When it comes to getting published, it’s who you know. You have to connect with an audience, and the members of this audiences must connect with you. You may or may not know your readers personally, but what’s written, it has to resonate with them.

It’s too big a step, thinking that you can immediately connect with that bigger audience. It’s like attempting to jump a raging river. Those with superpower abilities can do this, but the rest of us cannot. If I had one superpower ability, it would be to jump from one riverbank to the next. This would sure come in handy. If I had a second superpower ability, it would be to be able to fly. I have always wanted to know how to fly, but I digress. Digressions in these dispatches are my prerogative.

I envision audiences as being like a series of concentric circles, with the writer at the center. The first audience is, of course, oneself. This is when one puts down what they feel like writing, maybe putting a change in here and there, but always keeping in mind that this is low stakes writing. It’s writing that might be abandoned. Then again, it’s writing that might be revised. Not a lot of time or sweat equity goes into first audience, low stakes writing. A good example of this is dairy writing. It’s not intended to be read, it’s just private thoughts.

The second audience, which is the second concentric circle, is close family members (if there is such a thing) and friends. This usually takes the form of informal sharing. You might run your writing-related idea by someone or read a portion of what you’ve written with them. Here, you are seeking (more than anything) affirmation, for someone to say, “I like this or that.” Most likely you’ll abandon the work in progress if you see glazed over eyes or a hand going up to suppress a yawn. So it’s a wise idea to share this, second circle writing, with someone who is both going to provide you with inciteful comments about what you’ve written.

The third circle writing is writing that you’ve revised some, taking the second circle feedback into consideration. Those who comprise this audience consist of editors, fellow writers, teachers – those who have a critical eye and will provide you with useful feedback. These individuals can, like second audience readers, provide feedback that puts a kibosh on the piece of work that you’ve elected to share with them. I know that when I was taking writing-related workshops while working on my MFA, that I had a somewhat adversarial relationship with the other writers in the class. I didn’t mind it, my work being torn to shreds, because I preferred this to being told by friends that whatever I wrote was absolutely wonderful.

Lastly, there are the distant readers, those who you most likely don’t know, those who pick up your book and begin reading. You’ll never know what they think unless one writes or posts a review. No matter, because by then you undoubtedly have moved on to your next project.

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