Every writer hopes to captivate an audience. But who are you writing to? When you write a letter, you address your reader directly. When you write a speech, you anticipate a particular group of listeners. If you write a news article, you have a strong sense of who the readers will be, and your writing reflects your grasp of how best to address their subscribers. Even on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram you are conscious of who sees what you write. We adjust what words we use and how we use them depending on our intended audience. When you write a book to be published, it is critical to identify your readers early on. Knowing who you are addressing will help you as a writer. I often work with authors who have finished a first full draft of a manuscript which requires translation from a story that satisfies one reader (the writer) to one that serves many readers. But if the author doesn’t know who the readers for their work might be, then are they writing to be read, or still working through the story in their own head? Back in the day when teaching radio journalism involved reel-to-reel tapes and a grease pencil to edit, I advised reporters to visualize the listener as someone specific. We’ve all heard the sing-song-y recitations of local radio news reporters. Students worked hard going out into the field, taping interviews and natural sounds, and writing their news scripts. But when they delivered a story…

Publishing is a business. Books are products. When you want to publish your book you need to understand that you are introducing a new product into a crowded market with decreasing demand. The number of books published each year has exploded. The average number of sales for each book continues to decline, despite the increasing number of titles published. For every spot available in bookstore shelf space, there are close to 1,000 titles competing for that space. For example, the number of titles stocked in any bookstore in the section where your book might belong is likely between 100 (independent bookstores) and 1,500 (Barnes & Noble superstores), yet there are hundreds of thousands of books in print which fight for that limited shelf space. You’re not only competing against other new products in the market, but against all the other books in your niche which have previously been published. Selling books has also changed for the publishing industry. The same effort to bring a book to market today as ten years ago will yield a fraction of the sales previously experienced by authors. The intellectual real estate market has never recovered from the 2008-2009 Great Recession. Publishers have shifted their acquisition strategy to sign fewer books with expectations for higher volume sales. In other words, they are looking for blockbusters and this means many great books are passed over. Changes in the market also mean authors can expect lower advances, or no advance. Publishers pay an advance on copyright royalties.…

Will you read what I’ve written? As soon as I think I’ve finished writing a new piece, there’s that irresistible urge to get feedback from a reader. What do you think, eh? It’s more than yearning for instant ego gratification. That’s pretty nice, too. But it won’t help me take my writing to the next level. The sense of accomplishment from getting it down on paper and nailing? It isn’t enough. My inner editor kicks in and creates self-doubt. That’s a good thing and keeps me humble. No, really. Tell me what you think. Always be open to revision. Or don’t ask. After a half century of putting pencil to paper this much I know to be true. Took me a couple decades for it to sink in. I might not always be right and I don’t know everything. What didn’t work? You need to find those readers who are like your true friends who will tell you there is the spinach between your front teeth or your fly is open. Every writer needs editorial feedback. Editors are a writer’s best friend. Wait, wait! Last week Brooke Warner wrote a spot-on essay published in the Huffington Post on the 5 things she wished every author knew. Brilliant content. Wished I’d written it myself. Filled with typos. Ouch. Her excuse, when she shared it on social media, involved her technical inability to edit within the HuffPo platform. Double ouch. She’s a great editor. I’ve been there. As a writer who writes…