BE A CURIOUS WRITER

Curiosity may have killed the cat (a cliché I might add) but it also keeps the readers turning the pages of your story. For readers to be curious about what you’ve written, you must first have been curious about the topic you have written about. Readers don’t read out of obligation, unless they are in school, and will stop reading if they are not kept interested or curious.

So how can you keep your readers “curious”? Target the most difficult audience for your writing, those with short attention spans, those who expect a lot more than average readers, and try writing specifically to them. It’s easy to write to you who have an interest in your subject or storyline, but focus on attracting those readers who don’t. What will draw them? What will keep them reading?

Think about the literature you read. Why do you like this subject? What draws you to a particular author or this genre? What keeps you coming back? Mark the parts in a book or story you really like and the parts that bore you. Talk to others about likes and dislikes in literature, asking them the same questions. Get a feel for audience so you can understand more of what’s expected from the author.

Also, as you read ask yourself what this article has said about a subject that you didn’t already know. With regards to fiction was the plot similar to several other books you have already read? If not, what made it unique? How did it spur your curiosity? Why did it spur your curiosity?

Discover something new and fresh about an old subject and write about it. Use this new and fresh idea in your title to make readers curious about your finding. For instance, the title THOUSANDS AFFECTED BY HURRICANE, is neither exciting nor does it make one curious. I’ve never known many hurricanes that didn’t affect many people. But how about this one? BABY FOUND ALIVE IN TREE AFTER TREACHEROUS TORNADO STRIKES. Now, that makes me want to read.

Let’s face it. Readers read out of curiosity, whether it is fiction or non-fiction. They are nosy. They want to know what happened or what is going to happen. They want their questions answered.