Whether you’re self-publishing or traditionally publishing, a pivotal part of your book-writing process is researching its competition in the universe of books that already exist.
If you’re pitching to a traditional publisher, this exercise is a required part of the book-proposal-writing process. But even if you’re self-publishing, you should evaluate your competition so that you know how to position your book as different or better than what is already available.
To start, poll your potential audience. Ask business contacts and customers if they would be interested in reading a book like yours, and find out what kind of information they want to learn about so you know whether what you’re writing will be of value to your audience or not.
Study your market carefully before you proceed so you don’t end up wasting your time writing a book that has already been written and is well-established.
The easiest way to find competing titles is to search www.Amazon.com for keywords on your topic. For example, if you want to write about how to start a consulting business, search the business books category for the following key words:
CONSULTING
COACHING
ADVISOR
START A (insert specialty such as financial planning, marketing, etc.) BUSINESS
If the market is saturated with books on your topic, consider narrowing your focus. For example, if you run a pet-sitting business, perhaps you’re considering writing a book called, How to Start a Profitable Pet Services Business that will include chapters on pet sitting, obedience training, grooming, and dog-walking. But if, during your research, you discover the market is glutted with books in this genre, you could change your focus to How to Market a Pet Services Business or Real-World Advice from Pet Business Owners.
Having said that, don’t be discouraged if there is already a book out there that covers your topic. Most genres have multiple guides with similar topics (self-help books are a great example—consider how many books exist on relationships!). With millions of readers in the world, there is always room for another guide as long as it takes a different approach.
If you like this blog post, you’ll love our Author Toolkit with templates, worksheets and checklists for writing nonfiction. Check it out!
