Writing Like Freud: A Word about the Subconscious

Part of learning to write something people actually want to read is learning the basics of human psychology.

I don't claim to be well-versed in psychology, but I have a good sense of certain things that happen in my readers' brains while they read. Throughout the semester, I will probably use the word subconscious a dozen times.

The reason the subconscious is so important to understand is because most of your readers will be able to tell if something is written well—if it is interesting or compelling—even if they have no idea why. It's kind of like watching movies. I really don't know the first thing about how movies are made. I know there's a script and a director and beautiful actors and actresses who make gobs of money, but beyond that, it's all lights and magic for me. Yet I have a good sense of what is high-quality and what isn't. You're probably the same. And that's because the film-makers have a good grasp on what is happening in our minds at the subconscious level as we watch their movies. In fact, there's a phenomenon in the movie world called "the suspension of disbelief." The idea is that when you watch a movie, you get so wrapped up in what's going on that you forget you're watching a movie. You tune out your surroundings—the other movie goers, the walls, the projector—and you become a part of the action. But then something happens that breaks that suspension, and suddenly your pulled back to reality. You remember you're in a movie theater or sitting on your couch watching a movie. Anything can cause it: a baby crying, someone's cell phone, a stomach ache, bad editing, a Kim Kardashian cameo. And once that suspension of disbelief is lifted, it can take a while to get back into it.

As a writer, you are attempting the same feat: to get your reader to forget for a moment that they are reading an essay or a book or an article or a research paper. You want them to get sucked in, and you can't do this unless you have some basic understanding of what's going on in their minds.

Here are just a few examples that I use throughout this book of things that happen at the subconscious level:

Sensory details — when you draw from most or all of the senses in your descriptions, the reader feels like they are there. They don't ever have to pause and identify the senses. Rarely will they applaud you for remembering to work "taste" into your description. They will simply feel it. "Man," they'll think. "That was a great story."

Block quotes — next time you read an article, pay attention to what you do when there's a block quote. Chances are you will skim right over it. That's why I discourage my students from including very many of them. If you are doing something that loses your reader at a subconscious level and makes them start skimming, you have failed as a writer. You want to keep their eyes and attention glued to your every word!

White space — readers are drawn to writing that is visually appealing. That doesn't mean adorned with pictures but with space between paragraphs and in the margins. If you are trying to decide if you should split that long paragraph in half, the answer is usually yes: people prefer shorter paragraphs, even if they don't realize it.

Logic — I have included an entire chapter on logical fallacies, and even though most people have never heard of the word fallacy, nor the weird Greek and Latin terms that go along with them, they recognize logic when it breaks down. Though they might not say, "Your logic is fallacious in that you have resorted to a hasty generalization," they might say, "You're basing all of that on a conversation you had with one person?"

I had an English professor berate me once (okay, maybe not berate, but he was super annoyed) when I referred to writing as "the art of manipulation." He told me it's the art of persuasion. But what's the difference? I suppose manipulation has negative connotations. Really, though, it's the same thing. I still stand by that statement. Understanding how the human psyche fits into writing really comes down to understanding how to manipulate your readers—but in a good way.