Writing provides a wonderful outlet for the expression of thoughts and ideas, and I recommend it to anyone who would enjoy sharing their creativity with others.
Telling a story can stir a variety of emotions within the writer, and depending upon the genre, can take the writer from the heights of the emotional spectrum to its depths. Fictional novels and works of non-fiction that report on the action and dramatic episodes of real people probably create the greatest array of emotions. If there is a basic rule for writers it would be that they should write about subjects they know and understand.
Most writers, no matter the gender, will admit that they become immersed in the characters they create, and are to some degree at least temporarily embedded in the trials and tribulations experienced by those characters. In a way, the writer becomes the character. He can feel the anger, the sympathy, the passion, the elation or depression experienced by his characters.
To the writer, the story sometimes seems to take on a life of its own, often causing him to feel as though he is being pulled along by the story, a passenger on it, if you will, rather than the creator of it. There have been times when I felt as though I was writing as fast as I could just to keep up with the story. It was as though the story was creating itself and all I was trying to do was to capture it on paper. For example, by the end of my first novel, Satan’s Boots Don’t Creak, my fictional character, J.D. Banks, a criminal defense attorney, felt like a real person to me. I felt I could pick up the phone and call him. The only problem there is that I forgot to give him a phone number.
The best part of this is that you don’t have to be a John Grisham or James Patterson to enjoy the experience of creating life-like characters. We may not be able to do it as well as they do, but we all can do it.
As each story evolves, I feel the emotive of the scenes. I feel the tension, concern, melancholy, pride, and remorse experienced by my characters. The writer must be aware however, that the tension and realism he has created can carry over into his real life. While the reader is capable of a mood-changing experience by being carried into the story, the writer feels responsible for it. It’s his creation, and aware of it or not, in many ways part of his inner self is revealed.
If a writer feels the humor in a scene he is about to construct and develop, he should show, and sometimes even highlight, that humor in his story. Even in the most serious and dark novels, a spot of humor here and there is most welcomed by the reader. A powerful mental state, good or bad, set into motion by the writer can influence the minds of writer and reader; another reason why the writer should be aware of the mood he is likely to create in the minds of his readers. Injected humor can help to lessen the impact of a negative mood the writer may generate.
There are many reasons why people decide to sit down at a keyboard and begin to write. Some feel a need to satisfy their creative juices, some need to get their feelings out, to express themselves in a story. For others, the sole incentive to write is to gain commercial success; to make money. Having been a criminal trial lawyer for over 30 years, I began to write to relieve the stress of constant courtroom activity. I soon realized that I really enjoyed putting “pen to paper” as they used to say. Now that I’m retired, I do it because it gives me pleasure and satisfaction to finish a well crafted story.
No matter your choice of subjects, if you have a little patience and try your hand at writing, you will find it an exciting pastime, if nothing else. And with today’s e-book explosion, anyone can be published.
So, what the hell, why not give it a shot? It may take you a little time, but it won’t cost you a dime. Good luck.
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