Is 628 Words Big Enough to Focus?

Focus up, people!

I recently had a prospect call me up and say, “My friends and family have insisted I write my story.” But when I asked him the obvious question, “What is the story?” he couldn’t give me a quick and succinct answer.

Instead, he talked about a lot of things: being of service to psychology clients, being married for 50 years, having famous relatives, including a signer of the Declaration of Independence; and growing up on a Rhode Island farm.

I’ve had other prospects do similar things. One guy talked about how he suffered from bronchial asthma a kid, and how he chased a girls across the country even though her parents didn’t approve. Another guy talked about how he encountered gang members and shot at their car before driving away blasting AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” on his stereo.

How are these vignettes linked? Who knows? Maybe they are, maybe they aren’t. But one thing is for sure: to determine if the stories belong or don’t, there needs to be some focus first.

A story’s focus is the central point and can usually be summarized in one or two sentences.

South African author Amanda Patterson said that focus tells everyone what’s important—and what isn’t. That what isn’t can be ignored.

Therefore, a focus needs to get to the point fast. I found a great example on Ryan Lanz’s blog. 

Jane Eyre is about a quiet governess who falls in love with her curmudgeonly employer. When it turns out the man is married, Jane does the honourable thing and leaves, even though she has nowhere to go, but is later rewarded with her happy ending.

So, the first step in getting a focus is answering the question: What is the story about?

The next set of questions to answer is: Who is the audience? Who are you writing the book for? What do you want the audience to get out of your book? What do you want them to feel, and what action do you want them to take?

This is important because you want to make sure you story is focused for your audience. As Janice Hardy wrote, “A loss of focus can lead to a loss of reader interest.”

Additionally, Anne Janzer wrote about what she called FOMaR: fear of missing a reader. “When you try to write for everyone, you hedge your bets on tone and style, keeping the writing general rather than hunting out specific examples,” she explained in her blog. “Usually, the result is boring.”

To avoid boring, I suggest following the advice the Poynter Institute (poynter.org) recommends and answer the following questions:

What is the most interesting part of this story? (This is the main thrust of the story.)

What surprised me? (This may be the lead.)

What did I learn that I didn’t know before? (This is a main surprise, which we usually put early in the story.)

What will readers want to know? In what order will they ask those questions? (This will determine the story frame.)

What do I want readers to remember and feel at the end of this story? (This is the most memorable sound bite.)

What comes next? (This will lead you toward the end of the story.)

If you can’t figure it out, like my prospect, here’s another possible approach:

1. Ask yourself what are you most passionate about?

2. Outline your answer.

3. Do any research that you need to flesh it out.

4. Define your focus in between one and three sentences.

Once you figure out the story’s focus, you’ll be able to write with much more structure. And focus.

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