How to Read Nonfiction Like a Professor

The Hook

The introductory section of longform nonfiction designed to keep readers engaged and buy space to lay out the essentials of the work to follow.

Problem

The first of the 'four Ps' of a hook; the justification for writing, which lays out the need for the piece of writing to exist.

Promise

The second of the 'four Ps' of a hook; the contract, implicit or explicit, to solve the 'problem' for readers.

Program

The third of the 'four Ps' of a hook; the space devoted to explaining how the 'promise' will be fulfilled, especially important in longer works.

Platform

The fourth of the 'four Ps' of a hook; an appeal to ethos attempting to establish a basis for trust in the writer.

Structural Design

The nonfiction equivalent of narrative strategy, representing how a work is organized to convey meaning.

Kaleidoscopic Structure

A structural design featuring constantly shifting focuses, used when exploring backgrounds of multiple parties or historical settings (e.g., Seabiscuit).

Telos

The goal or purpose of a nonfiction piece, which is shaped and altered by shifts in focus and structural design.

Basic Grammar (Communication)

A form dependent set of rules for conveying information in human communications (e.g., accuracy is a rule for journalism and history).

Lede (Hard News)

The introductory sentence or paragraph of a hard news piece that summarizes the 'Five Ws' (Who, What, Where, When, Why).

Lede (Feature)

An introductory 'tease' in a feature article that does not immediately answer many reader questions, pacing information more slowly.

First Rough Draft of History

A phrase (often considered a bromide) describing newspapers, which are turned to for the fastest publication of breaking news.

Second Draft of History

A phrase describing magazines, which do not break news but instead offer perspective, analysis, and context.

Final Draft of History

The draft of history found 'in histories' (scholarly historical books), which are written with the benefit of time and perspective.

Claims

In the Toulminian model of argument, the assertions or conclusions that an author wants the reader to accept.

Grounds

In the Toulminian model of argument, the evidence, data, or support upon which a claim is built.

Warrants

In the Toulminian model of argument, the logical links or justifications that connect the grounds to the claim, 'pinning them together' so they 'go steady'.

Forewords

Introductory sections generally written by someone other than the author to introduce and explain aspects of the text.

Prefaces

Introductory sections written by the author to explain the context and purpose of the work, which can appear before both narrative and non narrative works.

Prologues

Introductory sections written by the author explaining context and purpose, used exclusively before a narrative work (fiction or nonfiction).

Front Matter

Pages in the front of a book (e.g., title page, dedication, preface) typically numbered with Roman numerals.

Back Matter

Pages in the back of a book (e.g., appendix, notes, bibliography, index) numbered with Arabic numerals.

Index

A detailed, alphabetical guide in the back matter that points readers to specific pages containing terms, names, or topics.

Disclaimers (Bias)

An author's open claim of not being biased, which Foster notes is often a clue to exactly how the writer is biased.

On Background

A sourcing arrangement where the source remains unidentified and their words are paraphrased, typically carrying the tacit approval of superiors.

Anonymous Sourcing

Quotes from unnamed sources (often leakers) who have legitimate reasons for wanting to protect their identity.

Straw Man Argument

An unfair rhetorical tactic where an opponent's point of view is misrepresented in a simplified or weak way to make it easy to attack; a strong sign of bias.

Guilt by Association

An ad hominem rhetorical attack that attempts to discredit an individual by linking them to disreputable groups or people.

Rhetorical Tilt

The use of pejorative and honorific connotations, passive voice, or charged language that reveals a writer's underlying bias.

Expertise

Studying or working extensively in one area of specialized knowledge; academic credentials or authority only apply to that specific field.

Great Leveling of Information

The internet driven trajectory toward valuing all opinions equally, regardless of credibility, evidence, or expertise.

Eyewitness Testimony

A primary source of proof consisting of direct observations from individuals present at an event, heavily utilized by journalists and biographers.

The Writer as Witness

A form of reporting where the journalist functions as their own eyewitness by directly observing and reporting on an unfolding event.

Economy of Information

The principle that faster publishing media heavily value primary sources (like eyewitnesses), while slower media prioritize analysis and synthesis.

Chronology (Structure)

A common way of organizing nonfiction sequentially by time, though Foster emphasizes that 'chronology does not equal structure'.

In Medias Res

A structural technique of starting an argumentative or narrative work in the middle of things, shifting the reader's focus and meaning.

Fake News (Historical)

A term that historically referred to supermarket tabloids but was repopularized in 2016 to describe false stories on social media.

Fake News (Political)

A weaponized phrase used by public figures (such as Donald Trump in 2017) to label legitimate, critical news reporting they do not like.

Meta

Journalism-A genre (represented uniquely by Woodward and Bernstein's All the President's Men) that functions as a memoir of chasing a news story rather than standard reporting.

Subjective Nonfiction

Broad category of writing that rejects detached objectivity and makes the subjective, personal presence of the author clear in the text.

New Journalism

A 1960s movement of participatory, subjective writing that used novelistic, literary techniques (started by Truman Capote's In Cold Blood).

Nonfiction Novel

Truman Capote's term for In Cold Blood, a work combining rigorous journalistic reporting with the narrative techniques of a novel.

Gonzo Journalism

A highly subjective style of writing (closely associated with Hunter S. Thompson) that centers the writer as the main focus of the piece.

Immersive Journalism

A style of subjective nonfiction (pioneered by John McPhee) where the author deeply enters a subject's world but remains a humble, secondary presence.

Creative Nonfiction

A genre originating in the mid-to-late 1970s that uses literary elements and narrative techniques to report on real-life events or personal experiences.

Personal Essay

An adaptable literary form designed to express the self and uncover how the writer's individual identity relates to a chosen topic.

Montaigne's Essay Method

The process of using writing as a constant trial or 'attempt' to explore the self, defined by continuous reflection and revision.

Degree of Attachment

The stance of subjectivity or feigned objectivity that an essayist adopts, which readers must evaluate to understand their true motives.

Pound's Three Questions

A framework for evaluating any artistic/literary work: '1. What was the author trying to do? 2. Did they succeed? 3. Was it worth doing?'

Opinion Writing

A form of journalistic writing that relies more on interpretation, argument, and logic than on strict, unvarnished fact.

False Binary (Op-Ed)

The practice of pairing two columns on 'each' side of an issue, which oversimplifies complex arguments into a reductive, two-sided choice.

Autobiography

A comprehensive, chronologically organized biography of a person's life written by that person themself.

Memoir

A personal narrative focused on a specific, circumscribed part, theme, or period of a writer's life rather than their entire history.

Self-Justifying Style

A defensive, self-exonerating narrative mode (inherited from Cardinal Newman's Apologia) often used in memoirs by politicians and public figures.

Death Memoir

A modern autobiographical genre in which the writer explores their own terminal illness, mortality, or experience of profound loss.

History (Moral Purpose)

Foster's view that history should not just record the past, but should understand the present and urge readers toward a more moral future.

Outsider Exposé

A type of political writing written by someone outside an administration, which is typically more objective than memoirs written by insiders.

Gresham's Law of Journalism

The concept that sloppy, substandard celebrity reporting can 'taint' the entire field of journalism and push out high-quality reporting.

Defensive Reading

A critical reading strategy where the reader refuses to take claims at face value, choosing instead to actively interrogate the text's evidence.

William Shawn's Three Questions

A skeptical triad used to interrogate a writer's authority: 'How do you know? How could you know? How can you possibly know that?'

Interrogating the Writer

A critical reading checklist evaluating the author's credentials, professional expertise, and credibility.

Interrogating the Sources

A checklist evaluating the quality of an author's sources, how fairly they are presented, and how well they support the claims.

Interrogating the Data

A critical reading practice of checking for incomplete data, cherry-picking, lack of context, false analogies, or over-reliance on single metrics.

Interrogating the Argument

Evaluating the cohesion of an argument to check for logical reasoning, cherry-picking, and reliance on empty rhetoric.

Dark Information

False, misleading, or malicious information that thrives on the World Wide Web due to its lack of quality control and editorial gatekeeping.