Audience Quote by Louis Menand
“For the kind of places I've written for and the kind of writing that I've done, the general way to think about your audience is to think about somebody who's like yourself, but in a completely different discipline.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: The New Yorker, 2005
Consider your audience as a mirror of yourself in a different field, fostering empathy and relevance.
In simple terms: Imagine readers as yourself in another discipline.
Key Takeaway
Write with cross‑disciplinary empathy.
Themes
audience
empathy
writing
discipline
perspective
Mood
thoughtful
analytical
Type
advisory
reflective
When to use this quote
- marketing copy
- academic paper
- fiction
- technical manual
Key Concepts
cross‑disciplinary insight
relatability
Questions to Reflect On
- How can you discover the distinct needs of a different discipline?
- What assumptions might you be making about your audience?
A Different Perspective
Assuming similarity may overlook unique audience needs.
![“[According to Holmes], ‘Every year if not every day we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based upon imperfect knowledge. While that experiment is part of our system I think that we should be eternally vigilant against attempts to check the expression of opinions that we loathe and…” quote by Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/656/louis-menand-8583_death_according-to-holmes-every-year-if-not-ev_403601.jpg)
![“What [Peirce] meant was that since nature evolves by chance variation, then the laws of nature must evolve by chance variation as well. Variations that are compatible with survival are reproduced; variations that are incompatible are weeded out. A tiny deviation from the norm in the outcome of a…” quote by Louis Menand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9e5/louis-menand-8583_long-run_what-peirce-meant-was-that-since-nature_505181.jpg)
