Reader's Digest -- Amanda Bedzrah

I was doing an everyday task when this title popped in my head as the blog post for this month. I smiled as I fondly remembered looking forward to the readers digest magazine as a young adult. I wonder if it’s still in circulation today. However, this blog post does not refer to that awesome magazine, but instead to how readers digest books. Book anatomy 102.

*image from wikipedia.

As an author, I’m an avid reader. I try to read widely and regularly, especially when I’m getting ready to write another book. I find that it stirs up my writing muscles as my mind is more open, but I also find that at this stage, I’m most critical of the books I read as I move from reading for pleasure, to reading to learn.

These last few weeks, I’ve been intrigued with autobiographies and memoirs. I devoured two books in quick succession and thoroughly enjoyed them that I was on a look out for more. One of the books I listened to was over eleven hours long and somehow I managed to listen to it in my car in less than a week, sometimes just sitting long after I’d reached my destination because I was so drawn in.

Both books were similar, stories of the American justice system and I honestly devoured them. I read them, digested them so much so I felt the need to write posts about them.

Then, I came to a the third book. I was so excited another treat in store I thought. The story seemed powerful enough to take me on a journey and I was ready to eat it up…… alas I was disappointed. It just fell flat. I feel deflated as I still have not finished the book. It’s been over a week now, and it’s a much shorter book than the other two I read in a week.

This got me thinking about how readers digest books. How readers receive and interpret books. I thought, perhaps if I could figure out the differences between these Three books, I will learn something that will make me a better author.

I am acutely aware that personal taste, interest and preferences will impact how readers digest a book, but in this instance, all three books sit firmly within my personal taste, interest and preference. I have taken a few days to ponder, because I wanted to understand what the issue was and what it is that could potentially take a book from good to great to outstanding.

Disclaimer - this is from my personal perspective and may not representative of the general population. But some of the lessons I’ve learnt I believe will help me write better.

1. The presentation of the story is important - taking the reader on a logical journey is key, so they can follow in a way that doesn’t feel disjointed. The first two books I read were laid out in a way that was easy for me to follow, the third book was jumping so quickly between the past and the present that I felt lost. 

Author lesson - just because it makes sense to you doesn’t mean it makes sense to the reader. Pace and timing is key. Clear directions as chapter headings can help or titles within the text.

2. Story telling is crucial - it’s easy to rush to the point and focus on giving a factual or fictional account but readers enjoy context. Take the time to explain. Don’t rush it. This was a key difference between the books. The third book felt rushed in many areas with no context to some information shared.

Author lesson - don’t assume the readers can read between the lines. It can be a lazy style of writing. Be patient with the story or risk loosing the reader. Also just because you’re sharing facts doesn’t mean it can’t read like fiction. Make it interesting.

3. Know your limits - the third book was traditionally published. Written by someone who’s been visited by the royals and actually had a senior clergy man write the foreword. The book will sell well for that reason. The story is powerful, so it will also sell well for that reason. BUT the story telling is so flat that I can only imagine the author wanted the story told in the way it was and did not allow a developmental editor do it justice. It’s like reading a book written by someone who is a great speaker which he is but not necessarily a great writer. That was a glaring difference between all books. Just because you have a powerful story doesn’t make you a powerful writer. A lot of celebrities get their memoirs written by ghost writers. The third book was  either was self written or there’s a well paid ghost writer who could have done much more. It may also be that the publishing house didnt care much about the story as they knew there was enough clout to sell the book regardless. Honestly, the editing was shocking!

Authors lesson - invest time and energy into rewrites or pay someone more skilled to polish your work especially when indie publishing. Invest in your craft and learn, learn, learn. Also choose publishing houses carefully. Some may be more interested in making money than telling a great story and producing a great book. 

4. Know your audience and purpose of your book - the first two books were written in such a way that anyone can read and understand. A lot of care was taken with the story telling to ensure that readers were not just drawn in emotionally but were educated on the matters that could have been confusing to grasp. In contrast, the third book was written in a way that made me go and google the author and his work to fill in the blanks. It was like it was written for the readers that already had a foundational knowledge of who he was. For me, it left a lot of gaps that I had to go and research.

Author lesson - Don’t let readers go and find things themselves. They may not come back. I guess this is why some books have index pages at the back with explanations of words, places etc. we can incorporate this in every genre so readers are not lost. I know there is a fine line between treating readers like dummies or accepting readers should know certain things, but in a world as big as ours and if you want your book to be globally received, then air on the side of taking time to explain.

As I said earlier, the book will sell well. Regardless of my personal thoughts or opinions, but I’m grateful for the experience because I’ve learnt so much, much more than I’ve been able to articulate in the points above.

My big takeaway point is - know your readers and then consider how they digest books. How will they typically like to receive what you want to give? Ask questions, get a beta group if possible. Start with the readers in mind so you can write from that perspective.

I hope there’s something in here that picks your interest.

Amanda Bedzrah. Mum of 3, wife of 1. Lover of all things books and Jesus.

www.amandabedzrah.com