Non-fiction built on a promise to the reader, and the research to keep it

A non-fiction reader buys a promise: to understand something, to be able to do something, or to follow an argument to its end. The book is organised around that promise, not around everything you know. A useful test is whether each chapter answers the one question a reader has at that point, in the order they would ask it.

Non-fiction also carries obligations fiction doesn't. Facts, figures and quotations have to be right, and they have to be attributable, which means tracking where each came from as you write, not afterwards. Quoting at length, or reusing someone else's images or charts, may need permission from whoever holds the rights.

If you are going the traditional route, non-fiction is commonly sold on a proposal — an overview, the audience, a chapter outline and sample chapters — rather than on a finished manuscript. If you self-publish, you are also the fact-checker.

1. Create the book and name each chapter after the reader's question it answers. Write the book's promise in one sentence in Free Notes, where you'll see it every time you open Story Hub.
2. In the Research workspace, ask Robin to find recent sources for a claim you want to make. On Premium (10 web searches a month) or Pro (50), Robin searches and shows the sources. Read them yourself, then save what you'll use as a card with the source noted. Robin cannot edit your manuscript from there.
3. Write. When a chapter is done, run the Proofing Pass on it from your book's Edit page; on Premium and Pro its clarity findings point to the sentences a newcomer will trip over. Proofing runs when you ask it to, and changes only what you accept.
4. Invite three readers from your intended audience with Can comment access. Their questions — "what does this term mean?" — mark the gaps in your explanation. Notes arrive grouped by chapter.
5. Export DOCX for an editor or a proposal, PDF for review copies, or EPUB when you publish.

• There is no citation manager and no footnote or endnote tool. Keep your source list in Free Notes and format references in your publisher's style at the end.
• It is not a fact-checker. Web search needs Premium or Pro, has monthly limits, and returns leads you still need to read.
• There is no proposal template. Many writers keep the proposal as its own book beside the manuscript.
• Robin can question your argument and explain what your chapters say. Robin never changes your manuscript on its own. In Edit Mode it can suggest changes, and nothing lands unless you keep it. Proofing runs when you ask it to, and changes only what you accept.