Mervyn Love

How to Tug at Your Readers' Heart Strings

When we think about emotion in a story the word can mean different things to different people. The main divide and therefore the main difference is, of course, the male/female one. It might seem obvious, but if there is any doubt as to which you are writing for, men or women, think about it because your story must be couched to suit.

If there is one thing that lifts a story out of bland boring narrative it's this: emotion. Yes, you have to have an interesting story to tell, but without showing your characters going through various emotional crises your tale could end up in the shredder. Here's how to pump life and feeling into your work.

As a general rule women want to be moved by love, sympathy, uplifting sentiments, incidents of caring and nurture, etc. This is not to say that they don't want excitement, danger or cliff hangers, but most women will respond to the higher emotions more readily than men.

Men want, again as a general rule, to read about action, danger and success in conflict. The emotions they experience are anger, frustration, fear, maybe hate, triumph and anything that shows the hero fulfilling his need to overcome the obstacles that have been thrown his way. Which is not to say that they don't like the love element, but it is often, shall we say, on a more basic level.

Now please don't hold up your hands in horror and cry 'stereotypes!' Face the facts: men and women really are different! As a general rule.

When you begin a story take a good look at your hero or heroine and decide exactly how they would react in the situation you are about to pitch them into.

This means working out where they have come from in their life journey to date. Are they bitter as a result of life's trials, or are they resigned to their fate? Or what? A word of warning: try not to let your hero be too well balanced. Remember, 'well balanced' can also equal 'boring'.

Remember also that your hero or heroine should be flawed in some way. So decide what that flaw is and the experience that produced it. Then colour their emotions and reactions accordingly.

Your readers want to live through your characters and ride their highs and lows with them. To do this you have to show what a character is feeling. This can be done by simply describing what is happening, such as:

'Amanda felt the hot blood rush to her cheeks.'

The context of the incident should tell the reader why. Is she blushing with embrassment, or is she angry?

You can let the character say what's happening:

'Stop talking like that! You make me so angry!'

For the male characters you can say something like:

'Dirk strode swiftly across the room, anger blazing in his eyes. His right hook caught Pearson by surprise and sent him staggering backwards. "Don't you dare talk to Amanda like that, you miserable toad!"'

Space the emotional scenes in your story so that the reader isn't in a constant state of emotional tension. It's OK to build these scenes as the story comes to a climax; just don't overdo it.

As a general rule (there's that phrase again!) readers want to feel satisfied, fulfilled and relieved that good triumphed over evil in the end. Learn to give them the emotional fix they're looking for and you will build a loyal readership eagerly awaiting your next story.

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