The University of Tennessee baseball "DJ" (announcer? color analyst? sound guy?) cracks me up with his playlist of songs and soundbites. My son Scotty's favorite is, "Nope!" For example, when an Auburn batter hits to the right and our first baseman snags the ball for an out, the crowd hears a quick, loud, "NOPE!"
Who is the boss of your book? You?
"NOPE!"
Your target reader is the boss of every single decision you make as you write, edit, publish, and market your book.
Why do you need to identify a target audience? Doing so helps you refine language, plot, story arc, complexity, themes, dialogue, conflict, setting, formatting, tone, mood, voice, trim size, cover design, pricing, social media posts, . . . . Need I go on? Writers often try to please everyone, but that's a mistake. Writing to a diverse group of target readers confuses you and readers. What's interesting is that when you focus your efforts and choices with a niche audience (or even one ideal reader) in mind, your book will be so much BETTER that it will likely appeal to even MORE readers (that diverse group I mentioned). No matter where you are the in process, you can start thinking about and pleasing your boss, your target reader, right now. Enjoy this exercise.
On a large sheet of paper that you can easily see from your writing desk, draw a diagram of your reader. On that paper, jot down the answers to the following questions (make them easy to read---like a cheat sheet):
Age?
Station/stage of life?
Family situation?
Professional background/career?
Life experience?
Losses?
Victories?
Income?
Hobbies?
Worries?
Goals?
Sex?
Religion?
Interests?
Where does he/she spend time online?
What questions is he/she asking?
What problem is he/she trying to solve?
What does he/she want to learn/gain from your book?
NOW when you get stuck, you can ask your boss what to do.
When a UT player hits a homerun, teammates crowd him as he leaves home plate. They wrap a fur coat across his shoulders and place The Daddy Hat on his head. Knowing your reader is the first step in writing a high-quality book. If you study your reader in earnest and make him or her the boss, maybe you can hit a home run. Know your reader. Be The Daddy.
Happy writing, and GO BIG ORANGE!
xoxoxo
Jody
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