Andy Seed is an author and poet, well known for writing funny factual books full of amazing and amusing information. He knows kids love a wacky random fact or a clever explanation of how, what or why something works..and he delivers this in his popular non-fiction books. But, wait - non-fiction? Andy is not so keen on the term non-fiction and here he'll tell you why...

So, here I am, sitting on a non-wildebeest, writing a non-symphony with my non-banana when really I should be writing some non-fiction. And all that is true. But it’s annoying isn’t it… imagine if everyone went round all of the time saying what we weren’t doing when asked, or describing a situation by listing all the things not happening. And fancy defining something by what it’s not… so irritating!

But, hang on, that’s what we all do when we use the expression non-fiction (or non fiction, or nonfiction if you’re American. They’re all woeful!). We’re labelling something by what it isn’t! Eh? Why has this nonsensical negative label been allowed to become established and remain for so long in the world of books? Where are the alternatives? What is going on?

These questions have dogged me for a long time as a writer of factual books for children. The poor authors in my genre been stuck with a classification which is possibly the worst description of anything, anywhere, not just books! We don’t call coffee non-tea so why do we name a whole category of reading material after what it isn’t? It doesn’t help that there’s not even an agreed way of spelling the label! It really is time to ditch this historical and dreary piece of negativity from the world of books, not least as today’s factual books for children are, in the main, astonishingly good: beautiful, bold, varied, cleverly designed, appealing, sharply written, relevant, fabulously illustrated and innovative.

These books also get children reading. They are often highly visual, with great graphics or stunning photos; they’re often full of amazing facts about nature or space or history that feed kids’ imaginations; by matching a child’s interests or hobbies they generate interest and learning; they’re good for sharing and dipping in and out of. I myself became a reader because of these wonderful books. So let’s give them a proper name.

I think one of the barriers to changing this situation has been the lack of an agreed alternative label. The first thing that needs to be done is to leave behind the contrast to fiction (or non-non-fiction as I call it when feeling particularly grumpy about publishing). 

Forget what the books aren’t and declare what they are. But here’s the nub of the issue – the enormous range of books that come under the NF label. Reference works, educational texts, manuals, guides, biographies, ‘true-life stories’, puzzle books, quizzes, encyclopedias, miscellanies, recipes, and many more. They are hugely varied. Some are even funny!

So, what do these books have in common? Is there a uniting element? Well, since they aren’t classed as fiction (i.e. made up) they must be based on facts. Each depends on something that’s true and real. But to call them fact books doesn’t work as it implies quite a narrow type of publication (500 Facts About Marrows!). Many librarians prefer the term ‘Information Books’. But I feel this sells short the stunning and engaging titles on offer for today’s kids. Bus timetables are information, but they are not likely to wow a 7-year-old hungry to know all about things like giant sauropods or volcanoes.

I do have a suggestion, based on years of thinking about this and taking my own books out to schools and festivals. I think it’s important that the word must work for children and parents as well as people who work in the world of publishing. It must make instant sense to anyone who sees it. It must be descriptive and broad, encompassing the many varied books that it categorises. It must not need a hyphen!

Is there such a word? I think there just might be. I’ve already used it in this article, twice. Did you spot it? Factual. I’m not saying it’s perfect, but I do think it does the job better than any other label I’ve come across. So, there we are: non-fiction, along with its evil sidekicks, non fiction and nonfiction, are hereby banished to the dark side. Step forward the quietly humble Factual Books: positive, can-do, friendly, self-explanatory and nice to old ladies. But this shy young label will only succeed if it’s accepted and widely used. I am truly delighted that LoveReading4Kids have agreed to employ it on their site. Will you? Oh go on! - Andy Seed

Browse a selection of Andy Seeds's fascinating factual books below.