Ashley Newell
Unleash the literary abandon!
  • Home
  • Publications & Products
    • Books >
      • Galen
      • Freakhouse
    • Games
    • All Works
  • EVENTS
  • Resources
  • Contact

Know Your Audience

1/17/2019

0 Comments

 
I'm going to tell you a little story, a true story.

A few weeks ago I saw a new post on one of the Writing Forums I follow. It was a new author asking for advice on how to help boost sales on a book he recently published. A very honest question that all writers often scratch their brains over. 

A few of us flocked over to this post, honestly wanting to help. But in order to give the best advice, we had to know one key thing:

"Who is your audience?"

The author promptly replied, "I don't have one."

I could feel us all letting out a light-hearted chuckle from over the keyboard. "Allow me to rephrase. Who is your INTENDED audience?"

Author: "I don't know."

Now I could feel the icy cold grip of horror grab onto all of us from across the screen...

It's one thing to start writing for yourself, not even thinking about the potential of anyone reading it. We get our rawest ideas out that way. The very emotional power of a journal, the heart of a song, the impact of a poem. All of these are very good things, and they are good things because they already cater to the question above: "Who is your audience?" You are!

When you take that leap into expecting people to give you money for what you've created, whether that's in writing or in any other industry, you have to realize that most people only want to part with their money if something enhances their life in some way. I don't mean profoundly life changing; we buy a chocolate bar because it brings us momentary pleasure, not because it keeps helps us live longer. An emotional or intellectual connection to something is something that people crave; it gives us a little spark in our day. To follow the metaphor, there are a LOT of kinds of chocolate bars out there; people do not have to just buy the first one that they see on the shelf (though some might). You are trying to sell a brand new chocolate bar in a world full of already established and much-loved chocolate bars. Just because you enjoy chocolate and peanut butter covered dill pickles does not mean that the world will see the appeal and shove their money at you for gifting them this wonderful, much-needed invention. If you want to sell such an item, you have to know who will buy it. 

To return to the story, many tried to lead this author to tell us something about this work he published. What genre is it? ("I don't know. It isn't really a genre."). What age group is it for? ("My age, I guess. But anyone really.") What already existing work is it similar to? ("Nothing I know of.")

So here was the predicament. How do you get people to want something that was never meant for them in the first place? 

The answer is: Not easily.

While you might be able to win over a few new consumers who are up for a gamble or who are feeling charitable, you certainly won't be in the position to quit your day job. 

So what went wrong? 

Writing is for the self. Selling is for the consumer. 

Whether you are writing for your job, for your essay assignment, or for that next book deal, your revision stage is where you put your audience glasses on. 

1) Who is this product going to appeal to most?
2) What do these people already know?
3) How is my work going to expand upon something they already enjoy?


If you are marketing your chocolate and peanut butter covered dill pickle because you believe the world would be better for it, you aren't going to start with the peanut-free crowd. You are going to find out where the pickle-lovers are, how to reach them, and how to get your product into their hands. 

When it comes to promotion, there is not one right answer. The older crowd probably isn't going to stumble upon your Twitter ads. The younger crowd probably isn't going to see your spotlight on the Shopping Channel. Sure you could book a promotional table at the local vegan cafe, but if your book is "10 Ways To Skin a Rabbit", you probably aren't in the right place at the right time to make a sale. 

Keep narrowing down what you know about your audience:
  • What is the age range?
  • What is the education level?
  • What is the shared experience?
  • What are their common beliefs?

You won't always have a specific answer for all of these, but you have to consider the nature of your product. 

I was asked to critique a Christian novel once - trust me, I asked very clearly if she was 100% certain that she wanted me to read it, and that she specifically wanted me to read it for the Christian content of it. "Well, okay, Lady. If you're sure." So I did.

I cannot criticize this writer one ounce. She wrote her first draft for her and then sought input from others for her revisions. She needed to branch out from her perspectives and into the mindset of her potential readers. She knew one thing about her audience: they didn't have to be Christian when they started the book. That's why she asked me to read it. She did not have a large circle of non church going people in her life and she needed to see it from that side.

I read it and gave her my report. It was a very Christian book, but it did not serve either of her audiences well. It was trying to convert Christians to Christianity. There was not enough substance of non-believer for the miraculous understanding of God's love to be profound. For a Christian it was obvious, there was no other way for events to turn out: they will see it was God's plan all along.

Could she have moved forward with her novel as is? Sure. Why not.
Could she have put this book in every home with it as is? Doubtful. 

She could have an audience without revising her book. Herself and people like herself who are happy to have literature that just reaffirms what they already believe. And that's fine. Harlequin makes a lot of money re-telling the same story. So does R.L. Stein. But they know how to appeal to the audience they want. This author wanted a broader audience. 

Your business proposal has to appeal to the stakeholders you want to do business with. Your essay has to appeal to the sensibilities of your instructor. Your novel has to be of interest to the people you are asking to invest in it.

​Why should they buy this product from me?
If your answer is "because I need money," then you need to go back to the drawing board, badly. 

If you want a generic best-seller, sell a copy of something that people already love. But if you believe in that chocolate covered peanut butter dill pickle bar, you need to find out who, aside from yourself, enjoys them, and then you go to where they are! You might not make a killing at the local gas station, but you might sell a few cases outside of the maternity clinic!
​
0 Comments

Facelift!

1/17/2019

0 Comments

 
I know that the landing page of a website is the most important page. It also ends up being the page that I probably look at least on my own website. Let's be honest, the landing page here has been pretty ghastly for a long time. Just look at that mess:
Picture
So while not a complete makeover, I've definitely trimmed the fat. 

Seriously, people, you can't let me get away with this stuff!

0 Comments

Tough Times and an Opportunity

1/16/2019

1 Comment

 
 It's a weird time right now. Everyone seems to be doing a little worse. Every time I speak to someone, it seems like they are losing a job or working their butt off and still not scraping by. And this isn't even considering the mass of people in the US who are working unpaid right now. 

It's hitting us at home too. Even a "secure" job like teaching gets its tight spots. I was deemed about 30 hours short of being eligible for EI while on maternity leave - recorded hours, of course, not the physical hours that I went in during my off-hours for meetings, conferences, putting on the spring play, etc. And my husband who decided to become a teacher for more stable work has found himself still on the sub list. Has worked exactly 2.5 days so far this month. He was supplementing with a retail job, but, alas, seasonal layoffs. So we scramble, trying to figure out if paying $3500 for childcare makes it any better if I return to work, or if my husband can balance 4-5 jobs until our infant doesn't cost infant rates.  

When times get tough, art shines brighter. I can still be part of this. I've been mentoring, critiquing, and offering editing creative writers for years. My first job was business administration, and that gave me over 10 years of business writing and editing, not to mention the countless resumes I've had to re-write and re-format. And I've been a public school contracted teacher for over 5 years now, teaching the foundations of essays, paragraphs, short-writing, script-writing, and, yes, still helping with resumes and cover letters. 

Before I consider myself stuck, I'm going to try to lead with what I do best: make great writing. 

I started a page. MOM'S RED PEN Editing and Tutoring Services. I've spent years wondering if this is something I should get into, but it wasn't until I met up with another professional in the industry that my doubts about it seemed silly. "You're more qualified than you think." And if I really look at myself and what I've done, it's true. Do you have any idea how many aspiring writers go gaga just in finding out that I have a degree? I used to laugh it off, but looking at other people offering these same services, that is often the extent of their credentials. Not to diminish the quality work that editors without a degree can do, I know a lot of great self-made people. The point is that I've got the paper, the experience, and have earned the trust of people for years without considering myself a true professional. Now that times are getting tough, I have to use what I have, and what I have is an opportunity that I've been wasting.

So here it is, MOM'S RED PEN Editing and Tutoring Services, also available on Facebook. 
​I made a conscious decision to keep my Editing Services separate from this site. So while I may post a few Editing Tip related blog posts, this should be the extent of my advertising on here. And since that's the case, I'm just going to go ahead and plop all of the ways that you can help out:
MOM'S RED PEN Editing and Tutoring Services
Ko-fi.com/anewell
https://www.patreon.com/newellbooks


Of course, there are also the free ways you can help. You can share these pages, send them to your friends and acquaintances who you think would genuinely be interested, and brag about any experiences you've have with my work. And if you have had experiences with my work, you can also help by leaving reviews about them. Reviews make sales, so if you haven't left one yet, take a few minutes out of your day and post a review on Goodreads, Amazon, Chapters Indigo, or even on your own blog. 

Times are tough out there, and when we can help each other, we all get to grow.




1 Comment

    Author

    Picture
    Ashley Newell, stupendous noveling sensation whom you've probably never heard of...

    Categories

    All
    3DayNovel
    Book Club
    Doctor Ood
    Dream Journal
    Game Design
    Games
    #MomLife
    NaNoWriMo
    Personal
    Random Reviews
    Rant
    Shameless Promotion
    Stories And Writing
    Theatre

    Archives

    September 2024
    July 2023
    June 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    March 2016
    August 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    RSS Feed

    Tweets by Olanthea
© COPYRIGHT Ashley Newell and NewellBooks.com 2025. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authoris strictly prohibited.
Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Ashley Newell and NewellBooks.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content
Photos from kona99, Tambako the Jaguar, ^Joe, bradleyolin