Pick a villain

The fastest way to get readers on your side is to pick a fight. People crave belonging, and one of the quickest ways to create it is to name a shared enemy. When you call out what your reader is against, you show not just what you know but what you stand for — and they trust you to lead them toward what they want.

How it works

Find what your reader already hates but hasn't named — a broken system, a lazy trend, a shiny shortcut that does real harm — and make it visible. Harley-Davidson, losing on performance to faster, quieter Japanese bikes in the 1980s, stopped selling motorcycles and started selling rebellion: loud pipes, leather, American steel, against sleek and silent. YETI stands against flimsy disposable gear; Patagonia against fast fashion. Name the villain plainly, then show how your writing hands the reader the tools to fight back and win. Because identity and trust run on emotion, a clear enemy taps pathos and ethos at once — it makes the message magnetic, drawing the right readers and repelling the wrong ones.

Why it matters

Most experts default to logic and nuance, which state what you know but never what you stand for — and belonging forms around the second, not the first. A named enemy converts passive agreement into allegiance: the reader isn't just persuaded, they're recruited, and they carry your book like a badge of honour. The fight is also a filter, repelling the readers who were never going to be yours anyway.

Try it

1. Pinpoint the thing your reader already resents but hasn't put into words.
2. Call it out plainly — make the villain visible and name what it costs them.
3. Position your writing as the weapon: show how it lets the reader fight back and win.

Common pitfalls

Picking a villain your reader doesn't actually hold — a manufactured enemy reads as cynical and repels everyone. And don't let the fight become the whole book: the villain earns attention, but you still have to deliver the tools that beat it, or the badge turns out to be hollow.

The fastest way to get readers on your side is to pick a fight. People crave belonging, and the quickest way to create it is by naming a shared enemy.

WILLIAM · MAKE READERS RECOMMEND YOUR BOOK · 2025

Tell a reader what you know and they nod. Tell them what you're against and they enlist.

Drawn from

• William, The EXACT Writing System to Make Readers Recommend Your Book (Writer Science, 2025).
• Related: You're in the persuasion business, Make a promise the wrong reader can refuse, Provoke in the title, orient in the subtitle.