Why you need to make me cry

“A good writer can either make people laugh, or make them cry. A great writer can do both, in the same piece.”

Image: federico stevanin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I talked about why we HAVE to become better writers on our blogs in my last post. And since then I’ve spent a few days analyzing some amazing blog writing in order to discover the secret formula and share it with you.

Of course, there isn’t one…..

Great posts come in all shapes and sizes, in every style and format. The best I can do is to select some elements that may be used to create great writing, and I’ll write about those over the coming weeks. Today it’s the turn of emotion.

Any piece of writing that creates emotion in a reader has to, by it’s very nature, have created a real connection in that reader.

Sadness

Have you ever read a blog post and cried? I did yesterday, and here’s the post: http://worldsstrongestlibrarian.com/4338/how-to-have-tourettes-part-7-no-excuses

It’s not even writing is it? But it does create emotion in the watcher. My tears weren’t of pity by the way. They were pure frustration.

Happiness

Any post which can get people laughing out loud has to be a winner. And it’s no surprise that the vast majority of viral internet content is funny.

Anger

It can be a dangerous strategy, but it’s a sound one for creating feedback and interest. Can you find a way to write that will make a reader angry, and persuade them to present an opposing view?

Fear

As well as the traditional “scary stories” you can create fear of loss, or fear of outcome in your reader’s minds. It’s the old insurance salesman’s trick - “What if?”

Envy

You have to be cautious with this one, as it can backfire on you. But is there a way you create envy in your readers? Perhaps safer when the post is about someone else?

That Quote

The quote at the top of the page is from my Dad. Dad was a frustrated writer all his life – he wrote and wrote, while holding down a full time Director level job. Sadly, he died before blogging had been invented, otherwise he would have been a terrific blogger. None of his stuff was ever published, and the truth is, it was never really good enough. But for some reason he always felt I could write much better than he could, and he often pushed and praised me, and that quote is one that I keep coming back to, and one that I have gradually understood the truth of.

What do you think? Am I on a good track here? Is emotion a contributory factor in great writing?