Connecting to a Softer Side

The thing about good writing is that it always surprises you. It creeps up on you when you least expect it--when you stop trying to write good prose and begin to speak from the heart. That happened to me today while writing a letter to an old and cherished friend. It was emotional to write, but even more emotional to read. I think writers spend so much time trying to figure out how to get that emotion on the page and the real problem is lack of interest in their subject matter. I never believed that writing in a daily journal could improve your writing. I thought it was just a way to release your feelings. A way to vent. But it is more than that. Learning how to express the wide range of human emotions is what makes a good fiction writer, screenwriter, songwriter etc. What better subject to study than yourself? Everyday is a new emotion. A new feeling to try and describe. And some days will be better than others. Today was dead on for me. And though few may ever read the words I wrote down I have a better understanding of how my characters might feel in a similar situation.