- Understand your subject matter. Especially when writing about sensitive or controversial subjects, it is imperative to be well-versed in all sides of the issue. Knowledge about arguments or debates is not enough, though. You must also be aware of the emotional responses to issues in order to write effectively about them. You can't tap into readers' emotions if you don't have a good understanding of what they are. It is often the emotion surrounding an argument that is more compelling than the facts it is based on. Recognizing the power of emotion is key for a writer to have impact on readers. Understanding the factual and emotional bases for your subject matter is crucial.
- Provide details selectively. Once you have a good understanding of the emotional side of your subject matter, you are in a position to select the details that will produce the desired emotional response in readers. If you are trying to portray the day-to-day grind and sheer boredom of a particular work setting, for example, you will want to select the details that will produce that reaction in readers. So you will focus on the mind-numbing daily activities such as paperwork, meetings and phone calls, that depict this daily grind and tap into readers' sense of boredom. If you want to depict the thrill of a high-risk situation, you will focus on the dangerous, exhilarating aspects of the situation to tap into readers' sense of excitement. Carefully selecting details to portray emotion is good use of your emotional IQ.
- Use sensory details creatively. Once you have details carefully selected, it is important to think about the best way to present them. Writers tend to focus on visual imagery as the default mode for presenting detail. But there are other sensory tools at your disposal such as sound, smell, touch and taste. Presenting a detail such as rain, for example, by describing how it smells or how it sounds hitting a certain surface has much more emotional impact on readers than merely describing how it looks. Be creative when using sensory detail. Get out of the default mode and think of ways to enhance your emotional impact through unusual description.
- Use syntax strategically. Selecting the right detail is a crucial step in employing emotional IQ in your writing. But it's also important to use structure to achieve emotional impact. This involves tuning into the order of your words, the length and structure of your sentences and the repetition of certain words and phrases. These elements constitute the rhythm of language; and just like in music, rhythm in language taps into readers' emotions. You can depict urgency with short words and repetition of key words. You can depict calmness with lengthier sentences. You can depict a sense of chaos with rambling sentences. The structure of your prose has the ability to dictate and enhance the emotional response to your subject matter. Pay attention to how you put your words together and what tone that structure conveys. The tone is what readers will pick up on and respond to on an emotional level.
Having a good emotional IQ is important for writers to be able to connect with their readers' emotions. Writing with emotion is not flaky or unstrung; rather it's powerful, effective and strategic. Emotional connections, whether in prose or poetry, fiction or nonfiction, are much more powerful than intellectual connections. By understanding both the factual and emotional bases of your subject matter, using detail selectively and creatively, and structuring your writing strategically, you will achieve a deeper connection with readers and have a more lasting impact as a writer.
