And as you read, ask yourself: What is writer saying? Why is he saying it? How is he saying it? The answers you get will help you comprehend, interpret and appreciate book, together with writer’s use of language.

You also have another source –- observation. How do you observe things? Do you look at them closely? Or do you just take a cursory look? You may have missed a great discovery.

Now, come to think of it. Which invention was ever made without a keen observation followed by an inference –- from cause to effect, or from effect to cause.

Remember Isaac Newton observing a falling apple (gravity), Achimedes jumping out of a pool of water and solving riddle of king’s crown (Eureka!), or Mungo Park following river course and “discovering” River Niger (I saw with infinite pleasure great object of my mission….)

So, in your daily activities, make it a habit to observe closely; who knows, right in your garden, you may discover remains of an extinct dinosaur!

Third, you would have to draw materials from your personal life experiences –- what you have seen or heard of people, places and things. Who was it that said experience is best teacher?

He was probably right. People have written masterpieces and autobiographies based on their life experiences. Like Charles Darwin. Like Nelson Mandela.

So, what you are as a person, called “persona”, and your life experiences must reflect in your work, whether you call it fiction, or non- fiction. And since books are a combination of facts and fiction, some have invented coinage--faction, to represent middle ground.

You have another last source of information –- interview people, ask questions.

No man is a repository of knowledge, and if you do not have an inquisitive mind, you will continue to wallow in ignorance, which itself is a disease.

So, ask questions to get information you seek, and follow with more questions to clarify answers. Do not be timid, shy, or proud, to know. Remember that knowledge is power. Remember also that Socrates, great philosopher, asked to know. And remember words of Rene Descartes: “Dare to know!”

At this stage, I must mention importance of diary. Yes, carry one about, and make a daily entry of materials you like to use as they come. It may be of what you read, see or hear. And you must learn to be patient. Writers are most disciplined persons on earth. I wrote a book in ten years!

Do not be frightened at that prospect. I wrote one also in six months. So, have a strong desire, and finish what you start!

Also note as you are going to write, that you are going to be a philosopher, sociologist, and psychologist, all in one.

You are going to invent characters and interpret their actions. You are going to create, and destroy civilizations. That is might of pen.

And as we now begin to write our best-seller in next chapter, remember these words of Sir Francis Bacon: “Reading maketh a man, conference a ready man, and writing, an exact man”.

I totally agree with him. What about you?

Copyright © 2002, all rights reserved

About Author:

ARTHUR ZULU, The Most Controversial Writer in World, is author of best – selling book, HOW TO WRITE A BEST-SELLER. Download your copy and FREE excerpt at : http://www.1stbooks.com/bookview/10975. For FREE writing helps, mailto : controversialwriter@yahoo.com

Controversial books are radioactive If a work sparks debate, interest in book will skyrocket. Why? Readers want to know what makes work controversial. So it becomes a case of one man’s meat and another man’s poison.

Controversial works are easy to write. Sometimes, only a sentence or two is enough to generate debate that is needed to sell a book. Ask Salman Rushdie, author of SATANIC VERSES. But note that a controversial work need not be scandalous or defamatory. You also have to be careful not to offend, like writing THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SATAN.

Readers are looking for Doomsday Books Yes, apocalyptic literature are best-sellers any day. And disciples of Nostradamus are on hand to whet their appetite. Doomsday writers lined their pockets with cash, writing about end of world, at dawn of millennium. Yet, world did not end. But that does not mean that interest in final hour has waned, for once in a while people get jittery about onslaught of a wandering, earth-bound, comet.

So, if you have a fondness for figures and come out with date for final destiny of world, and even provide escape for those who want to survive, you will be a celebrity overnight. After all, George Orwell did it with 1984, and world waited in apprehension. That year has now been consigned to dustbin of history.

Spiritual Books are echo Bibles Many are now seeking spiritual help outside Bible, and this is creating a new market for faith writers. Among them is Iyanla Vanzant who wrote YESTERDAY I CRIED. These brand of writers are offering spiritual help to victims of child abuse, rape, broken marriages and like. Since list of such victims is growing, it is understandable why this genre has become a favorite for writers.

The choice is now yours So, what would you like to write about? A general interest, success, or mystery book? Or do you like controversial, doomsday or spiritual subjects? Or a combination of two or more of above?

After you have made that decision, next thing to do is to put your thought on paper. Yes, I am talking about development of your best-seller.

You have no cause to worry. Let me share with you my practical writing experience for past twenty years. It can be exciting and enjoyable, as you will see in next chapter.

Copyright © 2002, all rights reserved

About Author:

ARTHUR ZULU, The Most Controversial Writer in World, is author of best – selling book, HOW TO WRITE A BEST-SELLER. Download your copy and FREE excerpt at : http://www.1stbooks.com/bookview/10975. For FREE writing helps, mailto : controversialwriter@yahoo.com