VALUES-BASED WRITING
Developing your own thoughts and feelings about what has value for you, the storyteller and poet, can help you connect with your audience. But, in order to connect, you do have to know your own heart.
ALL IT TAKES IS HEART
Memoir-writer Annette Simmons, in her book, WHOEVER TELLS THE BEST STORY WINS: How To Use Your Own Stories To Communicate With Power and Impact, tells us,
“Unless you bring a beating heart to your message, it is dead. But, when you tell your own heartfelt stories about what is meaningful in your life and work, you get the hang of finding stories that frame life and work in emotionally meaningful ways for your audience.“
It is the heartfulness you bring to a work that opens up the hearts of those around you.
The questions you need to ask yourself are these:
- What moves you?
- What makes you cry rivers of tears?
- What makes you angry enough to go postal?
- What triggers a belly laugh?
- What yearning makes you reach for the moon?
Connect your listeners or readers to those things, and they will walk away satisfied. You will get the chance to turn on a lightbulb or start another dance. You may even blow their minds.
Fail to do it, and you will bore them into apathy and indifference. They will yawn and slouch away.
BEING NOT-BORING
Nobody is bored by a glimpse into somebody else’s world. Nobody will be indifferent when they feel the connection that comes when similarities or differences are revealed.
They may be surprised or dismayed or entranced by it all, but they will not be bored, if you can pull out your valued treasures and do a show-and- tell.
Robin Manuell’s You-Tube video about Hypnotic Storytelling points you in the right direction:
Awww, come on. How hard can it be? They teach this stuff to preschoolers!
Here’s another poem:
WALK IN THE WORLD
I have to believe that
There is meaning and mana
To be found in my walk
Through this World of Dust.
Otherwise, it seems to me,
It would be a better plan to
Just pick up my marbles
And go on home.
I mean,
What’s the point?
If I’m just going to sit there
And not join in the fun
Turning myself into some
Shiny, boring lump of bright stuff
That doesn’t DO anything except
Soak in celestial juices…
I mean…wow!
Where’s the music?
Where’s the stories?
Where’s the dance?
Wise guys say this world’s all
Illusion and mirrors made
Of smoke and tears.
They say you have to give it up,
Give it over, just let it all go.
And maybe they’re right.
Who am I to say they are not?
But, there is something in me that rebels.
Something that says, “No…Not!”
Something keeps telling me
Their wisdom falls short somehow.
What if I don’t WANT to be a space-cadet,
Ignoring the dusty world,
All focused on the godhead inside me?
What if MY godhead wants to
Dance out joy and fiercest passion?
What if MY godhead wants to
Laugh uproariously
Act outrageously
Laugh insanely,
And fly to the farthest reaches of starlight
And back again?
How does sitting there get me to that?
By Netta Kanoho
Picture credit: “Show and Tell” by Erin M McCuskey via Flickr [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0]
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16 thoughts on “VALUES-BASED WRITING”
Hm, it is a very strange and nice article that got me thinking that the only way to write in a interesting way is to express your emotions. That’s it. Really good insight on the subject. I have a hard time writing my own blog so this article comes at the right moment for me. I guess it’s one more proof that in life nothing is random. Thank you for opening my eyes.
Hey SaM: Thank you for your visit and comments. I’m glad you feel the post has helped. Another related post on the website, Conjuring Feelings, talks about developing an “emotion vocabulary” that might also be a good thing for you to explore.
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Basically what we need to do is inspire one other with our words (writing)! It’s true that everybody has a little curiosity about other people’s lives (at least I know I do!), mostly because we can relate to different things people are going through at any given moment, or just that we’re relieved that we aren’t the only ones that are going through that particular event. So don’t be intimidated, write from the heart. I enjoyed this poem immensely.
Hey Jill:
Thank you for your visit and your comments. Please do come again….
Yes, we’re connected through many human expression… a poem, storytelling, song, dance, we’re connected to each other… like a modem that connected us to the internet, art is an awesome thing that triggers human emotions.
What we express is like transmitter a to the receiver, then each of them react based on each experience.
The real connection is not on the art qualities. Each person can do that by training. Emotion can be connected based on true story, not by stereotype or issue that be affected by media… and Bounded trough Passion.
As Passion grow mature, bond gets stronger… the qualities themselves will grow without even training the tone, body language… Just let it flow, keep moving, keep to live… and the most of that, Keep to be True (be genuine)
Thanks for Share~
Hey Martinus:
Thanks so much for your visit and your thoughts. I do appreciate it. Please come again….
Great article!! So, this actually reminds me of a series of sermons we have coming up at church in June. It’s being called “At The Movies”. Our pastor is talking about movies because they tell a story.
Jesus’s favorite way of sharing with people was through sharing stories. People can actually understand what you are trying to tell them if you paint a picture with a story!
I try to do this with my blog posts and YouTube videos.
Keep up the great work!!
Thanks for the visit and for sharing your story, Brian. All the great teachers are excellent story-tellers, I think.
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Interesting! I have never much been into poetry. But I get the point about what you said about values-based writing. You have to dig down and write what you feel, at your angriest, your happiest, etc to get your passion across. I have been honing my skills as a story teller, and this is information I will take to heart. Thank you for a great post. Rhonda
Rhonda, thank you for the visit and for sharing your thoughts. I’m glad the post was a help to you.
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Ooh, I absolutely love that poem and it definitely connects well with the topic.
I believe everybody aspires to be extraordinary in spite of the world that has beaten us down… well done. So much emotion packed into so few words- that takes some skill!
As for being not boring, sometimes it takes a little courage to show that vulnerable sides of ourselves to the world, fearing we will be laughed at and shamed…
However, if we hide, we miss out on the opportunity to connect with our audience, whomever that may be.
Christina, thanks for the visit and for sharing your thoughts. I do agree that being wide open about our own vulnerabilities do go a long way to helping us connect with each other.
I am pleased the post resonated with you.
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Your articles are really inspiring. I enjoy reading them.
Song is the easiest way to send messages to the listener and express your feelings, but I have a question here.
Why is it that out of the whole songs in this world the best of them all are always love songs, I have heard so many type of songs talking about life stories and more but love song always hit different. Why is that?
Good question, that. Myself, I think that love songs go straight to the heart and that’s always going to be the very best kind of connection you can make with somebody else.
The rest of the stuff often depends on life circumstance. Someone who has never known hard or mean is not going to get really engaged by songs about hard times and mean streets and all that. Someone who has only known hard is going to think the sweetness and bubble-gum tunes are different brands of lies and just a waste of air-space.
However, everyone has (or hopes to have or used to have) some kind of love-thing going, I think. Maybe that’s why love songs hit so many more people.
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Fascinating! While poetry hasn’t been a major interest of mine, your perspective on values-based writing resonates with me. The idea of delving deep and expressing emotions authentically, whether it’s anger or joy, to convey genuine passion is compelling.
As someone focused on refining my storytelling skills, your post has provided valuable information that I intend to incorporate into my craft. Thank you for sharing this enlightening perspective.
Yay! It worked! Thanks for stopping by and telling me your thoughts. I’m glad the post is a help to you.
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