In essence, there are four categories of books. Of course there are a plethora of subcategories in each of these main categories, but the main ones are:
9.2.1 Pleasure Books
Usually fiction: novels, short stories, poems, romances, sci-fi, historical, adventure or humor are the most popular, but they’re all hard to sell online. Most people prefer to buy fiction in stores.
9.2.2 Inspirational Books
Spiritual books, devotional writings, uplifting life-experiences, Biblical or other religious writings, stories from the heart, or life-changing principles. A select market that you need to know well to make pay.
9.2.3 Study Books
There is a constant need for reference material both for business and academic use. This could cover everything from supplementary reading for school kids to advanced math tutoring for university students. Know something others don’t?
9.2.4 How-To Books
"Do-it-yourself" and self-improvement books. Straightforward approaches, pictures and analogies that teach everything from archery to amateur zoology.
Although all these types of books sell, the how-to-books and guides are by far the best sellers on the web. You don’t have to be massively original here. The most profitable books are those that offer a slightly new take on a topic with proven popularity. There’s no point in picking a subject that only interests you and your best pals.
I’ve found that these are the ten most popular—and most profitable—topics for "how-to" ebooks.
1. Making money.
2. Saving money.
3. Saving time.
4. Saving effort.
5. Building a more comfortable life.
6. Achieving greater success.
7. Solving a problem.
8. Increasing knowledge.
9. Attaining better health.
10. Gaining information.
Those are pretty general, and clearly you’re going to have to generate ideas that focus on a particular topic. A book entitled "Making Money" isn’t going to sell many copies; a book entitled "Making Millions in Your Pajamas" will.
When you’re looking for a topic, first make sure it’s a subject that you do actually have some knowledge about—or alternatively, make sure you hire a writer who does.
If you’ve found a subject that no one else has touched, or even come close to touching, it’s unlikely that anyone will want to read it. The reason that there are millions of romances on bookshelves—and almost all of them the same—is that publishers know they sell. And like you, they’re interested in making money not breaking new ground.
