Lesson 19 – The Audience
When we’re at our keyboards thoughts of our audience tend to remain far in the background but they are one of the reasons we write. We write to make them laugh, cry, fall in love, and feel the emotions of our characters.
Today’s lesson with David Mamet covers our audience. He said that alone, we are idiots (including himself) but together we are geniuses. Why? Because we can’t fool them. Our audience is our speaking teacher. We grow from their feedback. I’m not talking about the few who will write reviews simply to ruin someone’s day – they aren’t our audience. I’m talking about our fans, this who connect with our stories.
Our audience is willing to sit down and listen to our story, and even suspend their beliefs. They follow us into fantasies, alternate worlds, and even nightmares. They don’t ask if our stories are true or not. They sit around the campfire to listen to our gossip circle of dialogue to be entertained. They get to watch someone else’s life and ultimately, the story is always about them.
As humans, we will always compare the characters in the story to ourselves. It’s who we are as a whole. Our journey as writers is the same as our audience. We’re not there to flatter them. We’re there to share a story.
Davis shared an old Jewish Proverb, “Flattery is theft.”
Our stories become truth to our audience while they sit down with us. It’s our job to make the laugh, smile, and cry with our characters, so much that they see themselves in the story. His finally point really hits home.
“I’m a writer but with them I’m just a human being.” David Mamet
Don’t overthink your audience. Just be a human being with them and share your truths. It’s scary to put your work out in front of them but it’s part of the process as a writer. You’ll never grow if you don’t learn from them.
Follow Monday through Friday as I take MasterClass Online.
Join me at https://www.masterclass.com/.
~Yoon Ju
Subscribe at WritersBlock.com & Follow me on Facebook @AuthorYJL for more!
Get Audibleand Listen with me on the go here!
Writer's Block Inc 