(#3) the sport of writing 🥑

I was a ferocious sports guy for exactly one year.

In 2002, the Carolina Hurricanes went to the NHL playoffs.

Having devoured the Canes almanac for the ‘01-’02 season, seven-year-old me was pumped.

And I was in the arena when the New Jersey Devils not-so-kindly escorted us out of the playoffs during the quarterfinals.

I still love hockey (and my Canes), but never again did I get so invested in a sports team.

Writing is like a sport in some ways—there are star players, and competitions, and prizes, and merchandise that signals to the Starbucks barista that you’re that kind of person.

But it’s different in one crucial way: there’s no score.

Success isn’t limited to scoring higher than other authors.

This town is big enough for all of us.

So you have your freedom to think about your writing like this:

What kind of fans am I drawing?

Different sports get different kinds of fans.

No one goes shirtless and drunk to a golf open in St. Andrews (I assume).

Instead of writing a post like “Which Olympic Winter Sports My Characters Would Compete In” (but hey, free social media idea), I’m going to kindly escort you out of this metaphor and into the point:

“My ideal readers like _________.”

Before you hit “Publish” on KDP or Ingram, before you hire an editor, before you pull your hair out over a draft that’s missing something, answer that question.

What do your ideal readers like?

I’d love to hear your answers. Reply and let me know, then share this with an author friend who’s ready to elevate their prose.

And when you’re ready to turn that vision into a reality, step into my office.

Got questions about right writing rites? Reply to this email with your query; I might include it in a future Bite.

Thanks for reading Avocado Bites!

^{Avocado Bites is a publication of Avocado Tree Press, LLC, that helps you revise your stories one bite at a time. We love working with indie and traditionally published authors on fiction manuscripts—and if that’s you, welcome to our target audience.}

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^{Addison Horner is the chief editor of Avocado Tree Press. Here’s his newsletter. It’s different but still pretty good.}