Do You Have a Soul?

Or rather, does your novel?

Yup, I've got a few extra minutes this morning, so I'm going to take advantage of this day I normally reserve for a day off.




I got a couple books out of the library last Saturday (I know, I know, but you must always find time for reading) and I read one of them over the weekend.  The book was crafted extraordinarily well.  The style was unique and pushed me along to read more.  But there was something else about this book that kind of made that little lightbulb go off in my head and find the connection between this book and a few others I've read.

They all had souls.

These rare gems rise above their peers with true life and vibrancy.  Not only do they reveal their secrets within the pages, but they force their readers to do the same.

And I think having this life and vibrancy, this soul, goes beyond merely stringing words along correctly and telling a good tale.  There are some wildly popular and entertaining novels out there that haven't quite reached soul status.  That's not to say they aren't good.  In fact, there are many on the NY Times Bestseller List that are crafted beautifully, but they lack that additional umph to make them truly come alive.

It's much like that guy who painted the campbell's soup cans (sorry, can't remember his name) being compared with Leonardo da Vinci.  That guy was hugely popular and his art still is.  But though it may be appealing to the eye and even a little out there, it kind of just stays there on the canvas.  But Da Vinci?  Now, his art makes you take a look at your own soul.

The same is true with writing.  We can do everything right--obey all the writerly rules (or break them only in the best of places), craft fun and exciting characters in fun and exciting worlds, and even come up with something truly out there, something people have never seen--and still have no soul.

I don't think it's possible for a writer to be able to tell if his/her own work has this extra umph.  I know I can't.  I'm pretty sure I've strung a good story, but I don't know if I've brought up issues and presented them in that little extra way that will make people go "wow, now that speaks to me."

Besides the book I read last weekend (which I will review next Monday), there is another book on my mind that was right there with the clicking lightbulb, getting connected with all the other books that have touched me in the past.  This is a book that I have consistently tried to figure out just why I loved it so much.  So many people have told me I should hate it and I could kind of see where they were going with their argument...if writing was math and I was a mathematician.

Twilight.

Yeah, here we go again.  But I'm only bringing it up again because I think that if I explain what I mean with an actual book, you guys will understand me better.

Twilight was riddled with adverbs.  Let's just get that out there.  But, who cares?  Honestly.  It worked!  And isn't that the point of writing?  But more than that, this book convinced me--and I am sure convinced millions of others--that I was falling in love all over again.  It didn't just tell me about Bella falling in love with Edward.  It convinced me--me, Emily--that I was falling in love.  That's a book with a soul.

Discussion:  Can you think of any books you've read that spoke to you above and beyond entertainment?  And what about your WIP?  Do you think it's possible to purposefully try to put soul into it, or do you think it's just one of those things that happens?


~Emily White