As writers it is our job to make people feel emotion with the use of our words. Emotion makes people connect to the story. So what is it about the words we are using to describe, say... "My heart ached." Anyone can say that. How do we as authors make someone truly feel the aching of the character's heart? We draw on personal life experiences and then we find a way to describe the sometimes indescribable.
"There was an emptiness where I normally used to feel things."
"My heart felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, but somehow still beat."
"It felt as if something had a hold of my heart and continued to squeeze it tighter and tighter."
"The pain and anguish settled where love and hope used to abide."
These are all different descriptions, and each is unique in their own way, but they convey a sense of aching. We as human beings experience so many emotions. Wonderful and horrible emotions. The beautiful thing about being a writer, is we have the gift to connect intimately with our readers. We make them feel as if we are writing this story just for them, because they lived it, or they relate so closely with one of our characters.
I think the best way to do that is by using what is latent within us-these emotions that everyone feels-but we have the ability to make it a reality. Being someone who has little experience with emotions (Yeah right. I'm a girl, who are we kidding), I find that is when I connect the most with a story or character. I like to challenge myself sometimes and come up with multiple ways to describe one emotion/reaction and its always interesting to me just how many I can create. Emotions are relatable and a ready source. Use them.
Great post, Hannah! It's so true that you've got to use those life experiences to make the reader believe in the story and the characters.
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