How To Really Connect To Your Readers
You sit down and look at the blank screen, hoping and praying that this time the perfect combination of words are going to pour forth from your fingertips. You're there for hours, filling your belly with coffee (or tea) and your brain with caffeine. You shift your weight from one side of your buttocks to another, over and over again trying to resist the urge to get up and walk away. You smoke cigarette after cigarette, but every now and then, you get a burst of inspiration and forget about the one burning; and it gets totally wasted because it burns right down to the filter. You read your work, and think to yourself, "this is good" or "this sucks" or "why do I even bother to call myself a writer."
Not all of the above will apply to you. But chances are, some of it does. And in those things you can identify with, you and I have made a connection. Not a strong one, but it's a start.
The one thing that all of the above have in common, is that they are all minor details of what many a writer goes through. If this were a story about a writer who suddenly hits the jackpot, and writes a best selling novel, you would at least have a relationship with him before he leaves the realm of reality (reality for most of us, anyway). You would have identified with the details, even if you couldn't identify with his fortune.
Through such details, we can make any story sound plausible, no matter how fantastic it is. And we can make our audience relate to our characters on a very personal level. This will entice them to keep reading, not necessarily because they want to find out what happens, but because they want to spend time with your character.
To give you a better idea of how this works, I'll introduce a detective. He's one of the best on the planet. So good in fact, that aliens from the planet Zorgot abduct him so that he can use his reputable powers to find out who killed their global leader. And adventure ensues.
Now very few people are going to identify with a detective. Still fewer will identify with an alien abduction (let's hope). While they might find the plot mildly interesting, there's no connection-they have no real reason (other than curiosity) to continue reading.
But let's say, on the morning of the abduction, our detective is just finishing his cup of morning coffee-the one that is really more of a waker-upper than even his cold shower. And let's say he's worrying about the gas bill, because he has a letter in his hands from Skylark Energy that says they want some money in the next two days or they're going to shut him off. And let's also say that he looks down to notice that he had gotten toothpaste on his tie, and all of his other ties are at the drycleaner's.
Now we've given our audience three different conundrums they can probably relate to (depending on who the audience is). In those three things, nearly everyone will be able to point at least one of them and say, "yeah...I know how that is." That's the connection you should strive for.
If you feel your plot (or even your article) is too dry, then go back over it again and add detail. Even one or two can completely transform your work, making it juicier than you could have imagined.
Not all of the above will apply to you. But chances are, some of it does. And in those things you can identify with, you and I have made a connection. Not a strong one, but it's a start.
The one thing that all of the above have in common, is that they are all minor details of what many a writer goes through. If this were a story about a writer who suddenly hits the jackpot, and writes a best selling novel, you would at least have a relationship with him before he leaves the realm of reality (reality for most of us, anyway). You would have identified with the details, even if you couldn't identify with his fortune.
Through such details, we can make any story sound plausible, no matter how fantastic it is. And we can make our audience relate to our characters on a very personal level. This will entice them to keep reading, not necessarily because they want to find out what happens, but because they want to spend time with your character.
To give you a better idea of how this works, I'll introduce a detective. He's one of the best on the planet. So good in fact, that aliens from the planet Zorgot abduct him so that he can use his reputable powers to find out who killed their global leader. And adventure ensues.
Now very few people are going to identify with a detective. Still fewer will identify with an alien abduction (let's hope). While they might find the plot mildly interesting, there's no connection-they have no real reason (other than curiosity) to continue reading.
But let's say, on the morning of the abduction, our detective is just finishing his cup of morning coffee-the one that is really more of a waker-upper than even his cold shower. And let's say he's worrying about the gas bill, because he has a letter in his hands from Skylark Energy that says they want some money in the next two days or they're going to shut him off. And let's also say that he looks down to notice that he had gotten toothpaste on his tie, and all of his other ties are at the drycleaner's.
Now we've given our audience three different conundrums they can probably relate to (depending on who the audience is). In those three things, nearly everyone will be able to point at least one of them and say, "yeah...I know how that is." That's the connection you should strive for.
If you feel your plot (or even your article) is too dry, then go back over it again and add detail. Even one or two can completely transform your work, making it juicier than you could have imagined.