Adding Fun to Our Writing
I read an article about how a woman, after a frustrating commute in Boston, began a campaign to have the public transit system install googly eyes on its trains.
Googly eyes. On trains.
And it worked! Boston now decals on some trains that look like eyes. Just for fun. To brighten riders’ days.
Cute, I thought, and that was the end of that.
A few days later, my daughter opens the fridge and sees a new carton of milk, with half of it covered in a minion’s face.
She stops and stares. “Oh my god, that just made my day,” she smiled.
I had to stop and think. I was the one who had bought the milk. I noted the minion, but that was it. I placed the carton in the fridge, yet thought nothing more of it. Now, though, after my daughter’s comment, I can’t help but smile every time I open the fridge.
The two happy-face stories got me thinking about what we put into our own stories. Even if we’re writing the most angsty, horrific, trauma-laden story, we can often find a spark of levity, a hint of light. We need to, even if it’s a flash, even if it’s only temporary, because light and hope—and a smile—are still a part of our human experience.
So look at your stories with a critical eye—for fun. Where can you add a hint of whimsy? A dash of silly?
How, in other words, can you make your reader smile?