Identifying Your Ideal Reader

Rosemi Mederos: 00:01

If you have plot bunnies coming out of your plot holes, it’s time for a writing break.

The Muse welcomes you back to another writing break. Among other things, this episode covers an Amazon fail, a school board win, and your ideal reader. I’m headed to your neighborhood today, but first, let’s relax in the Writing Break café.

pening its first bookstore in: 2015

Independent film and media studio Black Odyssey LLC is launching Black Odyssey Media, which will be dedicated to books about the Black experience, especially novelizations and works that can be adapted for film or television.

dline for submissions for the: 2022

This episode is dedicated to the Indian River County School Board in Florida, which recently refused to ban most of the 156 books challenged by the parents group ironically named Moms for Liberty. Instead of a myopic book ban, there is now a permission form parents can fill out to restrict their children's access to certain library books or to the whole gosh darn library if they want.

I would like to thank my mother for never batting an eye at anything I ever checked out from the library.

Links to these articles can be found in the show notes of this episode and on writingbreak.com.

And now, let’s head to your neighborhood.

Today we are visiting your local library. Stoic, often smiling librarians greet us among the classics and new releases. There are quiet rooms wherein no one is allowed to talk and conference rooms where ideas are shared freely. You have access to the internet, reference books, magazines, and the incredible research skills of the librarians. And, of course, the children’s section of the library is a necessary dietary supplement for growing minds.

If a visit to a used bookstore is a date with destiny, as discussed the last time we were together, then a trip to the library is a godlike experience. You tell the librarian what book you want or what kind of book you want, and they help you find it, even if they have to summon it from another library or put a hold on it for you.

The respect, the freedom, and the affordability of a trip to the library never gets old. I’m looking around at your local library, and I think this is a great place to write. For those of you who can’t make it out to the library, you can borrow ebooks and audiobooks from your library’s website and from apps such as Overdrive and Libby.

With some publishers putting restrictions on digital lending (Macmillan), it is heartening to know that other publishers, such as Penguin Random House, fully support libraries for the life-sustaining centers that they are.

My only problem with libraries is that they are not open on Sundays, and it is hard to have a perfect Sunday without a trip to the library.

Once again, we are not featuring an author this week. Libraries are a place of self-discovery and free exploration, and since you can come back as many times as you want, free of charge, picking out a book that doesn't do it for you is no big deal. Let’s divide and conquer, shall we?

Now that we’ve made our library selections, let’s find a couple of tucked away armchairs for today’s overthinking segment. This time, I'm hoping you can help me put a stop to something I've been overthinking for way too long, and that is, what e-reader should I get?

get back, Jack, purchased in: 2010

If you have an e-reader you love and recommend, please let me know in an e-mail to podcast@writingbreak.com or on Instagram @writingbreakpodcast.

And now, before the librarians come around to shush us, let’s return to the Writing Break cafe for a discussion on identifying your ideal reader.

Let's talk about writing for your ideal reader.

You write because you have something to say, and writing is the way you choose to say it. Whether you’re aspiring to be a novelist, journalist, or any other type of writer, you’re putting in the hard work first and foremost for yourself. You write because you must—then comes your audience.

The other reason you write is that you know your message is of value to someone else. No piece of work is for everyone, though some aspiring writers want to believe otherwise.

Create a composite ideal reader in your mind. Who is this person, and how will your message improve their life? Keeping this person in your mind as you write will help you create a clear and impactful piece of work that will have maximum benefit to you, your writing career, and your true audience.

That’s all for this writing break. I encourage you to make use of your local library this month, and every month, and to subscribe and share this podcast with anyone you think would be an ideal listener. And remember, you deserved this break.

If you would like us to visit your favorite independent bookstore, feature your favorite independent author (even if it’s you), or discuss something you’re overthinking about, please email me at podcast@writingbreak.com.

Thank you for making space in your mind for The Muse today.

Writing Break is hosted by America’s Editor and produced by Allon Media with technical direction by Gus Aviles. Visit us at writingbreak.com or contact us at podcast@writingbreak.com.