Hi Reader,
As a journalist, one of the most common questions I field when interviewing people is: “Can I see the article before it goes to print?”
Even though I’m used to it, I can’t help but sigh whenever they ask.
Why? Inevitably, the subject of your article will want to make changes.
On a journalistic level that’s a huge no-no as it compromises the integrity of your work. But even for a softer piece (ie: not the stuff of Walkley Awards), it can be an issue if your subject baulks at off-the-cuff comments they made that bring life and colour to the story, and attempts to replace them with bland, pre-prepared answers.
What I wish I could tell them* is: Trust me to do my job well. Trust that others won’t judge you for showing a little personality.
Trust is key in fiction writing too.
Not only do you need to trust that a far-off reader will one day enjoy the story you’re working so hard to write, but you have to trust that future reader to get it – the joke, the emotion, the connections.
In short, trust that your reader is smart enough to pick up what you’re putting down.
As an editor, something I see a lot is writers who don’t yet trust their reader. It tends to show up in their work in two big ways.
The big-picture info dump
The first is with long blocks of backstory or world-building information that tell the reader exactly what they need to know right off the bat. We call these ‘info dumps’ because, well, you get it.
This often looks like exposition that summarises the story’s setting or context before any action occurs. Or it might be a character reflecting on something important that happened to them in the past in lengthy detail.
If you come across this in your work, see if you can show the information instead. Make your protagonist active in the world you’re creating and allow important details to come out organically as they interact with the setting and other characters.
If it’s backstory that’s important to a character’s current situation, consider whether you need to give the reader all of it in one go. Maybe you can hint at a past betrayal or hurt at a critical moment and build up those hints with more detail as the story unfolds to create intrigue.
And in both cases, resist the urge to repeat key details. Trust that your reader will be banking this info in their memory as they absorb the story.
The sentence-level tells
Another way a lack of trust shows up is with adverbial speech tags and/or explanations after dialogue.
For instance, if you write something like:
‘I hate that this is happening again,’ he shouted angrily, reminding her that they had already had this argument, over and over, and nothing had changed.
Consider if you’re going a little too far in telling the reader what’s happening. Is the dialogue enough to a) convey that he’s angry, and b) tell the reader that the characters have been in this situation before? Yes and yes.
A simple solution is to cut the adverb ‘angrily’. The speech tag ‘shouted’ does the job.
But what about the rest of the line? Rather than hammering the point home to ensure your reader picks up on the significance of this moment, what if you show it through the POV character's reaction?
‘I hate that this is happening again,’ he shouted.
She closed her eyes. It would be different this time. It had to be.
This rework immediately creates curiosity in the reader. They understand that this is something that’s happened before. Now they’re asking, What happened? And why does it need to change?
Learning to trust your reader in this way can be scary – it feels a lot like giving up control. What if they don’t get it? What if they miss something important? But trust is also about respect. When you take care not to over-explain, you convey to the reader that you respect their intelligence and their role in bringing your story to life.
Because when you think about it, writing and reading is a collaboration. You’re teaming up with your reader to conjure the world and characters you’ve created in their imagination.
The reader is trusting you to tell them a great story. Trust them to understand it.
Honestly,
Penny
PS: If you’re looking for an editor you can trust with your story, I’d love to help. Get in touch for a free sample edit of 1000 words to see if we’re a good fit.
*In case you’re wondering, the answer I actually give to that question is something along the lines of: “It’s against the publication’s policy to send out articles before print, but I can show you your quotes if you’d like to check them for accuracy only.” It sets the tone that they’re asking for special treatment and that there’s a limit to what changes can be made. Obviously, for news articles, the answer is simply: no.
