In the previous sections, you chose a topic and purpose for your book and identified your intended readers. Now, let us decide how much your book will cover and which information you will include.
The scope of your book defines the boundaries of its content. It helps you decide which subjects to explain, how much detail to provide, and which topics are outside the purpose of your publication.
A clear scope makes your book easier to plan, write, and organize. It also helps you avoid trying to cover too many subjects in one publication.
1. Decide What Your Book Will Cover
Start by listing the main subjects you want to explain. Then consider which of them are necessary to achieve your book's purpose.
For example, if you want to write a practical guide to using Drupal's Book module, your book might cover:
- Understanding how online books work.
- Planning a book before creating it.
- Creating book pages in Drupal.
- Organizing chapters and sections.
- Writing and editing content.
- Preparing and publishing a book.
- Maintaining and improving a published book.
These subjects are directly related to the purpose of the guide. They help readers progress from planning their publication to creating and managing it.
You do not need to include every possible detail about Drupal. Your book should focus on the information that helps your intended readers achieve their goals.
2. Decide What to Include and What to Leave Out
A useful way to define your scope is to divide potential content into three groups:
- Essential content: Information readers need to achieve the book's main purpose.
- Supporting content: Examples, explanations, illustrations, and additional information that help readers understand the essential content.
- Out-of-scope content: Subjects that are interesting but not necessary for the book's main purpose.
For example, a beginner's guide to the Drupal Book module should explain how to create and organize book pages. It might briefly introduce related Drupal concepts when necessary, but it does not need to teach every aspect of website development, server administration, or programming.
Leaving some subjects out does not mean they are unimportant. You can address them in another book, a separate guide, or a future edition.
3. Choose the Appropriate Level of Detail
Consider how much explanation your readers will need.
A short introductory guide might provide an overview of a subject and a few practical examples. A comprehensive manual might explain each task step by step, include screenshots, discuss common problems, and provide troubleshooting instructions.
The appropriate level of detail depends on your purpose and your intended readers.
For beginners, explain unfamiliar concepts and demonstrate important tasks clearly. For experienced readers, you may be able to provide more concise explanations and focus on advanced techniques.
Remember that adding more information does not automatically make a book better. The information should be relevant, accurate, and useful to your readers.
4. Set Realistic Boundaries
When planning your first book, consider the time, knowledge, and materials available to you.
A topic that is too broad can make a project difficult to complete. A topic that is too narrow may not provide enough material to achieve your purpose. Aim for a scope that is manageable but still useful.
For example, instead of writing a book about everything related to website development, you could focus on creating and managing online books with Drupal's Book module.
You can expand your publication later by adding chapters, examples, and new information. Starting with a manageable scope helps you make steady progress without losing focus.
5. Apply the Scope to Our Practical Example
Our bilingual user manual focuses on publishing books on personal and official websites using Drupal and its Book module.
Its scope includes the planning, creation, organization, editing, publication, and maintenance of online books. It also introduces readers to the practical steps involved in using Drupal's editing forms and organizing book pages.
The manual is not intended to teach every Drupal feature or every aspect of website development. Instead, it concentrates on the knowledge and skills readers need to create and manage a structured online book.
This clear scope helps keep the modules connected and prevents the manual from becoming an unrelated collection of Drupal topics.