The Power of the Written Word

Is the pen truly mightier than the sword?

Words are powerful. They evoke emotions, stir us to action, share valuable insights, and ignite our imaginations. Words can build up, or tear down, encouragement or discourage, depending on how they are conveyed.

 

Writers know well the power of words. The way a passage is written can make all the difference as to whether readers will keep turning pages or set the book aside. A writer’s aim is to captivate readers with words that penetrate the mind and touch the heart. We do this by stirring readers’ senses through sights, sounds, smells, and by weaving spiritual awakenings into the lives of our characters.

Here are some ways to help empower your scenes and keep readers reading!

Include the five senses. Interact with readers by appealing to their sense of smell, taste, hearing, sight, and touch. Give readers the opportunity to experience what your characters are experiencing. Familiar smells, tastes, music can connect with readers and draw them into the story.

Use vivid descriptions. Put your reader right in the heart of the story by putting them behind the eyes of her POV character.

Here’s a short excerpt from my novel, Under This Same Sky, to demonstrate.

“The shrill cry of a hawk sounded overhead, soaring against the indigo sky. Acres of lush prairie grass swayed in the breeze, carrying the cadence of insects. Groves of trees lining the creek pulsed with the songs of robins, bluebirds, and meadowlarks.” (Page 77)

Write in Deep Point of View. Dig deep into your characters to not only share their thoughts with readers, but know the reasons behind them. Why do they respond the way they do? How will they change throughout the story? Give readers something to fret over or cheer for. The more believable your characters are, the more readers will connect with them.

What helps you connect with characters in a novel?

 

Cynthia Roemer is an award-winning inspirational writer with a heart for scattering seeds of hope into the lives of readers.
Raised in the cornfields of rural Illinois, Cynthia enjoys spinning tales set in the backdrop of the 1800s prairie. She writes from her family farm in the Midwest where she resides with her husband and their two college-aged sons.

 

Her Prairie Sky Series consists of three prairie romance novels.

Book One: Under This Same Sky, Book Two: Under Prairie Skies, and Book Three, Under Moonlit Skies due to release in September, 2019.

Connect with Cynthia on her Website, FB Author page.
Follow her on Goodreads, Twitter, and Bookbub.