Fully Booked EP37: An Editor’s Advice on Thinking Like a Writer

When you’re trying to become a successful writer, one of the most important things you need to do is form a connection with your readers. The first step toward doing that is to really understand why people read and write in the first place, and then use what you learn to help improve your craft. At least, that’s what author and editor Peter Gelfan believes - our guest on today’s podcast.

Peter believes it’s because great books often do more than just tell a story. They can also impart knowledge in a way that resonates with people and sticks with them. After all, humans are the only creatures that can learn through second-hand or even third-hand knowledge. Our survival skills aren’t dependent on taking risks to gain experience, but rather on listening to a storyteller impart that knowledge to us through anecdotes and stories we can connect to.

Unfortunately, many authors do things that distract their readers from the message they’re trying to impart, weakening their story’s ability to really resonate and take hold in a reader’s mind. As a professional editor, Peter has seen many examples of this throughout his career, and spent years compiling a list of the most common issues and how best to help authors fix them. In today’s podcast, he explains a few of them.

 

Peter Gelfan

https://petergelfan.com/

 

Hurling words into darkness: A Book Doctor’s Dose of Brain Science for Writers https://www.amazon.com/dp/1955196672/?tag=hgbblog-20

 

Hidden Gems

Need our help publishing or marketing your book?

https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/author-services/

 

All episode details and links:

https://www.hiddengemsbooks.com/podcast