The Expert’s Guide to Fact-Checking Your Nonfiction Book
Cost: $95 $80 Sign up by December 31 and get 15% off when you use the promo code EARLY at checkout.
Nonfiction authors face an extremely unfair challenge. Even the most carefully drafted book-length manuscripts are bound to have some errors, and while a thorough review for factual accuracy is standard practice for many magazines, most book publishers don’t pay for fact-checking. That sticks the author with the bill if they do take the important step of hiring a fact-checker… or the prospect of many sleepless nights if they don’t. Luckily, there are strategies that can give any author increased peace of mind without wasting their time or money.
From the first words you jot down to the final read-through, learn the steps you can take to protect your true story. Veteran fact-checker Brad Scriber worked at National Geographic for decades, served on the National Fact-Checking Advisory Board for the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT and has taught fact-checking to hundreds of journalists. In this intensive seminar, he’ll share what he’s learned from two decades spent reviewing the sourcing for award-winning writing on a wide variety of subjects — and he’ll show you how to make a fact-checking plan tailored to your own book.
In this two-hour live seminar, you’ll see how leaving the right fact-checking breadcrumbs in your margins will help you confirm your own work and dramatically improve the process if you decide to call on outside help.
In the second half of the seminar, we’ll put lessons learned into action by discussing annotated, self-checked excerpts submitted by participants. Using sections from these excerpts, we’ll review sourcing, walk through confirming different types of information, and discuss how to be your own first failsafe. Each participant will be asked to submit a short passage (around 300 words to 500 words) and the sourcing for facts in that passage.
This is the right class for you if…
You have a nonfiction manuscript ready or in the works.
You have a book deal, a manuscript out on submission or you plan to self-publish.
You care about getting the story right and you want to sleep soundly as your pub date approaches!
After this class you’ll be ready to…
Take steps to reduce errors at every point in your writing.
Head into your full fact-checking process with confidence.
This class takes place on Tuesday, March 18 from 7pm to 9pm ET. All Narratively Academy classes are conducted online and accessible to students anywhere in the world.
Your Instructor: Brad Scriber spent nearly two decades as a fact-checker for National Geographic magazine, including a year running the research department. He served on the National Fact-Checking Advisory Board for the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT. He has taught the fundamentals of fact-checking to hundreds of journalists in dozens of countries in seminars and trainings hosted by KSJ@MIT, the Poynter Institute, the National Association of Science Writers and others. He knows how much work goes into a well-researched piece of nonfiction writing, and he is eager to help you tell a powerful, resilient, true story.
Registration Details: Seats in this class are limited and available on a first-come, first-serve basis. All purchases are final and nonrefundable. After signing up, you’ll receive an email receipt confirming your purchase. Prior to the start of your class you’ll receive an invitation to access the virtual classroom and view all class materials.
Questions? Email us at academy@narratively.com.
MORE: Check out all of our upcoming Narratively Academy classes here.