Timothy Finder

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The Timothy Finder turns your manuscript into a map for finding your ideal target reader in real life so you can stop marketing to everyone and start thrilling someone.

Get a map to find your Timothy in real life.

Most authors struggle to sell books because they never identify a specific reader. They market to vague demographics like "women ages 30-50" or "men who like thrillers." That tells you nothing useful. You cannot take a demographic to coffee and ask what they thought of chapter three.

The Timothy Finder solves this problem by analyzing your uploaded manuscript and identifying the specific type of real person your book was written for. It uses psychographic profiling to go far beyond surface-level demographics because what readers care about, fear, hope for, and value matters more than their age or zip code. The tool is built on the Thomas Umstattd Jr.'s methodology of finding your "Timothy," a real human being who represents your ideal reader and can give you honest feedback that no imaginary persona ever could.

When you upload your manuscript, the tool generates:

• A psychographic breakdown of the core itch your book scratches for readers, including the hopes, fears, desires, values, and pains that would draw someone to your story
• A political and cultural alignment analysis that identifies which social networks your word-of-mouth ripple will travel through
• Vivid "Timothy Sketches" describing the type of real person you should look for, complete with what they already read, where they spend time, and the questions to ask them
• An underserved reader opportunity that reveals hungry audiences other authors are overlooking

You will walk away knowing exactly what kind of person to look for, where to find them, and what to say when you do.

Use It To

• Identify the specific psychographic profile of readers who will love your book before you spend money on marketing
• Find real-world and online locations where your ideal readers gather so you can meet them in person
• Discover underserved reader segments your book could dominate because no other authors are writing for them
• Prepare the right questions to ask a potential Timothy so your first conversation reveals what they actually want in a story

Why It Works

Books fail for two reasons: an unclear "who" and an unclear "why." Most authors skip both and jump straight to promotion. The Timothy Finder forces clarity on both questions by reading the actual manuscript and working backward from the text to the reader. It uses psychographic analysis rather than demographics because a reader's values, fears, and passions predict their buying behavior far better than their age or income. The tool also identifies cultural and political alignment because word of mouth only travels within social networks, and knowing which pond your ripple lands in determines whether your book spreads or stalls.

Related Tools

Explore more Patron Toolbox tools that pair well with this one:

• Comp Finder - Generate a list of similar books and authors
• Trope & Genre Finder - Get a list of your book's tropes along with a genre alignment score
• Quotable Quote Finder - Find memorable lines readers will quote and share
• Event Finder - Find nearby book fairs, conferences, and festivals where you can promote your book

FAQ

• What is the Timothy Finder? The Timothy Finder is an AI-powered tool that analyzes your manuscript and generates a psychographic profile of your ideal target reader so you know what kind of real person to look for and where to find them.
• Who should use this tool? Any fiction or nonfiction author who wants to sell more books by identifying and connecting with a specific target reader. It is especially useful for authors who feel stuck marketing to a vague audience or who have never identified their "Timothy."
• What does it create? The tool generates a psychographic analysis of your book's core appeal, a political and cultural alignment profile, a gender analysis, five detailed Timothy Sketches describing the type of real reader to look for, an underserved reader opportunity, and a concrete next step for finding your Timothy in real life.
• How does it help authors? It replaces guesswork with clarity. Instead of marketing to a generic demographic, you will know the specific values, fears, hopes, and passions of your ideal reader. You will also know where that person spends time online and offline so you can go find them and build a relationship that improves your writing and your sales.
• Does this tool replace finding a real Timothy? No. The tool is a compass, not the destination. It tells you where to look and what to look for, but you still need to find a real human being, take them out for coffee, and listen to their honest feedback. Fictional profiles are imaginary friends who always like what you write. A real Timothy will tell you when something is not working.
• What happens with my manuscript? Your manuscript is used only to generate your reader profile. It is not stored, shared, or used for any other purpose.
• How much does it cost? The Timothy Finder is available to Novel Marketing patrons at the $10/mo Patron Toolbox level and higher.