I had the same experience twice in the last few days, and thinking about it led to this post. I don’t know how prevalent the error is, although I’ve seen what I can only assume are instances of it in others writing. Maybe this is more of a reminder to me than it is advice to anybody else. On the other hand, maybe it’s something worth keeping in mind.
I might have mentioned here and there that, despite everything else, I am at heart, and arrived in this online environment by virtue of being, a writer. I’ve written poetry, short stories, a novella. I even got a couple of things published here and there. And the problem with writers is that we love the sound of our own voice. Nothing feels quite the same as crafting an elegant sentence. There’s a quiet satisfaction in it. And there’s a lurking problem too.
Meaning & Intent
Twice in the last couple of days I wrote a sentence that somebody reading did not understand. Or rather, didn’t process the way that I had intended. Once was in the opening line of a newsletter, (which wasn’t exactly great), and the other was in a quick message to a third party (which scarcely mattered, but is probably indicative).
Now, the newsletter one, I knew was ambiguous. I’d kind of hemmed and hawed over it, and decided to leave it in, because in my estimation (the deadly flaw), the ambiguity would prompt a more careful re-read, revealing the “cleverness” thereof. Being “clever” in writing is a dangerous business.
And hey, maybe a lot of people did get it. But I had to explain why it made sense to one person, out of a relatively small audience. And if you’re writing something, you never want to have to do that.
The other one was just a throwaway line that prefaced the message, and the person who misinterpreted my meaning wasn’t the person it was addressed to. But twice in one week? That wasn’t a good sign. Have I done it before? Probably.
There were no repercussions this time. Maybe a few people scratched their heads and wondered what I was trying to say. But I learned a lesson that I’d thought I already knew. When you write, the audience doesn’t have a window into your brain. They don’t know what you mean…they only know what you say. And what they interpret it as, is what it means as far as they’re concerned. What I meant to say doesn’t count. And my authorial vanity sure as hell doesn’t count either.
Write To Your Audience
Whatever you write (and perhaps especially in long format), you have to meet your audience on their terms, and not your own. Just because that line rolls off your tongue, doesn’t mean it’s going to be music in their ears.
So I’ve resolved to worry a little less about the craft, a lot less about my own cleverness, and even more about the actual message. And that goes for any kind of content I think.
You always have to see it from their point of view.