Make Me Care — the Art of Seducing Readers
3 tried-and-tested tactics to grab and maintain your audience’s attention
There’s a whiteboard in my office. It lists the main points I want to keep top of mind when writing: a reference guide, so to speak.
The list does not follow any specific order; I write these points as I learn them, remember them or as I discover them through my learning about writing.
Here is the list (as it appears on my whiteboard):
- What questions might my audience have (about this topic)?
- Give the subject its due (meaning: research, research and more research)
- Zeitgeist
- New Insight
- Who, What, When, Where, Why & How
- News Values
- Purpose, Content, Audience
- Framing / Positioning
- Contrast
- Zoom-in / Zoom-out
- Format & Structure
- Context, Outcome, Genre
- Rhetorical devices: Logos, Ethos, Pathos
If I was a novelist, you would probably also see Literary devices on that list, but I’m not, so…
Underneath the list, I leave space for a new word that I’m learning at any given time. I write it there, and there it stays until I have learned it, until it is glued to my subcontious and becomes a part of my monologue. This usually takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.
Currently, the word of the week is Parochial. It’s something I read in an article and didn’t understand, and I hate it when I don’t understand what I’m reading.
Anyway, getting back to the subject-matter at hand.
There are so many things to consider when writing — particularly if you want it to be read by people other than just your husband or sister. However, as promised in the title, I’ll stick to what I think are the top three.
First
Starting at the top, which, incidentally, is also at the top of my random list is AUDIENCE. Because, as it happens, ‘What’s in it for me?’ is the first question that a reader asks when they graciously — and only for a split second — point their eyeball at your title, and sometimes, subtitle.
‘Show me the money!’ — can you hear Tom Cruise’s character, Jerry McGuire, scream in your head? Your title/subtile has to give your reader at least a hint that what follows is what they have been looking for.
Whatever topic you choose, once you’ve written the article/boook, go over it and try to identify gaps where you missed an opportunity to answer a question.
As an example, I’m going to use today’s news report about the California fires.
Over 200 vehicles abandoned in the middle of Sunset Boulevard were pushed out of the way (and damaged) by a huge bulldozer to make a clearway for emergency crews.
My first question: why did the owners leave the cars in the middle of the road?
Second question: where did they go?
Third question: did someone pick them up?
Fourth question: In what?
I can go on, but shockingly, none of these questions were answered by the media today, which, BTW, frustrates me enormously.
Second
Point number two is NEW INSIGHT.
For various reasons, people want to know about the latest strategies and tactics. They want to be well-informed to improve their lives and, in some cases, to have an advantage over their competition.
It’s the reason why the latest stories that talk about how to make money as a writer on Medium are guaranteed to perform well above average, provided they are well written.
It helps if this new insight attracts some level of controversy, especially when it is linked to the ZEITGEIST — the spirit of the times.
Third
Coming in at number three is SPECIFICITY.
When writing, it’s best to use concrete language. For example, say “I think it will rain” instead of “the weather feels iffy”.
Vagueness is the killer of all attention.
To help you be specific, it’s best to use the tried and tested formula used by newspaper reporters, which follows the 5Ws & H format of What, Who, Where, When, Why and How.
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