I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the role emotion plays in writing, probably because it confuses the hell out of me.

Currently, I base most of my writing decisions on feelings. I’m always asking myself: Is that exciting? Is there chemistry between these characters? Is this moving or a bit twee? Does this scene make me feel anything?

Emotion is how I choose which stories to tell. It’s how I decide whether to abandon a manuscript or stick at it. I do ask other people for critique someti...