Writing Who?

geralt via Pixabay

Last week, I slipped the when of my writing into a post about my book being on sale (and I'd like to thank all of you who made a purchase!) On Monday, I talked about my writing what, and I slipped a little bit of "who" in there as well, in the form of my characters. Another part of my writing who is my audience -- those for whom I write.

Writers are often encouraged to imagine that they're writing for one person, and to come up with as many details as they can about that reader. Men are welcome to read my work, of course but, given the topics of my novels and non-fiction, I think of my readers as being fellow females around my own age (a moving target, I must say, given how long I've been writing). My readers can be serious, but they also have a good sense of humor and they appreciate characters who have one, too. Family, in all its incarnations, matters to them: family of origin, family of their own creation and, like Marita and Bets, the friends they count as family. They work hard, try hard and sometimes need to be told that it's okay -- advisable, even -- to step back and take a breath. If they're not from New Jersey, they appreciate those of us who are, or at least fake it well :-)

Does every reader have to match that description? Nope. In fact, it's exciting when I discover that someone I would not expect to be a fan of my work is. While we know we can't actually write a book that's "for everyone," we writers not-so-secretly hope that someday, we'll manage to do just that.

My readers will love some of my characters and hate others (Jim is one character pretty much every reader has told me they dislike). They'll like some of my ideas and some of my books more than others. How do I know this? 

Because I do, too. 

Shhh. Don't tell them. All my books think they're my favorite.

If I'm honest, there's a part of me that writes just for me. While I've gotten pretty good at cutting treasured tidbits that serve no purpose from my final drafts, I have some lines I'm especially proud of. One of the best feelings a writer can have is to re-read something she's written and think, "Wow. That's actually good." Unfortunately, it happens much less often than I'd like. 

In the end, even if I have a reader in mind, my books are out there for anyone who's interested. For whom do I write?

Loyal readers. New readers. And readers I haven't met yet.