Full transcript
0:00In this video, I'm going to show you how
0:02you can create a reader avatar for your
0:04book so you never have to guess what the
0:07reader wants out of the book you're
0:09writing. This includes what kind of
0:10genre are they interested in, what
0:12tropes are their favorites for that
0:14genre, what are their expectations, what
0:16are some of the things they don't want
0:18to see in the book because all of these
0:20are things that readers actually,
0:22whether they know it or not, have an
0:24expectation for. So, we're going to dive
0:26straight into that and get into how you
0:28can set this up so that you would can
0:30avoid quite a lot of mistakes that most
0:33beginner authors run into. So, let's
0:34dive in. So, for this activity, we're
0:37going to actually be using Claude and
0:39specifically Claude Claude Pro, which is
0:41the subscription that I have, the $20
0:43tier. Uh you can probably do this on the
0:44free tier as well, but it's you're
0:46obviously not going to be able to use
0:48the better models for that. And uh there
0:51there's a couple of reasons why we're
0:52using Claude. Claude is actually really
0:53good at the kind of stuff we're looking
0:55for for this particular um activity. You
0:59could do this with other chatbots, but
1:01they wouldn't be quite as good. So, uh
1:04for starters, we're going to come over
1:05here to projects and you'll want to
1:07create a new project. I just called it
1:09reader avatar, as you can see here. If I
1:11click on this, and you'll want to put
1:14some instructions that go something like
1:15this, all right? Now, I'll pause here so
1:17you can pause the video and take a
1:20screenshot if you want so that you can
1:22transcribe that and use it yourself. Uh
1:24but it essentially says, "You are an
1:25expert publisher. Your task is to help
1:27an author understand exactly what the
1:29target reader is looking for. This
1:30primarily has to do with the genre and
1:32trope preferences, but should also
1:33involve other aspects of determining who
1:35your customer avatar is. Start out by
1:37asking a few clarifying questions about
1:39what the author thinks of their target
1:40reader because a lot of authors have an
1:42idea, but uh it may be inaccurate. Then,
1:46do some web searches to clarify what
1:47that type of reader or aspects of the
1:49genre mentioned by the author is like.
1:51Present your findings to the author and
1:52go back and forth with them a bit until
1:54you have have perfect reader avatar that
1:56both A, matches with A author wants,
1:59expects, and has already determined
2:00about the avatar, and B, matches the
2:03research that you perform as well. So,
2:05basically, it's going to be asking you
2:06some questions about what you think your
2:08reader avatar is like, and it's going to
2:10be doing research as well. Now, this is
2:12actually easier for authors than for
2:14people in other types of businesses
2:16because authors already have a very
2:18clear way of determining what A their
2:22readers want, and that is the genre.
2:26Genres and tropes are already sort of
2:28divided by reader preferences. So, if a
2:32reader likes one thing, they'll read
2:34that genre, but they won't necessarily
2:36like another genre. That I hope that
2:38makes sense. So, now that we've got that
2:40instructions in here, you want to come
2:42here to the chat, and before you
2:43actually get started on the chat, make
2:45sure you have a good model that you
2:46like. I'm using Sonnet 4.6 with adaptive
2:49thinking, so it might think more for
2:51certain tasks. And also here on the
2:53left, this little plus icon, click on
2:55that and make sure web search is enabled
2:57because it will need to do some web
2:59search for this process. And so now, uh
3:02my recommendation would be to start with
3:04a general idea of your genre.
3:07So, if you have a specific genre that
3:09you
3:10uh are looking to write, start with that
3:13and put that in there and get your
3:15reader avatar. So, I would say something
3:17like, uh I want to create an avatar for
3:22the ideal reader
3:25uh of let's just say mafia romance.
3:28Since that's a popular one these days in
3:31the romance category. All right. Great
3:33choice. Mafia romance has a hugely
3:35passionate readership. Uh before I dive
3:37in, I want to understand that you
3:38already know or believe about your ideal
3:40reader. Let me start by asking you a few
3:42questions. All right. So, it's going to
3:43give us some questions here. How would
3:45you describe the typical age range for
3:47your target reader? I would say 35 to
3:4950, definitely.
3:51Uh which emotional experience do you
3:52think your reader is primarily changing?
3:55The dark dangerous forbidden thrill, a
3:56powerful protector, safe and dangerous
3:58arms, enemies to lovers tension, the
4:00redemption arc, the villain who loves
4:02only her. I mean, I don't know.
4:05>> [laughter]
4:06>> But I would guess number two.
4:09This may reveal things about myself that
4:11I don't want revealed. How dark do you
4:13believe your ideal reader wants the
4:15content to go? Dark but with limits,
4:18pretty dark, morally great character,
4:20very dark, depends on the subgenre or
4:23I'm not sure. I'm just going to say
4:26pretty dark. All right, and from there
4:28it's going to do some thinking.
4:31It's going to ask me a few more
4:32questions. Where do you think your ideal
4:34reader primarily discovers and buys
4:35books? 100% Kindle Unlimited. That's
4:39no question there. What do you think
4:41your reader's reading life looks like?
4:42They're absolutely voracious. And this
4:45is kind of typical of romance in in
4:48general. Which of these do you think
4:49best describes your reader's day-to-day
4:51life? Busy professional reads as an
4:53escape from high-stress work.
4:55Stay-at-home parent reads during rare
4:57quiet moments, empty nester with more
4:59leisure time. Honestly, I feel like it
5:01could be any of these, so I'm going to
5:03say I honestly don't know.
5:05So now it's going to do a search on the
5:07web and just to learn more about the
5:09mafia romance category and people that
5:11read it. All right, so now it's done
5:14some searching and all right, so here's
5:17what it's got. Where you're spot on,
5:19she's on Kindle Unlimited, she's
5:20voracious, she wants the protector
5:21fantasy. I like how it basically just
5:24assumed this is a female. Like it
5:27In one of my tests I did earlier around
5:29epic fantasy, it was asking me about
5:32like what percentage of male versus
5:34female I thought. And like here it's not
5:37even asking me that question. It just
5:38knows it's all female.
5:40Where the research adds nuance on age.
5:44Largest demographic is actually 25 to
5:4635. Interesting. Um daily life. Many
5:50women are in situations where they are
5:51always busy and pressured to be perfect
5:53and sweet while doing it. Dark romance
5:55is a way to escape that cycle.
5:57She's overwhelmed. Yeah, I could see
5:59some of that. And And keep in mind, this
6:00is not We're not talking about every
6:02reader of this genre, okay? This The
6:05whole idea of creating a reader avatar
6:08or even just a customer avatar in
6:09general for any business is to identify
6:12a single person
6:14that best represents
6:17your target market. Um because when you
6:20market your books to a single person,
6:23that actually tends to bring in more
6:25people than if you tried to be
6:26everything to everyone, right? Uh better
6:29to niche down, create an avatar that
6:31kind of represents your ideal reader
6:34uh in a single person, right? So, all
6:36right. Top tropes. We have like arranged
6:38force marriages, possessive or jealous
6:40MMC, that's uh male main character, age
6:43gap, enemies to lovers, innocence meets
6:45darkness, happily ever after is
6:47non-negotiable.
6:49That's true of pretty much every fantasy
6:52or romance genre, excuse me. If it
6:55doesn't have a happily ever after, it's
6:56usually not a straight-up romance book.
7:00It might be like a women's fiction or
7:03something totally different. Uh draft
7:05reader avatar. So, it gave me few things
7:07about that. Uh now I want to pressure
7:09test this with you before we finalize
7:11it. Take your time with these so I can
7:12now say, "Okay. Uh
7:15yeah, that feels right for age." Uh
7:18research paints her as a busy,
7:19overwhelmed woman using books as her
7:21escape valve. Does that match the reader
7:22you're writing for? Yeah, that sounds
7:26about right.
7:28I don't see a reason to
7:30go against that. Yeah, happily ever
7:32after is absolutely non-negotiable.
7:36So, it's now it's doing a little bit
7:37more research.
7:39Now it's asking me a few more things.
7:40What kind of heroine does the reader
7:42most want to follow? I'd say they don't
7:45want an innocent or naive woman, but
7:47they also don't want someone who's
7:49openly defiant, I wouldn't say.
7:52Um I think the quietly strong with a
7:54spine of steel hidden under a soft
7:55exterior is probably what we're looking
7:57for. Someone that kind of starts out out
8:00of her depth, but by the end of the book
8:02is like has that spine of steel.
8:05All right. Uh what's the flavor of your
8:07mafia world? This shapes the fantasy the
8:09reader is buying into. Uh so yeah, we
8:11could do Italian, Russian Bratva. I've
8:13seen a lot of Bratva ones on Amazon, so
8:16I'm going to select that one. Why am I
8:18looking through mafia romance? It's uh
8:20part of my research for some of the
8:21genre guides that I'm creating, and uh
8:24this is kind of a byproduct of that.
8:26Perfect. I now have everything needed
8:28to build a complete to research-backed
8:30avatar. Let me pull it all together. So
8:31now it's going to create your avatar.
8:34Dangerous Devotion Danny. You're the
8:37ideal reader for your Russian Bratva
8:38romance, okay? So we have age range,
8:41gender is like 99% female. Yep, I
8:44believe that. Uh income, middle upper
8:46middle. Uh primary platform, Kindle
8:48Unlimited. Yeah, that's 100% going to be
8:50the case, I guarantee it. Reading pace,
8:52three to five books a week. Yeah, these
8:54people are voracious. They will get
8:56through these things fast.
8:58Uh this is why I don't buy the whole
9:00thing about uh flooding the market uh
9:03because if there are, first of all,
9:05flooding the market with bad books does
9:06nothing because the only the good ones
9:09really surface.
9:10And uh even if there is an influx of
9:13good books in a genre,
9:15uh these people are reading three to
9:16five books a week in some genres. So,
9:19reading window, late night post 10:00
9:20p.m., okay?
9:21Uh Danny is a busy woman, working
9:23professional parent or both who holds
9:25her life together with visible
9:27competence and invisible effort. Her
9:28days are full of obligations, decisions,
9:30and the pressure to always be composed,
9:32capable, and kind. Reading is not a
9:33hobby, it is her decompression ritual.
9:36After 10:00 p.m., when the house is
9:37quiet, she opens her Kindle and enters a
9:39world where she doesn't have to be in
9:40charge of anything. She is in a stable
9:43ordinary relationship in real life, and
9:44that stability is exactly what gives her
9:46the freedom to enjoy fictional danger
9:47without fear. I don't know if that's
9:50going to be super like if that's going
9:52to be the case all the time. I imagine
9:55there are a lot of people that read
9:56these kind of genres that are not in
9:58stable relationships. Uh and that the
10:01the book kind of acts as a sort of proxy
10:04wish fulfillment. But again, we're not
10:06trying to be everything to everyone
10:08here. We're just picking a single ideal
10:10avatar, but this might be something I
10:12would change uh if I had done a little
10:15bit more research into the genre and the
10:17readers of it myself, but who knows. Uh
10:19what she's really chasing is the core
10:21fantasy, the secondary payoff, her
10:23heroine expectations.
10:26Danny wants to be the heroine, so it
10:28must feel aspirational, but
10:30uh recognizable. Yep. Uh here are some
10:32of the tropes. The must-have are the
10:34ones This is what why I chose Claude to
10:36do this instead of any of the others
10:37because
10:38uh lately Claude's been doing all of
10:40these like uh different ways of
10:44formatting that look really cool. So now
10:46this You can't really see it that well,
10:48but you can see this is like slightly
10:50purple. Uh these are the core
10:53tropes, the must-haves, and the the pink
10:56ones are the the bonus ones, the loves.
10:59So the core ones would be like a forced
11:01or arranged marriage, possessive male
11:03main character, happily ever after, ice
11:05to fire arc, morally gray hero,
11:07protective obsession. I would add um
11:11uh touch her and die to that from what
11:14I've uh researched. Uh which is a fun
11:17one, and then uh bonuses are age gap,
11:19enemies to lovers. Enemies to lovers is
11:21almost a given.
11:23Uh but not necessarily a requirement. Uh
11:27dub con, hateful care, forbidden worlds
11:29apart, slow burn tension, jealousy
11:31scenes, savage to all soft for her. And
11:35and then here's a bit about the Russian
11:38Bratva specifically. And what will make
11:41her one star your book? This is I think
11:43really important. I've got this with my
11:46other tests as well. This is the stuff
11:48you do not want to have in your book or
11:50it will lead to problems. You'll get a
11:52lot of bad reviews. Like no happily ever
11:54after or an ambiguous ending. Romance
11:56readers generally hate that. Cheating.
12:00The male main character especially.
12:02A hero who feels genuinely cruel, a weak
12:04weak being passive heroine, cliffhanger
12:06with no resolution. I in my research
12:09that I've been doing lately, I see a lot
12:11of romance books actually put in the
12:12book description saying this book has no
12:15cliffhanger.
12:16So I guess romance writers really don't
12:19want cliffhangers. And then dark themes
12:20without emotional payoff. All right. How
12:22she discovers and talks about the books,
12:24the one sentence pitch to her, he
12:26destroys everything he touches except
12:27her. She's the one thing the Bratva's
12:29most feared man refuses to let go.
12:30Sounds like a good pitch to me.
12:32And that's it. So now you've got this
12:35pretty awesome reader avatar and you can
12:37maybe take it a little bit further if
12:38you want. But I actually think this is a
12:41fantastic way to not only understand
12:43your reader, but to understand your
12:45genre and the tropes that people are
12:46expecting. So I strongly recommend a
12:49technique like this if you're
12:50interested. And
12:53yeah, so we'll take it from there. So if
12:54you like this, I would invite you to
12:58check out my story group called Story
13:01Hacker AI
13:03here on school.
13:04And this group is fantastic. We just
13:06wrapped up doing a book in the month
13:09challenge where a lot of people actually
13:10finished their book in a month and it
13:11was you know, we're talking actual
13:13quality books that match their vision
13:15without all the burnout. And if you want
13:18to learn how you can leverage AI to do
13:20that and actually, you know, make sure
13:23that it's yours and doesn't compromise
13:26your creativity or your ethics, be sure
13:28to check out that out at the link down
13:30below. Uh you'll get all this stuff here
13:32in the classroom that you can see here.
13:34And uh there's just a whole lot in here
13:37including uh the tool that I am working
13:40on. Uh members here get early access to
13:42that tool. Uh so go check that out and
13:44I'll see you in the next video.