Breathless

If you’ve picked up food from Chipotle Mexican Grill, maybe you’ve noticed maybe you’ve noticed over the years the variety of ideas expressed on the cups and bags (through writing and art) as you are consuming your meal. Maybe you thought “that’s interesting” as your eyes skimmed over it.

Chipotle Mexican Grill challenged a large diversity of well-known authors, leaders, and comedians to provide inspiration, challenge, introspection, and laughter all though the Cultivating Thought-Author Series (via your carry out order).

Author Amy Tan (of the memoir, The Joy Luck Club, The Bonesetter’s Daughter, and Kitchen God’s Wife) was challenged to write in three hundred words about anything she wished. The quote I saw on my daughter’s bag of food (she frequents here often) resonated so deeply in my soul that I had to share it with all of you. Here it is.

“I was punched breathless with the strongest emotions I have ever felt and they are now stored in my intuition as a writer.” If you are not the writing type, here is an important fact you may not realize.

The good fiction writer (or creator) is much like an excellent actor. For both of these genres, they must become that character. Here is a real-life example from the Lifetime channel of the actress.

Christina Ricci is quite believable in her role as the murderous Lizzie Bordon in both Lizzie Bordon Took an Ax (2014) and semi-fictitious The Lizzie Bordon Chronicles (2015). Christina Ricci does not have the murderous tendencies of the character she is playing, but you would not know that. To be Lizzie, Christina had to completely inhabit the personae of this historical character.

For Amy Tan to be the fabulous author she is, it was required for her to inhabit (or empathize with) the emotions of her character to come up with something life-like with the readers.

No matter what your avenue of creativity may be. Somehow connect it to your emotions for others. When others can make a human connection with what you’ve envisioned, I believe it will be a hit.