Writing Fiction with Emotional Honesty

“Write what disturbs you, what you fear, what you have not been willing to speak about. Be willing to be split open.” - Natalie Goldberg
Writing with emotional honesty is hard. For one thing, what does that even mean? Well, it can involve borrowing from personal experience, finding what scares you, seeking contradictions, and creating beauty from life’s uncertainties. I hope the many literary examples in this video will inspire you to dig deep and WRITE NAKED.
You can read a text version of this video on Medium: / writing-fiction-with-e...
Love my channel? Treat me to a cup of coffee at ko-fi.com/quotidianwriter.
Behind-the-scenes notes for this video: www.ko-fi.com/post/Behind-the...
My Published Stories and Poems: www.quotidianwriter.com/my-wr...
Twitter: / quotidianwriter
Title and End Music: “Clockwork” by Vindsvept - • Fantasy Music - Vindsv...
Background Music by Vindsvept:
+ “The Fae”
+ “Keeper of the Forest”
+ “Hearthfire”
+ “Deliverance”
+ “Skymning”
+ “Through the Fog”
+ “Woodland Lullaby”
+ “Wildkin Glade”
SOURCES
Sylvia Plath Photos: www.theguardian.com/books/gal...
“Getting Lost Makes the Brain Go Haywire” by Will Hunt: www.theatlantic.com/science/a...
Writing with Deep Emotion (0:00)
Borrow from Personal Experience (4:11)
Find What Scares You (10:30)
Seek Contradictions and Hard Questions (15:23)
Create Beauty From Life's Uncertainties (20:19)
How to Know You're Writing Naked (25:26)

Пікірлер: 366

  • @robjvmedia260
    @robjvmedia2604 жыл бұрын

    That piece about the figs...that's my regular Netflix experience.

  • @YTEdy

    @YTEdy

    3 жыл бұрын

    Netflix is a prune tree.

  • @mishthemaverick8607

    @mishthemaverick8607

    3 жыл бұрын

    Yes!!

  • @stonecat676

    @stonecat676

    3 жыл бұрын

    bruh

  • @susanscott8653

    @susanscott8653

    2 жыл бұрын

    Netflix and KZread and books and every hour, every day...

  • @digicraze
    @digicraze4 жыл бұрын

    Last book that made me feel intense emotions would be "I am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak because how hard it hit home. With the story being centered around Ed, a guy living a pointless life in the middle of nowhere, the epitome of ordinariness, who finally starts to change his life and feels happy living, it's really a story about how everyone can do something. And that something proves that people can live beyond what seem to be their capabilities. Don't know if that makes sense, but it was an eye opener for me.

  • @jahnathanhyppolite2047

    @jahnathanhyppolite2047

    Жыл бұрын

    This is my favorite book of all time. Read it going into high school and I’ve loved it ever since.

  • @Circletwice
    @Circletwice3 жыл бұрын

    I haven’t read A monster calls, but I watched the movie on the plane back from Japan. And I cried. So hard and so long that the stranger next to me pushed the assistance button. That’s one of the most embarrassing moments of my life, because by pushing that button, he told me that there was something wrong with my reaction - that I (or he) needed assistance from that moment. Because it needed to be fixed or changed. But because of that, I also will never forget it. Because if I was so moved by that story that I couldn’t stay within the social norm, then this fiction was truly powerful.

  • @anaugustfirefly3236

    @anaugustfirefly3236

    3 жыл бұрын

    Hey thanks to you I came to know about that movie & Yesterday I watched Monster call. It was a really nice Movie...

  • @reneahn5908

    @reneahn5908

    3 жыл бұрын

    There was nothing wrong with your reaction. The person next to you cannot look inside you. So, probably, he or she erred on the side of caution. It's the tragedy of Life that our inner lives are invisible. Don't take it personally. Sharing your story here is also an act of courage. Thank you. The more we share our inner being,, the better the world becomes. I hope you meet like-minded people that will enrich your Life!

  • @crys_cornflakez

    @crys_cornflakez

    3 жыл бұрын

    Because of this comment I went to read the book this afternoon. I just finished all of it. Wow. That was. Wow.

  • @Gumball-wi3er

    @Gumball-wi3er

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@crys_cornflakez as well! Just read this comment and now I'm gonna download it to read, thanks stranger!

  • @courtneykleefeld7717

    @courtneykleefeld7717

    3 жыл бұрын

    The Monster Calls is a brilliantly written story that tears off emotional bandaids and performs heart surgery.

  • @cjpreach
    @cjpreach4 жыл бұрын

    "Story is truer than Fact. A fact happened once, but Story is always true." Madeleine L'Engle

  • @francescopassero8369

    @francescopassero8369

    4 жыл бұрын

    This left me speechless. It's all so true.

  • @ZooDinghy

    @ZooDinghy

    3 жыл бұрын

    This is a pretty pretentious claim that people like Jordan Peterson like to tell themselves. The quote itself screams "romaticization!!!" The cruel terror of war or the expierience of actually losing someone over the course of months are good examples that show that stories and reality are not the same thing. We expose ourself to horrible stimuli only because they are not real. If you would know that that lion actually broke that guys neck and ate him alive, it would freak the hell out of you. Stories abstract away the reality and we perceive reality differently. E.g., just because a woman likes extremely kinky stories doesn't mean that she actually approves of these actions or that she wants to be raped in real life. Jennifer Probst book is another good example. The story is a fictionalized what-if, a story of how we want the world to be and not the harsh truth.

  • @theblindowl3828

    @theblindowl3828

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@ZooDinghy Dr. Jordan Peterson said about quotes makes sense. Those quotes are sentimentalist and unrealistic. Mostly come from leftist mouths that don't believe in objective truth and believe in subjective truth and alternative truth. So with their logic everything can be true. Even verbally poetic words quotes that doesn't make sense.

  • @ZooDinghy

    @ZooDinghy

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@theblindowl3828 This has nothing to do with left and right and is a problem of stories in general. Stories portray reality to suit the world of the narrator and his or her societal norms and expectations. American mainstream is in the top league when it comes to romanticizing away the "truth." The German Heimatfilm probably topped it all. After WWII, people needed a distraction from reality. It was hard for them to cope with the loss, their wrongdoings, and their destroyed world. Out came shallow entertainment, much like most Hollywood films.

  • @alexanerose4820

    @alexanerose4820

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@ZooDinghy It's not so much pretention as it is narratives that have held true throughout human experience. The only thing we're missing is the narrative of the evil that wins since all we get are narratives of good always winning which when looking at history simply isn't true.

  • @cjpreach
    @cjpreach4 жыл бұрын

    "There's no secret about becoming a Writer. You read and you write." (Chaim Potok)

  • @HillyVixen

    @HillyVixen

    2 жыл бұрын

    I needed that, thank you , blessing for you and your family 😊

  • @kakarotwolf
    @kakarotwolf3 жыл бұрын

    That entire paragraph of Plath, captured and encapsulates everything I feel all the time. It captures how precious and how little time we have and we want to enjoy and love life to its fullest but we aren't allowed, we get only this small little window.. just once. It's ironic how the love of life brings along with it a great sadness for it knowing how fleeing it is.

  • @DjKunra
    @DjKunra4 жыл бұрын

    I always felt a little as Sylvia Plath described. I wrote for comfort, and now I write to live the lives I can't physically. I also connected with 'The Handmaid's Tale' as a woman and found it incredibly frightening and confronting. I have a lot to say about that, but it ignites a not particularly nice brand of anger within me, to be frank. I genuinely resent the term 'feminist', but not in the way you think ... I resent that it HAS to exist. I haven't read in a long time (I know, I should) but the last book that brought on strong emotions was the Warriors series by Erin Hunter I read as a kid. They were stories about cats living in warrior clans, but somehow, they were able to connect with me on a deeply emotional level. They were tales of friendship I could get behind as a quiet kid who didn't have many friends, and about watching parental figures having to go through struggles and being powerless to do much except offer your strength - that resonated strongly with me. I think about those books a lot and I want to read again to enjoy those feelings.

  • @DalCecilRuno
    @DalCecilRuno4 жыл бұрын

    That's me. I include a lot from real life experiences disguised as fiction. I can't lie in my stories, even if writing the truth hurts sometimes. Thank you for this video.

  • @kadijahamad9862

    @kadijahamad9862

    4 жыл бұрын

    I think I fell in love with writing because it’s my version of therapy. I’ve experienced panic attacks and so when it happens to a character of mine I understand how he’s feeling. When another character secretly loves his father but hates him at the same time I draw from my own experiences and it’s so cathartic. You feel like someone else can relate to you even though they’re just a part of your subconscious.

  • @jamesrichey
    @jamesrichey3 жыл бұрын

    "The fear of working a career for forty years only to discover you've wasted your entire life on meaningless paperwork." WAAAAHHHHH! Ah! The novels I could have written! UHHHHHH!

  • @roxanartventures

    @roxanartventures

    3 жыл бұрын

    Haha! Not too late tho

  • @bacchaed2430

    @bacchaed2430

    3 жыл бұрын

    Never too late

  • @EDDIELANE
    @EDDIELANE4 жыл бұрын

    writing with emotion is VERY cleansing to your spirit. Easpecially if you leave the feelings on the page.

  • @rebeccaswinney8771

    @rebeccaswinney8771

    Жыл бұрын

    That would be nice. For me, writing emotions is akin to wading through mud: not easily wiped off on sheets of paper.

  • @EDDIELANE

    @EDDIELANE

    Жыл бұрын

    @@rebeccaswinney8771 something i sometimes do is write abstractly emotional things or scenes, or describe something that makes me especially sad or proud, or angry.

  • @sonybluraydisk
    @sonybluraydisk4 жыл бұрын

    This is by far the best writing channel on KZread. Superb quality. Thank you :)

  • @marcialacroix9215

    @marcialacroix9215

    4 жыл бұрын

    Amen.

  • @93midnightsunrise
    @93midnightsunrise4 жыл бұрын

    I don't know about the last book, but I can remember one of the first ones: What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones. It validated the emotions I was feeling at the time, and let me know it was ok to be an angsty teenager, that I wasn't 'bad' if I didn't flawlessly transition from 'perfect child' to 'competent adult' and that still resonates with me over a decade later.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    4 жыл бұрын

    I loved that book, too!

  • @lmor4203
    @lmor42034 жыл бұрын

    I have a novel that I've written, rewritten, thrown out and written all over again and finally, I think it's ready. But here's my question; now what?

  • @kristoffer2250

    @kristoffer2250

    4 жыл бұрын

    Beta reader check then go to an editor. I'll be waiting for that novel to hit the book shelves.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    4 жыл бұрын

    Receiving feedback from readers and other writers would be a great step toward further polishing your work for submission. If you Google "writing critique groups," you'll find long lists of websites that might help you find good critique partners; there's also a Beta Readers group on Goodreads. Then, if you want to go the traditional publishing route, you can send a query letter to literary agents to see if they'll offer to represent your book to publishing houses. There are also small presses out there, and self-publishing is always an option. It all depends on your goals for that novel. Keep writing. :)

  • @lmor4203

    @lmor4203

    4 жыл бұрын

    @@QuotidianWriter Thank you very much, Diane. This has helped a lot. :)

  • @beebuzz959

    @beebuzz959

    3 жыл бұрын

    Yes, beta reader's, then write a query and research publishers and agents to see what ones would be best suited for you to submit that query. Then doctor it to them, look to see if they have query samples, and then get feedback on your query again. Then send them out! And while you're waiting, get started on your next book.

  • @Gumball-wi3er

    @Gumball-wi3er

    3 жыл бұрын

    Hey 👋👋 any update ?

  • @ko_ko_ko
    @ko_ko_ko2 жыл бұрын

    Circe, because the character deals with rejection from people you love, loneliness, depression however at the end letting go of past, and embrace you, who you are. On plus note, greek mythology, and fantasy characters, makes it more enchanting. I will never stop praising that book. Totally remarkable.

  • @laurasukalac555
    @laurasukalac5554 жыл бұрын

    The breadth of your literary knowledge never ceases to amaze me! You have a way of making deep, philosophical passages accessible, and keeps me wanting more. Another excellent video!

  • @EricHrahsel
    @EricHrahsel3 жыл бұрын

    Why tf did this video make me cry?

  • @niobedragones6457

    @niobedragones6457

    3 жыл бұрын

    This vid made my chest clench, do much truthful passion in every word. A rare site indeed.

  • @EricHrahsel

    @EricHrahsel

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@niobedragones6457 ikr. The narrator and the KZreadr are both a good artist. This video is so special to me.

  • @yapchunglabhutia9000
    @yapchunglabhutia90003 жыл бұрын

    Norwegian wood was the last book that made me feel something. In a way the girl he loved was death and the other girl, life. This narrative perspective swirled my mind into a total vortex

  • @nightwing2461
    @nightwing24614 жыл бұрын

    I often succumb to unaware self denial as I try to shun my deep emotions, but that often reflects itself on my thoughts and thus infects my actions, and that is especially hard when the last drop in that cup of buried burdened emotions falls on someone I love as I have no other way after I held on for too long but to crack and break, that may be the reason I'm not a good writer. In your videos you don't just teach me how to be a better writer, you also often pave a safer way for me to express in sincere thoughts how to be a better person, thank you so much, and for that you will always have my gratitude.

  • @uncertaintyunravelled8273
    @uncertaintyunravelled82734 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for this video. It was... revealing and showed me just how much I was backing away from revealing my emotions in my stories. I'd always felt like it fell flat but this is the first time I have an idea why it felt like that.

  • @ExploreImagineDefineCreate
    @ExploreImagineDefineCreate4 жыл бұрын

    1:04 why is this so me. 1:41 it's so beautifully visualized. I wish I would've come up with this. The thing is, I know I can become almost anything I want if I try... but why only one 😥 This was so revealing and uplifting for me. Thank you. I didn't know how much I needed to know that I needed others to know me... if that makes sense 😅 I'll try my best from now on.

  • @aishaarshadalam3412

    @aishaarshadalam3412

    3 жыл бұрын

    But why do you think you're only limited to one? You can be as many things as you want if you try hard enough for them. Who said it should be limited to one?

  • @ExploreImagineDefineCreate

    @ExploreImagineDefineCreate

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@aishaarshadalam3412 Everyone. Have you seen many people out there with multiple Majors, high-end careers, or great economic standing with more than two jobs? It's just not very likely. To truly do something well you must not only put effort, but lots and lots of time into mastery. For as much as I wish I could be an excellent game developer, I can't do that without spending at least 15+ years. I'm not a prodigy, I'm not a genius, and I'm not a quick learner. I also want to be an artist. To be at the level I wish to achieve this again will take many years of practice and dedication. Writer. Sound designer. Comic creator. Animator. I want to do all of this. I've experimented with each of these and fell in love with them. But then there's the very things that inspired me to want to create: Video games, movies, tv shows, anime, graphic novels, books, and much more. I don't want to abandon these things because I'm too busy. Even now as I'm still deciding what to do I feel like I've barely touched a book or watched a show. I'm trying my hand at what I think will work fastest and best. Things that will give me results sooner rather than later. I just hope I'm doing the right thing.

  • @aishaarshadalam3412

    @aishaarshadalam3412

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@ExploreImagineDefineCreate Actually I do know quite a few people who are the things you mentioned. And if you can combine what you love to do in one job then that's even better. Maybe I'm just a different personality type but it seems like maybe some people are indecisive and that's the actual issue. Good luck with whatever you decide on.

  • @ExploreImagineDefineCreate

    @ExploreImagineDefineCreate

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@aishaarshadalam3412 Thanks. I am Definitely an indecisive person. I doubt myself and hesitate all the time. But the problem is that I'm just not surrounded by much opportunities. I'm an immigrant from a low-income household and no contacts to people with influence. I'm not the best at socializing, and I haven't even decided what to focus on first. Either way, I've decided to try and take on art first. It seems to always be on demand and one can almost always find at least one person willing to pay for your work. It's not easier than anything else, but it does seem that it will give results faster (even if smaller) and has a low barrier to entry. All that is needed is pencil, paper, and a computer. Luckily I found a cheap drawing tablet, so things are looking good. I hope to start of slow and steady, and overtime grow better. Thank you for the kind words. I hope everything work out for you as well.

  • @swine13

    @swine13

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@ExploreImagineDefineCreate dont do art, oh lordy... well not unless you wanna be either poor, stressed or both. If youre bothered by being low income with no contacts, why aren't you networking and learning a skill? Its not enough to say "I dont know anyone and I come from nothing" because so did a bunch of very successful people. Do you _hate_ the fact that you're low socio economic status? If so, that's your answer: do something about it. If it doesn't, why are you worried about it? Just do something that you can use in a job, like take a course in digital media or something. Cause having a job isn't like school - people won't just give you money for doodling in a sketchbook (trust me i found out the hard way), its a highly competitive and volatile production business that depends on your own ability and talent for 100% of its market demand. Whats worse, its completely non-essential, which I feel is a poor choice while covid is making things so difficult. Please... unless art is your life or your greatest talent, I would highly recommend you do something more boring and routine first as a safety net. Even something easy like statistics because that will help you put regular money in your pockets and then you can chip away at the art business in your own time. Pursuing a self-managed career in art while also suffering from chronic adhd, depression, anxiety, and PTSD was the most useless thing I ever did. I made no more than a couple of hundred dollars, worked insanely hard, exposed myself to "people" (including abuse, which is what i was afraid of), spent countless nights hoping it'd kick off soon and even more doubting my entire value as a person. My work did improve, but I was never keeping up with some of the most talented people - being 27 and seeing 16 year olds smash everything you've ever made with a 15min sketch because they're so insanely talented.... feels bad once, but after the 10th time you're like "ok I get it" I dunno i don't want to be negative, but I do want to be realistic and your current potential plan is the same one I had and it did NOT work for me. So make of that what you will. Maybe you're way better than I was and you've already got 15-20k subs on instagram or whatever.. 🤷‍♂️ What art would you even do? When you say its "in demand" what are you referring to? Are you prepared to have no time to do your own art because youre spending all your time doing what people want, instead?

  • @letsplaywithlife3063
    @letsplaywithlife30633 жыл бұрын

    The last book blew me away with emotional sentences - "Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and his years of pilgrimage" by Haruki Murakami. Our Childhood best friends far apart from our lives. What is left inside you is a strange feeling all the time. How can you pass it? Sometimes it seems like there's no way you can overcome it. You have to go back to the past and find out what was wrong with you. There's no other way. If you run away from the monster, the monster grew more evilly and follows you for the rest of your life...

  • @whitedynamite9763
    @whitedynamite97633 жыл бұрын

    1984: When Winston got the note that said: I love you. It struck me powerfully because Julia showed not even a hint of her true feelings toward him. It got me wondering if there might be a Julia in my life, pretending, hiding, waiting for just the right moment to show me her note.

  • @soniachauhan4459
    @soniachauhan4459 Жыл бұрын

    One of the best video essays on writing here on KZread. So glad I stumbled upon this.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    Жыл бұрын

    Thank you so much for the high praise, Sonia! Keep writing! :)

  • @promethful
    @promethful4 жыл бұрын

    This channel is a rare treasure. Thank you.

  • @0kecske0
    @0kecske04 жыл бұрын

    Carsten Jensen: We the drowned I never had any emotional connection with the places where i lived. Always just a city or a small village, never my town, never cared about the people, and never felt that i had something in common with them. But after reading We the drowned, i feel like i have lived in Marstal, and it is my hometown.

  • @Hermit_mouse
    @Hermit_mouse4 жыл бұрын

    I have read Train Dreams by Denis Johnson around a dozen times. I listen to Will Paton read it on audible when I can't sleep at night. It's about a simple man who lives through some deeply tragic life events. He spends much of his life alone with his dog in a cabin in the mountains. At night he howls with the coyotes and dreams of the lost memories of his childhood. It does something to my heart that I can't really explain with words, but maybe more than anything I feel less alone when I read it.

  • @Conmaan
    @Conmaan4 жыл бұрын

    “Speaker for the Dead” by Orson Scott Card was the last book I read that made my feel intense emotions. Novinha in particular is extremely frustrating to read about, but I think predominantly because her character is very relatable to me. Beyond that, there are also some incredibly powerful, emotionally charged scenes between characters. For anyone who hasn’t read the series, I definitely recommend it.

  • @ssghosh7728
    @ssghosh77284 жыл бұрын

    Goosebumps with every single word. This video was awesome.

  • @christinekaye6393
    @christinekaye63934 жыл бұрын

    The book that made me feel the most intensely and is my all-time favorite is The Sparrow. I've lost track of how many times I've read it--at least five. I have written two novels, both unpublished at the moment. The second one delves deep into the nature of hope, how it feels to believe the last ember of hope has gone out, how tenacious hope is, and how desperate our minds are to accept the smallest spark that will rekindle our hope. This video is beautiful, thought provoking, and inspiring. Thank you. I am looking forward to watching more of your talks.

  • @Otherwise88
    @Otherwise883 жыл бұрын

    This video provided a breakthrough in my novel. The subject always touched on my fear but I had been allowing myself to skid the surface. You video forced me to look my fear in the eye and recognize its name. Thank you.

  • @aiyanales1416
    @aiyanales14162 жыл бұрын

    I’m not even 10 mins in this video and I already feel so inspired. This is an amazing video thank you for sharing❤️

  • @JohnInTheShelter
    @JohnInTheShelter3 жыл бұрын

    The best writing-related video I've seen this year, maybe ever.

  • @RattledEditor
    @RattledEditor3 жыл бұрын

    D- I want you to know how much your videos, teachings, and even vocal delivery are not only appreciated and enlightening but wildly valuable! THANK YOU!

  • @Dashingdiva73
    @Dashingdiva73 Жыл бұрын

    I have been binging your videos for the past few days, this one made me cry. As I sit and write my story, tears started to spill from my eyes. This is very inspiring.

  • @lenasthy4146
    @lenasthy41464 жыл бұрын

    To me, it was Jane Eyre. Helen Burn's death was so predictable, but that just hurt me more, as I knew she'd be going to heaven eventually. It hit home deeply. Another amazing one is Song Of Achilles! The journey's just....I love books.

  • @ljonheart
    @ljonheart4 жыл бұрын

    your videos are so helpful and insightful! it's always exciting when i get a notification from your channel! thank you so much

  • @fournerdsreview8452
    @fournerdsreview84523 жыл бұрын

    Your videos are so well made. I play them when I'm stuck on my writing. So I just wanted to say thank you for the help.

  • @courtneykleefeld7717
    @courtneykleefeld77173 жыл бұрын

    “Writing Irresistible KidLit” is a great writing craft book. I highly recommend it to writers.

  • @KatSchlitz

    @KatSchlitz

    4 ай бұрын

    Thank you!

  • @hpwdesigns
    @hpwdesigns4 жыл бұрын

    Omg. I have been looking for this type of video essay forever. This is so well done. Subscribed!

  • @haku1145
    @haku11452 жыл бұрын

    I'm not much of a reader yet, which often makes me feel inadequate around people who have entire bookshelves behind them. Nevertheless, one of the few books I've read is called 'Moon Palace', by Paul Auster. It made me feel amazed at times, with the way Paul described what his protagonist was going through. It also made me feel quite sad, as if one's always doomed to be lost in their search for identity. During those times--on a somewhat unrelated note--I like to picture Alan Watts sitting on the beach, drinking a piña colada, telling me to not take life so seriously.

  • @MasterAkiDraw
    @MasterAkiDraw3 жыл бұрын

    This changed me greatly. Thanks for the tips! I'm also very happy that you brought up Fredrick! One of my all time favorite authors! A Man Named Ove has brought me to tears and made reflect on so many things in my life. I am very grateful that I randomly picked up that book at Barnes & Noble.

  • @aname4700
    @aname47003 жыл бұрын

    This video deserves to have hundreds of thousands views ❤️

  • @resistancepublishing
    @resistancepublishing4 жыл бұрын

    I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the work you put into your videos. I just started writing my first graphic novel a year ago and now it’s completed. I’ve gotten some great feedback from editors, friends and other professional writers. I’ve watched all of your videos, some of them several times over and each time I’ve learned something new. The information you provide is priceless and the comfort of your voice helps to absorb it all effortlessly. I want to be selfish and say I need more of your content (only because the videos are so good) but we all have lives to live. Being a new writer, I used to doubt my writing but I’ve put all of that doubt aside and now trust in my characters and the writing process I’ve learned from you and many others. My writing weak points are horror and comedy but in my next project I plan to dive head first into both genres. You’ve helped me grow so much as a writer. Thank you again and never stop doing what you do.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    4 жыл бұрын

    Thank you so much for your incredibly kind words! I truly appreciate your support, and I'm overjoyed to hear my videos have inspired you. Keep writing, my friend. :)

  • @resistancepublishing

    @resistancepublishing

    4 жыл бұрын

    Diane Callahan - Quotidian Writer you’re very welcome. Keep up the good work. You have a subscriber and viewer for as long as you upload videos

  • @singularityawaits9298
    @singularityawaits92983 жыл бұрын

    As many videos about writting I have seen thr past year I feel this one made me go into the next level as a writter.

  • @dtdwin
    @dtdwin4 жыл бұрын

    Thanks to you, I have acknowledged what is holding me back from writing a realistic story, I always avoided my true feelings and wrote in a way that I think it should be. If you can't even let your true self be immersed in your own story, who will be then? Love the collection of so many great books you put in the video. I fall for both the aesthetics of their covers and their touching contents. Like my soul was pulled inside out for 28:46 minutes straight when you read those excerpts. Please keep up with your amazing work. I love your channel and your advices always work for me. (English is not my first language, so pls ignore my grammar mistakes ~)

  • @HuogoFuri
    @HuogoFuri3 жыл бұрын

    The last book that made me feel intense emotion was, more of a series, I finally got around to reading the original 3 Mistborn books this year. Reflecting back on the moments I found the most meaningful and realized it was spread out over all 3 but I had binged through all of them. I could identify a great deal with the growth of all the characters: when Vin and Elend struggling to find how they fit into each others' lives as well as their place in the world, Sazed struggling with the loss of Tindwyl, and Spook struggling with his self-identity and his strong desire to be helpful to his friends in some way. Going to have to rewatch the video though, because I ended up losing track of the information you shared finding an answer to that question. The growth they all experienced though, challenged and answered a lot of questions I've been struggling with myself this year, and ultimately when the ending of the original trilogy came I cried in a mix of sadness, joy, and catharsis, for everything that happened and even though it felt a little hand-wavy, it felt right and to me, a satisfying end.

  • @pixireads
    @pixireads4 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for this! I have been struggling with the characters in my WIP. This helped inspire some questions to ask myself about the characters and get a better understanding of their motivations. This came up as a suggested video and I am now a subscriber. :-)

  • @rocknroll909
    @rocknroll9093 жыл бұрын

    Absolutely amazing video, thank you so much.

  • @abishekraj9785
    @abishekraj97853 жыл бұрын

    I have never experienced such filling through any videos on KZread ! It was awesome ❣️

  • @quillakiller
    @quillakiller4 жыл бұрын

    Wow, I just had to skim my book shelf, and reread my book list to find a recent book that hit me as hard as you describe. All the examples you gave were so powerful. It immediately became apparent the last couple of months have been very cerebral books (really awesome, like Zen and the Art of Motor Cycle Maintanence, or even Dracula and the Alchemist were just distant enough for the story not to feel raw). I would say, "It Does Not Die," by Indian poet Maitreyi Devi is about as real as it gets. Its the story of coming to terms with a long lost adolescent love, decades later, yet one day having all those emotions stirred up again because that lover happens to be a famous writer and wrote some famous book about you -- so, having received the signal, you seek him out. The prose, gosh, even now months after reading it, I can open it to a random page, and reread a line I had underlined at the time -- and a funny thing happens. I dont even remember reading the line or underlining it, and so it hits me as if for the first time. Raw emotion, like raw pain, that never gets old, always feels immediate, and "does not die" even when it disappears. Because it comes back.

  • @quillakiller

    @quillakiller

    4 жыл бұрын

    PS: Thank you, Diane, for another mind-blowing video.

  • @Legui1231
    @Legui12314 жыл бұрын

    The last book that made me feel intense emotions was "A Storm of Sword" Thanks for the video! I love your work

  • @musicsweet2833
    @musicsweet28333 жыл бұрын

    Another Country by James Baldwin. He made me bawl my eyes out in heartache. And in the tender, precious places, he made me smile with pure gladness.

  • @arlet101
    @arlet1013 жыл бұрын

    This is not only a wonderful video but I got so many book recommendations from it, thank you ☺️💖

  • @l.t.4311
    @l.t.43113 жыл бұрын

    This video is brilliant! Absolutely love it! Thank you so much for making this! 💕

  • @OzzyAndrews
    @OzzyAndrews4 жыл бұрын

    This has been incredible. Thank you so much 😁

  • @_fitz5566
    @_fitz55662 жыл бұрын

    This is probably my favorite video of yours. I come back to it when I'm feeling disinterested with my own writing. It speaks to what I've always hoped I could do with my work. It's the stories with emotional honesty that stick with me and made me want to write in the first place. I have a ton of respect for authors who can translate their personal experiences and inner world into a story that elicits empathy and engaged understanding from a reader. "Hot-making" in writing is capable of changing the reader, but it can be cathartic for the writer.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you so much for your kind words and thoughtful comment! I love how you phrased the importance of stories with emotional honesty. Keep writing. :)

  • @imagerson
    @imagerson7 ай бұрын

    Thank you for all the videos you've done! I stumbled upon this channel when the video on showing vs telling popped up on my feed, and since then I've seen almost all of them. They have helped me a lot! ❤

  • @cadecollins9932
    @cadecollins99323 жыл бұрын

    The last book that made me feel intense emotion is C.S. Lewis' 'A Grief Observed'. I cannot describe the intense fear of mortality that came with reading that book, as well as the acceptance of being resigned to such a fate. But most of all, the raw emotional lines about his wife that left me teary-eyed for a good while after. One of my favourite lines was when he was describing his wife on her death bed: "she cried out 'and there was so much to live for!' Happiness had not come to her early in life" it's so tragic and captures the contradiction that comes with facing death of finally realising the actions you should have taken.

  • @MythicalNine
    @MythicalNine4 жыл бұрын

    Once again, a brilliant video with many unique eye-openers! And in a time I really needed this insight for the sake of my writing quality, thank you.

  • @scardavinci
    @scardavinci3 жыл бұрын

    I really needed this. Thank you.

  • @mx.olivia
    @mx.olivia6 ай бұрын

    Wow, I’m so glad I found your channel, the way you curate and present your info is stunning and I just found a bunch of new books to read! Thank you!

  • @katevenhorst1723
    @katevenhorst17232 жыл бұрын

    “It’s sometimes difficult to separate external reality form the internal processing of reality.” Wow. Yes.

  • @rachelmccannandcarnalecho7753
    @rachelmccannandcarnalecho77533 жыл бұрын

    When you mentioned Sylvia Plath, I knew immediately that you were going to the passage about the fig tree. I still remember that passage from reading it 30 years ago -- in college, at the age where it struck me to my soul. My favorite passage is from The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers, where Mick, a young, poor girl who longs to create music, sneaks away from her sad family life at night to a wealthy subdivision and writes "Mosart" in red grease pencil on a wall stud in a house under construction. To leave a piece of your heart in a place where it will be covered up forever was such a powerful image.

  • @katherine1304

    @katherine1304

    3 жыл бұрын

    when i was in college i went through a tough break up with the first love of my life, which had always been long distance. i spent almost every night in one particular room of an apartment sickeningly heartbroken and alone, and it also made me realize that i’d always had depression, which came with its own set of difficulties during such a hard time of getting doctors appointments and therapy sessions to get me on the right medication, all while juggling side effects, emotional breaks and dealing with the loss of the best friend that was my ex. it all got so bad that i had to change rooms within the unit because being in the same perpetually dimly lit room where so many painful conversations and suffocating nights was getting the better of me. when i moved out of that room i wrote our initials in thick dust on the storage counter over the toilet where i knew no one would ever clean. it’s not as permanent but it was my way to leaving a physical mark in the place where such real and intense emotional pain happened, so that the apartment might still remember it for a few years to come. i’m better now in my life so don’t worry lol. this comment just reminded me of when I did that. there’s something so cathartic in marking the thing that hurt you with something that once made you feel alive. even if that thing in turn also hurt you. it’s like a reminder that it was real. i almost wish i’d done it in sharpie, now that i think about it

  • @ahmadreza.T

    @ahmadreza.T

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@katherine1304 wow I have to do something like this. And I'll carve them. ;)

  • @edenmckinley3472
    @edenmckinley34722 жыл бұрын

    I'm a very emotional person, so I naturally delve deep into the emotions of my characters, until I'm worried that I'm making the text too emotional. Not melodramatic, just emotional. One of my characters appears to be a classic fantasy hero on the outside: strong, handsome, selfless, has magic powers, doesn't know who his real parents are. But underneath, he suffers from depression, loneliness, self-loathing, and many other problems. He is most afraid of harming his loved ones and being left alone with the guilt, but at the same time, he feels he has no choice in what he becomes. Writing him unearthed some very deep wounds I didn't know I had. I never knew I was so afraid of being alone, or of growing up and leaving my happy home life behind. I never knew I was so terrified of becoming something I do not want to be. I didn't know that I harbor insecurities about being a burden on others or giving up my agency because I am a people pleaser. And yet, writing this character showed me all of that. It hurts. It hurts whenever I write him, because many of these things I struggle with are made manifest in him. But I love him as much as I love myself. This video was really fantastic, and it explains why I made such a connection with him. I have failed to put as much punch in my other characters, and I think this might be why.

  • @stephaniebyard3958
    @stephaniebyard39583 жыл бұрын

    This is SO inspiring! Although I’ve never attempted suicide, as a young teenager, I was depressed, wondered why I was ever born, & why I just couldn’t start over. I think every teen struggles with this at some level. So I aged my protagonist to 19 and took it further to her death. But as she hangs between death & being revived, she changes her mind and the novel follows her evolution into a life full of incredible things peppered with fascinating beings. This morning, I’m struggling with opening the novel with her suicide attempt. I want to start her at rock bottom. But, is this right? Is it too much? Will someone be too affected by this & do the unimaginable? Will people miss the message? What am I doing? Should I go clean the house? Your post here has inspired me to continue and expand on my character’s reasons for lying in the snow on Christmas Day, welcoming Death, but meeting someone else instead. Thank you so very much.

  • @varying999
    @varying9993 жыл бұрын

    Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane shook me to the core..it was so familiar, yet so alien-the mental illnesses, the helplessness, the tragedy. I always found myself reading it whenever I was alone. It was almost an involuntary action. Switching on my blackberry, opening that pdf and start reading..It almost mesmerized me.

  • @lionkingmatiouz3441
    @lionkingmatiouz34414 жыл бұрын

    Hi Diane, this is so full of inspiring quotes, useful tips and advices to get to a deeper way of getting our emotions out. Well realized video

  • @DimkaSulegnaa
    @DimkaSulegnaa4 жыл бұрын

    The part you play involving the monster hit a little too home. I might need to give it a listen. Actually, I might give a listen to quite a few of the books you’ve mentioned. I’ve read only a handful of books, mostly ranging from two YA book series and whatever came up for school. The book I recall hitting emotionally hard last being Night by Elie Wiesel. I still remember the vibe of the hanging that is described within the book. There was another book that I can’t recall the name that stuck out as well. It was about a kid that ran away from home. There was a scene where a supporting male character brought the MC to see a prostitute for life advice. Later the MC went back to see her to find out that she passed away. Sorry if that’s not enough info to potentially figure out what the book might’ve been.

  • @oORiseAboveOo

    @oORiseAboveOo

    4 жыл бұрын

    HellsInfernalRage The second book sounds like Catcher in the Rye, but it’s been many years since I read it.

  • @Themoment888

    @Themoment888

    4 жыл бұрын

    Night was so emotional

  • @noahssircharge
    @noahssircharge3 жыл бұрын

    Your blunt presentation of information is refreshing and an excellent reference for all writers. Keep up the great work!

  • @agafiabowden8670
    @agafiabowden86703 жыл бұрын

    "Where the Crawdads Sing" is very emotional and raw

  • @Hermit_mouse
    @Hermit_mouse4 жыл бұрын

    This is one of your best so far. So good!

  • @chloeledean3999
    @chloeledean399911 ай бұрын

    I just found this channel and my creative life will never be the same!!! 🎉 thank you!!

  • @Brainscrawler
    @Brainscrawler4 жыл бұрын

    I'm glad you're still uploading great writing content :)

  • @wildernessshareyouradventu9948
    @wildernessshareyouradventu99483 жыл бұрын

    Great video! Taught me so much about an upcoming project

  • @didutasev4427
    @didutasev44274 жыл бұрын

    ¡That was so mind-opening! Thank you.

  • @chelseastudios
    @chelseastudios3 жыл бұрын

    Your videos are soooo good! Please never ever stop making them xoxo

  • @anthemofink
    @anthemofink3 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for the kick in the pants to keep writing. Your videos are an inspiration as always.

  • @paulapoetry
    @paulapoetry4 жыл бұрын

    I relate so much to this video, thank you. 💝

  • @0Metatron
    @0Metatron3 жыл бұрын

    It has to be crime and punishment for me. It writes from the perspective of that inner person and anxiety that goes on inside all of us that most of us build a wall of defences around, and most of us think it’s just our own personal weirdness but this book shows in exceptional detail that we all have these messed up feelings going on inside

  • @mageprometheus
    @mageprometheus4 жыл бұрын

    Someone made a comment they were surprised that you didn't have more subs. Perhaps it's your emotional intelligence that frightens those who are still in self hiding. Much love.

  • @johnraffensperger
    @johnraffensperger2 жыл бұрын

    This video conveys the most important lesson for writers. “Writing 101” should start here. Thank you for the outstanding tutorial.

  • @magnusruben9646
    @magnusruben96463 жыл бұрын

    You should have 5 billion subs

  • @coffeecreateconnect
    @coffeecreateconnect2 ай бұрын

    It's been ages since I bought a book, I've been so busy working on my own, but I just bought two of the ones you mentioned. I love a book that makes me forget I'm reading a book about characters, and allows me to enter a world with real people.

  • @QuotidianWriter

    @QuotidianWriter

    Ай бұрын

    I hope you enjoy them! Keep writing (and reading). :)

  • @thelettre7954
    @thelettre79543 жыл бұрын

    There is a webfiction online called the Wandering Inn it has been going for years in this massive work there is one chapter that is so full of emotion that it makes me cry it's the climax of a certain part of the story I've read it through more than a dozen times and each time... I've had tears in my eyes

  • @kevgh3869
    @kevgh38692 жыл бұрын

    Wow, Diane. You've created a master piece here. Bravo!

  • @QuotidianWriter
    @QuotidianWriter4 жыл бұрын

    Hi there, viewers! An adapted text version of this video is now available on Medium: quotidianwriter.medium.com/writing-fiction-with-emotion-1ee07e44c96c You can check out my behind-the-scenes notes for this video on my Ko-fi page! www.ko-fi.com/post/Behind-the-Scenes-Writing-Fiction-with-Emotional-B0B71KZ36

  • @phooter-boy6157

    @phooter-boy6157

    4 жыл бұрын

    Come to think of it? I admit a good Writer has to be Pure-Hearted. in order to build up emotion for the Readers..

  • @marcusgingell3585

    @marcusgingell3585

    3 жыл бұрын

    Diane Callahan, I watch most of the writing feeds on utube and I can take away from most of them, but I feel your influence goes straight into my mind and then on to the paper, I think it’s the literature excerpt’s and your generally calm tone and lack of tricks just solid advice. Not trying to blow smoke up your butt, just want to give credit where it’s due. 👍

  • @meyricksrg
    @meyricksrg3 жыл бұрын

    This content is very helpful. Thank you so much!

  • @sandythompson1551
    @sandythompson15513 жыл бұрын

    The video contains amazing information. Thank you.

  • @keithsharp826
    @keithsharp8263 жыл бұрын

    This is powerful advice. Thank you!

  • @acanthusred3123
    @acanthusred31232 жыл бұрын

    this video helped me so much. I've been struggling with what do I want to write and this video inspired me at the right moment!

  • @lapersianaperta
    @lapersianaperta3 жыл бұрын

    I can see stuff about my fears and beliefs in my ideas and characters, but I live happier without going deep about it. I can't read anymore and I can't write powerfully because I feel too bad about it. When I go deep, it affects me for days. I like crying on a story, I don't need just butterflies, but sadness is one thing and regretting my whole life for a week for just one good paragraph is another. Good emotional books are maybe the best expression of our human identity, but I'm starting to think that not all humans really need that

  • @fabianthegreat10
    @fabianthegreat103 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for the inspiring video! I am a newbie writer, and after listening to this video I believe that I've cleared, even if only partially, one of my writer's blocks.

  • @Nobody91021
    @Nobody910214 жыл бұрын

    Always a treat to watch your videos, you definitely deserve more views. You should try reading the wandering inn it’s a webnovel completely different to any genre even different compared to wattpad’s novels. It has a world that in my opinion can rival game of thrones, the witcher or harry potter.

  • @kitpup1017
    @kitpup10172 жыл бұрын

    I keep planning this book and nitpicking the little things each character does because I'm stalling. I literally watched this video to feel like I'm doing something about it when I'm not. I was surprised to find there was a term for the type of book that's based on parts of a person's life, because that's what I've been planning to do. If fear makes a book good, then this is gonna be the greatest book ever ig. The last book that really made me feel emotional was All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. It was about mental illness and dealing with the loss of a loved one, the message was about how important it is to find a reason to keep going when you're dealing with difficult periods of your life. It also has a ton of amazing quotes from 'The Waves'.

  • @jaredengland1955
    @jaredengland19554 жыл бұрын

    I wish I could double like your videos! So easy to understand

  • @a-ka-kat241
    @a-ka-kat2412 жыл бұрын

    A truly inspiring and convincing one, as I tears up while watching. The sample from "A monster calls" and "And every morning the way home get longer and longer" slammed me to the ground. As tears flows I realize they just strip me naked to the despair I felt and never told when in similar situations. It truly got me thinking. Occasionally, I cried while reading, and if asked 'why the tears?' I have no idea. But looking back now, maybe there're some feelings I turned my back to, peculiarly resonate with these words in front of me. And from this angle, come the uncomfortable conclusion that for my works that looks dry and flat to have similar effect, I'd have to dig out forgotten skeletons and get naked... Scary I tell you.

  • @frgogi3485
    @frgogi3485 Жыл бұрын

    thank you so much. Your voice is just so calming and I love your advice and I even just listening to it can helo

  • @AsifHassan
    @AsifHassan3 жыл бұрын

    All my stories are about being held back by family, society, personal belief, being told what you want is impossible and that you're better off following others. I guess I've always been writing what scares me.

  • @gsmiley7449
    @gsmiley74494 жыл бұрын

    God. What a voice! Sun, Sand and Stars, by Antoine de Saint-Éxupéry. I sob everytime I read it.

  • @ghostcaty

    @ghostcaty

    2 жыл бұрын

    I'm reading that now. So amazing

  • @aidavittoriaeltanin
    @aidavittoriaeltanin3 жыл бұрын

    I love your voice, so soothing, mesmerizing with that music in the background too. The last book I've read which provoked a strong reaction has been "Let the hurricane roar" by the daughter of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Rose. And also the memoir "In order to live" by North Korean defector Yeonmi Park, highly recommended though brutally honest, but she shines....