Understanding who your target reader is
Greetings, story spinners! It’s time to pull out your magnifying glasses and detective hats because today, we’re going on a thrilling expedition. Our mission? To find that elusive creature – your target reader. You might think, ‘Isn’t anyone with two eyes and a basic understanding of the alphabet?’ Not exactly. Let’s dive a bit deeper, shall we?
Playing detective: A study in reader psychology
As an author, you have to play many roles, and one of them is a detective. Like our dear friend Sherlock Holmes from A Study in Scarlet, you need to piece together clues about your reader’s psychology. Age, gender, profession – these are just the beginning. The real gold lies in their motivations, their fears, their dreams.
Consider your favourite novel. What hooked you? Was it the headstrong protagonist, the nail-biting plot, or the intricate fantasy world? Peeling back the layers of ‘why’ behind the ‘what’ can offer invaluable insights into your reader’s mind.
Slipping into your reader’s world
Next, you need to understand your reader’s world. For example, suppose you’re writing a high-octane espionage thriller featuring a hard-nosed spy called Alex. If your target reader is someone looking for a leisurely read about love and relationships, your book won’t resonate with them.
Here’s a trick: Create a reader persona. This is a detailed profile of your ideal reader. Is it a college student seeking adrenaline rushes through action-packed adventures? A busy parent finding solace in a poignant, slice-of-life story? Or a young professional decompressing with a witty, light-hearted mystery? The sharper your focus, your writing will align with your reader’s expectations.
Avoiding the echo chamber
It’s easy to fall in love with your ideas, to the point where you might neglect to consider if your readers would feel the same. It’s like laughing at an inside joke that only you get – it might be fun for you, but for everyone else, it’s as baffling as a poorly written riddle.
Just because you adore your complex dissection of the human condition set in a dystopian future doesn’t mean your reader will. It’s not just about you as the author; it’s equally about them – the reader.
Stepping into their shoes
Once you’ve identified your reader and sidestepped the echo chamber, it’s time to get to know them. This means creating a narrative that resonates with them on an emotional level. Craft characters they can relate to, plots that echo their experiences, and themes that mirror their values.
Don’t just write for your audience – write from their perspective. Bring them on your storytelling journey. Make them see, feel, and experience your world through their eyes. Because what is a story if not a shared experience?
The singular reader
And that’s how you begin understanding your target reader. You’re not writing for an abstract crowd. You’re writing for a singular reader: The one who’ll lose themselves in your narrative, who’ll empathise with your characters, who’ll be so engrossed in your book that they lose track of time. That’s your target reader. That’s who you’re writing for.
Beyond ‘The End’
And so, our exploration draws to a close. Remember, understanding your reader isn’t just about selling more books (although it helps). It’s about creating a connection – a bond between storyteller and listener that transcends the pages of a book. This connection makes a story come alive, transforming black ink on a white page into a vivid, emotional journey.
