Making Readers Uncomfortable
Making readers uncomfortable is not automatically bad, but it’s important to know why the discomfort exists.
How Many “Concerns” Does It Take to Change You?
Every author eventually hears from a reader who is offended, upset, or uncomfortable with something in the story.
The question is not whether it will happen. It will. The question is how many concerns will it take before you decide something truly needs changing. One reader may object to a word or phrase that feels perfectly normal to you because of your background, culture, or voice. I ran into that myself with the word “gimp.” In American military slang, it means someone walking with a limp. In the UK, it carries a very different meaning. One angry reader made me stop and think, not because I suddenly became evil overnight, but because audiences expand.
You have to decide what matters, what was intentional, and what deserves adjustment moving forward.
Will You Be a Slave to a Single Voice?
One offended reader should not control your entire creative process.
If you bend to every complaint, eventually your writing becomes so watered down that nothing has texture anymore. Stories need friction. Characters need flaws. Dialogue needs authenticity. Not everyone in your book should sound polished and perfectly safe all the time.
At the same time, you do need self-awareness. If multiple readers raise the same concern, especially from different backgrounds, maybe there’s something worth examining. The challenge is finding balance instead of letting strangers yank you around by the nose ring every time somebody gets upset online.
Is What Makes Readers Uncomfortable Also What Makes the Story Great?
Some discomfort is the point.
Nobody handed out trigger warnings for Where the Red Fern Grows, and yet generations of readers still remember exactly how that story made them feel. The heartbreak mattered because it was earned. The emotion mattered because the story committed to it fully.
A story that never risks discomfort may never create deep emotional engagement either. Readers remember books that made them laugh, ache, rage, or grieve. Sometimes the uncomfortable moments are the moments that stay with them the longest.
The Parent Test
A useful gut check is the parent test.
Could you comfortably read this scene aloud to your parents? Your friends? Someone whose opinion you genuinely value? That doesn’t mean you should avoid difficult material or spicy scenes. My dad read some of mine and still enjoyed the books. But it does force you to ask whether the scene serves the story or whether it exists only for shock value.
If you can defend it honestly as part of the narrative, then fine. If you cringe because it feels hollow or excessive, maybe the problem isn’t the reader’s discomfort. Maybe it’s your own.
How Does It Affect Your Soul?
This is the real question underneath all the others.
Do you feel better or worse after writing it? Did you create something meaningful, or did you just chase outrage for attention? Readers will react emotionally to stories. That’s part of the job. But you still have to live with what you put out into the world.
No matter how careful you are, somebody will eventually be offended. That’s unavoidable. The goal is not universal approval. The goal’s honesty, intentionality, and telling a story powerful enough to make people feel something real.
Final Thought
Making readers uncomfortable is not automatically bad. Sometimes discomfort creates empathy, reflection, heartbreak, or growth. Sometimes it simply reveals a truth.
The important thing is knowing why the discomfort exists. If it serves the story, the characters, and the emotional journey, then stand by it. If it exists only for shock or attention, rethink it. Readers do not need stories that are completely safe. They need stories that feel human.
Making Readers Uncomfortable — Original Medium Article
Making Readers Uncomfortable — Over 1000 Five Minute Focus videos on the Successful Indie Author YouTube Channel
Successful Indie Author articles are created from reworking the original Five Minute Focus video transcripts obtained through HappyScribe. The final drafts are edited in Prowritingaid.
Author Sprints for Maximum Productivity — Sprint Your Way to Becoming a Successful Indie Author
SIA Writing Challenge website — Record Your Progress on Your Way to Becoming a Successful Indie Author
Craig Martelle is an author, leader, and entrepreneur living in Alaska. Retired from the Marine Corps military intelligence community and physical security, he graduated summa cum laude from law school and went into business consulting. From intelligence, to the inner workings of company boardrooms, to on-the-ground leadership, Craig has seen it firsthand.
He is a million-selling author of over 200 science fiction (post-apocalyptic, military sci-fi, and space opera), thrillers, and the non-fiction series, Successful Indie Author. Craig has been running author conferences since 2017, and also the Successful Indie Author Facebook Group, and the Successful Indie Author YouTube Channel.
Leadership is a service, not a crown to lord over others.