This topic seems to come up a lot within the writing community that I’ve surrounded myself with, and even breeching the pubs of Medium with some frequency. So, let’s talk about it.
In general, people tend to stick to specific categories when they write, so much so that you don’t usually see people write outside a given genre. Sure, this happens (see Internal Thoughts: Names and Who Needs Them, on this very topic), but that’s not what I’m talking about here. What I mean is writers don’t tend to cross the lines of Fiction and Non-fiction. And this makes, sense, right? It’s hard to make it in one genre, let alone several, especially across these two broad subsets.
But it’s not unheard of, right? There are writers who write fiction, who also have a blog, or something like it. And many writers tuck in little expressions of themselves into everything they write, often without intending to.
As a Medium writer, I like to experiment with different things. I have a main category, but I like others as well. It can be difficult to break from one place, and outlets like Medium give us a little more freedom in that regard.
For example. I generally write erotica. But that’s not all, and most of that is thanks to Medium. Different publications allow for different writing types, like two of the ones I write for, Crush Publications and The Ranch Hand Agency. I’m just as likely to write Poetry for a hundo prompt through Crush as I am to write something spicy. For the Agency, I’m almost as likely to write something horrifying as I am to write a sexy, supernatural story in my main series there. And that’s the beauty of short-form fiction sites. I can do that, and it’s not only encouraged, but accepted.
But what about real things? Things and stories that don’t fit into our genre but still need to be told. One of the first concepts that you learn and sometimes struggle through when confronting and trying to resolve anxiety, depression, and past traumas is that you have to confront them and talk about them. Working through it is difficult, and often opens up old wounds that you’d rather leave closed. But that doesn’t heal them. It simply leaves them for later when they can no longer hold the stitches we’ve sutured them with. Is it okay for people to use whatever outlet they have to hash out their feelings about things in life that bring them down?
I think so.
Talking about life and the problems that it causes reminds us that writers are human, just like everyone else. It’s easy to get sucked into the fantasy and imagine your favorite writer is just whittling away writing every day to bring you stories you know and love. But that isn’t the case for most people. Hell, even I don’t do that, and it’s my only work. Other things take precedence. Life, as they say, gets in the way. Behind the screen where we let our imaginations run wild is a whole person with anxieties, insecurities, and a whole host of other problems you know nothing about. Unless they tell you. And most won’t even scrape the surface, even if they are present and forthcoming online. The world makes it so.
But does that mean we should keep everything inside? Some people would argue that in order to be safe, you have to keep some of it to yourself. Gods know there are people just waiting to take advantage of any vulnerability that you share. But what about other people? What if by sharing your story, you help another with their own story? Most of us grew up in a society (and still do, for that matter) where it was not okay to share things. That feelings and talking about problems means you are weak or that you are attention-seeking. I don’t think either of these things is true. Quite the opposite, actually.
To put yourself out there in the most vulnerable way possible and admit to other people, many of whom you’ve never met and likely won’t, that your life isn’t picture perfect is hard. Sharing emotional turmoil or personal demons is terrifying. Will people look at you differently? Will they judge you on how you cope with things? Or maybe they’ll say that your trauma isn’t as bad as you project and therefore you should suck it up and deal with it? Or even worse, will no one seem to care and plunge you further into the depths of a depression you are desperately trying to claw your way out of?
It’s a real fear, because yes, there are people who will say horrible things. There are people who won’t or can’t understand your struggles, and some who will judge you. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write about them or that they aren’t important or valid.
Even throwing real-life experiences into your fictional writing can present some of these same challenges. Your experiences will be different from someone else’s, and that can lead to loud discussions about what is right or wrong or even ridicule, depending on the audience you interact with. This is where you sometimes have to let things go and understand that some people just want to watch the world burn or troll for argument’s sake.
We all throw a little bit of ourselves into our writing. Mostly because we write what we know. We connect with it better that way. It makes for some of the best stories. The ones that give you true feelings and evoke emotions when you read them. They show how important it is to you as the writer to bring out those feelings. It can be a way to express something you otherwise wouldn’t or can’t.
We often joke in the writing community that our characters are our way of living out and working through our traumas. We joke, but it’s accurate for a lot of people. And it can be a good way to let some of those things out.
I think more writers should be less afraid of putting more of themselves into their writing. Talk about the real things. Show your readers who you are, and what makes you different. Give them the chance to feel what you have to say, and maybe you’ll even help some of them out. You never know what someone keeps inside, for any number of reasons. I’m not saying throw your entire self out there. That would be insane, given the world we live in right now. But take more chances. Be willing to open up and talk about what’s important to you. Whether you do that through your characters or right out in the open. There are many ways to do that, but I think it can be worth it.
We often read to escape reality. But that doesn’t mean we don’t want to hear real things. And that doesn’t have to always mean the worst things. Sure, we want those too. Everyone struggles. Everyone has wins and losses. Talking about them does not make you any less than anyone else. Give me all of it. I want love, passion, heartache, pain, stress, death, emptiness, compassion, rage, depression, anxiety, joy, and fear. I want emotion, in any way it’s presented.
Internal Thoughts are my experiment in letting out things that come to mind, or topics that I feel should be talked about. And most of these are real, raw, emotional opinions that I wouldn’t write anywhere else. But I think people can resonate with them, and discussion and talking about real problems helps facilitate real solutions.
Life is real, so there’s no reason not to talk about it. Dare to open up and write about life because you’re human. Dare to be real because real is beautiful.
What are your thoughts on writing real moments? Should we keep those buried, or let them shine through in our writing, even if it’s fiction?
