There’s a lie a lot of writing advice teaches that if you “show, don’t tell,” then the emotion will come through in your writing. But emotion in writing isn’t something the reader can just witness. It’s something they have to move through. And that’s the biggest problem with most writers’ ability to write feelings. I’m […]

There’s a reason “show don’t tell” became writing advice in the first place. The goal was never just to make writing prettier. It was supposed to stop stories from feeling explained. Because when a writer explains everything directly—what the character feels, what the moment means, how the reader should interpret it—the experience becomes strangely lifeless. […]