Add a Dash of Surprise to Better Persuade

I offer a resounding hat tip to Jeevan Sivasubramaniam for inspiring this edition of my newsletter, “Persuasion Power Tip.” In his recent post, this publishing luminary urges nonfiction writers to differentiate their work by asking, “What still surprises you about your field?” His message, one with which I heartily concur, reminds people to dig deep for something fresh and exciting that can hook your target audience and give you a running start for the front-of-the-store table in your favorite bookstore. However, we figuratively part ways, with good humor and bonhomie, when it comes to “Yesterday,” the 1965 Beatles hit. His view? “We don’t need more “covers” of a beloved tune that already boasts more than “2,200 versions by different musicians.” My reply? There are lots of ways to add spice to a seemingly worn-out song, idea, or product. Cirque du Soleil developed an enthralling aerobatic show around the music of the Fab Four. Director Danny Boyle (“Slumdog Millionaire“) and romantic comedy writer Richard Curtis (“Love Actually“) birthed a fun 2019 movie about time travel and the music of Paul McCartney and company. I summed up my reply by stating, “Classic band, new twists,” something Jeevan wisely observed as a “great way to describe… a lot of nonfiction books!”

Anything Can Be Reimagined as Fresh and Exciting

Surprises, reinventions, comebacks, and revitalizations are all around us if we are open to embracing the old as the new, but better.

It’s no coincidence that we observe a rekindled interest in things like chintzy wallpaper, cottage cheese, skinny jeans, and the stereo turntable. According to Fluance, a home audio company, younger buyers like vinyl records for their status and improved sound quality, as well as the social aspect of sharing personalized collections with others. Thank TikTok and nutritionists for touting the benefits of the creamy white stuff as superior to other protein sources. “Grandma floral” fabrics are a hit with anyone craving comfortable chic. Vogue Magazine credits an affinity for vintage as the spur behind the tight denim pants originally worn two decades ago.

Kurt Vonnegut’s Eight Story Shapes

Some writers doubt the promise of surprise, especially those who adhere to what they believe are inflexible and strict standards of story structure. This ideology may have begun in the mid-1990’s when bestselling author and satirist Kurt Vonnegut identified eight story shapes as the entire catalogue of possibilities. In a well-watched video, he explained his visualization of a story’s shape as a two-dimensional graph with good or bad fortune plotted on the Y-axis and time plotted on the X-axis. His archetypes are:

• Boy Meets Girl: Love story with happy ending.
• Cinderella: Rise from misfortune to better times, followed by setback and then success.
• Creation Story: From chaos to order.
• From Bad to Worse: Continued decline in perpetuity.
• Man in Hole: Main character gets in trouble, gets out with improved life.
• New Testament: Angst followed by redemption.
• Old Testament: Mistake causes fall from grace and subsequent adverse consequences.
• Which Way is Up?: Rollercoaster of losses and gains.

Subsequently, researchers with Washington State University and the Computational Story Lab at the University of Vermont, respectively, used sentiment analysis to derive their own list. While shorter, it mirrors those of Vonnegut to include:

• Rags to Riches: Transition from bad to good fortune.
• Riches to Rags: Good situation reversal to bad.
• Icarus: Rise and then fall in fortune.
• Oedipus: Fall, followed by a rise, and then a final fall.
• Cinderella: Rise, fall, and then triumph.
• Man in a Hole: Fall and then rise.

Lest you worry your business book can’t break out of the pack, fear not. Our friends in AI land cite plenty of winners, despite their resemblance to one or more allegedly “stiff” Vonnegut story shapes. Self-help and personal growth books do exceedingly well as Man in Hole or New Testament stories. Atomic Habits by James Clear sold more than 25 million copies. Leadership books and start-up stories such as Shoe Dog by Nike founder Phil Knight are fan favorites in the Creation Story and Man in Hole categories. Commercially robust biographies like Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson and memoirs such as The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls likewise exemplify recognized story shapes such as New Testament, Old Testament, and Which Way is Up? for the former and Cinderella, Man in Hole, and New Testament for the latter.

Making Your Business Book Special

You don’t need to be a trendsetter to stand apart from your competition nor do you need to memorize and apply a formulaic approach when writing your non-fiction book. On the contrary, you need (and should want) to convey your insights as uniquely as possible. Your authenticity is the watchword for surprise. As Oscar Wilde quipped, “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” Your life journey, whether you emphasize career, family, or a combination is one in a billion. Sincerity and truth are what readers seek. What can they learn from you they can’t learn from someone else?

Your passion is yet another way to differentiate your content from what others create, directly or with the help of a ghostwriter. What motivates you to share your story, your philosophy, your observations, and your advice now? Passion is the emotional and intellectual nourishment that keeps you focused on completing your blog, book, white paper, and so on.

Your voice is another core element of your surprise mojo, one that overlaps with authenticity and passion. Do you want to come off as officious or conversational? Do you want to help your audience with facts and figures, tales of bouncing back from adversity, or sharing humorous anecdotes in the style of the (now sadly passed) relatable cartoonist and author, Scott Adams, otherwise known as the creator of the internationally syndicated comic strip Dilbert.

Ghostwriter as Collaborative Partner

You don’t have to move forward alone. Besides the obvious savings in time, a ghostwriter can help you extract your inner wisdoms by asking guided questions and gently encourage you to acknowledge your “aha” moments as well as your head scratchers. Whether you are looking to attract prospects with a polished business book, excite publishers with a compelling book proposal, or create a presentation or speech that captivates your audience, working with a ghostwriter who understands your vision can make all the difference.
It’s never too late to take a classic concept and make it yours.

As an industry-tested communications expert, I help business, finance, and investment executives and innovative companies turn their wisdom and insights into actionable thought leadership that can move markets and minds. Think of me as your content partner who does the heavy lifting of outlining, ghostwriting, and revising so you can share your ideas with your target audience sooner than later. Schedule a complimentary discovery call to talk about growing your brand with the kind of content your clients want and need.