I Went to Catch a Persona, and a Kappa Physical Examination Began | Marketing Theory in Fantasy Novels
I read an article about marketing theory in creative writing.
It was written there.
It seems that setting targets and personas is important for delivering your work.
I see.
Well then, I'll go catch one!
That's what I thought.
◾️Who is a persona?
In the first place, what is a persona?
According to the explanation,
it is a "fictional reader specifically set as a representative person who reads the work."
It seems.
While a target is a group like,
"people in their 30s to 40s who like fantasy,"
a persona is thought of as a single person, such as,
"a 38-year-old office worker. Reads note at night after finishing work. Prefers character choices and human relationships over flashy invincibility."
I see.
In other words, couldn't I reach that person by asking questions repeatedly, like Akinator?
Thinking that, I immediately started asking questions to my AI partner.
◾️The first question
🐈⬛“Is that person green?”
🤖“No.”
I see.
Then, the next question.
🐈⬛“Is that person massaged with salt?”
🤖“No.”
I see.
🐈⬛“Is that person wearing a plate on their head?”
🤖“No.”
What I found out from the answers so far is that
the person is not green, is not massaged with salt, and is not wearing a plate.
There is a very high probability that they are not a kappa.
Three questions into the persona search.
I finally found out they are not a yokai.
◾️Narrowing it down further
🐈⬛“Then, has that person ever opened a food stall?”
🤖“No.”
🐈⬛“Has that person ever sold cookies as a set with something else?”
🤖“No.”
I was surprised.
Not green, not massaged with salt, not wearing a plate, never opened a food stall, and no experience selling cookies as a set.
Does such a special person exist in this world?
No, wait.
Isn't it me, the one asking the questions, who is special?
Somewhere along the way, I stopped looking for a persona and
it became an investigation to identify a "person who opened a food stall at a summer festival and sold cookies as a set."
I was supposed to be learning marketing theory, but before I knew it, I had started verifying a resume.
This is strange.
◾️Narrowing it down for real
The accuracy of the questions so far was not enough.
From now on, I'll get serious.
🐈⬛“Is that person a human?”
🤖“Yes.”
I finally narrowed it down significantly.
With this, I was able to exclude kappas, cucumbers, yokai, and aliens.
What remains is almost every human being.
The accuracy is high.
Very high.
Everything except the essential parts has been determined.
◾️Concrete realization of the persona
From here, I will set the age, gender, reading tendencies, values, etc.
Age is under 100.
Gender is a type that has a maiden's heart while also being able to think like a man.
Reading tendency is madness.
The worry is not worrying.
Values are the type that has gaps in their likes.
Living time is Japan Standard Time.
It's complete.
That person is
a human under 100 years old, possesses both a maiden's heart and masculine thinking, likes to read madness, worries about not worrying, does not miss the gaps in their likes, and is active in Japan Standard Time.
There's no way such a person exists!
As a result of narrowing it down too much, the persona has become an endangered species.
Or rather, they are now a chosen one appearing in an ancient prophecy book.
Let's think a little more realistically.
They have experience with work and human relationships, and like stories that cannot be divided by simple good and evil.
They read fantasy.
They like serious stories, but can laugh and accept it even if a kappa suddenly appears.
They are happy even if the number of bridges increases from one to two.
They enjoy everything, including interactions with the author and the comment section.
That kind of reader.
They were there!!
There were several of them in the comment section, just like that.
Far from being an endangered species, they liked my articles, laughed at the bridges, and accepted the kappa.
There was no need to go looking for a persona.
They had already come from the other side.
Perhaps they even brought cucumbers.
◾️In the end, what is a persona?
A persona is not about capturing an ideal reader from the real world.
When creating a work, or thinking about titles, introductions, posting times, etc.,
it is a fictional representative reader to imagine,
“How would this person feel?”
It's not that setting it in detail is better.
Even if you make it like a resume, including age, annual income, place of residence, and how they spend their holidays, it has little meaning if it is unrelated to the work.
What is important is that the person
what they want to read.
where their heart moves.
what they are tired of.
what kind of words will reach them.
It seems that being able to imagine that is what matters.
In my case,
“a reader who likes fantasy, enjoys people's judgments and relationships, and can accept both serious stories and strange laughter”
should be enough.
For the work, I write what I think is interesting.
Only when thinking about how to deliver it, I seat one representative of the readers in the conference room in my head.
That seems to be what a persona is.
I see.
It was much more modest than I had imagined.
I had thought it was something you go into the forest and catch with a net.
◾️Summary
The findings from this investigation are as follows.
The intended reader is a human.
They are not green.
They are not salted and massaged.
They do not wear a plate on their head.
They likely have no experience with food stalls or being sold in a set with cookies.
And,They are not a kappa.
As a result of studying marketing theory, I was able to perform a highly accurate analysis.
Furthermore, the conditions required to read my work are:
To read serious judgment fables, accept fantasy special forces, laugh when two bridges are repaired, and remain unfazed by a suddenly appearing kappa.
……This is not a persona.
It is an entrance exam.
I will continue to write stories aimed at you.
◾️Bonus
To those who read this far and thought the conversation part must be fictional.
Unfortunately, it is an actual conversation.
Please check the evidence documents below.
Note that both parties realized something was abnormal midway through, but the investigation continued.
This article is composed based on a conversation with an AI.
Or rather, it is almost a deposition.