Grabbing Readers And Hanging On

Authors use all kinds of phrase that means the same thing. Grab the reader, hook the reader, create a page-turner, or write a keeper. Obviously all of these phrase mean an author wants to engage readers to the point that they can’t put down the book and once it’s finished, they can’t let it go. They put in on their bookshelves, often not loaning them to anyone, in case the borrower doesn’t return them. Writing a Keeper is what each author wants to do.

So then, the question is how do you write a book that grabs the reader and hangs on? A book is a keeper, first, when the story relates to the reader’s experiences. When they can say, I’ve been there, I’ve done that, I’ve felt that. Next, the book is a Keeper when the reader relates so well to the characters he wants to continue reading their story. I’ve received many letters from readers, and hopefully you have to, when they ask if I’m going to continue the story in another book. I’ve even had a reader write and ask me if Annie and Ken ever had a baby and how was Grandma Ellie’s health now. These were all story characters. I laugh but then I am flattered that the reader loves and remembers these characters as real.

Writing a Keeper means you will need to analyze your novel by story elements and ask yourself questions. The story premise or theme is the first, followed by characters, plot, and setting. Here are some thing to ask yourself.

Premise, Theme, or Message
• Is your premise realistic and yet special? Have you added a twist or a surprise?
• Does the theme or message tug at the readers emotions? If a reader laughs or cries you’re on the right track to a keeper novel.
• Is the message or theme strong and meaningful? Does your novel tackle realistic problems and issues that people face in their own lives? Does the resolution make a significant difference in the lives of the main characters?
• Does the theme or message cause readers to relive times of their own lives or offer them experiences they’ve always wanted but have never experienced.
Identify the main theme or message in your novel and review it against these questions. If you find a weak area, ask yourself what you can do to make it more meaningful and realistic

Characters
• Do your main character reflect real life people not stereotypes? Do they have admirable qualities as well as flaws?
• Are they vulnerable—showing weaknesses common to others? Are they strong despite their vulnerability?
• Do they have goals that are significant and important to others as well as themselves.
• Are their motivations realistic? Did you create a past with their strength and weaknesses documented by life experiences and their upbringing? Family, friends, talents?
• Are the character’s realistic and consistent in their emotional and psychological attributes?
• Do the characters have realistic fears and phobias that are their nemesis?
• Are these qualities your reader can relate to?

Plot
• Are the character’s goals and motivation clear and meaningful to readers? Is this something to which readers can relate?
• Are the character’s behaviors and attitudes psychological realistic and are the story problems real?
• Does the story open in a dynamic way that grips the reader from page one?
• Is backstory used to build characterization but not plopped in the first pages of the story?
• Does the plot allow the reader to participate—to speculate, to cheer, to warn?
• Does the story keep moving with good pacing—a few slower moments for readers to digest what’s happening and then moves ahead with dynamic action?
• Does the plot reinforce the theme or message of the story?

Story Setting
• Why did you chose this setting? How can it be used to add deeper meaning to your story?
• Does the setting enhance the plot?
• Does the setting create nuances in the characterization—added stress, feelings of home or loss?
• Does the description bring the setting to life?
• Do the setting aspects relate to the story’s mood, heighten emotion, and serve a purpose beyond offering a sense of place?

If you can answer these questions with positive answers, wonderful. If you find that you need to make changes, then do so. The more realistic and compelling these four elements of your story, you will create a page-turner, a book that grips the reader and one they want to keep.

Theme and Why It's Important

Readers remember some novels long after they read them, and one of reasons is the theme or, in Christian fiction, the message that the story leaves with the reader. When working on your novel, ask yourself these questions: What will happen, and why does it matter? What will the characters learn and how will they grow? How will this novel make a difference in a reader’s life? If your story does not make a difference in your character's life, if it doesn't matter, then why write it? How can it serve the reader?

Consider first non-fiction. Can you imagine reading a book that didn’t have a point. Non-fiction focuses on a topic or theme. It has a purpose. Fiction is no different. Your purpose could be to point out the foibles of the human condition. It could be to dramatize how love can cause a mother to give her life for their child. A novel can be a story that focuses on good verses evil and dramatize the power of good. A novel can show the power of love. It can illustrate how we are not alone, that others share our fears, worries, or sinfulness. It can emphasize the damage gossip can cause, or how telling a line is like a spider's web that keeps growing and becomes more entangled.

When a novelist begins to write a book, he has an idea. It may begin with a plot or characterization, then action and maybe settting, but if it doesn’t have direction or purpose, it falls flat. Think of Gone With The Wind without the backdrop of the Civil War. How long would the novel be remembered?

As an author of Christian fiction, my purpose is focused on a Bible verse that sums up a major idea in the book. Proverbs 16: 9 reads: In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps. A book with this focus might be about someone who has made a life plan---a career, a goal, success, fame, an accomplishment--—but things happen, and the character realizes to reach the goal, he may have to give up something equally important. He must make choices and weigh decisions. As he mulls over this problem, he might realize that the Lord has plans for him far beyond his understanding. And the God’s plans meet his need and not his want. The struggle between needs and wants is a lesson we all must learn.

Developing the theme can be done in many ways. Give characters the situation that bring the struggle to life. Create a subplot that also demonstrates the battle of making wise choices and the influence of the Lord or the lack of influence and what that means to the characters involved. Create backstory that brings this theme to life and show how it affects the present in a positive or negative way. Devise a setting that pulls at the issue, the guides the character into making bad choices so that he suffers the repercussion of taking the wrong path. Create a tempting choice at one end of the road and a less attractive option in the other and follow the struggle of a character to make the right decision.

Theme cannot be blatant. It must weave through your novel like a fine golden thread woven in a tapestry. It adds beauty and meaning but doesn’t jar or destroy the total design. Theme will be seen as the character journeys from the beginning to the end and will impact the depth and quality of the novel.

I know this works because of reader mail. Letter after letter reveals how my novels have made a difference in someone’s life. The readers tell me what they learned about themselves or about someone else. They tell me how they found an answer to a question or how they realize they need to ask questions about their life. They walk away with something that has made a difference.

Though you might not write Christian fiction, you can, writing any genre, sum up in a sentence what the major theme or purpose of your novel seems to be---good wins over evil, love is worth fighting for, lies tangle lives, gossip begets gossip, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and laughter can heal. You can think of many more. These themes work for romance, thriller, women’s fiction, western, or any genre.

When you begin your novel, ask what you want the reader to take away when she finishes. If you can’t answer the question, this could be the reason your story hasn’t made an impact on an agent or editor. It may be why a reader enjoys it for the moment and can’t remember the title or what it was about a week later. Write so that you make an impact on your readers, and you will have written a memorable story that makes a difference in their lives.