Does it Make You Cry?

            I will just begin by saying you don’t have to cry.  Some people don’t cry, period.  But, like “Saving the Cat,” it doesn’t have to be a literal cat.

So my question is actually, “Do you feel passionately about what you’re writing?”  And that passion can be fury, grief, fear, comedy, you-name-it.  But you must feel compelled, for whatever reason, to tell this story.  Maybe you want to raise awareness, evoke compassion, right a wrong.  Maybe you want to show readers the perils of selfishness or greed.  Or scare the daylights out of them.  Maybe you want to inspire them and show them how to feel greater joy than they’ve ever known.  But whatever it is, there should be intensity in your heart as you write it.

Passionless writing is no fun to read.  People put it down, immediately tired of bland characters who lack direction.  Sure, your descriptions may be vivid and your dialogue snappy, but you need to hook us with a reason to care about what happens to these people. 

Next time you’re stuck, and your work seems to have hit the doldrums, look for passion.  Is it there in your theme?  Do you really care about telling this story?  Sometimes we write what we think will sell.  Or something another writer we admire, writes about all the time.  Or something we think would make a great movie. Those motives will not elicit caring in your readers.  Nor will they make you excited to get up in the morning and get back to work.

Now look at your characters, themselves.  Have you given them a challenge, a goal, an enemy?  Is something huge at stake, here?  Make sure your characters have drive and passion, or they’ll bore us.

If an honest analysis reveals either of these problems, set the story aside.  Come back to it when you can feel some passion about your plot and your people.  It may need a complete re-write.   And, sometimes, it’s better just to start from scratch with a better idea.  As they say, “no tears in the writer, no tears in the reader.”