Writers, If Your Reader is Confused, She Will Quit Reading
Writers, If Your Reader is Confused, She Will Quit Reading
You need to create clarity on the page
You need to create clarity on the page
You’ve heard the line, a confused mind never buys? It’s standard in online marketing circles, urging copy writers to aim for clarity on the page. Show your potential buyer why they will benefit, what problem it solves for them, and exactly what they will get when they click buy.
Fiction writers would be wise to heed these words as well. Because a confused reader will not keep reading. Recently, I’ve had reason to read a lot of first chapters of novels, as I’m judging a writing contest. And one of the commonalities I’ve noticed is a lack of clarity.
Confusion
The opening hook might be good — but there’s so much confusion I can’t tell.
The characters might be engaging, but I’m so perplexed about their motivation I can’t be sure.
The setting might be interesting, but it is so muddy on the page, I can’t tell — it could be set anywhere.
There might be a theme but damned if I can discern it.
And the plot and story might ultimately enthrall me but at the moment I have no idea where it’s going — or if I want to follow.
Clarity
If your reader is clear about various aspects of the story, he will keep reading. If he’s not, he’ll put the book down and wander off.
We’ve got enough distractions in our lives. We can’t be bothered with anything we don’t grasp. Too much noise. Too much effort. Not worth it.
It probably won’t take a lot for you to turn confusion into clarity — a tweaked sentence here, rearranging paragraphs there, figuring out the exact reason for the scene, showing character motivation more deeply. But first you need to recognize where your piece is confusing.
So how do you make sure your words have clarity? The problem is, clarity in your writing is difficult to recognize. You might thing you’ve done it, that everything is crystal clear on the page. But it might not be. You’re too close to your work to see it. So once you’re certain you’ve nailed character, setting, theme, dialogue and story on the page, look again. And then try the following:
Read it Aloud
You might be surprised what a difference this makes. There’s a magical thing that happens when you read your words out loud. You notice awkward sentence structures. Repeated words. Dialogue that sounds clunky. Trains of thought that go nowhere. And more — and your ear will pick up places of confusion.
Have someone else read it
You are, I will repeat, too close to it. Find an editor, a trusted friend, another writer, someone. You need fresh eyes on it, period.
You Need Feedback On Your Novel, Memoir, or Story
Yes, you do. Here’s where to find it — and how to prepare.medium.com
Enter a contest
This may sound counter-intuitive, but many contests offer critiques. The contest I’m judging offers very specific guidelines for the judge, and I am doing my best to be honest — but also make helpful comments for the writer. You might get great insight into your work — and if it is really, good, maybe you’ll win!
Once you find your flow for clarity, employ it over and over again. You don’t want to risk losing readers in a great vat of confusing prose. Taking the time to check for clarity is worth every second.
Charlotte Rains Dixon is the author of the novel Emma Jean’s Bad Behavior (Vagabondage Press, February 2013), and articles published in magazines such as Vogue Knitting, The Oregonian and Pology, to name only a few, and her short fiction has been published in Somerset Studios, The Trunk and the Santa Fe Writer’s Project. She earned her MFA in creative writing at Spalding University in 2003, and has been teaching and coaching writers ever since, both privately and as an adjunct professor at Middle Tennessee State University’s Write program. She’s been blogging about writing, creativity, and motivation at charlotterainsdixon.com since 2007. She is repped by Erin Niumata at FolioLiterary. Visit her website at charlotterainsdixon.com and her travel site at letsgowrite.com.