Guest post: "WRITING NAKED" by John Herrick
I write naked. As often as possible.
With a naked heart, that is.
When my first novel hit shelves and I
read its initial feedback, I learned readers are savvy. They read between the
lines and uncover nuggets. On occasion, they will discover things you, the
writer, didn’t even know existed in your story!
Before I tell my protagonists’
stories, I create their biographies and conduct interviews with them. I dig
into their psyches and draw up memories from their childhoods. I get to know
them as individuals. You and I respond to circumstances based on our
backgrounds and past experiences. Our perceptions drive much of what we do.
Characters behave the same way. Some of my protagonists’ biographical details
appear in my novels; others guide my protagonists as they make decisions, but are
not explained on the page.
So my readers surprised me when they
identified traits that appeared in my planning materials but never appeared
word-for-word on the pages. I learned I could plant little details for my
readers to discover.
I have a strong analytical side.
Because my natural inclination is to explain the why behind the what, I needed
to develop a trust in my readers. Flat-out explanations are not always
necessary. Readers recognize symbolism. They possess the ability to recognize
synapses and close the gaps. They enjoy
closing those gaps.
They also recognize when an author
“phones it in.” They can tell when the framework exists but the characters lack
souls.
In other words, readers possess radar
for insincerity. Likewise, they detect genuine words that come from the heart.
Which brings me back to the writing
naked thing.
Readers want to escape into our
characters’ worlds. They want to understand the character, to feel what he or
she feels. They want the author to lead them into the deepest, darkest recesses
of that character’s mind and heart. They want to know the secrets that lurk
within his or her soul.
As a novelist, I believe in
establishing a contract with my readers:
If you’re willing to invest your time with my characters, I’m willing to
invest my heart in telling their stories.
The only way I can expose a character
that way is to peel back the layers of my heart and make myself vulnerable.
That means dropping my guard, releasing the fears of how I will look or whether
readers will suspect my novels are autobiographical. If I want my readers to
get lost in my novels, I need to get lost in those novels as I write. I need to
write with a naked heart.
My latest novel, Between These Walls, provides an excellent example. Its
protagonist, Hunter Carlisle, is a Christian. He’s also gay. That second
characteristic marks his biggest secret and his wellspring of torment since childhood.
Between These Walls captures his
journey as he reconciles his sexual identity in light of his faith. In order to
expose Hunter’s fears, insecurities and joys, I needed to quiet myself as a
writer and let my heart beat in time with Hunter’s. From my soul, I needed to
take up residence in his heart and observe him in his secret moments. When
Hunter spent time worshipping God, I captured his gratitude. When he wondered
whether one mistake could lead him to hell, I captured his mental image of
writhing in isolation. And when his sexual urges took root in his solitary
moments, I captured the desire, the gritty fight, and the exhaustion he
endured, moment by moment.
I challenged myself to write in a
fearless manner. No doubt, various individuals will question my motives in
writing the book. They will wonder if any of the novel’s events occurred in my
personal life. And I won’t have an opportunity to respond. But I’m a writer. I
have a job to do.
If we aim to connect our hearts to those
of our readers, writing will involve sacrifice. It requires us to reject any
fear of what others might think. It means stepping into territory that makes us
uncomfortable, revealing things we would never incorporate into an ordinary
conversation.
In other words, writing naked.
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John Herrick is the author of From the Dead and 8 Reasons Your Life Matters. A graduate of the University of
Missouri—Columbia, readers turn to him as a chronicler of spiritual journey and
the human heart. Herrick lives in St. Louis.
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