Creating an Emotional Connection

I began writing at a very young age - mostly in the form of journal entries or short stories. My writing was often based on an emotional experience or feeling. I've always been a very emotional person. I think that many people would see me as being too emotional. I wrote about my emotions for various reasons:
   * to analyze my feelings.
   * to document an event or happening in my life & the effect it had on me
   * to remember how the emotions felt & affected my actions
   * to learn from what I experienced

But, often I wrote about
my emotions believing that I was all alone on this planet -- that I was riding an emotional roller coaster pretty much by myself. I was quite certain that I was an odd duck with nothing that would relate to most people. I was confident that my emotions & reactions would not be of help (or of interest) to anyone but me.

At some point - probably when I got old... around 30 - it occurred to me that I had desperately desired to relate to a huge crowd. It was almost like I was less interested in relating to people on a one-on-one basis than connecting with individuals. I sought the spotlight instead of a cozy corner sipping tea talking with one person. I kept writing though. I was hooked.

Along the way, I began to notice that people were relating to some of the things I shared. I realized that my thoughts of being alone on the planet were something I had used as a security blanket. I no longer cared about changing the WORLD in a big way. I began to be blessed by connecting with individuals. And, the numbers were no longer a big deal. 

I began being very honest in my writing - believing that no one was really reading. I have learned that there are people reading & that some of those people share similar feelings I continue to make openness & honesty a top priority in my writing. I hope that I'm making an emotional connection between my writing and my readers. I love this quote from Maya Angelou:

"When you create an emotional connection between your writing and your readers, there’s a lasting impression." ~ Maya Angelou ‪#‎quote‬

April 4th is Maya Angelou's birthday. There are too many great quotes from that one woman. If you'd like to see more, I have begun an album of those. Click here :)