Put Emotions Into Your Writing

 

(NOTE:  I received a notice that Google is now going to support email subscriptions through mid-August. So, looks like you will be receiving two copies of my posts until then. I will be very happy when this is all said and done and the only copy you will receive is from MailChimp!)

Have you ever finished writing a story or essay, read it over, and realized it was kind of blah.? Sort of flat? One reason could be the lack of emotion in what you wrote. Adding emotion brings a story to life. It speaks to the reader and sometimes brings forth emotion in them, as well. 

When we write a story, we know the emotions the characters are experiencing, but our readers don't unless we show them. Note that I said 'show' them. Don't toss in a She was so happy. or a Ben felt sad.  or a She was so angry at him.  All those short sentences tell the reader how a character felt. Showing is always better. How do you do that?

Let's take those three short sentences and make them show rather than tell.

A.  She was so happy.

B.  She twirled around and hugged herself with a broad smile lighting up her face. 

Note that the second sentence never mentioned the word 'happy.' 

A.  Ben felt sad.

B.  Ben bent his head, and he wiped the tears from his cheeks.

No 'sad' in this second sentence, but we know Ben is sad from his actions.

A.  She was so angry at him.

B.  She balled her fists and glared at him, then threw a punch in his gut.

We never see the word 'angry' in the second sentence.

People have many emotions in everyday life. Doesn't it stand to reason that characters in a story or a book will have them, too? The writer must work hard to show those characters feeling sad, happy, angry, scared, or any other feeling. Don't write as an outsider looking in. Instead, immerse yourself into your story so you feel the emotion as much as your characters do.

Showing emotion brings the characters to life. It works in both fiction and creative nonfiction. In the latter, you are telling a true story using fiction techniques, which means emotion is of importance in this kind of writing, too. 

Showing emotion in your characters helps your reader to relate to them as real people. When I cry in a book, and it does happen occasionally, I know the writer has done a good job in creating characters who feel real to the reader. Don't let your characters be stick figures; make them human with real feelings.