HW #2 - Timothy Benefield
Homework For Thomas’ Talk
Step 1 - Look in the Mirror
What are your strengths?
● Public speaking (still learning, but I actually enjoy it).
● A relative affinity for tech.
● Able to dig in and learn new things quickly.
● A love for research and analysis.
● Humor.
What are you the best in your world at?
● Within my niche audience, writing craft. I know of only one author in my Christian sub-denomination who produces professional-quality books. Granted, there may be more I don't know about, but they are still few and far between.
Why do readers pick other authors over you?
● Because they don’t know about me.
Why do people read other similar stories rather than your story?
● Same as above—as far as I know, my audience is looking for more stories like mine and would choose them if they knew about them.
What do you do that exhausts you?
● Editing.
● Making small talk.
● Being around people in general.
What are your unfair advantages?
● I have an early career start to figure things out.
What gives you the authority to write on the subject you’re writing on?
● I have done a lot of work to develop fantasy worlds.
What gives you the authority to explore the themes in your writing
● This answer is a bit different for every book, but I tend to write on themes I am currently wrestling with in my own life and reading/hearing a lot about and studying.
Step 2 - Look at Your Readers
Who is your target reader?
● A 14-year-old boy in a Christian home who attends and serves in church faithfully. He’s also homeschooled or in a private Christian school. He (or, more properly, his parents) have strict standards for what books are appropriate to read and is always desperate to find another clean, great story.
What does your target reader read currently?
● The Wingfeather Saga, The Green Ember series, The Terrestria Chronicles, and The Chronicles of Narnia.
How is your target reader different from other readers?
● He enjoys great stories just like anyone else, but he has strict standards of what he will read and has a hard time finding books that fit those standards. And even when he finds a clean book, it usually doesn’t have a Christian worldview.
Why does your target reader read books?
● Because he prefers the medium over movies, shows, or video games (this is what some of my target readers have told me). It also may be because there are not many excellent, clean stories to be enjoyed on TV or in games.
How can you thrill your target reader?
● By writing explicitly Christian stories that are free from profanity, excessive violence, sexual stuff, etc., while still being excellent. My reader wants stories of larger-than-life heroes who inspire them and give them a desire to change the world.
Step 3 - Listen to Your Readers
What do readers like about you?
● That I write clean, Christian adventure stories that they/their kids can read.
Skipping the next two questions because there’s nothing to say…
What do people say about you when they talk to each other?
● For my target readers, I don’t know. But I can’t count how many times people have been impressed that I am writing books at a young age.
Step 4 - Look in Your Reader’s Mirror
What does my brand let my readers say about themselves?
That they can become greater than their mediocre, routine lives. They can rise above their flaws and grow into the kind of person Christ has called them to be. What does my writing allow readers to say about themselves? They can say, “I can become a modern-day hero and stand against the darkness. I can have a purposeful life that makes a difference in the world. I can find meaning in fighting for the good of others.”
What tribe does this brand give me access to?
The tribe I grew up in. Homeschooled Christians who are striving to grow in their spiritual life and increase in good works.
Who are your outsiders?
● Non-Christians (probably) and people who don’t like fantasy.
Homework For Jim’s Talk
What is the promise you are making your readers?
● I will deliver a story that thrills the imagination, takes you to a new world full of wonder, gives you role models to inspire you, shows you how to grow in virtue, and is free from objectionable content.
What comes to mind when people think of you?
● I need to do more research on this, but multiple times people have mentioned my big vocabulary and that I come across as intelligent.
What is the empathy you have for your readers?
● I was and am in their shoes. I am one of them and grew up like they are growing up. Stories have shaped much of my childhood, and I want to write the kind of stories I would have loved to read back then, letting others have that experience too.
What is the authority you have for your readers? What gives you the authority to write on the subject you’re writing on?
● I have tried to develop the skills to write good stories.
What gives you the authority to explore the themes in your writing
● I tend to write on themes I am currently wrestling with in my own life and reading/hearing a lot about and studying.
Find a website that makes it about them, and brainstorm how you would change that website to make it about the website visitor. What are two things you would change?
● I looked at the website of another author in my niche. The very first thing visible on the home page are the words, “I think better with a pen in hand.” This is describing the author (and rather unhelpfully at that—it’s not a bio, just a preference, like “I like chocolate ice cream”). To improve it, I would add a statement of what value the books will bring a reader.
● The next thing under that is the header “About Me” and includes the author talking about all the things she has done. Again, I would change this to explain how the books are valuable to the reader, not how the reader should be very interested in the author.
Who is your target reader? Describe them in one sentence:
● A Christian teenager who wants stories about epic battles between good and evil set in a fantastical world.
To stand out, we must shock/surprise/delight Broca on a regular basis. How have you, or how are you going to, shock/surprise/delight Broca during the next three days?
● Today I washed the dishes, which is definitely not something my parents expect. I can also shock Broca by being extra kind to customers at work.
You know your brand has to be organic. What is different, unique, quirky, surprising about you that can/does define you as a person? How are you organically compelling?
● Sarcastic
● Curious
● Intelligent
In what areas do you need to give yourself permission to be you?
● In general, the real me is a pretty nasty person. The one area is my constant sarcastic comments. I usually don’t say those things around people I don’t know well, but in some cases it might be good to shock Broca by letting those jokes out.
In what two areas are you going to focus on where you’ll make your content surprising/entertaining/provocative/engaging?
● Emails
● Website copy