Writing From Your Heart
It’s easy to tell when I’m “on” in my writing. I write naturally and functionally. My sentences are straightforward and easy to understand. It’s almost as if I were talking directly to you, in person; it’s like I want you to understand me. It’s also easy to tell when I’m “off” – I can be awkward, wordy, obtuse, and unnatural. When you read back over my old posts, be sure to look for these things, because your knowledge of how on-ness and off-ness affect other people’s writing (like mine) will help you understand how to improve your own.
Writing is an absolutely beautiful thing. It’s one of the few forms of expression we can use to share an idea with anybody, across time and space. But writing can be obscure and unintelligible if it’s done wrong, utterly destroying its ability to communicate. Without that, it means nothing, accomplishes nothing, and does not leave us with the light, lovely feeling of having connected with another human being.
When you’re writing, no matter what it’s about and no matter what it’s for, it’s critical to keep in mind that you really are writing to a real human being. Whether it’s yourself, a friend, a boss, or an audience, think first about how you would talk to them – about what you would say to them. Imagine them right there in the room, and have an imaginary conversation with them, out loud if necessary. Imagine the questions they would ask as you go along, and be sure to answer those questions in order to avoid them later.
Then put yourself in the other person’s place. Imagine how you would react if you were listening to someone read your writing aloud, as if giving a speech. Would you be enthralled, hanging on every word yet dying to know what came next? Or would you be fidgeting, rolling your eyes, yawning, groaning, and more or less ignoring the person? If you find yourself doing the latter, start over. Try again. It doesn’t always come the first time, even for experienced writers who know how to connect with that inner voice.
The visualization and vocalization method works so well because it is an instinctive part of our neuroanatomy. Humans are not programmed to read or write. We just haven’t been doing it long enough, in the evolutionary scheme of things, for it to be a natural part of our brains. Written language is learned and formed as we age, and our brain realigns itself to be able to handle these tasks. Speech, on the other hand, we are born knowing. This is why infants will naturally coo and cry, even though they won’t try and write you a note. This is why every group of people, no matter how primitive, have a spoken language even if no form of writing exists. It’s literally written into your DNA. Use that to your advantage.
Speech is hardwired into the heart of your emotions and images, the right brain. When you are able to write out loud, putting to paper exactly the things you would say, you’re writing from the heart. You will find yourself making more sense, using more vivid language, and being more proud of your work when you connect your writing to that speech-language core within your mind. Use it.
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