books – Page 2 – Patricia J. Parsons

Writing Prescriptive Nonfiction

Posted on 4 Feb 2025 by Patricia J. Parsons

I started my writing career as a health and medical writer for magazines back in the old days when they were in print and the process for querying took months via snail mail. I then morphed into writing and co-writing books on the same subjects. Many (if not most) of my nonfiction books have been prescriptive nonfiction. I had a brief foray into creative nonfiction when I wrote a memoir, but until I started writing fiction, I spent most of my time honing my writing shops in the world of prescriptive nonfiction books.

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a video on WRITE. FIX. REPEAT. where I tackled five tips for writing creative nonfiction. (You can watch it here.) This week, I’m tackling prescriptive nonfiction, whose techniques are also valuable for content creators, PR writers, and anyone who wants to teach someone something.

The problem I’ve seen over the years is that many writers don’t know the difference between narrative and prescriptive nonfiction and often muddle them together, resulting in a mishmash of writing that benefits no one—not even the writer.

So, this week, I have five tips for prescriptive nonfiction based on writing almost a dozen trade and textbooks in this genre.

Travel Inspires Writing – Again!

Posted on 1 Feb 2025 by Patricia J. Parsons

It’s not the first time this has happened, and it’s not likely to be the last. I find myself on an absorbing trip (because I love to travel and even write about it), and the next thing I know, the experience and the locale inspire a story. In my view, travel is one of the most inspiring experiences for writers. But that’s just me.

Two summers ago, a ten-day cross-island trip in Newfoundland inspired a book that seems to have started a new series. We Came From Away: That Summer on “The Rock” was inspired by a combination of that trip experience and the fact that my mother turned 100 years old that year. (She’s now 102!). Then, last year, my husband and I spent a month travelling in Brazil on a cruise up the Brazilian coast, into the Amazon River, and onto Miami. It seemed that the characters in We CAme From Away hadn’t finished with me yet. Now there’s a sequel: Meet Me in Miami.

February 1 seems like a great day for some armchair travel to a tropical location, doesn’t it? So, I’m inviting you along for some of that travel. Here’s the new book launching today.

What travels from your past might inspire a story … and a book?

Here’s what it’s about:

Life may not offer do-overs, but it might offer second chances.

Dr. Claire Barrett has it all. At least it seems that way to everyone but Claire. A successful doctor with two almost grown and successful children, an international reputation as one of the world’s finest pediatric surgeons, Claire at age fifty is as beautiful, stylish and driven as ever. She prides herself in making the best decisions to have gotten her where she is today. She did it all herself and from her home base in St. John’s, Newfoundland. But there is one decision that rankles. She should never have allowed Peter O’Brien to get away. She should never have agreed to the divorce. Was it her only mistake? Now she has a plan to fix that. She will win him back.

Eliza Houlihan Cohen, a New Yorker by way of Canada’s east coast, is a successful cookbook author. After years of putting up with her philandering husband Jake and his whining mother, she has finally broken free. And now that she’s met Dr. Peter O’Brien, she wonders if she might take another chance on love.

Eliza hates Miami, but when Peter asks her to take a cruise with him, ending in Miami, and she asks her daughter Izzy to meet her there for a holiday, Eliza decides she can cope. By the time her cruise through the Amazon reaches Miami, Eliza will wish she had never laid eyes on Peter’s ex-wife, Claire. The question is, though, will she feel the same about Peter?

Vanity, conceit and a single-minded pursuit of career goals, though, will only take you so far in this life. There comes a time when you must face the fact that everything is not about you.

It’s available from Amazon (which the cover above is linked to) or any other online retailer you like.

And … if you haven’t read We Came From Away yet …

Nora Houlihan’s children have been long gone from their family home in Newfoundland. Now, she is about to turn 100 and wants her children and grandchildren to find out what they’ve been missing on her beloved island. So, she arranges for her “come-from-away” family members to take a cross-island tour before her birthday party. By the time they are finished, they will be forever changed—and nothing in the family will ever be the same.

They say you can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family. The question is this. If you could pick your family, would YOU choose yours?

Nonfiction Writing, Uncategorized

Keys to Writing Creative Nonfiction

Posted on 24 Jan 2025 by Patricia J. Parsons

I began my writing career as a nonfiction writer. Most of what I did in my early years was in the specific genre of “prescriptive nonfiction.” Eventually, my appetite for more creativity kicked in, and I transitioned my research skills into some creative nonfiction before I moved into writing fiction. But I’ve always realized that my forays into creative nonfiction were just the bridge I needed to get me into writing novels.

Creative nonfiction, also called narrative nonfiction, occupies the fascinating intersection of fact and storytelling. This genre combines the authenticity of factual writing with the artfulness of literary techniques, resulting in works that are as compelling as fiction but rooted in actual events, people, and experiences. Whether you’re recounting personal experiences, exploring historical events, or delving into cultural commentary, creative nonfiction offers an expansive playground for writers.

My latest episode of WRITE. FIX. REPEAT. has some tips for writing nonfiction.

Whether you’re an aspiring memoirist, a budding essayist, or a seasoned journalist, creative nonfiction offers myriad opportunities to tell important stories. If you approach your writing with honesty, curiosity, and creativity, you’ll create stories that resonate with readers. The truth isn’t just stranger than fiction—it’s often more enthralling.