Who Do You Write To? The Invisible Readers In An Authors Life
In Stephen King's book, On Writing, he mentions that he writes his stories to his wife. That he tries to tell a story that she will like.
Although, not all writers have someone who they gear their individual tales to, there is quite a list of invisible readers that a writer must take into account if they want to get published. If you do not have a particular person in mind when crafting your tales, these invisible readers may make a good substitute.
Slush Reader -- the slush reader is usually the first person that will have say in whether or not your story makes it to the next stage of consideration. These are people with the task of wading through the large pile of unsolicited manuscripts ( most of which is not at a professional level ) day, after day, after day.
If you write a story that they've seen a thousand times before, or a story that doesn't catch their attention immediately, or one that has a lot of grammatical errors in the first few pages, or even one that does not follow the magazines submission guidelines you may be quickly and summarily rejected.
How to write to a slush reader:
First, make sure you know what the publishers submission guidelines are and that they are followed. Second, make sure grammar and punctuation errors do not happen. Following these two rules will make your work appear to be professional and will prevent any unnecessary annoyance with your work.
Next, you need to have a great opening. This does not mean an opening where the reader is dropped in the middle of a combat scene ( although it could ), but an opening where the hook, where the writing, makes the reader want to go on to the next page. An opening has a lot to do--establish characters, introduce the inciting incident, capture the readers attention and make them want to continue with the story.
Spend time on making an opening that sizzles. Make that slush reader forget about the pile of not so good stories they've already set aside. Make them realize that your story is one that is different from the others because of the quality of the opening.
Improve Your Chances:
If possible, read books or magazines by the publisher. This will help familiarize you with what types of stories they like. Also, search for information on what they publish--story genres, word length, story mood or tone. It doesn't help to send your uber cool SF novel to a semi-pro magazine that publishes science articles. The more you know about the publisher, the better you will be able to submit a story that they will like.
Editor -- The editor has the most control over whether or not your story is accepted ( once you make it past slush ). And like the slush reader, story format and grammar will show them that you are a professional. You want to submit a story that is as close to being ready to publish as possible. Although they are the editor do not assume that it is their job to edit your work.
What an editor wants is a good story. A story that will satisfy their readers.
How to write to an editor:
Don't under estimate the importance of manuscript form and grammar.
To help an editor say yes, you need to have a complete story. Great beginning, Great middle, Great ending.
It takes a great opening to make people turn the page, it takes a great middle to keep them interested, and it takes a great ending to make them feel like the story was worth their time. Reread, rewrite, and revise so that all of these stages stand out. Study story structure. Learn how each act moves into the next.
Learn how to create exceptional characters, characters that stand out even if they are average. Find the element that makes that character unique or that reveals their personality. Make the reader care about them. Characters the reader like create more tension when they get into trouble.
Write well. Great writing can breathe life into any idea. The fact is most stories have been told before. Try to use excellent writing in order to make the idea seem fresh and new or find ways to add elements that are not normally part of that stories structure.
Agent -- the agent is the bridge from the author to the publishing house. Many publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts, so attracting an agent is important. An agent wears many hats when representing a book and the author. And like the editor often want to find a story that they like and believe in.
How to write to an agent:
If you're an unpublished writer, have the novel completed before trying to get an agent.
Find information on what types of books an agent represents. Send your query to an agent that works in the same genre as your novel. Also, consider clients that they have represented in the past.
Study the process of writing a query letter. The query needs to make the agent interested in reading more of the story and also show that the writer is a professional. The query is much like the opening needed to impress the slush reader. If it fails, the story will end up on the wrong side of the slush pile. So, give your best effort on creating a query that gets the door open for the rest of your novel.
Unseen Reader -- There are all types of readers. You can not satisfy all of them. The best way to attract readers is to tell a great story. Tell a story that you want to read. Tell a story that has elements your favorite authors use. Tell a story that maximises your strengths, but do not be afraid to work on your weaknesses.
This is the least predictable reader to satisfy. So the main way to satisfy them is by learning, working, and continuing to improve your craft. Read, write, and grow. Tell the best story that is in you at the moment.
So, how do you write to the reader you never see?