How Emotional Intelligence Is A Skill Every Screenwriter Needs
The storytelling business is the emotions business. It has been said that the basis of the story is character. But that adage doesn’t help without emphasizing the importance of what a character feels, not just what they do. To tell a story that moves the characters with a purpose, it’s imperative to employ a sense of emotional intelligence (or EI). Knowing what a character feels-- and why-- increases a writer’s chances of tapping into the audience’s emotions. More than that, a writer must know how to manage their feelings to be the best artist they can be. Emotional Intelligence is defined as the ability to identify, assess, and navigate emotions in oneself and others. In a story, just like in the real world, differing viewpoints create compelling emotional conflict. And if a writer cannot grapple with divergent or opposing viewpoints, they can’t realistically depict conflict. No conflict, no character. No character, no story.
An apt grasp of emotional intelligence typically entails but is not limited to:
Interest in the lives and thoughts of others
The capacity to perceive and describe emotions
Empathy for people different from oneself
A knowledge of your strengths and weaknesses
An ability to accept and embrace change
There are some obvious boons to taking these points to heart as a writer. Interest in other people and other worlds is the bedrock of a writer’s journey. Though introspective exercises like journaling are indeed a gateway to the profession, the connection is what truly gets the wheels turning. How does my experience relate to others? What can they gain from it? Is there anyone out there who feels the way I do about these things? The human condition is a group project. It requires comparing notes. Empathy comes into play here, especially when writing characters who have little or nothing in common with us.
Also, a conscious effort to perceive and describe emotions might save a writer from one of two problems; writing characters who are simply mouthpieces for their feelings or writing characters who have no deep feelings to speak of. When a writer incorporates their viewpoint into a character’s development, they may benefit from the “write what you know” adage. But if they aren’t careful, they might run the risk of treating every character in the story as a reflection of their personal lens. To avoid this, a writer must identify their feelings as well as the feelings that make sense for the character they are writing. If an overlap makes sense, then the writing should proceed with that self-awareness. But if a writer finds their feelings inhibit emotional expression that rings true for the character, they can remain mindful to stay true to the character’s unique voice.
When depicting complex subjects such as trauma, psychological crises, or complicated relationships it can be tempting to rely on old tropes. However, experts argue that going with “caricature” versions of these topics instead of increasing emotional intelligence around the material can lean into exploitation. This makes writing with emotional intelligence something of a responsibility, not just a way to enhance the quality of the writing. Below are some of my favorite methods for testing emotional intelligence when tackling the deeper threads of a story.
Real-Life References - If you have no personal experience with a particular emotional situation, find someone close to you who does and consider using them as a character model. If they are comfortable being a reference, ask them about their experience and what they were feeling at the time. Be sure to ask them if your depiction is accurate and/or respectful.
Emotional Sketches - Take some time to write out an emotional/psychological profile of your characters and do some research to see if your assessment tracks with reported lived experiences. If you find that your understanding of these emotional situations lacks nuance, amend it with what you find in your research.
The Perspective Triangle - A persona is made up of three legs-- how one sees oneself, how others see them, and how one wants others to see them. This is true for a real human and it’s true for a fictional character. Simultaneously consider these three elements to triangulate a character’s emotional vantage point.
At the end of the day, storytelling is about humans understanding one another. The oral histories that grew into fables retold for entertainment began as a way to stay connected to those who came before. Choosing emotional intelligence as the writer’s internal compass honors that tradition.