Know Your Reader, Know Your Genre

A few years ago I had the awesome opportunity to go to a one day conference where the amazing Erin Healy spoke about knowing who your reader is. I wish I could share with you everything she shared with us that day, but it's her lesson, not mine, so you'll just have to hear her speak if you have the chance.

I am, however, going to tell you more or less what I gleaned from what she (and others) have advised over the years and how that information has helped me tremendously to figure out what genre to write, what kind of characters and settings I should be writing, and so on.

Today we're going to be talking about genre and how knowing who your reader is will help you nail down not only your genre but every sub-genre or writing style you want to include with it.

First, you need to start by asking yourself these questions, and try to be as honest as possible.

When you imagine someone reading your book, who is it?

Male or female?
Approximate age?
Hobbies?
What kind of job? (Lots of hours, lots of stress, stay-at-home, etc.)
Do they read a lot or not?

And if you've filled in those blanks, try this:

When I write, this is what I intend to accomplish:

Do I want to entertain the reader?
Do I want them to laugh or cry?
Do I want them to feel moved with a deep message?
Do I want them to savor each page because of amazing prose or do I want them moving through to get to the next piece of action or snippet of dialogue?

And lastly, what specific genre do you gravitate toward when looking for a book? And if it's more than one, pick the one you most love to read. And be specific. Don't just say romance, but say Amish romance with comedy, or literary romantic science fiction (if there is such a thing).

These questions are so important because truly knowing your reader is going to help you in every aspect of your writing. The first and foremost biggest thing it helped me with was discovering which genre I wanted to write.

I thought I knew. Seriously. My stories usually had a deeper feel, with a strong theme, always a romance, and a few snippets of humor. So where did that fit? Literary romantic and comedic women's fiction? I needed to narrow it down, and I needed to discover who I was writing for. And once I did, I knew exactly what I should be writing.

I discovered my reader was female, late twenties to early forties. She probably has kids. She probably has a fairly routine or mundane job or she's a SAHM. She needs an escape, and loves to do it through reading. She loves to be crafty, likes to laugh, and likes to be entertained. Sure, a message or theme is fine, but she'd rather leave the story with a smile on her face and an HEA. She wants to flip through the pages and finish the book in two days because she can't put it down. (I could go on and on).

Anyway, my reader wants romantic comedy, without a doubt. And that's what I want to write.

Do you see how my picture of my reader didn't fit the women's/literary fiction style I was previously writing?

So see if you can answer the questions above, even make a list to keep to reference. You'll see as this series progresses, the more you know your reader, the more you'll know exactly what to write for them.

Do you know who your reader is? Is it a specific person or can you give specifics about who they are? I'd love to see you share in the comments.

***photo by cheylyne

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Cindy is a Colorado native, living near the mountains with her husband and three beautiful daughters. She writes contemporary Christian romance, seeking to enrich lives with her stories of faith, love, and a touch of humor.

To learn more about Cindy, visit her at her personal blog, www.cindyrwilson.blogspot.com