It’s important to think about what a reader is really looking for when they search for a book or look for the next short story to read. Their need is the demand that we are looking to supply. If we can align with that in what we write, our stories will always find a home.

Here are a few things I came up with. See if you agree:

1. Surprise: The Unexpected and the Inevitable

David Mamet, the legendary playwright, once said that a great story is “unexpected and inevitable.” That seeming contradiction captures something essential about storytelling. We want to be surprised but in a way that makes perfect sense once it happens. Not random or gimmicky but with a twist that feels like the only possible outcome.

Think of the best stories you’ve read or watched. There’s a moment when the truth snaps into place like a puzzle piece. You didn’t see it coming but you should have. That’s the sweet spot. The Sixth Sense is one that comes to mind for me that did that very well.

Readers crave that moment, not just for the thrill, but because it affirms meaning. Surprise, when done right, is more than a twist. It’s a revelation.

2. Exploration: The Deep Human Need to Discover

We are all explorers. We read to venture into the unfamiliar: new worlds, new minds, new truths about ourselves. That’s why genres like sci-fi and fantasy endure but also why, to Matt Walter’s point in a previous post, that story is an important in nonfiction as well. All generas and types are vehicles for exploration.

3. It Has to Be Interesting

Years ago, a blogger said something that stuck with me: “The only rule to writing is that it has to be interesting.”  That has stayed with me and always rung true through the years.

You can break every convention, tense, point of view, structure, grammar, and still succeed, if your writing is interesting. But “interesting” doesn’t just mean flashy or weird. It means engaging and alive. It means giving the reader something to care about and to feel.

Always remember the readers don’t owe us their time; we have to earn it, word by word.

If we can give a reader surprise, exploration and something that is interesting, we will earn that time and it will also be something editors will want to publish.

Let me know in the comments below what you think readers want.

-James