I have written a book called Writing Creatively For Work or Study: Easy Techniques to Engage Your Readers which is now available for pre-order and will be published in May. This is my first trade book, which means it’s intended for a mainstream audience, even though the publisher is Manchester University Press.

MUP was not my first choice of publisher. Nor my second, third, fourth, or… I lost count. I had the idea for this book back in 2018, and I wrote a proposal and sent it to every non-fiction publisher I thought might be interested, in the UK and the US, and every single one turned me down like a bedspread. Then in 2022, when I was looking for potential publishers for a co-written book with a colleague, I was checking out MUP and discovered that in 2020 they had started publishing trade books on topics aligned with the academic books they publish. I remembered my poor sad lonely proposal and wondered if it might find a home at last. I knew one of the MUP editors slightly via Twitter, so I emailed him, he passed me on to a colleague who was definitely interested, and now the book is almost here!

There are a lot of books on how to write all kinds of outputs in many different contexts. I have read quite a few of them myself. But I don’t think anyone has written a book like this before. In essence, the premise is that non-fiction writing is creative, so creative writing techniques – stories, metaphors, poems, dialogue and the like – can be very useful in non-fiction writing. Of course you need to be selective, choosing techniques to suit the purpose of your writing, your skills, and your readers. And the book shows you how to do that, because whether you’re writing a sales report or an NVQ assignment, an appraisal form or a college dissertation, creative writing techniques can help you to get your message across in an accessible and engaging way.

The book is stuffed with examples of work by people who have done just that. You will find a legal contract which looks like a poem; comics used for marketing; letters from scientists to school-children; and many more. These are macro examples and there are also micro examples: a single sentence of sensory language from a book on ethics; a paragraph of memoir from a book on statistics; a six-word story; and lots of others. And there is loads of how-to advice alongside the examples: how to use fiction writing techniques such as repetition and recapitulation, how different poetic forms work, why a zine might be a useful format in the workplace and how to approach writing one, and plenty more besides.

I have had some lovely reviews already! The stand-up poet and broadcaster Kate Fox said,

‘This book is an absolute treasure trove of creative writing techniques and ideas. With great clarity and common sense, Helen Kara demystifies creative writing in a way that will give anyone in a work or study setting the knowledge and confidence to put these suggestions into practice.’

And the Sunday Times best-selling novelist C.L. Taylor said,

‘Everyone from students to business owners will benefit from Helen Kara’s insightful and entertaining exploration of the secrets behind memorable, engaging and authentic writing.’

And the poet, academic, and international writing expert Helen Sword said,

‘Creative methods
Transform dusty documents –
Readers wake and smile.’

That’s the first time I’ve ever had a review in poetic form, and I love it! I hope it starts a trend.

If you like writing, this book is designed to help you enjoy it even more. If you loathe writing, this book should help you to hate it a little less. And whatever you feel about writing, this book will help you to write with more conviction, energy, and skill.