Winning a reader’s attention is one of the most gratifying rewards any writer could have. On an emotional and intellectual level, the writer succeeds in connecting with his reader. He has made a new friend, a new ally. The writer is no longer a stranger whose book is resting in a line of other books in a bookshop. His article no longer lurks within the pages of a magazine or newspaper. When the reader finds good company in a piece or long work of a writer, they share a world wherein they stroll side by side along a tree-lined avenue, sit for coffee in a cafe, or swim together in a secluded lake within a virgin woodland. How many times have you heard of readers' accounts of authors changing their lives by making them fall in love, forgive, laugh, or move on? Anything is possible even if a writer’s work has a negative impact.

A reader can only feel invested in a story or article if the writer himself gives careful attention to the things that he puts into his work. Details, in particular, add a three-dimensional quality to the written word. Words are abstract concepts and the skillful writer, through a combination of effective word choices, piques the reader’s curiosity. It is not enough that information is written. It must reach the audience at a deeper level, a kind of mutual understanding whether it be for love or hate. We tagged along with the Fellowship in their mission to put back the power ring from whence it came. We are all Muggles dying to attend Hogwarts. We all want to keep our children safe from Pennywise. 

An engaged reader is not only entertained. Most of the time, a good book or article makes him learn. This is because reading appeals on an intellectual level. Our neocortex enables us to reason and analyzes after it has absorbed and designated information. It is capable of taking in abstract ideas. However, it is not capable of physical response. This is another good reason why writers must be selective in putting sensory details. If he talks about love, how he shows it must tap into the mesocortex which is in charge of processing emotions. Not to forget that we have the basal ganglia, the structure in control of our self-preserving behavior patterns. This is also known as the reptilian brain that makes us want to behead Ramsay Bolton and Joffrey Baratheon. 

The intellectual and emotional responses of readers are often measuring sticks used to gauge the effectiveness of a written piece. Sympathy is a unifying agent. If a reader doesn’t care about a character, he will stop reading. Books are not sacrosanct pieces that operate under the unwritten rule that it must always be finished. Readers must be cordially invited to step into the writer’s world through sensory details that will allow them to get a feel for the scenario, the theme, the characters. If these elements fall flat, the reader will make an excuse to get out of the party early. The reader must transcend beyond mere abstractions--these must be given form.