Who's My Audience? Part 2

In Part 1 of this post, I talked about how it was critical in my former job as a sales writer to focus 100% on the needs and emotions of my prospects and customers. I pointed out that this was not much different from writing fiction that sells. 

It may come as a shock to amateur writers that it doesn't matter what you want to say in your writing. Pros understand that your focus must be entirely on what the reader wants to hear. Say you're selling a spiffy new can opener and you want to gush about all its special features. But those features don't mean a thing unless you show how this wonderful item will make your prospects feel. How that can opener will change their life for the better, make them feel smart, sexy, successful, cool, etc.

Same with fiction. Most successful fiction writers zero in on a specific genre and reader they want to reach and single-mindedly write stories and characters that tickle those readers' fancy. You know, genre fiction as a species of sales copy. 

But that doesn't cut it for me !

I used to spend 90% of my professional time writing to sell people things by focusing solely on what turns them on. I didn't want my fiction, which constituted about 10% of my writing time, to be mercenary in that way. I wanted to write about stuff that I care about in a style, voice, and structure that challenges and excites me. In other words, my fiction is written to please an audience of one. 

ME! MYSELF! I!

My "audience" revels in writing that's weird and non-formulaic. The kind of books that set my brain on fire! I've been inspired by all sorts of writers and my books are a mashup of many influences. My goal when engaging in the hellish struggle of writing a book is to make my most important customer (that's me again!) very happy. I know I've succeeded when I never get tired of going back and re-reading my books over and over again. 

How many of the books you've read can you say that about?

I'll never say that my books are great works of art (I'm not a book critic) or even if they're right for anyone else, but I just love them! If I write something that doesn't amaze me, you'll never see it in print! 

This self-centered approach has not rendered much sales success, since my taste in literature is eclectic, to say the least. But it seems some people think my books are pretty good. A couple have won awards and my next book has actually been picked up by a traditional publisher, which is close to impossible to achieve these days unless you're famous or have the right contacts.

It comes down to this: I have retired from sales writing--I've escaped that rut. I'm now free to spend 100% of my creative time to write whatever I want. I don't need to sell books for a living and, truth be told, I don't care how many books I sell. I just want to expose as many readers as possible to my novels and hope they enjoy them.

After all, what's the point of writing if no one reads your stuff? 

Learn more about my books at carlehnisbooks.com/

Who's My Audience? Part 1

With the Indispensable Lottie Hot entering the production/distribution phase and an official release date not until March 2027, I'm going to veer away from the nuts and bolts of book production in this blog to my thoughts about why I write the way I do.

And how I go about my writing all wrong!

First, a little history. For nearly 40 years my day job involved writing marketing prose for several insurance and investment companies. Over time, I got quite good at it. I made a decent income that helped provide a comfortable lifestyle for my family.

I learned that writing copy that sells boils down to a fundamental understanding of what truly matters when trying to get strangers to reach for their checkbooks.

A good marketing writer understands how to get inside her customer's head--specifically which emotional triggers to pull that will inspire someone to trust your product. Heres the secret: No matter what you're trying to sell, it all comes down to how your product makes your customer feel!

That was my approach when I was selling mutual funds. It wasn't necessarily about a fund's track record, or management team, or even its cost. My focus was how a fund addressed the human need for security in an uncertain world. I answered questions like how the fund may help provide a secure retirement, enable a family to afford a better place to live, or help parents feel confident that they're providing for their child's future. That kind of stuff.

So, what does that have to do with writing fiction? Simple. As novelists, we're advised to write with a specific audience in mind if we hope to have any success in the marketplace.

For example, if you write books that will appeal to readers of romance novels, you must understand that this genre uses specific plotting and character tropes that must be followed in detail. Otherwise, you'll disappoint your readers' emotional expectations and lose them (and your publisher) forever. The same goes for writers of science fiction, mysteries, fantasies, and other popular genres.

There are scores of writers who are true to their genres and have been rewarded with large enthusiastic followings and lucrative book contracts, movie rights, and appearances on late night TV. They're successful because they intimately understand their audience and how to move them within the rigid confines of their genre. In other words, they're savvy marketers.

Bless them!

However, despite knowing all this as a long-time marketing professional, I don't do any of those things with my fiction. In fact, I don't really care what the audience wants!

I'll explain why next week in Part 2 of this post.

Meanwhile, check out my website.