Welcome to Twitter Treasure Thursday! Well, I should start calling it Social Media Treasure Thursday since I keep finding my articles on sites besides Twitter, but whatever. The point is to find useful writing tips and share them with you, so I will!
Today’s article (thanks to Pinterest) focuses on a task most of us writers find difficult to achieve: Getting readers to feel.
As an avid reader myself, I tend to have three different reactions to an author’s attempt to move me: 1) Sniffle and cry. 2) Shrug indifference. 3) Roll eyes and snicker. Obviously, all writers hope to elicit the first reaction. But, let’s face it, writing genuine emotions (especially grief) and getting readers to believe them is tough!
Thankfully best selling author, Ruthanne Reid, provides us with some great tips in her article, Show, Don’t Tell: How to Write the Stages of Grief:
The power of story largely resides in its power to evoke emotions. Our favorite works all tend to follow that path. We read about a heroine who succeeds against impossible odds, and we are bolstered by her courage. We read about the ridiculous antics of a teenage boy who’s too smart for his own good, and we share both his embarrassments and his triumphs.
Empathy is the ultimate form of “show, don’t tell.”
To read the entire article, click here! Also, if you’d like to read some examples of stories that, in my opinion, evoke genuine emotions, consider these ones: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. If I Stay by Gayle Forman. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. (If you have others to recommend, leave a comment!)
For more useful advice, follow Ruthanne Reid on Twitter!
Photo Credit: 1
For the first time in a long time, I’ve been excited to sit down, open up a manuscript, and write. Besides loving my plot and crazy characters, I have music to thank for my surge in motivation. I’ve come across so many great songs lately! So many, in fact, I had a tough time deciding which one to choose for this week’s Music Monday.
Last week, I probably listened/watched this song on YouTube at least a dozen times. I couldn’t get enough of it! It has so many of the darker emotions and elements I need to feel while writing my story: Fury. Vengeance. Denial. Murder.
What makes this song extra powerful is the performance of it. As I watch the dancers in the video below, I can see my characters and I can feel their wrath. Their twisted righteousness, their satisfaction, their spite…
So, if you’re looking for a song that brings out the dark side of your plot and characters, check out 
In a nutshell, my story is about two crazies trying to off each other. So, I need to find things that inspire my inner psycho. And this music video definitely does. Shia LaBeouf and Maggie Ziegler’s movements, facial expressions, and emotions spark the exact feelings I need to experience to write my story.
Another reason I love this video is its meaning. Just like my main character, Shia LaBeouf is forced to face his inner demons (Maggie Ziegler), and then battle to overcome them. And that battle involves a wide range of emotions: fear, anxiety, denial, courage, pity, curiosity, pain, rage…It all adds up to a powerful and moving display. And watching it makes me feel closer to my main character and his struggles.
So, if you’re looking for a video that has edge, emotion, and a splash of insanity, then check out “Elastic Heart” by Sia!
My favorite thing about this song is its raw emotions. While listening to it, I’m able to experience anger, sorrow, desperation, defeat, frustration…And then I’m able to take those darker feelings and infuse them into my work.
And, of course, I love this song’s lyrics. Whether it’s one line or many, I always find something in “Take Me Away” to spark my imagination and help with whatever story I’m working on.
So, if you’re looking for a song to help inspire those darker, rawer emotions, check out “Take Me Away” by Avril Lavigne.
To be honest, I didn’t listen to much music the past couple of days. When I write, I need absolute silence. And the only time I broke the silence in my house this weekend was to take breaks to eat and watch an episode of 
To me, this is a cinematic type song. It’s dramatic and grand, and overflowing with emotions. Plus the lyrics are amazing and offer up their own serving of inspiration.
So, if you’re looking for a powerful song that gives a writer a paintbrush and a thousand colors to create moving, vivid scenes, then check out Adele’s “Set Fire to the Rain”.
This song is packed with conflict, pain, and all of the emotions I need to feel while writing these explosive scenes: betrayal, fury, heartbreak, fear, regret…I also love the lyrics and music video. Both help me tap into my dark side and go to places I don’t want to go–but must.
So, if you’re looking for a song that touches upon heavy topics, and inspires intense emotions, check out “Love The Way You Lie”.
This song captures the essence of the chapters I’m currently working on: revenge, betrayal, anger, terror. It also lends excellent motivation for when I’m choreographing any fight scenes, and during this past weekend, I worked on two that were brimming with kicks, chops, and punches.
So, if you’re looking for a song that inspires “Ahh!”, “Grrr…”, and “hi-yah!”, check out “I’m Shipping Up To Boston!”
Since I’ve arrived at those highly anticipated 
My characters are just like everyone else: human. They make mistakes, they bleed, they cry. And they seek forgiveness from those they’ve wronged. I want to draw all of those emotions out and bring them to life for my readers. I want people to feel what my characters feel. “Human” will help me do that.
This past week, I became obsessed with the song “Always Starting Over” from the new Broadway musical, 
“Always Starting Over” is such a dramatic, emotional, human driven song. Every time I listen to it, I’m filled with frustration, anger, desperation, and heartache. And those are some emotions I definitely need to tap into while I’m developing my characters and the conflicts they’re facing.
So, if you’re looking for a song that delivers real human emotion to your story, check out “Always Starting Over”. And, I urge you to listen to it more than once. I promise, it’ll get more and more powerful with each playing.
I have to believe that all writers are actors on some level. After all, we are creating new worlds filled with new characters with varying personalities. We have to have the ability to open our minds and become someone else for a spell.
Fear not, Meryl. Your job is safe.
Haiyah! KaBlam! Splat!
What can I say? The most “fighting” experience I have is a couple of Tae-Bo workouts and movies like 
Now, this is where I’d be truly horrified if I had a camera recording me while I wrote. I’m sure the look on my face when I’m typing out a death scene, or a confrontation between two friends, or a girl being dumped by her knight in shining armor is priceless.
Jen's Pen Den 