've looked at some great examples, let's explore how to do it in your story. If you’re writing a novel, screenplay, or other narrative, thinking about the exposition literary definition and how it works in storytelling can help you write a strong opening with these six tips.

1. Begin With Your Story’s Core Value

As we’ve talked about in our discussion of story arcs , every story has a core value scale that it moves on, and when you begin a story, your very first scene should be about the core value of your story.

There are traditionally six value scales:

• Life vs. Death
• Life vs. a Fate Worse than Death
• Love vs. Hate
• Accomplishment vs. Failure
• Maturity vs. Naiveté
• Right vs. Wrong

Stories rise and fall on the scale of these values. A love story might begin in the middle of the love vs. hate scale, rise during the meet cute, fall during a breakup, and end high on the love scale.

In your exposition, part of a writer’s job is to establish what scale your story is moving on. Your story may play with several of these values, but your core value must be presented from the very first scene.

Are you telling an adventure story on the life vs. death scale? Then begin with your first life vs. death moment.

Are you telling a performance story about a team competing to win a major tournament? Then begin with a scene that deals with accomplishment and failure.

Are you telling a story about good and evil? Well, show the audience a moment when good confronts evil right at the start.

Your exposition is not just about introducing your setting and your main characters' background information. It’s also about introducing the values at play in your story.

Then, when you start with these values and keep them in mind throughout the rest of your story, you’ll find the story comes together.

2. Include Conflict

Just because there’s no major change doesn’t mean there’s no conflict or choice in the opening.

Stories can feel slow and boring during the exposition, even when they’re written by great authors. But they can really drag when inexperienced authors make the mistake of thinking the exposition is just to introduce characters, provide backstory, and develop their world.

No. Please, dear writer, do not do this.

The exposition is still part of the story, and all story relies on conflict and choice to create plot movement.

Otherwise your reader will read five pages of your story and then put it down in boredom.

Your exposition must still be a good story.

How do you actually do that though? How do you make sure your exposition has conflict and choice so that it can develop the plot?

Here’s how: just as a story has the six elements of dramatic structure, so every scene must incorporate them as well. It is these six elements within every scene that will keep your story moving.

For more help writing scenes, see my article The Definitive Guide to Scene Structure .

That means every scene, even a scene in the exposition, must have exposition, an inciting incident, rising action, a crisis, a climax, and a denouement.

For example, let’s look at the opening scene in Romeo and Juliet , in which the servants from the Montagues and Capulets feud on the streets.

We could outline the scene like this:

• Exposition: Two Capulet servants talk about their hatred of the Montagues.
• Inciting Incident: Two Montague servants come onstage and a verbal feud begins.
• Rising Complication: Benvolio, a Montague, tries to stop the fight, but Tybalt, a Capulet, insults him.
• Crisis: Benvolio must choose whether to fight and break the peace or allow himself to be called a coward.
• Climax: Tybalt and Benvolio fight until their fight is broken up by armed citizens.
• Denouement: The Prince declares that anyone who breaks the peace will be executed.

See how, even though this is just a scene in the exposition, it still contains all the elements of dramatic structure?

So, too, any scene in your exposition should have this dramatic structure, or else risk feeling like boring info-dumping.

3. Introduce Most of Your Characters

First impressions matter. How you introduce your characters is how they will be remembered by the reader throughout the story. Take care to introduce them with the exact impression you want the reader to take away.

You can introduce them through narrative, description, or internal monologue (a character's thoughts), but the best way to first  introduce a character is through dialogue and action.

Also be sure to introduce all or at least most  of the important characters in your story in the exposition.

While you can introduce characters throughout the first act of your story (it’s usually not a good idea to introduce them afterward) it’s your exposition’s job to introduce most of your cast.

This is a lesson I learned the hard way in my memoir Crowdsourcing Paris , when I introduced a pivotal character all the way at the end of act two.

When a beta reader gave me feedback that I needed to introduce the character earlier, I did a massive facepalm. I should have known better! So I moved up the character’s introduction, and it made the story flow much better.

4. Establish the Point of View (POV)

Establish your point of view in the exposition, and then don’t change it.

The point of view is the perspective from which you tell the story. It will determine how your readers receive information, which is crucial to how they experience the plot.

The main options are third person limited, third person omniscient, and first person.

Just like understanding the exposition literary definition is crucial to storytelling, so is understanding the definition and application of point of view. For more on this, you can read our ultimate point of view guide here .

5. Save the Cat

One tried and true method of introducing a central character in the best possible light is to have them “ save the cat ,” a screenwriting term popularized by Blake Snyder in his book of the same name. The term refers to a character who does a selfless, or at least admirable, act to prove they are “worth rooting for” and endear themselves to the reader early on in the story.

The term comes from Roxanne , the 1987 film starring Steve Martin and Darryl Hannah. In the beginning of the film, Martin, who has a strangely long nose, literally saves a cat from a tree, thus making sure you love him despite his strange appearance.

The admirable act, of course, does not have to be saving a cat.

Here are some examples of this device in popular stories:

• Aladdin . After stealing a loaf of bread and escaping the police, Aladdin offers his share to two hungry-looking children, proving that he’s a thief with character.
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone . If being an orphan and bullied by the uncle, aunt, and cousin he lives with isn’t enough for readers to bond with Harry, he also befriends and then saves a snake from humiliating captivity. (“Save the snake” is a less catchy guideline, but it works!)
• Pride and Prejudice . Elizabeth Bennet is first singled out as worth rooting for by her father, when he compares her to her sisters, saying, “Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters.” Then later, we cheer for her when she’s insulted by Mr. Darcy and instead of getting angry, she laughs it off.
• The Hobbit . Bilbo Baggins, like many of us, both longs for adventure (because of his Took ancestry, as Tolkien explains) and is very uncomfortable with it. This inner turmoil makes him the perfect “everyman” hero thrown into the midst of a very tumultuous situation involving dwarves and dragons. He is like us, and we always want to root for ourselves.

While a selfless or admirable act is not required, it is important to somehow develop a bond with your characters early on, and this technique is one of the best, most efficient ways to do it.

6. Build to the Inciting Incident Quickly

As we showed in our example, the exposition isn’t meant to be long: as short as half a scene and as long as four.

The point here is to get to the point: the inciting incident .

The inciting incident is when the story will begin moving, and a story that doesn’t move doesn’t make for a good story.

So don’t dawdle.

Do what you need to do to set up the inciting incident, and then move on.

Some Books Don’t Start With the Exposition

Just because great writers understand the exposition literary definition and how to use it in stories doesn't mean all stories have an exposition.

In some stories, especially action, thriller, or horror stories, it’s appropriate to begin with a short scene of heightened tension.

There are several ways to handle this:

In Medias Res

In medias res , meaning “in the middle” in Latin, is a literary technique to start a story in the middle of the action. This begins the story with a heightened level of suspense at the expense of clarity for the sake of the reader.

The audience, who doesn’t after all know the characters who are caught up in the action, can easily feel distant or even confused. However, in certain stories and genres this is well worth it for the sake of an immediate shot of action.

A good example of a story that starts in medias res is almost every film in the  Mission Impossible  franchise.

Flash Forward

Similarly, a story that starts with a flash forward (as opposed to a flashback) begins not in the exposition but in the climax—not a full climax but a shortened glimpse of the climax. Then, in the middle of the crisis of that scene, you pull away from the scene and flash back to the start of the story, the exposition.

A good example of this technique is  Fight Club  by Chuck Palahniuk (both the novel and film versions).

There are drawbacks to beginning with a moment deep in the action of the story, whether in medias res or a flash forward. You can miss the opportunity to build a bond between your audience and your characters. You also risk confusing and disorienting the audience.

The writers who do it the best draw the audience out of the action as quickly as they drew them in, soon beginning normal exposition.

What is always true of successful stories is you have to get through the exposition at some point, even if it’s not in the first scene.

Good Stories Start With Clear Choices

If you want to write a great story, you don’t start too fast with a climactic moment. You also don’t want to start too slow with no choices or conflict.

No, you want to start with strong exposition, using crisis choices to introduce characters in a way your reader can root for them, not giving away too much information, not creating much movement.

Instead, you want to set the foundation of all the story that is going to happen in the future, starting with your inciting incident.

Understanding the exposition literary definition and studying examples of stories (like the ones covered in this post) that include exposition with purpose will help you apply exposition (well) in your own story,

So get started, and have fun!

What are your favorite opening scenes or exposition scenes in film or novels? Share in the comments.  

Get The Write Structure – $9.99 $5.99 »

Now that you've read this post, how well do you understand the exposition literary definition? Let’s put the exposition to use with the following creative writing exercise :

Use the following story structure as a creative writing prompt to write an exposition of your own.

• Exposition: ___________ (Fill in the blank.)
• Inciting incident: A master thief shares the plan for the greatest heist of his/her career with his/her team.
• Rising action: The team plans the heist.
• Crisis: Best bad choice. Risk losing the heist for the sake of the team, or choose to save the team and give up the profit from the heist?
• Climax: The master thief gives up the profit, saving his/her team.
• Resolution: Missing out on the heist, or appearing to, was all part of the thief’s plan, and he/she shares the profits with his/her team.

Start by outlining the missing exposition in a single sentence. Then set your timer for fifteen minutes and write your exposition as quickly as you can.

When your time is up, post your practice (and your exposition sentence)in the Pro Practice Workshop for feedback. And if you post, be sure to leave feedback on a few pieces by other writers.

Happy writing!

Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

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• Freytag’s Pyramid: Definition, Examples, and How to Use this Dramatic Structure in Your Writing - […] introduction contains both the exposition and “exciting […]
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• Plot and Structure: How to Use Structure and Subplot to Add Suspense - […] Exposition is where you introduce your hero and establish the story setting, your hero’s world. By focusing on the…

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Preparing Your Book Presentation: A Step-by-Step Guide for New Authors

The days of writing custom works and hearing phrases like “ do my essay for free ” are gone – now you are officially a writer and have your book.

The presentation of a book is one of the most awaited moments for authors after publication. After all, it is the launch of a project that has been worked on for a long time, as well as one of the significant milestones for promoting the author’s brand and the title that has just been published.

There are several ways to present a book, and in this post, we will give you the keys that will allow you to learn how to organize the presentation of your book with the best results and creatively. From the simplest to other longer ones, we will guide you in essential aspects such as creating the speech you will say during this whole act, what to wear, and how to raise other fundamental issues for this significant date.

How to choose the place?

Among the places where you can make your online presentation, we recommend sites related to literature: bookstores, libraries, cultural centers… These are some examples that can host this event. Also, remember that these spaces indeed have experience organizing these events so that everything will be much easier.

As we said, these are the most common spaces. But it is also possible to choose other spaces for the presentation of your book, such as a coffee shop or an environment linked to the author (such as his or her workplace). However, we recommend that you make sure that there is a room with the capacity to host this event, with adequate power, and that it allows the public to see without problems.

Making an announcement

Once the space where you will present your book is closed, it is time to let people know that this event will take place. There are several options to communicate this event and gather attendees. Two categories may be interested: journalists and potential readers.

To attract the former, you must use press releases or calls to the media to warn them. The writing of this document can be done by the publisher with whom you have published it. If you take on this mission, remember that the call for journalists has geographical restrictions, so it is best to target those who can attend.

Social networks can also be an excellent channel to capture the attention of potential attendees, especially readers who may be interested in the book. On the one hand, there are organic publications: post announcing the place and the event and launch it from your profile, go to Facebook groups related to literature, and ask your publisher to create the corresponding publication to notify their followers.

How long should an online presentation last? The answer is: “as long as you want”. Each book is different and responds to its characteristics, and so is the event involving its launching. It is not the same as making a private event in which the discussion can extend for hours and hours as a more “formal” one in which the public is unknown.

It is appropriate that the book presentation, including the information given about the author, the production of the work and the dialogue between the writer and the editor or the chosen presenter, lasts up to 40 minutes. This will keep the public’s attention and avoid absences at the end of the event (the moment dedicated to the purchase and signing of copies).

Likewise, it is customary that after the presentation of the work, a question-and-answer session is opened so that attendees can share their doubts with the author. Ideally, this should last between 10 and 15 minutes to not delay the event’s closing.

Taking care of the details

The details make the difference, which is also evident in the presentation of a book—for example, the catering you hire. Depending on the time of day, you can choose between a sweeter snack, including coffee and cakes, or something savorier (focused as a snack that gives way to a more substantial meal). But, thanks to this, you will make people more comfortable for the final phase of this event.

It is also a good idea to know the environment where you will make the presentation so that you can dress in colors similar to this place’s. Also, about the wardrobe, you should know what type of event you want to perform (if it is something more private or public-facing) and choose something more elegant or home.

On the other hand, you can also consider further details for the presentation of the book, such as the presence of music to liven up the waiting of the attendees. At the same time, it begins and ends when the capacity is completed, as well as in the readings of some fragments. In any case, you should coordinate with the space where the event will take place to test the sound equipment.

The presentation

Now it is time to know how to structure the presentation of your book and the aspects you should be very clear about before starting. First of all, unless you are a magician of improvisation, it is better to have an outline of what you will talk about that day, even a speech.

The usual structure of a book presentation is greetings from the presenter, information about the author, information about the book , and an interview in which the most critical aspects of the title are highlighted. After all this, a question-and-answer session with the audience’s participation follows.

Regarding the structure of the presentation, we recommend that you consider those aspects of your book that you want to be highlighted and that must be included in this act.

And most importantly, be yourself and enjoy. After long hours of work on the book, it’s time to reap the rewards!

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8 Steps to Create a Dynamic Presentation from Your Book by Kirsten Holmberg

Posted by Guest Post | Nov 12, 2020 | Blog , Professional Speaking , PROFESSIONAL SPEAKING - MEMBERS ONLY | 0

Yet many authors—having poured their expertise into a robust written work—find the task of crafting speeches from their books daunting. Three common challenges include:

• Deciding what to put into the speech—because it requires leaving something from the book out.
• A lack of understanding of how the spoken word differs from the written word—and how to best serve a live audience with the right sentence and talk structure.
• Discomfort with being “on stage” as a speaker due to a preference for the more solitary work of writing.

To leverage speaking as part of your author platform and book publicity efforts, use these steps to craft and refine a talk based on your book:

• Know your audience. Ideally, you’ll initiate the process of crafting a talk with a particular audience in mind. If you haven’t yet been invited to speak, think about an event where you’d like to speak. Sketch out what you know about the audience: some general demographics, the purpose of the event, why your subject matter is of interest to them—and their underlying need. Don’t assume the audience is identical to the target audience of your book; identify ways they might be different as well as similar.
• Review (or create) your annotated table of contents. In light of the audience you’ll be addressing, which chapters would most effectively address their needs? It might only be one chapter and probably won’t be more than three. How does your content need to be adapted in light of any differences between the event audience and your book’s target audience? Don’t be afraid to tailor your content to the group; it shows care and fosters connection, through which your message is best conveyed. If you’re not sure, find someone in your network who is similar to the event’s audience and ask them which chapters would be most helpful. Aim to address a felt need with valuable, actionable information.
• Distill the selected chapters into their key points. Bulletize the key points instead of excerpting sentences or crafting new ones. Trust that you know your content and can speak to it without a full script. Writers rightly care a great deal about the turn of phrase and often want to write out their talks in full sentences. Yet this approach usually results in the speaker reading their talk instead of engaging the audience in a more conversational way; the latter is a profoundly more effective means of conveying the content. If you opt for a full script, take care to use simple sentence structure and common language: industry jargon and complex sentences are impediments to the audience’s ease of understanding.
• Structure the content to engage—and re-engage—the audience. They will assume your book is interesting if you and your talk are interesting. Hook them quickly; leverage your skills as a writer build and release tension multiple times during your speech. Leave them will a clear, concrete call to action—a step they can take immediately even if they don’t purchase the book. Aim to provide value and maintain a posture of service.
• Give the audience a gift. Share with them something you’ve learned since the book was published or give them a glimpse from behind the scenes of your book. Reward them for being part of the event by imparting some “insider information” they can’t get from the book. Consider addressing common questions that arise from the book content or sharing reactions from readers.
• Be human. You’re the subject-matter expert and the audience needs your knowledge. But they also want you to be human. Establish common ground; show them—within the first few minutes—that you understand their needs because you have similar needs. Be willing to share some relevant faults or failings for the sake of conveying empathy for the shared human experience as it relates to your content.
• Visualize your content. Audiences today are accustomed to visual accompaniment, most often in the form of slides. And slides really should be visual , not merely a list of words to prompt the speaker what to say. As wordsmiths, creating slides may not be a natural strength. Spend the time and energy to craft quality slides; involve friends with complementary skill sets or hire a designer if you lack the skills to do it well. Just as in writing, take care to avoid visual clichés. Check out com for symbols and images. Leverage pictures or graphics from your book where appropriate.
• Refine the delivery. Your book represents you: your expertise, your thoughts, your story. But when you’re on stage, you represent your book. Merely knowing your subject matter isn’t sufficient for giving a great talk; you need to deliver it in a fashion that is clear, confident, and compelling. Audiences will determine whether they find you (and your book) credible in large part based on how well you present yourself. Plan to practice your speech daily, videotaping yourself several times and taking the time to review and evaluate the footage to identify areas needing improvement (this free rubric is a helpful guide for doing so).

Speaking is an essential component of a successful author platform, driving book sales and increasing visibility in the publishing world.

You’ve written the book you know the world needs; now use your voice to share that message in a spoken format.

About Kirsten Holmberg

Kirsten Holmberg is a public speaking coach and trainer who has worked with TEDx speakers and clients from Fortune 50 companies, including Google, HP, and Oracle. Leveraging two decades of experience in keynote speaking, she equips both new and skilled speakers to achieve maximum impact with their presentations to customers, stakeholders, and audiences of all sizes. Learn more about Kirsten at  www.kirstenholmberg.com .

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/kirholmberg

IG:  https://www.instagram.com/kirholmberg/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/kirholmberg

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirstenholmberg/

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.css-1qrtm5m{display:block;margin-bottom:8px;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:14px;line-height:1.5714285714285714;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.35px;letter-spacing:-0.35px;font-weight:300;color:#606F7B;}@media (min-width:600px){.css-1qrtm5m{font-size:16px;line-height:1.625;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.5px;letter-spacing:-0.5px;}} best practices The skill all powerful storytellers share — and why it’s more important now than ever

by TED Masterclass Team • September 30, 2021

To be human is to tell stories. Stories are how we make sense of the world and share our ideas, passions, and unique perspectives. This TED-Ed video shares how presentation literacy, a skill to improve public speaking, can transform storytelling into your superpower.

An impactful story stays with your audience long after you’ve told it. For thousands of years humans have shared stories that ignite a “spark” in their audience and evoke a sense of empathy, trust, and connection. Listeners pass powerful messages along, spreading interesting ideas and stories far and wide.

The importance of presentation literacy

While storytelling remains as critical as ever, the qualities of an impactful story have had to evolve to continue to captivate in our modern world. As the speed at which information and headlines are shared has accelerated, the average attention span has been reduced to just eight seconds . Eight seconds! In our current media environment it now requires more than words to captivate people. This is where presentation literacy comes into play.

Touted as “ a core skill of the 21st century ”, presentation literacy can be a critical skill to leverage in your career. It requires us to create a compelling story that engages the audience’s other senses too, using high-resolution pictures, videos, or music. Often, it’s a combination of all of the above in addition to words, spelled out and spoken, that make a story truly shine.

In mastering presentation literacy, a storyteller ushers in a clear vision, replete with supplementary audiovisual cues to convey a message or, perhaps, convince others of it. While honing presentation literacy is immensely rewarding, the idea of putting it to practice on the stage can be terrifying to many people .

What presentation literacy can teach you

Many powerful speakers have struggled with stage anxiety. Even some acclaimed TED speakers, as shared by TED curator Chris Anderson , aren’t exempt from this: Monica Lewinsky thought she wasn’t worthy of a spot on the TED stage; Jacqueline Novogratz resisted public speaking in her younger years; and even Elon Musk wasn’t reputed as a “public speaker.” And yet, their TED Talks have been collectively viewed over 60 million times.

These speakers were able to cast aside their insecurities to tell a story that they wanted others to hear. And as a result, they have amassed millions of views and received critical acclaim among their colleagues and many of those who’ve listened to their Talks.

Mastering public speaking and presentation literacy isn’t just limited to speaking onstage. The skill is also valuable in your everyday life. It can teach you how to communicate with others effectively, articulate your ideas clearly, and speak with confidence, whether to colleagues, new acquaintances, family, or friends.

Innovating storytelling

Technology has opened up avenues that allow us to tell our stories in myriad ways. Anderson explains, “we live in an age where you don’t have to be able to speak to thousands of people at a time to have an outsized impact. It could just be you talking intimately to a video camera, and letting the Internet do the rest.”

The hardest part is plucking up the courage to try. We’re ready when you are: To learn how to hone your presentation literacy skills and master public speaking, visit our website, TED Masterclass . Our course guides you through the storytelling process, so you can present your most pressing ideas clearly, concisely, and impactfully.

© 2024 TED Conferences, LLC. All rights reserved. Please note that the TED Talks Usage policy does not apply to this content and is not subject to our creative commons license.

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What is a Preface? Characteristics and Examples

A preface is an introductory passage written about a book by its author. It lays out why the book exists, its subject matter, and its goals. Prefaces are more commonly found in nonfiction books, but they can also be used in fiction.

Because prefaces are part of a book’s front matter , they’re often confused with forewords and introductions. However, there are key differences among the three: a preface gives explanatory context for the book, while the introduction dives directly into the story, segueing smoothly into the body text. And while a preface or an introduction is typically written by the book’s author, a foreword is written by a separate person — usually an expert who lends the book credibility.

Now that we know what a preface is (and isn’t), let's break down what greater purposes they can serve in a book, along with some examples to demonstrate.

Gets the reader invested

A preface is an author’s chance to sell readers on their book. It should be written with the intent to draw readers in, rather than simply self-mythologize or over-egg a message that is already clearly conveyed in the book. Instead of boosting their own ego or spoon-feeding their message to readers, an author should aim to whet readers’ appetites with their preface.

To that end, a preface should give some irresistible insights into a book’s content. In nonfiction, this may be a brief mention of the book’s thesis and the areas it will cover, while in fiction, authors have a little more creative freedom to tempt their audience. Regardless of what’s in it exactly, your preface should do one thing above all: compel readers to keep turning the pages.

Example #1: Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner

Titled “An Explanatory Note,” the preface to this nonfiction phenomenon gives us a glimpse not only into the co-authors’ backgrounds but also into their relationship to one another. It recalls a meeting of the minds between the economist fascinated by “riddles of everyday life” and the journalist who was relieved to meet an academic with a talent for speaking in plain English. With the authors’ bona fides firmly established, this preface beautifully tees up what the reader can expect: genuine academic insight into economics, written plainly yet with passion.

💡 Give exclusive-yet-succinct insights to intrigue 

Don’t go overboard in teasing what’s to come — this is a chance to show off your content and draw readers in, not to baby your audience through points that will become perfectly obvious in the course of your book. Aside from a brief description of the key figures (or main characters, if writing fiction) and core themes, leave the rest up to the book itself. Less is more!

And to differentiate your preface from, say, your blurb , make these insights sound like they’re actually coming from you (which they are!). You can do this not only by writing in your authorial voice but also by signposting your personal opinion. Discuss how excited you are for readers to meet a favorite figure/character, or to read a chapter you’re especially proud of. But again, don’t be too effusive — in terms of length, your preface should be 2-3 pages at most.

Explains why the book was written...

A preface is a perfect place to provide the rationale behind a book and what the author’s goal was in writing it. If they were driven by a specific purpose, or have something they hope their readers will learn from the book, this is their opportunity to share it.

The author might reveal what inspired them to write this book, how they came to care about the subject, or why they’re uniquely qualified to write about it. Knowing that the author has a passionate, personal connection to the subject can get readers excited — not to mention that sharing relevant credentials or experience will reassure them that they’re in safe hands.

Example #2: A Promised Land by Barack Obama

The preface to Barack Obama's latest memoir, A Promised Land , invites the reader to join him at the end of his presidential run. He reveals that he started writing the book on his last flight on Air Force One, driven by a need to record his time in office. But A Promised Land is more than a chronicle; Obama states that the greater reason for this book was to show what it’s actually like to be the president and to inspire others with his story of finding purpose in public service. 

His preface provided such a strong introduction to the book that it was not only highly effective at enticing readers, but also worked as a standalone piece. The preface was widely excerpted and republished during the publicity push for A Promised Land — a lesson that a well-written preface can be an extremely useful weapon in your book’s promotional arsenal .

💡 Ground your book in a single lightbulb moment

Your readers don’t need to know about every single event leading up to your book. Rather, consider following in Obama’s footsteps and grounding your book in a particular moment of inspiration, as he had on Air Force One. Don’t waffle around about how you always wanted to write something — instead, pinpoint a meaningful, memorable moment for the story to begin.

...or reveals something about the author’s process

Again, your preface is your chance to tell your book’s story — and this can not only mean why, but also how it came to be. An author can use a preface to reveal behind-the-scenes info about the writing process that might pique readers’ interest.

Most important (and exciting for the reader!) is to share details of the writing journey itself. What challenges did you have to overcome as an author? How did your perspective evolve as you wrote the book? It’s important not to get too navel-gazey when explaining these aspects, but some vivid autobiographical details can really get readers invested in you and your work.

You might also include methodological matters in your nonfiction preface: how you conducted your research, why you took a particular approach, and the specific parameters of your book (i.e. why you’ve focused on this topic and what the limits of your knowledge are). It reassures readers that you’ve done your due diligence and shows you’re fully transparent.

Example #3: Trick Mirror by Jio Tolentino

Although she labels it an introduction, Jia Tolentino’s preamble to her 2020 essay collection Trick Mirror falls comfortably under the definition of a preface, and is a great example of an author capitalizing on the opportunity to contextualize their work and elaborate on how and why she wrote it.

In the preface, Tolentino explains how she wrote these essays in the aftermath of the 2016 US election, as a way of reconciling her fragmented view of reality and herself in the wake of such a seismic political shift. Providing a brief introduction to the 9 essays, she also gives individual context for each. While the

work can be appreciated as a whole without it, Tolentino’s preface lays out the emotional conditions and historical background that gave rise to it (more on historical context in prefaces later!) in a way that gives the reader a new perspective on the main body of her collection.

💡 Add an author signature to seal this moment in time

The standard preface format includes a “signature” from the author, along with the date and time of writing. This is an excellent way to signal that you’re writing with hindsight: now that you’re at the end of your writing journey, you can reflect on how the book’s direction may have changed over time, and how your own life and emotions were affected while writing.

This slight temporal distance from your original work will not only make the preface feel more profound, but the specific date will also seal this particular moment in time — which could be fascinating for posterity.

Provides essential historical or social context

If certain details will add to the reader’s experience but don’t quite fit in the book itself, the preface is the place to share them. When the author wants to situate their story without explicitly doing so in the main text, they can use the preface to fill in any gaps.

With nonfiction, authors will often mention previous, relevant literature or research in their preface, placing the work in a wider academic or historical context. A preface also provides context to future readers — in case anything changes after you write the book, the preface can acknowledge that, while explaining how the original work is still valuable. And of course, if you as the author change your mind about something, you can re-issue your book with a preface explaining how your views have evolved or what you would do differently today.

That said, some authors forget that many readers will (unfortunately) breeze straight through the front matter — so if something is truly essential to a reader’s understanding, this isn’t the place for it. A preface is best viewed as bonus insight into a book, rather than a presentation of things you must know to understand it; information like that would be better labeled as an introduction.

Example #4: Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow

Ronan Farrow’s journalistic true crime book , Catch and Kill, recounts the challenges the author faced while investigating powerful media predators like Harvey Weinstein, and the widespread industry corruption that allowed them to hide in plain sight for decades. As a result, new developments were coming out even as the book was going to press.

To make up for this, Farrow included a preface discussing developments in the story after the book was submitted to editors — a perfect example of a preface giving illuminating context which can’t fit neatly into the main narrative of the book.

💡 Highlight the book’s key influences

As well as historical, geographical, or social context, you can also reference literary context here. If you’re particularly indebted to or inspired by an author or literary tradition, mentioning it within your book’s preface lets prospective readers know what to expect and look out for.

One author who took this approach (bonus example alert!) was Virginia Woolf, who included a long list of literary “friends” in the preface of Orlando:

“Many friends have helped me in writing this book. Some are dead and so illustrious that I scarcely dare name them, yet no one can read or write without being perpetually in the debt of Defoe, Sir Thomas Browne, Sterne, Sir Walter Scott, Lord Macaulay, Emily Bronte, De Quincey, and Walter Pater, to name the first that come to mind. Others are alive, and though perhaps as illustrious in their own way, are less formidable for that very reason.”

It’s a nice way of placing your story within a canonical context, hinting at possible literary allusions your readers may find later in the book, and acknowledging the authors who paved the way for you. Note, however, that you can always save these kinds of acknowledgments for the back matter of your book.

If you do opt to include a preface, it’s these unassuming pages that will kick off your work. So no matter what you choose to include, make sure it starts with a bang — so that your book doesn’t continue on a whimper.

Speaking of which, let's continue on to the next section: the prologue!

2 responses

Sanni Adoki A. says:

25/08/2019 – 17:54

Good to read your article on Preface, Foreward and Introduction. It has helped me gain knowledge about the subject matter I have a plan to write a book (academic) which I dimmed it fit to include Introduction. However, at what point do I write the Introduction? Is it before writing the body of the book or after the body of book has been written. Thank you for the quick respond in anticipation

↪️ Martin Cavannagh replied:

27/08/2019 – 08:51

I think that a lot of people save writing the introduction until the body of the book is done. After all, you don't want to rewrite the intro if your book turns out differently to how you planned it :)

Comments are currently closed.

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• Literary Devices - Novel
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What is a novel?

A novel is an invented prose narrative of significant length and complexity that deals imaginatively with human experience. Its roots can be traced back thousands of years, though its origins in English are traditionally placed in the 18th century.

What are the elements of a novel?

A novel can accommodate an almost infinite number of elements. Some of the novel's typical elements, though, are the story or plot, the characters, the setting, the narrative method and point of view, and the scope or dimension.

What are the different types of novels?

The novel has an extensive range of types, among them being: historical, picaresque, sentimental, Gothic, psychological, novel of manners, epistolary, pastoral, roman à clef, antinovel, cult, detective, mystery, thriller, western, fantasy, and proletarian. There is no limit to the number of genres available to the novel.

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novel , an invented prose narrative of considerable length and a certain complexity that deals imaginatively with human experience, usually through a connected sequence of events involving a group of persons in a specific setting . Within its broad framework, the genre of the novel has encompassed an extensive range of types and styles: picaresque , epistolary , Gothic , romantic , realist, historical —to name only some of the more important ones.

The novel is a genre of fiction , and fiction may be defined as the art or craft of contriving, through the written word, representations of human life that instruct or divert or both. The various forms that fiction may take are best seen less as a number of separate categories than as a continuum or, more accurately, a cline, with some such brief form as the anecdote at one end of the scale and the longest conceivable novel at the other. When any piece of fiction is long enough to constitute a whole book, as opposed to a mere part of a book, then it may be said to have achieved novelhood. But this state admits of its own quantitative categories, so that a relatively brief novel may be termed a novella (or, if the insubstantiality of the content matches its brevity , a novelette), and a very long novel may overflow the banks of a single volume and become a roman-fleuve , or river novel. Length is very much one of the dimensions of the genre.

The term novel is a truncation of the Italian word novella (from the plural of Latin novellus , a late variant of novus , meaning “new”), so that what is now, in most languages, a diminutive denotes historically the parent form. The novella was a kind of enlarged anecdote like those to be found in the 14th-century Italian classic Boccaccio’s Decameron , each of which exemplifies the etymology well enough. The stories are little new things, novelties, freshly minted diversions, toys; they are not reworkings of known fables or myths , and they are lacking in weight and moral earnestness. It is to be noted that, despite the high example of novelists of the most profound seriousness, such as Tolstoy , Henry James , and Virginia Woolf , the term novel still, in some quarters, carries overtones of lightness and frivolity. And it is possible to descry a tendency to triviality in the form itself. The ode or symphony seems to possess an inner mechanism that protects it from aesthetic or moral corruption, but the novel can descend to shameful commercial depths of sentimentality or pornography . It is the purpose of this section to consider the novel not solely in terms of great art but also as an all-purpose medium catering for all the strata of literacy.

Such early ancient Roman fiction as Petronius ’ Satyricon of the 1st century ad and Lucius Apuleius’ Golden Ass of the 2nd century contain many of the popular elements that distinguish the novel from its nobler born relative the epic poem. In the fictional works, the medium is prose, the events described are unheroic , the settings are streets and taverns, not battlefields and palaces. There is more low fornication than princely combat; the gods do not move the action; the dialogue is homely rather than aristocratic. It was, in fact, out of the need to find—in the period of Roman decline—a literary form that was anti-epic in both substance and language that the first prose fiction of Europe seems to have been conceived. The most memorable character in Petronius is a nouveau riche vulgarian; the hero of Lucius Apuleius is turned into a donkey; nothing less epic can well be imagined.

The medieval chivalric romance (from a popular Latin word, probably Romanice , meaning written in the vernacular , not in traditional Latin) restored a kind of epic view of man—though now as heroic Christian, not heroic pagan. At the same time, it bequeathed its name to the later genre of continental literature , the novel, which is known in French as roman , in Italian as romanzo , etc. (The English term romance, however, carries a pejorative connotation.) But that later genre achieved its first great flowering in Spain at the beginning of the 17th century in an antichivalric comic masterpiece—the Don Quixote of Cervantes, which, on a larger scale than the Satyricon or The Golden Ass , contains many of the elements that have been expected from prose fiction ever since. Novels have heroes, but not in any classical or medieval sense. As for the novelist, he must, in the words of the contemporary British-American W.H. Auden ,

Become the whole of boredom, subject to Vulgar complaints like love, among the Just Be just, among the Filthy filthy too, And in his own weak person, if he can, Must suffer dully all the wrongs of Man.

The novel attempts to assume those burdens of life that have no place in the epic poem and to see man as unheroic, unredeemed, imperfect, even absurd. This is why there is room among its practitioners for writers of hardboiled detective thrillers such as the contemporary American Mickey Spillane or of sentimental melodramas such as the prolific 19th-century English novelist Mrs. Henry Wood , but not for one of the unremitting elevation of outlook of a John Milton .

The novel is propelled through its hundred or thousand pages by a device known as the story or plot. This is frequently conceived by the novelist in very simple terms, a mere nucleus, a jotting on an old envelope: for example, Charles Dickens ’ Christmas Carol (1843) might have been conceived as “a misanthrope is reformed through certain magical visitations on Christmas Eve,” or Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1813) as “a young couple destined to be married have first to overcome the barriers of pride and prejudice,” or Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment (1866) as “a young man commits a crime and is slowly pursued in the direction of his punishment.” The detailed working out of the nuclear idea requires much ingenuity, since the plot of one novel is expected to be somewhat different from that of another, and there are very few basic human situations for the novelist to draw upon. The dramatist may take his plot ready-made from fiction or biography—a form of theft sanctioned by Shakespeare—but the novelist has to produce what look like novelties.

The example of Shakespeare is a reminder that the ability to create an interesting plot, or even any plot at all, is not a prerequisite of the imaginative writer’s craft. At the lowest level of fiction, plot need be no more than a string of stock devices for arousing stock responses of concern and excitement in the reader. The reader’s interest may be captured at the outset by the promise of conflicts or mysteries or frustrations that will eventually be resolved, and he will gladly—so strong is his desire to be moved or entertained—suspend criticism of even the most trite modes of resolution. In the least sophisticated fiction, the knots to be untied are stringently physical, and the denouement often comes in a sort of triumphant violence. Serious fiction prefers its plots to be based on psychological situations, and its climaxes come in new states of awareness—chiefly self-knowledge—on the parts of the major characters.

Melodramatic plots, plots dependent on coincidence or improbability, are sometimes found in even the most elevated fiction; E.M. Forster’s Howards End (1910) is an example of a classic British novel with such a plot. But the novelist is always faced with the problem of whether it is more important to represent the formlessness of real life (in which there are no beginnings and no ends and very few simple motives for action) or to construct an artifact as well balanced and economical as a table or chair; since he is an artist, the claims of art, or artifice , frequently prevail.

There are, however, ways of constructing novels in which plot may play a desultory part or no part at all. The traditional picaresque novel —a novel with a rogue as its central character—like Alain Lesage’s Gil Blas (1715) or Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones (1749), depends for movement on a succession of chance incidents. In the works of Virginia Woolf , the consciousness of the characters, bounded by some poetic or symbolic device, sometimes provides all the fictional material. Marcel Proust ’s great roman-fleuve , À la recherche du temps perdu (1913–27; Remembrance of Things Past ), has a metaphysical framework derived from the time theories of the philosopher Henri Bergson , and it moves toward a moment of truth that is intended to be literally a revelation of the nature of reality. Strictly, any scheme will do to hold a novel together—raw action, the hidden syllogism of the mystery story , prolonged solipsist contemplation—so long as the actualities or potentialities of human life are credibly expressed, with a consequent sense of illumination, or some lesser mode of artistic satisfaction, on the part of the reader.

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Top 35 Presentation Books: Expert Ratings

Some are bad. Some are good. And some are outstanding!

We want to help you find the outstanding books — books which truly help you build your presentation skills . That’s why we publish book reviews on Six Minutes .

So, when Gonzalo Álvarez invited me to join in a survey of experts to rate a collection of the best presentation books, I was happy to participate.

This article reports the results of this survey: the top 35 books on presentations .

Analysis and Participants

From the analysis summary:

We wondered: “What do the top presentation experts in the world read?” They told us. We asked 7 of the top presentation experts in the world to tell us what books most inspired them to be better presenters. Seven judges, including four published authors, provided feedback to a list of books. We present, for your consideration, their ranked list of the top 35 presentation books.

• Survey analysis was performed by Gonzalo Álvarez and Bruce Gabrielle. Their methodology and full results can be found in the embedded document later in this article. Thanks to both of them for leading this effort!
• Nancy Duarte
• Bruce Gabrielle
• Dr. Michael Alley
• Gonzalo Alvarez
• Nolan Haims
• Andrew Dlugan  (me)

Summary of the Results

• It’s very difficult to quantitatively compare speaking books, particularly when those books excel in very different ways.
• Books were scored according to their presentation focus along several criteria (content, structure, visual design, delivery). The total of the individual scores was used to rank the books overall.
• These totals can be misleading as they reward books with a very broad focus (books that touch on many speaking skills), and penalize books with a narrow focus. As an example, books like Made to Stick or The Story Factor  (which are both excellent books which focus almost entirely on storytelling) receive low overall scores.
• Each of these two groups are listed in the tables below.
• The “Amazon Rating” column in the tables below gives the “stars” ranking and the number of reader reviews.
• Most books (27 out of 35) are priced between $14 and $28 . Four books are less than $14, and one book is over $28. Three books are no longer carried by amazon, so no price is given.
• Links to these reviews are given in the tables below.
• Most of the remaining 21 books are on my personal wishlist, so it’s quite likely you’ll be seeing reviews for some of them in the future.

Books with a Content/Delivery Focus

Books with a Focus on Visuals

The Full Ratings Data

If you do not see the embedded document below, please visit the web version of this article .

How about you? Which are your favorites?

How many of these 35 have you read? Which ones do you like most? Why? Which book(s) would you add to the list?

Please share in the comments . I’d love to hear from you.

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14 comments.

The Art of the Explanation is my favorite. It’s written by Lee LeFever. He’s got steps on how to explain complicated things and ideas so NO ONE in the audience gets left behind.

Thanks Jaime.

I love Lee LeFever’s video explanations, and am curious to read his book.

2 Done; 33 to go. Wonderful timing. I was just looking for books to improve on my presentation skills. Andrew, you just handed over me the magic wand. 🙂

Thanks Andrew. Look forward to completing these.

Oh wow, that’s quite the list. I’ll be going over this and determining which ones I need to read NOW and which ones I’ll save for later. Thanks for taking the time to put together such a great list.

The one book I have never seen written is how to develop presentations for others to give. Many times I am faced with developing a corporate or sales presentation for the sales team to give to prospects – what are the best practices for this kind of presentation?

Thank you for providing an extremely useful list. However, it’s hard for anyone to keep up with what else those authors have been doing since the listed books were published. Check before you buy. For example, Stephen M. Kosslyn’s 2010 book Better PowerPoint: Quick Fixes Based on How Your Audience Thinks might be a better choice than the 2007 Clear and to the Point. Also, this year Dave Paradi published Present It So They Get It . I liked his The Visual Slide Revolution enough to post a review of it .

I’d add Dona M. Wong’s The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics to the list of books about visuals. I reviewed it briefly here .

Thanks for the detailed comments, Richard. I’ll have to check out those books.

considero una parte esencial de la vida el leer y leer pero el decidir cual o cuales libros son los mejores es dificil. por lo que agradezco esta presentacion seis minutos un momento de informacion que engrandece nuestro pensamiento. gracias

Since i am a scientist, my favorite is the craft of scientific presentation. I guess this one was intended for presenting scientific data and conference. For design, I prefer The non designer design book. For story telling, confessions of a public speaker is excellence. I read several other book, like the zen etc, but in my opinion they are for business-type presentation

a great list, but you left out a GEM. Gail Larsen’s Transformational Speaking . Truly, the best speaking book I’ve read.

MUST- ADD ALERT! Transformational Speaking , by Gail Larsen. This book is a comprehensive and unique guide to speaking with the most authentic voice we can bring forth. Gail’s teachings have not only helped me to become a better speaker, but have also helped me name and claim personal attributes that make me a better artist, workshop leader, friend, and mother. As former leader of the National Speaker’s Association, Gail knows the speaking world well. She can give a great speech any day at any time; but what interests her is the special ability we each possess to connect with people on a deeper level, through storytelling. In her book, Gail makes the case that if we don’t honor our unique offerings by sharing them, they will be lost to the world forever. She goes on to explain that this is a critical time in our world, a time we need everyone. Calling all voices! Please add this truly transformational gift to the world to your list of bests. I have never read a book that has changed my life more!

I think this is a great list you and your team have compliled. One I would add would be Jeremy Donovon’s How To Deliver A TED Talk which is a easy read that takes the best Ted Talks and dissects them.

I just read your ratings on the 35 presentation books and I can see I have a lot of reading a head of me.

I’m writing to you to ask if you would like to write a guest blog for our website? In return we can give you access to our PowerPoint Templates database and give you some room to promote your own product.

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Business School Presenting – Especially Powerful Books for 2013! — Jan 17th, 2013

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• Majora Carter (TED, 2006) Energy, Passion, Speaking Rate
• Hans Rosling (TED, 2006) 6 Techniques to Present Data
• J.A. Gamache (Toastmasters, 2007) Gestures, Prop, Writing
• Steve Jobs (Stanford, 2005) Figures of speech, rule of three
• Al Gore (TED, 2006) Humor, audience interaction
• Dick Hardt (OSCON, 2005) Lessig Method of Presentation

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What is a novel study?

By  MARISSA DESPINS  Updated Sept 19, 2023

What is a novel study? As a middle school or upper elementary teacher, you already know that teaching students to read is so much more than decoding words on a page. Once your students have mastered the fundamentals of phonics, fluency, and vocabulary, a novel study can take them to the next level of their learning journey. This post is the first in my series on planning novel studies your learners will love. It focuses on the essential question of “What is a Novel Study?”

Looking for a FREE Step by Step Novel Study Planning Guide? Click on the image or button below to download your FREE guide!

For more information on teaching specific novels, you won’t want to miss our posts on teaching Because of Winn Dixie , Wonder , The Hunger Games , Charlie and the Chocolate Factory , and The Outsiders!

To start our exploration, we first have to clarify what a novel study is not. It’s not simply a matter of studying a book’s plot. It isn’t just about quizzing students on the events that happened on a specific page. So, what is a novel study then?

Novel studies go far beyond teaching a book. A novel study is an opportunity to teach your students how to engage with a book in a meaningful way. It encourages them to look beyond the words on the page and to read between the lines, developing critical reading comprehension and analytical skills that will benefit them for years to come.

What’s more, novel studies allow your students to become active participants in their own learning experience. When done well, a book study strikes a balance between teacher guidance and student-led analysis, empowering your students to develop, practice, and refine their reading comprehension and analysis skills. And perhaps the best outcome of a successful book study is the creation of a safe space where students can foster a love and appreciation for reading. As an English teacher, there’s nothing more rewarding than that!

A novel study presents a fantastic opportunity to accomplish several goals with a cohesive approach. To begin with, it allows for the simultaneous address of multiple learning objectives and state standards within a single unit. Moreover, novel studies provide an ideal setting for integrating reading and writing skills, fulfilling the aspirations of ELA teachers.

How do novel studies benefit student learning?

One of the greatest benefits that students derive from novel studies is the invaluable exposure they gain. Novels serve as gateways to diverse experiences and perspectives, allowing students to step into worlds outside their own. As our own experiences shape us, students often have limited exposure to different cultures, historical periods, and unfamiliar circumstances.

In addition to expanding their horizons, students acquire essential skills beyond the content of the book. Collaborative activities and discussions require them to collaborate, practice active listening, and consider the viewpoints of others. Engaging with the novel offers students numerous opportunities to develop a sense of perspective, appreciating that people think and work in diverse ways.

Furthermore, novel studies provide a unique context for vocabulary acquisition. Unlike traditional methods such as spelling bees or weekly vocabulary lists, students encounter new words organically within the context of the story. This approach offers a more meaningful and authentic understanding of vocabulary, as students see words being used in real-world situations.

If you are struggling with choosing the perfect book for your next novel study, you won’t want to miss our lists of favorite middle school and upper elementary novels!

Are you looking for more information on novel studies?

Check out these related blog posts below!

Novel Study Text Selection Tips

Building Novel Study Engagement

Benefits of Teaching Novel Studies

Hatchet Novel Study Activities

Middle School Novel Study Favorites

Upper Elementary Novel Study Favorites

On the hunt for novel study activities?

Did you know that Creative Classroom Core has over 30 different COMPLETE novel studies available in their TPT shop? Check them out by clicking on the image below!

Interested in signing up for my email list?

If you are interested in signing up for my email list, you can do so by clicking on the link below. I periodically send out emails with free resources, teaching tips, and exclusive deals. Signing up will also give you immediate access to some of my best selling Interactive Notebook resources – foldable activities, graphic organizers, and other fun activities.

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“So, what do you write?”

As soon as you mention you’re a writer or an author, you can expect to field the question, “What do you write?” 

It’s a question you must repeatedly answer throughout your writing career. 

Writers who give a compelling answer receive more publishing contracts, accept larger advances, gain more readers, and sell more books. Your answer to the question, “What do you write,” is called a “pitch.” 

But a pitch isn’t just for those seeking traditional publishing contracts. Indie authors also benefit from having a compelling pitch for their books. Good pitches lead to great back cover copy and attention-grabbing ads.  

Word-of-mouth marketing begins with you. A well-crafted pitch makes it easier for people to talk about your book, and it increases the likelihood that news about your book will spread organically from person to person.

So how do you craft a pitch for your book that creates a word-of-mouth wildfire? 

Why You Should Craft Your Pitch Before You Write Your Book

Before we talk about  how  to craft a compelling pitch, we must discuss  when  to write your pitch. 

Most authors, especially beginning authors, craft their pitch at the wrong time. 

As a listener of the Novel Marketing podcast (and reader of our blog), you get the benefit of learning an important lesson the easy way, while most authors have to learn it the hard way. 

I recommend writing the pitch for your book  before  you write your book. In screenwriting, this is called “writing the poster first.” In online sales, it’s called “creating the landing page first.” In business, it’s called “beginning with the end in mind.”

There are some major benefits to crafting your pitch before you write your book.

Love Your Reader

The first book marketing commandment is to  Love thy reader as much as you love thy book . Crafting a pitch forces you to think about your reader. The sooner you start thinking about your reader, the better your book will be. 

Plan to Succeed

Crafting the pitch first forces you to think through the big picture of the book ahead of time, and that is particularly helpful for authors who write by the seat of their pants. The book’s pitch acts like the puzzle box guiding you as you craft your story. 

Test Your Ideas

It can be hard to get feedback on your writing. Reading an entire manuscript is a major time commitment. The kind of people who are willing to read your manuscript for free may not be able (or willing) to tell what needs to be fixed. 

On the other hand, you can practice your short pitch on  anyone . When someone asks, “What you do,” respond by saying, “I’m a writer.” I can almost guarantee that person will follow up by asking, “What do you write?” 

That’s your moment to deliver your pitch. As you share your pitch, watch the listener’s face for clues. Do they seem interested? 

Then stop talking and listen to their questions. If they don’t ask questions, your pitch, and thus your story, may need some work. It might feel disheartening at the moment, but it’s best to find that out before you spend a year typing sentences. 

Each year, I host a special pitch practice for writers who plan to attend the  Realm Makers conference . In the process of clarifying a story’s pitch, major problems often emerge that send the writer back to the drawing board to refine their story. It can be discouraging to discover plot problems right before a conference. Still, it’s better to work them out beforehand than to deliver a broken pitch during your once-in-a-lifetime appointment with your dream agent or publisher.

Practicing and honing your pitch while your book is still in its embryonic stage gives you time to help your book grow in the right direction.

The best time to work on your pitch is before you start writing your book. The second-best time to work on your pitch is right now. 

A Good Pitch Answer the Most Important Question

“Why should I read this book?” People rarely ask out loud, but it’s always first in their minds. You’ll only have a few seconds to answer, but it is the first and most important question your reader will ask.

If you give a long answer, it’s like trying to throw a basketball from a baseball pitcher’s mound. The bigger the ball, the harder it is to throw. 

An effective pitch must be brief. To develop a short and compelling pitch, you must focus on  the most compelling element of a book . 

That sounds easy, but it is not. 

Because if your book is well-written, there are many compelling elements. The best writers often have multiple compelling elements in their stories.

Book Pitches Are Not Book Reports

In school, you probably wrote a lot of book reports. The purpose of a book report was to force you to read the whole book. To prove that you completed the book, you had to report on everything you read.

A pitch doesn’t aim to prove anything.

The purpose of a pitch is to make someone curious. You want to infect your listener with the sickness of curiosity so that the only prescription that will cure their curiosity is to read your book. When you reveal too much, you kill curiosity, and the reader loses their need to read. 

Don’t Spoil Your Book in the Pitch

No writer reveals the murderer’s identity in the pitch for their mystery novel, but many authors give away second-act plot points in their pitch. I don’t start enjoying a book until I have read beyond what the pitch or back cover told me. 

As a general rule, your pitch shouldn’t give away the plot points that happen after your inciting moment or the fateful decision moment .  If you can’t make your pitch interesting using only the elements and information from Act One, then you might need to revise your story.

The Book Pitch Worksheet 

Determining the most compelling aspect of your book can be difficult, but I have created a worksheet companion for this episode that will help you find the most compelling aspect of your book. 

Fill out the following form to receive the fillable worksheet via email. 

The Plot Pitch

The first place to look for your most compelling element is in your plot.  

Specifically, you want to look in these areas:

• What does your protagonist want more than anything else?
• Why does your protagonist want that thing?
• How does your protagonist’s desire change at the moment of the fateful decision?

Wherever your protagonist’s desire changes, you’ll often find your most compelling element. 

Think of the moment when Luke Skywalker decides to save the princess instead of staying home. The fateful decision changes the desire of Catniss Everdeen so that she volunteers as tribute. Bilbo Baggins is so affected by the fateful decisions that he decides to join the Dwarves on their quest. 

• Why is it important for your protagonist to obtain that desire?
• What happens if the protagonist fails to get that desire? 
• Who suffers from the protagonist’s failure? 

High stakes cause your reader to care about the protagonist’s burning desire. The stakes don’t always need to have end-of-the-world consequences, but they do need to  resonate  with your reader. Your stakes must matter to your target reader.

• What bad thing happens if your protagonist is too late?
• Why does your protagonist need the desire right now? 

Urgency is a go-to tool for thrillers. Not all readers want a book with high urgency. The degree of urgency in your book will signal to a reader where your novel lands on the exciting/relaxing continuum. 

Character Pitch

Perhaps the most compelling element is not what happens in your book but rather  who  your book is about. 

If your most compelling element is one of your characters, it will be one of the following three characters. 

Protagonist

The protagonist is usually the point-of-view character, and it’s typically the character who makes decisions that move the story forward, even if it’s the bad guy (Think Thanos in Avengers Infinity War ).

• Who is making the decisions that push the story forward?
• How does the protagonist change while striving for the desire?
• What makes your protagonist interesting? 
• What makes your protagonist different?
• What makes your protagonist relatable? 

As you write answers to these questions, you’re talking about your story rather than telling your story. What jumps out at you when you talk about your story? Is your villain actually your protagonist? Which character’s decisions affect the direction and movement of the plot?

Relationship (or Dynamic) Character

The relationship character comes alongside the protagonist on the journey of transformation. Sometimes the relationship character is a mentor like Obi-Wan Kenobi, and sometimes it is a companion like Samwise Gamgee. The aloof Mr. Darcy is also a relationship character.  The theme or message of the story is often expressed to or through the relationship character.

• Who joins the protagonist on the journey of transformation?
• How does the protagonist change as a result of his or her relationship with the relationship character?   

Warning : Do not include more than three names in a pitch. Usually, two is sufficient. If your pitch is too long, cut the mention of the relationship character. For more information on the number and types of characters in your story, listen to the Writing Excuses Podcast on The Hollywood Formula .

• Who (or what) is preventing the protagonist from obtaining their desire?
• What does your antagonist want? 
• How do the antagonist’s desires cause him or her to create obstacles for your protagonist?
• What does the antagonist do to keep the protagonist from getting what they want?

The antagonist puts obstacles between your protagonist and his or her main desire. The nature of the antagonist depends on the core conflict of your book.

Conflict Pitch

Sometimes the most compelling element of your book is the core conflict. While stories can have vast and varied conflicts, typically, one primary conflict drives the story. This primary conflict is a great place to look for your most compelling element. 

There are six types of conflict in literature. Discovering which one drives your story will help you determine the core conflict of your story. 

Protagonist against man. 

From Cain and Able to Iron Man and Captain America, character-against-character is the most common conflict in literature. Between the protagonist and his desire stands an antagonist who wants the protagonist to fail. 

Protagonist against himself. 

What happens when someone is their own worst enemy? There is a lot of room for conflict on the journey between knowing the right thing to do and carrying it out. Anyone who has tried to break a habit, lose weight, or kick an addiction can relate to being one’s own worst enemy. Of the six types of conflict, character-against-self is the most relatable and least exotic. Think of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde or Bruce Banner and the Hulk.

Protagonist against nature. 

Whether it’s the weather, a beast, or a pandemic, nature can get in the way of your protagonist’s mission to get what they desire. Nature makes an interesting antagonist because it can’t be reasoned with. Forces of nature require the protagonist to confront it through primarily physical means. The protagonist can’t reason with a wolf, but he can punch it in the face. 

Nature has a fascinating lack of malice but also a lack of mercy or remorse. A volcano has no malice towards a town. Likewise, it has no mercy as it kills all the inhabitants. 

Protagonist against society. 

When your protagonist is in conflict with society, they are outnumbered and often battle ideas rather than the people themselves. It’s a one-versus-many conflict. Your protagonist may have to face off against a religion, a government, or a community.

You can’t punch an idea in the face, so society and nature are opposite antagonists in some ways. When battling nature, your protagonist must engage primarily in the physical realm. When fighting society, your protagonist often fights with words. 

The pen is mightier than the sword when fighting society, but the sword is mightier than the pen when fighting a wolf.   

Protagonist against the supernatural. 

What happens when the antagonist opposing the protagonist is unimaginably more powerful? A supernatural opponent is interesting because of the asymmetry of power. How does one challenge a god? How do you survive an attack from a vampire or a superior alien race?

You might think this is the most exotic kind of conflict, but it isn’t. Children and young adults can easily relate to this conflict. Adults have immeasurably more power than children or teens. Adults are bigger, faster, smarter, and have more resources. I suspect that’s why character-against-supernatural is so popular in the YA genre. It easy for an angsty teen to relate to a human vampire hunter who fights powerful vampires. 

Protagonist against his creation. 

What happens when someone creates his or her own antagonist? Over centuries of storytelling, this type of conflict has expanded from familial and dynastic conflicts to Frankenstein’s Monster and Hal 9000. 

The protagonist-against-his creation is the least relatable and most exotic of the six types of conflict. Most people have no idea what it’s like to have a prodigal son or to create a monster, and perhaps that’s why it’s the rarest of the conflicts used in literature. But the fact that it’s so rarely used also makes it appealing.

If you haven’t yet discovered your book’s most compelling element, there is one last place to look. 

Setting Pitch

Sometimes the most interesting element of your story is not the “who” or the “what” but the “where.” The setting pitch is most common for genres like fantasy and science fiction, where the author has done much world-building. The setting pitch answers the question, “Why would I want to spend time in your story world?”

James Bond stories are fun because not only because you experience life as a wealthy and powerful secret agent but also because you get to visit exotic places. Visiting Rome as a tourist is much different than visiting Rome as James Bond. 

The setting is typically used as a “flavoring” for one of the other types of pitches, but sometimes it can stand on its own. 

Questions to tease out your setting:

• How is the book’s setting different from the real world?
• What makes the setting interesting?
• Why would this setting be a fun place to visit? 

Putting it All Together

Once you have answered all the questions on the worksheet that accompanies this article, you’ll have lots of ingredients to work with when you cook up your pitch. 

So, let’s do some cooking. 

First, prepare a pitch that focuses on character. Then write a second pitch that focuses on the plot and so on. As you work on your different pitches, try to narrow it down to just two or three of your best. Then, the next time someone asks, “What do you write,” try one of your pitches. 

As you write various pitches, you will learn which one works best, but you will also discover that different pitches work better for different kinds of people. The more you pitch, the better you will understand your readers.

You’ll learn to talk about your book in a way that makes people ask the next important question, “Where can I buy your book?”

5 Year Plan to Become a Bestselling Author

I crafted this plan with bestselling and award-winning author James L Rubart to be step by step guide through the first five years of your writing career. Learn each quarter what to do to succeed and avoid the mistakes that hijack the success of most authors. Learn more at AuthorMedia.com/courses.

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Heresy is fatal in late Renaissance Italy, so only a suicidal zealot would so much as whisper the name of Martin Luther. But after Luther’s ideas ignite a young girl’s faith, she must choose–abandon her beliefs or risk her life in the turbulent world of late sixteenth-century Italy.

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If you can’t afford to become a patron but still want to help the show, you can! Just  share  this episode with one writer you think would find it helpful. 

Attended the webinar hosted by Derek Doepker on which you were the guest speaker. So I decided to check out this podcast. Awesome insight and advice. And very timely as my first book will be released July 31st.

Gotta get my “elevator pitches” prepared. Thanks!

Under “The Book Pitch Worksheet” section, where it says “Sign up here to receive the fillable worksheet via email”, there is no active link to use to sign up.

There should be a form to fill out immediately after.

Very helpful. Thank you.

I would love to have the Book Pitch Worksheet. Thanks so much. 🙂

You can find the form here: https://author-media.ck.page/e97c456b38

PS, The Podcast is so very helpful, thank you!! 🙂

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• Presentation Science

Why Novelty is So Important for Your Presentation

• By: Amy Boone

In our last blog, we talked about the trend of overcommunication . We tend to get bombarded with lots of information these days. That means presenters have to work harder to make their information stand out. When you present, you want to make an impact, right? But how exactly do you do that? Try novelty.

Let’s look at some of the traditional ideas about how novel information impacts us and then check out some of the modern research proving those ideas. Then we’ll brainstorm a few ways to use novelty in our presentations.

Why Novelty?

As early as 80 BC, we understood that things which are different or rare impact our memories differently from things which are more commonplace. Here’s a passage from Rhetorica ad Herenium discussing this:

“When we see in everyday life things that are petty, ordinary, and banal, we generally fail to remember them, because the mind is not being stirred by anything novel or marvelous. But if we see or hear something exceptionally base, dishonorable, extraordinary, great, unbelievable, or laughable, that we are likely to remember a long time.”

While this particular observation was written over 2,000 years ago, it still holds true today. That ancient text goes on to talk about the concept of loci, creating novel images in our minds to help us remember things. It saw a resurgence with the BBC series Sherlock . And The New York Times created a puzzle to show how novelty works to impact memory. Try it now .

What Science Says

These days, scientific research is proving what we knew to be true thousands of years ago. Studies have proven that our brains are hardwired to respond to novelty. Brain imaging has shown what the Rhetorica ad Herenium could only assume: that our brain activity increases when we encounter something new .

A study by Judith Schomaker and Martin Meeter proved that novelty enhances our visual perception. We actually see and perceive things better if they are novel because our early sensory processing system is enhanced. In a related study, Schomaker and Meeter found that novelty enables us to focus better , giving us a kind of hyper-aware concentration. Not only that, but they found that novelty can extend both our motivation and memory. I don’t know a single presenter who wouldn’t want to boost their impact time in this way.

How Do We Use It?

• Language: Try wording something in a different or unusual way. These types of “odd” phrases stick with the audience.
• Visuals: Make your images unique. Farfetched doesn’t have to mean unprofessional, though. Look for creative ways to communicate your ideas. Replace mundane visuals with novel ones. Even a unique font can make an impact.
• Delivery: Research shows that humans can detect the slightest change in sound. Think about how you can pick up a loop or pause in white noise no matter how small that sound change is. Use your voice or your body language in novel ways (increased volume, a defined or pronounced movement, or even silence) to get the attention of your audience and to make an impact.
• Content: Use content that falls a little outside of the audience’s expectations of what is normal. You could tell a vulnerable story or point to a humorous exception of the topic you are talking about.

Let’s end by going to back to where we started, the Rhetorica ad Herenium . In it, the anonymous author says this, “ordinary things easily slip from the memory while the striking and novel stay longer in mind. A sunrise, the sun’s course, a sunset, are marvelous to no one because they occur daily. But solar eclipses are a source of wonder because they occur seldom.”

It can be tempting to talk about sunrises in our presentations. They are beautiful, after all. But they aren’t novel. And chances are, they won’t leave much of an impact. When developing your next presentation, think solar eclipse, not sunrise.

Want more ideas about how to make your presentation stand out? We’re ready to help.

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How To Write A Book Pitch

You’ve spent months or even years pouring your heart into your work, and you finally have a finished manuscript. Now comes the hard part – getting your book published. You’ll need to learn how to write a book pitch to help you market your book.

In addition, this will get it in front of publishers , agents, or readers. With a pitch for your book, you drill down into the biggest selling points of your story in the hopes that it will pique someone’s interest.

Not sure where to start? Keep reading to find out more about why you should do this, our tips, and some book pitch examples to help you master yours!

What is a book pitch?

A book pitch is a short, concise summary of your book. It provides a glimpse into its plot, tone, and unique selling point.

It's typically sent along with your book proposal. And while it's short, it can be incredibly impactful when it comes to getting a book deal and selling your book!

Pitching a book is an essential part of the publishing process. In essence, it's your chance to convince agents or publishers that your book is worth their attention.

A way of marketing your book

Another way to think of a pitch for a book is like an elevator or sales pitch. In other words, it’s one way to market your book quickly to potential publishers or even readers.

The idea is that you tell the core concept of your book in the time it takes to be on an elevator – roughly 20 to 30 seconds.

Why you need a pitch for your book

There are many reasons why you would write a pitch for your book.

In some cases, you might want to write this before you even start writing. This is especially true of nonfiction books.

You’ll likely need to create a book proposal and get it accepted by a publisher before you start to write. And a proposal will include some of the elements of a pitch for a book.

Other reasons to write a pitch include:

Helps you get an agent

If you don’t have a literary agent but are looking for one, having a pitch for your novel could help you stand out in the crowd.

An agent can quickly get an idea of what your novel is about. They'll also know if they are a good fit to represent you.

Send it to publishers

Many people send manuscripts to publishers every year, either directly by authors or by agents. Reading a full-length manuscript takes time and they might not have the bandwidth to read more than a few pages.

Having a pitch for your book gives publishers a short synopsis of what your book is about, so they have an idea before they even start reading.

Expand into a synopsis 

A pitch for a book can also be used to expand further into a synopsis, which tells the whole story in just a few paragraphs or pages. It can also be included in a publisher cover letter . Or you can use it during a manuscript assessment .

Tips for writing a book pitch

Pitching a book is a great marketing tool for your manuscript, whether it’s a novel, nonfiction, or even a poetry book. Before you start writing, think about who you are pitching the book to and what information they might want.

A publisher, for example, might want to know if you won a book award or had another book or short story published.

You should also think about what makes your book unique and different from other similar books on the market. Think about why the reader should read your book instead of another one. Try to convey that in your writing.

Ready to start writing? Here are some suggestions on how to write a book pitch.

Define your book

What is your book about? Go back to the basic plot elements of your story and try to summarize it in just one or two sentences. You might want to start with the main conflict of the story. In other words, what is the story?

If you’re writing a nonfiction book, then convey what the main point is that you want your readers to walk away with. What will your readers learn? Sum up the main takeaway in one sentence.

Give background information

You should let the reader know more about the book. Which can include the genre, the main character, or also where it’s based. Only include the most essential information.

You don’t even need to give the character’s name or even include any side characters. You just want to tease the reader enough to make it interesting.

For nonfiction, you can consider the context of the issue you are trying to help solve. Is there a current event or social issue or problem that you are trying to help your readers with? Tell readers where your book fits and include any information on the genre or audience you are trying to reach.

Convey your selling point

Why should your reader care about the story? This is the key selling point . You want readers to get a sense of what they will learn or feel after reading your book.

If you’re writing fiction, you might use verbs to convey the type of themes throughout the book. Nonfiction writers should say what the main takeaway is from the book. Make sure to use lots of adjectives.

But remember, you want to give a hint of what the story is without giving away too much.

Make it short

One of the key aspects of how to write a book pitch is to keep it short. Potential readers or publishers don’t have time to read a whole page of text. Ideally, your pitch should be one paragraph, two at most.

Remember, it's like a sales pitch. It should be concise and get the point across in under 30 seconds.

Highlight "why you"

Depending on how long you want your pitch to be, you can also add any relevant information about why you are the best person to have written the book.

You can include any awards or credentials. Or if the book is based on a personal life experience, mention that.

You want to let potential publishers or agents know why you should be the author and not someone else.

Book pitch examples

One of the ideal ways to learn how to write a book pitch is to see it in action. Here are some book pitch examples to help you learn how to craft your own:

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

A classic fairytale and Disney movie is Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs . Here is an example of a short pitch that gives us the selling point, background, and essential information without actually giving anything away. And it comes in at only 27 words.

A princess hides in the woods to escape her murderous stepmother. This is a coming-of-age story about forming unexpected friendships and believing that good will overcome evil. 

In this example, we immediately tell the reader who the book is about — the princess. We introduce the conflict or selling point, that she has a murderous stepmother. Then we give more background about the themes of the story, letting the reader know what the overall arch of the story is about.

A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Let’s look at another example, A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams :

An Englishman survives the end of planet Earth by hitching a ride on an alien spaceship. While undertaking interstellar travel, he discovers the secret of life and the importance of towels .

This novel is witty and very long. We give the very first premise of the story and the main event that sparks the rest of the journey. Then we add a hint of what is to come, without giving away any spoilers.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Written by C.S. Lewis , The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a tale that was made into a movie and has multiple sequels.

Four children are sent to live in the countryside during World War 2 in England. By walking through a magical wardrobe, they discover a new land with talking animals, ruled by an evil queen. Together, they work to defeat her with the help of a lion and other brave new friends.

In this example, we introduce the main characters and the event that has caused them to be transported to this magical land. We introduce a bit of conflict or the selling point that there is an evil to fight. Then we add a bit more background about the other characters they meet.

Related articles on getting published

Did you enjoy this article? To learn more about book publishing check out these related articles.

• Writing A Book Proposal: A Great Book Proposal Template To Use
• How To Write A Publisher Cover Letter
• 8 Types Of Book Publishers To Avoid!

Write a book pitch that sells !

Writing a pitch for a book can be a challenging and intimidating task for many authors, but it's also an essential part of the publishing process. Learning how to write a book pitch can be the difference between getting your book published and having it remain hidden away on your computer.

Remember, pitching a book is all about capturing the essence of your book and presenting it in a way that will make agents and publishers excited to read it.

It takes time and effort to craft a pitch that stands out from the crowd, but with the right approach and also a bit of practice, you can create a pitch that will help you achieve your publishing goals .

So, whether you're a first-time author or a seasoned writer, take the time to write a compelling pitch for your book by using our tips above. It might be the key to unlocking your book's full potential and getting it into the hands of readers around the world!

Moriah Costa

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• By Illiya Vjestica
• - September 30, 2020

What are the Must-Read Essential Presentation Books?

We have put together, six of the best must-read presentation books on everything presenting and PowerPoint design. We began our own journey from these presentation books, and they can teach you too.

We’ve got to hand it to the internet. 

It teaches us a lot of things. On YouTube alone, there are tutorials for everything from doing eerily realistic special effects makeup to building a house. Elsewhere – at just a click of your mouse – you can find forums and websites full of insights across every skill imaginable. 

But there’s some knowledge you can only get from books. 

Books have a wealth of knowledge available to you, the feeling of turning the pages in your hand can’t be beaten. 

You can access specific interviews with leading figures in your industry. Learn tips and methodology that have been refined over decades – compiled precisely in the right order, in clear chapters, to help you digest it all. 

With that in mind, we’re always on the lookout for the best presentation books on presenting and presentation design. 

There are some brilliant titles out there that’ll help you to boost your presentation design and public speaking skills to a staggering degree – giving you an edge over your competitors.

The books we have selected will help you to deliver talks that capture hearts as well as minds. 

Here are our six must-read presentation books we’d recommend you add to your home library.

1. Talk Like TED: The 9 Public Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds, Carmine Gallo

In this book, Carmine Gallo puts forward a straightforward step-by-step method for anyone to deliver a presentation that is engaging, persuasive, and most importantly, memorable.

If you’re familiar with us at The Presentation Designer, you’ll already know we’ve created slides for TED talks before. They’re the gold standard when it comes to public speaking… and with this book, you can learn all the tricks of the trade from some of the best TED presenters around. 

From interviews with popular TED speakers to insights on how to design and deliver your presentation, this handy guide will help you to present like a pro. Are you ready to knock your audience’s socks off?

2. Presentation Zen Design: A simple visual approach to presenting in today’s world, Garr Reynolds

There’s probably nobody better qualified to give presentation advice than Garr Reynolds (other than us, of course!). 

A best-selling author and popular speaker, he’s got wisdom on tap when it comes to delivering terrific talks – and nailing every element of your presentation design. I’ve read every single book Garr has published.

Presentation Zen Design is the book I would recommend to anyone thinking about creating more effective presentation slides.

Throughout, you’ll find simple design principles and techniques that are guaranteed to enhance your presentations. In Garr’s book you will also gain an insight into Japanese Zen and how you can apply some of its principles to improve engagement with your audience.

It doesn’t matter how smart and a detailed a slide design can be, Garr’s methods prove that ‘keeping it simple is best’.  

Check out his tips on the best ways to use colour, data, mixed mediums (including video) and more to create simple, synergistic and stunning presentations. Check it out. 

3. slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations: The Art and Science of Presentation Design, Nancy Duarte

In slide:ology, communications expert Nancy Duarte delivers innovative advice around “visual thinking” – helping your audience to understand your key messages through imagery. 

Connect with specific experts, create easy-to-understand graphics and use the power of art to persuade. Using her intriguing insights and step-by-step instructions, you’ll be able to master the craft of presenting. 

There are plenty of case studies to refer too, which demonstrate how some of the world’s leading brands have used Duarte’s visual theories and methods to achieve their goals. 

Want to learn how to create slides an audience can process? 

Then, this is the book for you, it’s difficult not to also recommend ‘Resonate’, her follow-up, as another must-read book.

Her second book will take your learning further to help you create better stories for your presentation and develop supporting visuals that fit your narrative.

Thank you, Nancy! You have taught me so much! 

4. Confessions of a Public Speaker, Scott Berkun 

Stage fright. Bored audiences. Forgetting your lines. Even the most confident of us have fears when it comes to giving presentations. Fortunately, author and public speaking specialist Scott Berkun is sympathetic to that – and between his practical advice and hilarious, insightful anecdotes, Scott teaches you how to present perfectly… without the panic element. Sounds good to us. 

Through his years of experience speaking to crowds of all different sizes, you’ll gain an insight to:

• How to work a tough audience
• The science of not boring people to sleep
• How to survive the attack of nerves or worry
• What to do when things go wrong

5. Show and Tell: How Everybody Can Make Extraordinary Presentations, Dan Roam

There are two decades worth of presentation wisdom in Dan Roam’s  Show and Tell . His theory is that we’re all natural-born storytellers.

In his book ‘Show and Tell’ he guides our focus on unlocking our innate presenting abilities in a fun, engaging and informative way. Through fundamental truths (including our personal favourite: “passion = self-confidence”), hand-drawn pictures and simple-to-remember tips, you’ll find a fantastic foundation for both your presentation design and delivery.

There’s a lot of informative content about telling better stories in our presentation and how to structure them to make them engaging. 

Cheers, Dan.

6. Interaction of Color, Josef Albers

At The Presentation Designer, we’re serious when it comes to harnessing the power of colour in presentation design. It’s a good thing, too, as colour theory and psychology play massive roles in the potential impact of your slides. 

Josef Albers’ famous book,  Interaction of Colour , is testament to that fact: a comprehensive guide on the principles of colour theory that’s been in circulation since the 60s. 

Age certainly equals wisdom, here, because Albers’ in-depth manual – which discusses everything from colour relativity to the illusion of transparency – is chockablock with all the information you’ll ever need to know about using colour. You’ll be the Picasso of presentations in no time. 

I’ve included this video from painter Albert van der Zwart who explains the concepts around Josef Albers principles of colour theory well.

There you go, I hope you’ve enjoyed our recommended presentation books. Let us know any you think we’ve missed in the comments.

Other Recommend Reading:

If you have enjoyed this post we’ve also included some helpful links to our blog posts that you might find useful:

• 5 PowerPoint Tips You Should Know
• How to Improve Presentation Retention Rates
• How to Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking
• 5 Classic Presentation Fonts

Don’t want to go it alone? We’ve got a  brilliant process in place  to help you build your presentation… and we’ll give you a free quotation, too. Come say hi!

Illiya Vjestica

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Leads Biolabs Unveils Preclinical Data on LBL-047, a Novel, First-In-Class Long-Acting TACI/Anti-BDCA2 Bispecific Antibody Fusion Protein in an Oral Presentation at EULAR 2024 Congress

PR Newswire

NANJING, China, June 17, 2024

NANJING, China, June 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- At the recent European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) Congress in Vienna, Austria, Nanjing Leads Biolabs Co., Ltd. (Leads Biolabs) delivered an oral presentation on its highly innovative therapeutic candidate LBL-047. LBL-047 is a first-in-class, long-acting TACI/BDCA2 bispecific antibody fusion protein. LBL-047 is composed of a Transmembrane Activator and a Calcium Modulator and Cyclophilin Ligand Interactor (TACI) domain fused to an antibody targeting Blood Dendritic Cell Antigen 2 (BDCA2). The bispecific antibody is further modified with the YTE mutation on the Fc region to prolong the half-life in circulation, thereby, enabling less frequent dosing, and improved patient compliance.

LBL-047 has demonstrated excellent activity and pharmacokinetic properties in multiple preclinical experiments.

• Significantly inhibit INF-α release
• Robust depletion of pDCs in vitro and in vivo
• Superior inhibition of B cell and plasma cell function in vitro and in vivo compared to marketed TACI fusion protein
• Significantly alleviated clinical symptoms and inhibited B cell and plasma cell function in EAE mouse model (MS model)
• Excellent PK profile and markedly reduced IgM, IgA, IgG in cynomolgus monkey for up to six weeks

These results indicate that LBL-047 can simultaneously inhibit B cell function and deplete interferon-secreting pDCs, thereby attenuating autoimmune activity. This innovative research offers new possibilities for treating a wide range of autoimmune related diseases, including Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus (CLE), Lupus Nephritis (LN), Sjogren's Syndrome, and Myasthenia Gravis. Engineered to significantly prolong the dosing interval, LBL-047 presents an optimal product profile for subsequent clinical and commercial development.

Huang Xiao, Vice President of Discovery Research at Leads Biolabs, said: "EULAR is a highly anticipated event in the fields of rheumatology and immunology. We are honored to be featured in this prestigious gathering of over 18,000 experts and scholars from more than 130 countries to share the exciting data we have generated. LBL-047, independently developed and fully owned by Leads Biolabs, represents a significant achievement arising from our differentiated innovation strategy. Its unique design is based on our profound understanding of autoimmune diseases and target mechanisms, integrating extensive antibody engineering technologies and optimization efforts. We are very pleased with the results we have seen in preclinical studies. Leads Biolabs is dedicated to our corporate philosophy of 'care for life, focus on innovation, and win-win cooperation,' and is committed to providing safer and more effective treatment options for patients. Currently, LBL-047 is in the preclinical research stage, and we will continue to efficiently promote the development of this drug candidate to bring effective treatments to patients with autoimmune diseases as soon as possible."

About LBL-047

B cells and pDCs play a crucial and synergistic role in the pathogenesis of many autoimmune diseases. Inhibiting the function of B cells and pDCs is a potential therapeutic strategy for treating various autoimmune diseases. LBL-047 is a long-acting TACI/anti- BDCA2 bispecific fusion protein, obtained by fusing an engineered TACI domain with a defucosylated anti-BDCA2 humanized monoclonal antibody.

TACI is the natural high-affinity receptor for B cell activation factor of the tumor necrosis factor family (BAFF) and a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL), which are key cytokines that promote B cell and plasma cell survival, maturation, and function. Engineered TACI domain can be used to trap BAFF and APRIL, inhibiting B-cell function.

BDCA2 is specifically expressed on pDCs and BDCA2 agonist antibody can suppress the IFNs release. Additionally, anti-BDCA2 antibodies can directly eliminate pDCs through mechanisms such as ADCC, inhibiting pDC-mediated immune responses. The defucosylated anti-BDCA2 antibody has stronger ADCC activity, and the introduction of YTE mutation in the Fc region further prolongs the half-life of the antibody.

Preclinical studies have demonstrated that LBL-047 can potently inhibit the functions of B cells and pDCs simultaneously, and possesses excellent pharmacokinetic properties, indicating broad clinical applications and market prospects in the treatment of various autoimmune diseases.

About Leads Biolabs

Nanjing Leads Biolabs Co., Ltd. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company founded in Nanjing by a team of senior U.S.-trained antibody drug developers. Since 2014, Leads Biolabs has been dedicated to the discovery and development of novel antibody drugs with independent intellectual property rights for the treatment of oncology and other major diseases of high unmet medical needs, particularly the challenges in cancer immunotherapy. Our extensive R&D pipeline consist of more than twenty novel tumor immunotherapy, autoimmunity and ADC molecules based on monoclonal and bispecific antibody technology platforms. Leads Biolabs is committed to providing safe, effective, accessible, and affordable new drugs to address the unmet needs of patients around the world.

Contact [email protected]  

SOURCE Leads Biolabs

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