In writing, there is a personal transaction that happens between the writer and the reader. A writer is always selling something to the reader. It is commonly thought that a writer is trying to sell their content; however, this is not the case. You can put any piece of content in front of a person but there is no guarantee that it will retain their attention. If they have no buy-in, no reason to take interest in the media, then they will move on.

A good piece of writing will have a personal element to it that gives the writing life to keep the reader interested. This is accomplished by an author in some part putting themselves in their writing to make it more human. By putting themselves in their writing, a writer is selling themselves to get the reader to care about the content. In making their content personal, the reader has a better understanding of the writer and can make their own personal connections. This endears the reader to the story, which keeps their attention.

A good example of this is the Disney Channel animated show Gravity Falls. It was a story about two twins, Dipper and Mabel, who are sent to live with their Great Uncle (Grunkle) Stan for the summer at his oddity tourist shop in Gravity Falls, Oregon. While staying there, the twins soon notice strange and supernatural events that turn their summer vacation into a whole adventure. The town of Gravity Falls and all the weirdness that happens there is fictional. However, the story is loosely based on the writer’s real life.

For a writer to effectively keep the attention of their readers, the writer needs to put themselves into their writing. This does not just mean making up fantasy versions of childhood stories. There are many ways that a writer can put themselves into their writing. Be it personal anecdotes or even just the sense of voice they use, personalized writing gives the viewer more incentive to keep reading.