When you understand
the demographics of your audience, it will determine how you write, what you
end up writing about, the choice of words and the tone of your content. Once
you know who you are writing to impress, it will give you a sense of purpose on
the point of your content and how you will bring those points across. Once you
know and understand your purpose and the audience to which you share this
purpose, you will be more focused in your writing.
In my case, I
am very passionate about writing for victims and survivors of child
abuse. My immediate audience would be parents who have had children survive
this traumatic event and victims who have reached adulthood. I would also
target child advocacy groups to let them know that I share their cause and
possible share my writing with them so that they can in turn share with their
members. The public-at-large is also my audience because they need to become
aware of this issue. Why?
Write to Educate
I try to take
the opportunity to use my writing to educate the public on the seriousness of
this issue. I would indirectly target the decision-maker of big corporations so
that they can provide me with a wider audience reach? How? Well, these big nay-sayers
are encouraged to buy my books in bulk (sponsorship) and
donate it to the child advocacy organization in good faith. However, I could go
one step further and offer to put a one page ad in my book for the corporation.
This will provide a benefit to the corporation and give a reason to act.
SIDE NOTE: By the way, if you are a corporation
or company, feel free to purchase my books online and donate them to your
favorite child advocacy organization or to Darkness to Light, an advocacy group, of which I
have an interest.
Write to Give Hope
When I was writing
my book, my first thought was the audience that I was writing for. Initially, I started by writing for the parent
who doesn't understand that he/she should be careful to observe their children.
Or the child sexual abuse survivor who is still trying hard to deal with the
issues related to their unfortunate ordeal. Then I will think about the precise
point I wanted to make. In this case, I would want the survivor to know that
he/she is not alone because I am a survivor too.
I write my
books in such a way as to give hope. For the parents, I share my story, which
shows that even a close family member can be the perpetrator. Therefore, my writing
conveys the message that it is especially important to closely monitor children.
I cannot say that enough!
I usually ponder
on the questions that my target audience would ask. I go over those questions,
find the answers and include in my draft. I will put a lot of thought into this
step. If I have to do additional research, I will – including statistics to
show how crucial it is to spread the word about child sexual abuse and the
effects it has on children.
Conclusion
Whatever, you
write about, let it be something that is dear to your heart. If you write a
romance novel, for example, develop a story that people can identify with. If
you write non-fiction, make it purposeful and choose the right audience before
you put any words on paper. If you want
to help my particular cause and passion, purchase my book at Amazon or virally share
this article or the link to my book on your social media pages. Help me to
shatter the silence of child sexual abuse. There is a child out there that needs your help too!
