A is for Audience by Susan Barclay

Whenever we write, the first question we must ask ourselves is “for whom are we writing?”

 The answer to this question determines (gives direction to) several things. 

1. The length of the piece. If you are writing for a particular market/publisher, there will be a set word count. If you’re writing for children, the length will depend on what you are writing: is it a picture book, easy chapter book, novel, non-fiction? Each of these has established word count or page length maximums. If you’re writing for adults, you can typically go on much longer. Here’s an excellent article on ascertaining the appropriate word count for your piece. 

2. The tone. Are you writing to children, teens, adults, professionals, academics, laypeople? Whomever your target, your tone will be different. You don’t talk the same way to children as you do to academics, so you’ll write differently too. With a general audience, regardless of age, you’ll more likely use a casual tone, unless perhaps you’re writing literary fiction. Professionals and academics will require a more formal approach and they’ll expect you to know, and use, their jargon. In addition, the issue of your work’s intent or purpose will affect your tone. The Grammarly website identifies 10 types of tones and there are undoubtedly others, depending on what you hope to accomplish. 

3. The vocabulary or word choice. This ties in with tone. With a general audience, you typically want to use more simple language (also called plain or clear) so what you’re trying to communicate is easily understood by all. You can’t possibly know the educational or experiential backgrounds of every reader, so using this type of language casts a wider net. With professionals and academics, you’re expected to use a more elevated vocabulary, one that shows you’re a peer, you travel in the same circles, you “get” their field of knowledge.

4. The market. Just as you wouldn’t submit “This Little Piggy Went to Market” to the Journal of American Medicine, you wouldn’t submit “The Effects of Childhood Trauma on Marital Success” to Annick Press. Your intended audience dictates which publishers or agents will be most interested in acquiring and/or releasing your work. The Writer’s Market used to be a dependable resource for authors in search of potential publishers, but 2021 appears to have been its last edition. It will take more hunting today. The Canadian Authors Association has a handy-dandy list of Canadian book publishers on its website. Do you know of any other reliable resources?

Of course, if you’re writing for your own or God’s eyes only, all of the above is moot. Go freestyle, my friends!

Can you add any other points that are determined by our reading audience? Please add them in the comments!

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For more about Susan Barclay and her writing, please visit her blog: https://susan-barclay.blogspot.com/