A little love note

What’s love got to do with good writing? A lot, it turns out. Bear with us. Some years back, one of us came across this interesting definition of love:

Love is seeing people as they are.

You could say something similar about good writing. Our work as writers requires us to try to see the world as it is, whether we’re writing about 401(k) plans or medical breakthroughs or artificial intelligence.

There are other parallels between love and good writing. Both take:

• Empathy. Just as love asks us to see through another person’s eyes, writing demands that we see from readers’ perspectives.

• Caring. Like love, the best writing springs from a heartfelt desire to connect with another person.

• Clarity. It takes effort to say exactly what we mean. That work is fundamental to love and writing alike.

• Honesty. Telling the truth is the foundation of both loving relationships and great prose.

• Attention to detail. In writing as in love, it’s essential to heed the little things.

We advise our writers to show up, pay attention and try to see the world as it is. We encourage them to be generous, tell the truth, stay calm and strive for clarity.

If that’s not love, what is?

Please reach out if you’d like to talk about writing, love or anything else.