Why You Should Write for One Reader
You can’t please everyone. But maybe you can please one person. (And that’s enough.)
It’s tempting to daydream that your book will appeal to people of every demographic. It’s got a potential readership of 7.53 billion! Readers from infancy to decrepitude will fall in love with it.
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages — everyone will love your story.
I often ask the question ‘who are you writing for?’ Sometimes, the answer is everyone. That is pretty much always . . . well, I don’t like to call people wrong, so let’s go with tough.
Writing for everyone is tough. It doesn’t really work.
One writer doesn’t want to exclude male readers from her women’s fiction book. Another knows that adults will enjoy his YA book and is writing for the cross-over market, but he’s also sure that smart ten-year-olds will like it, too. Many people are writing for all the readers who loved some massive bestseller.
Aspiring writers often think that they need to prove that there’s a vast audience for their work.
The truth is, if you nail down your book’s genre, finding an audience is marketing. Put it in the right place in the bookstore or on Amazon. Get a cover that telegraphs…
