The Em Dash #27
My eyes bounced from the crumpled, slightly damp with sweat papers in my hand to the highway signs whizzing by to my mom, white-knuckling the steering wheel with her eyes glued to the road. There may have also been some stress-induced yelling.
Time after time, we’d play out the same scene: Get all dolled up. Pile whatever gifts were needed in the car. Make a pit stop at Mom’s (my grandmother’s house) to print the directions, and hit the road. Cruise right along on the local highway until the first big “keep right at the fork.” Then, panic.
Have you ever had the (anti-)pleasure of getting lost on your way somewhere new (or not new), Friend?
My mom and I had our fair share of mini-road-trip induced spats because one of us couldn’t follow directions. (We never agree on which one of us. 😅)
We both grew up in Chicago, but we had family and friends who lived in the suburbs. So whenever we had to go on a mini road trip to visit them, we MapQuested it.
She’d pull up the address on my grandparents’ computer and print out directions and the map itself. We’d highlight the important parts, like “turn right” and “I-80W.”
You’d think that would keep us from getting lost, but once we actually got on the road, her copilot was me, a child.
E 👏🏽ver👏🏽y👏🏽 time we went to Joliet to visit a particular group of cousins, we’d get lost. And we couldn’t understand why! The directions were right there!
I’ll tell you why: Every time we made this trip, I tried to remember how we got lost the last time. Sounds smart, but I promise you it did not work. And instead of just asking my mom how she’d like me to give her the directions, I’d make an assumption.
First, I just read them straight through. “Continue on I-57S for 13.4 miles; follow signs for Memphis.” BOOM. Lost.
Well, the words on the signs are easier to read than the numbers on the signs, so I’ll give her those, I thought.
“Keep right and follow signs for Memphis.” BOOM. Lost. I didn’t realize there could be multiple signs for Memphis, which is so not confusing and really awesome sign design. 😑
Finally, one day I just asked her what she wanted me to read her from the directions.
“Just give me the exit numbers,” she said.
So simple. So succinct. “Take exit 345B.” And voila! We made it! (Still not on time, but that’s because we were perpetually late everywhere we went and had nothing to do with getting lost.)
Occasionally we’d still end up taking what my mom started to call “the scenic route,” but it happened way less.
And what did I learn? My mom is the kind of person who doesn’t like (or do well with) fluff. She doesn’t need or want extra information (like 13.4 miles) or things that sound good but aren’t actually helpful (like signs for Memphis going in two different directions).
And this, dear Friend, is exactly the kind of thing you need to know about your reader if you’re going to get through to them: What do they need from you to get what they want out of your book?
If you know your reader like the back of your hand (I helped you figure that out here), then you know how to deliver your message so they really get it.
Your book, specifically the way it’s organized and its table of contents, is the road map for your reader’s transformation. (In a lot of nonfiction, your reader is basically your book’s main character, and they have a character arc.)
Maybe you’re helping your reader go from broke to wealthy, blocked to inspired, or depressed to flourishing. They’re gonna need clear directions for this journey.
So consider:
Does your ideal reader learn through story? Okay, add in some narrative to illustrate your points.
Do they prefer to learn all the facts with no fluff? Probably best not to add in a lot of anecdotes.
What you end up writing should give your reader everything they need and nothing they don’t. Be ruthless about leaving things out, and intentional about what you put in.
Want some help figuring this out? I’m giving away 30 free intro book coaching sessions this month, and this would be a fun topic to cover!
Book one here if you’re interested. :)
Books to Help You Write Your Book
Blueprint for a Nonfiction Book by Jennie Nash
Wired for Story: The Writer’s Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence by Lisa Cron (I think if more nonfiction was written with fiction principles, people would read it more.)
Note: These are bookshop.org affiliate links
Free Coaching Sessions?!
Yes! I’m giving away 30 FREE Nonfiction Book Coaching sessions in 30 days.
Want one?
These sessions are for you if you’re BIPOC or an ally and you:
Have experienced something exciting/tough/traumatic/enlightening in life that helped you learn something important and valuable
Want to write an impactful, inspirational, or transformative nonfiction book about it so you can help others
Have no clue if your idea is any fucking good
Have never coached with me before (even Mini Coaching Sessions)
Would love to figure out if you should write your book
Sign up for a free nonfiction book coaching session here (if you’re reading this in April 2024).
