In his excellent Masterclass, author Malcolm Gladwell talks about how good non-fiction writing has two elements: candy and a meal.
The meal is the substantial food for thought that the writing provokes in you as a reader. The deep and complex themes you find yourself pondering over as you reflect on the work.
The candy, however, is different. It’s the little facts, stories or trivia that are easy to bring up in conversation or share on social media.
One example might be Gladwell’s book Outliers. The book covers many interesting questions about what accounts for success but also included the — now famous — idea that it takes 10,000 hours to achieve mastery in a skill.
Gladwell points out that although the meal is the real nourishment we get from good pieces of writing, and what ultimately we most value from it, few conversations — a quick hello with a colleague in the lift at work, or catching up with a friend over coffee — invite you to share those deeper or more complex thoughts. Yet an idea like that of 10,000 hours is quick and interesting to share. In other words, it’s perfect candy.
Of course, many popular factual YouTube videos are nothing but candy (TOP TEN interesting facts!), but although these videos attract views, I think it’s important to give people substance as well. If our videos are nothing but sugar, the audience will ultimately look elsewhere for nourishment.