Mary Roach has come up with an unusual combination for best-selling books: science and humor.
Brand X Daily interviewed the author, whose new book is Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void. She talked about her first book, Stiff: The Curious LIves of Human Cadavers: "“I thought it was a one-off for sure. I thought no one will (A) buy this book, (B) read it and (C) like it. It sounds like one of those annoying things people say to seem full of humility, but it's actually true. It's hard for me to envision a scenario where people walk into a bookstore and say, ‘Oh, a book about cadavers! That's what I'm going to read next.'”
People did want to read it and that led to her next two books in a similar vein: Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife, and Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Sex and Science.
Her secret is that she looks into the things that really interest us about her topics--not the standard textbook stuff. For instance, Packing for Mars covers topics including "zero gravity bathroom practicalities, liquor cabinets in space, vomiting in helmets and intercourse in orbit." Although she injects plenty of her own opinions and observations, the science is correct and along the way there's a lot of less zany information about the topics as well.
Another aspect is that she puts herself into the story not just on the page but in real life: she had sex in an MRI machine when writing Bonk, and for her latest book tried out a space toilet.
It's a great demonstration of a writer finding her USP (unique selling proposition)--and enjoying the process. She says, “I didn't really realize that writing … would be fun and people would pay you to do it. Being an astronaut is a glory profession, and so is writing in a way.”
(It helps to think about marketing your book before you ever write it. My book, "Your Writing Coach," has two chapters on how to get attention for your book and how to plan your marketing strategy. If you combine that with "Marketing for Entrpreneurs," published by Pearson, you'll be able to plan your entire marketing campaign in advance.)
