What's Your Purpose as an Author?

Yesterday I had a talk with one of my daughters. Part of the conversation had to do with my purpose as an author. She was a bit confused.

"I thought you wrote inspirational books," she said.

She was right, of course. I'd written three of them and my fourth, well, it was a cozy mystery. A bit out of the same realm.

Fortunately, I'd worked through the same issue myself just a few months prior before deciding to release Scrambled. I wondered: "Will people like it that I've switched genre's?" "Will they see my purpose as miss-managed?"

What I realized then just as I do now is that every author is filled to the brim with ideas and not all of them run the same wave. C.S. Lewis himself was known to write fantasy as well as nonfiction. He wrote for adults as well as children.

And while I'm the first to admit that a  mystery story is a cry from a Christian fiction novel, there are surprisingly some elements that remain the same. 

 

• Like to figure things out about your life; make it better? Read a Christian fiction or nonfiction book.

 

• Like to figure things out when it comes to sleuthing? Want to discover "who did it" even before the author releases the news? Read a mystery.

I'd like to think that my purpose as a writer is not only to share the goodness of God but the joy of life. I'd like to think that sometimes we just need an escape and a good mystery can do that. We also need to get the good old left brain working to figure things out.

And I'd like to think that I can do both.

What's your purpose as an author? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Finding the Best Audience for your Book

Warning--not everyone is going to like what you do or what you have to say--and that's okay.

Consider the ocean and all the sea life swimming within it. How does a clam differ from a whale? A dolphin from a sea horse?

Finding the right audience for your forthcoming book may seem like a real trick but it's also a super treat.

When was the last time you saw a dolphin? Who was their audience? Who got the greatest kick out of the experience?

You want to know WHO is going to like your book BEFORE you put it out there so that you can decide what sort of marketing will bring in the most readers. Here are a few examples:

My audience is primarily female readers

• Because I knew that my book, "Conquering your Goliaths: A Parable of the Five Stones," would relate primarily to women, I made sure that the cover reflected that. I had two colors I was trying to choose between for the text of the cover: black and burgundy. I color printed both of these covers and asked family members if they preferred the black text or the burgundy text. I discovered that most of the men liked the black and most of the women liked the burgundy. I went with burgundy because of the audience for my book.
• Before publishing your book, get readers that are of both persuasions to read your book if you can. A man's viewpoint will probably be different than a woman's and vice-versa. You will also discover if the book appears more interesting to men or women. If you've written a children's book, you probably will want it to cater to both girls and boys, so the cover should reflect that; the same is true for adult books that you want both sexes to be interested in. You may discover that you have an equal amount of interest in your book from both men and women and will want to design a cover appropriate for both views.
• When you're marketing your book, consider where your audience will be spending their time and make sure you frequent these places. Speaking engagements are great, if you choose venues your audience frequents. For example, if you've written a children's book, you might consider an indoor amusement park as a possible place to have a book signing or a book consignment opportunity instead of shelving your book at a typical book store.
• My book is also Christian, and not everyone is going to go for a Christian Fiction book. But in an era where many people are struggling to make ends meet, a book that speaks of doing better in life is a real winner. If your book answers a current concern, expresses a popular viewpoint, or gives the reader an opportunity to escape from life in a new and exciting way, you may just have a winner, too.

Finding the best audience for your book is an important part of marketing. Sure, you'll have some great reviews, you might even place your book in various bookstores, but it's the readers of books who will decide--perhaps even by your cover--if the book is something they'd like to read.