The Raw Nerve

Writing With Genuine Feeling (Not Sentimentality)

Poetry, at its core, is about feeling. It's about expressing the things that move us, the joys, the sorrows, the frustrations, and the little moments of wonder. But here's the thing: it's easy to be sentimental. It's much harder to be genuine.

Sentimentality is cheap. It’s like adding sugar to a weak coffee. It might taste slightly sweeter but it won’t taste better. It’s fake, it's forced, and it lacks real depth. Genuine emotion, on the other hand, is like a raw nerve. It's painful, it's real, and it's impossible to ignore. It’s not about how the poet thinks they should feel, but how they do.

The thing is, it can be scary to dig deep. To tap into the messy, complicated feelings that lie beneath the surface. It is tempting to default to something that is a pale imitation of what real emotions are like, but it simply will not work. You can be like all those other writers, or you can be truly authentic. The choice is yours.

So, How Do You Write With Genuine Feeling?

There are no easy answers, but here are some basic things that you should consider: