Finding Nemo…uh I mean Readers

Okay, so can you really pitch your book to everyone you meet: the tolerant octogenarian next to you on the bus? The college educated science geek you sat next to at the symphony? The kid with acne and bloodshot eyes behind the fast food counter?

This is the second part of my discussion on Randy Ingermanson’s (Advanced Fiction Writing.com)  recent ezine article about ‘The Vision Thing’ about how one must visualize the essential parts of their writing career. In the blog, he presented a list of several questions to ask yourself that help focus on a clear and realistic target audience. My favorite question was: Can you envision one particular reader who would be perfect in every way for this book? 

I had to think about that for a while. After all, everyone who I have given my pitch to (yes they are edited for the individual I am talking to) says, WOW, what a great idea! I want to read that book as soon as it’s published! In my delusional moments I think… ‘This is going to sell like hotcakes. Everybody’s going to want this book.’ Of course they say that…they’re friends, family, members of my community and I recognize most people’s reactions as well wishes and encouragement, not a commitment to buy.

Of all of those I talk to, only a few might actually buy the book, a few of those read it, and, unless it is the next ‘Jurassic Park’ only a few will recommend it to their friends. In a moment of clarity, one can see the narrowing tunnel of marketing. Yet, if you strike a chord, reward those few people with a good ride…well those few people have friends and those friends have friends and they all have FaceBook!!! Then you fall into the magic land of geometric expansion…that is what best sellers, especially those of a first time author, are made of.

Now, if anything, I am long on vision and short on execution. I have lots of contacts, a robust plan for pushing my web site and about 150 people all across the country that beg for my novel every time I am in touch with them. In fact one of the most enthusiastic was a customer service rep in Spokane that was helping me with my bank account. I don’t know her name but if my book gets published and she is cruising the web or on Kindle Bookstore and the title floats by, I suspect she will buy it.

So I asked her a bit about herself, and she gave me the profile that answered Dr. Ingermanson’s question to the tee. This woman is a late twenty-something customer service rep for a bank. Her real dream is to work in the biotech field, but when she finished her BS in biology, there were no jobs in that field and she did not have enough money to tackle graduate school.

But she loves to read. And, while she is saving money for grad school, she would rather spend her entertainment budget on a good book that lasts for several days than an equally expensive 2 hour movie.

There she is….my perfect reader. Probably not a lot of people out there exactly like her but there are enough. And, I would love to help her pass the time pleasantly, until she gets back into the lab or into pharmacology school….

Is talking up the novel to perfect strangers risky? You bet. I happen to know that some of the people that I talk to out there are wanna be writers and even actively working on a novel. But I subscribe to the same shared creativity ‘platform’ as Bill Gates. Write something that others can access psychologically and people will plug in. Not only that, there is nothing more motivating for me than telling someone I am going to do something. That simple ‘contract’ with a potential reader transforms my if’s into when’s.

And the power of word-of-mouth is even greater in today’s FaceBook universe.  Thirty years ago you could trace contact to anyone in the world by going through seven named acquaintances. Now, with the advent of social media, that number has dropped to two or three. Good or bad, this provides an opportunity to reach more of what would ordinarily be a narrow market.

So, back to the ‘Vision’ thing. Does one turn a plot or create a certain character just because the intended reader would enjoy or understand him or her? Does the writer know just what to write to please his/her reader?   Yes and no. I think it is more subtle than that. I call it mindful writing.

Yes, one needs to let the imagination run in the heat of creation, allow the moments of a scene to unfold in a unique but believable fashion. But I try to keep a little ‘reader’ on my shoulder all the time and as I type or, more commonly, revise, remain aware of her perspective. She’s there to give me a painful flick in the ear, when the medical jargon gets too thick or say ‘PULLLLLEEEEEEZZZZ!’ when the emotional reaction of one of the characters is sappy or overplayed.

I also listen for her gasp when something new is revealed, the expulsion of air when the protagonist has another narrow escape, the sigh when the heroine reveals her love for the computer nerd. Yes I want to like, even love what I write. But like music or drama or any other creative medium, the greatest value is revealed in the emotional pleasure of the patron.

There are many purists who would argue with that philosophy. But, do you want to get published…or for someone to actively seek out your next book? Or, more importantly, do you ever want to have someone come up to you and hug you for what you wrote? You hermits can scream and run, but that will be the day when I know that I reached someone’s heart. And I hope that in some way, even for a moment, I made that heart beat just a bit faster.