Thinking about the reader perspective and "What's in it for me?"

This book has been lying on my nightstand for weeks. Months. And I still haven’t read it. 

I think I got a few chapters in before work/kids/Halloween/Thanksgiving/and now Christmas got in the way.

But from what I gather (and feel free to correct me if I’m wrong), at its core, this is a book about how to understand people. And how doing so can lead to your success.

This goes for writing your book as well. 

In his book On Writing, Stephen King says to write with the door closed, and edit with the door open. 

I talk about this all the time with my writers: Taking off their editor hat so they can write with momentum, and without their inner editor stopping them at every turn. Not thinking about the end result, the reader, agents, publishers, (and especially with memoirs) your family or friends.

Once you have a first draft, THEN you can edit your book with your audience in mind, and decide what to cut out or leave in.

Still a quick exercise in stepping into your reader’s shoes early on, as you set an intention for your book, or create your outline, can help prevent a lot of cleaning up later on. 

By understanding your reader and asking from their point of view, “What’s in it for me?” You can look at your book objectively and make sure it’s as fulfilling for the reader as it is for you as the writer.

You may have (in the case of non-fiction) a ton of education and expertise you want to share with your reader, and ways you can improve them and their lives, but no one wants to be info-dumped on. 

So getting inside the reader’s mind will be instrumental in getting, and keeping, their attention.

If you would like more help with this, or for more tips on writing non-fiction, join me on Monday for my FREE non-fiction writing workshop. Sign up here to register and get the Zoom link and reminders.