Before you
begin to write, know WHO you are writing for? Narrow your target audience down by
age, gender, income levels, and viewpoints on religion or politics. Depending
on what your writing outlet is, you may also want to consider geographical
location, cultural sensitivities, and educational background.
Many fiction
writers will write their first draft before tailoring the project to an
audience. This CAN and has worked for many successful novelists, but you must
be very cognizant of your audience when doing edits. It is also alright to
write the type of book YOU specifically would like to read, after all there is
an obvious market for that (at least one), but again, know your audience, aside
from yourself, that would want to invest both time and money into your work as
you tackle edits.
Every writer,
whether fiction or non-fiction, wants to deliver some type of message in a
unique voice. We want fans who will want to read OUR work because our names
come with it (branding). I recently watched a movie about a successful
multi-published novelist (the movie was fiction) who wanted to write a
different form of book. So he did. After nine successful formula novels, he
flopped because the brand he was known for attracted a different group of
readers and they were disappointed. In the story his publisher coerced him back
into the formula fiction he was known for and he felt that he was compromising
his values – he didn’t feel that he was writing for himself.
What is your
goal as a writer? If it is to earn acceptance and income then you have to
follow the proven success routes. If you are like many writers, you will have
to carefully balance writing for your audience and writing for yourself. Before
you can do that, you have to study the market. Be very familiar with books in
your chosen genre, the specific demographics of the audience, the style,
formula (if there is one), the message and, of course and unfortunately, the
possibilities of acceptance in your chosen field.
The results
you deem important are your own decision and there is no right or wrong so long
as you are realistic. A publisher may decide not to fund production if you vary
too far from their principles, and while you may be a self-employed writer,
when it comes to a particular publisher, magazine, newspaper, etc, that “editor”
is equal to your boss. If you want total control without compromise and you
have the skills and money to back it, you can always try a more DIY route. (We’ll
talk more about self-publishing in another article)
Writing Exercise: Choose three to five books that you’ve
enjoyed and write a “Summertime Reading” article as if it were going into your
local newspaper. In no more than a paragraph for each book, tell the “article
readers” why they would enjoy the book. Try to find a characteristic about each
book that would be relevant to a reading audience.
Writing Prompt: Describe your likes and dislikes in no more
than 20 individual words (or short phrases). Put it aside for an hour or so,
when you come back to the list, decide if it accurately depicts who you really
are. Why or why not?
