Writing Naked – You Are Always Baring Your Soul To Your Readers

Writing is akin to being naked in the street, baring yourself to the world.

This paraphrases the thought expressed to me by a friend recently when we discussed publishing one’s writing.

The analogy of writing naked is very good.

We write our thoughts hidden from public view and safe from prying eyes and ears.

A writer’s private thoughts

Our thoughts are, without exception, the most private parts of our body.

An exquisite result of water, cells, and electricity produces these invisible, untouchable, and deeply hidden notions.

So deeply hidden that we have difficulty sharing them with even the closest people in our lives. ‘I just can’t put it into words’ is such a common expression.

But as writers, we do put these notions into words.

That is what we do.

Transferring these deeply hidden abstractions, ideas, and feelings onto the pages of a book.

Often fictitious thoughts, but even then, they are based on our experiences, beliefs, fantasies, superstitions, and moralities.

Sharing your mind

I know in my own writing, I have touched on ideas that have no connection at all with my life.

But in truth, they are all connected to my imagination, dreams, wishes, regrets, hopes, and my own experiences of love and hate, life and death, happiness and misery.

Whether categorized as thoughts, emotions, feelings, or the mind’s eye, they are all abstract and deeply seated in our consciousness.

Secreted away from any possibility of invasion or detection.

However, as writers, we strip away this protection willingly and parade our thoughts to the world.

Naked thoughts, stripped emotions, and notions bared for all to see–is writing naked.

Of course, this can be said of most art forms, and probably more so for the performing arts.

But as writers, we have the unique ability to delve into the mind and dissect and analyze thoughts in a way that theatre and cinema just cannot do.

Writers are special

We are not dropping our drawers and parading ourselves through the streets in Lady Godiva fashion.

But it is true that we bare ourselves and our souls and are open to criticism, rejection, and ridicule. And we accept that.

But because we are writers, that’s what we do and want to do.

Related Reading: What’s The Difference Between Denouement And Epilogue?