Readers have a lot of thoughts about writers, and a lot of them aren't all that positive. A lot of readers, it seems, believe that writers are these emotionless sociopaths who take joy in making readers suffer.

To their credit, there are plenty of authors out there who would lead someone to believe this to be the truth. Stephen King encourages aspiring writers to kill their darlings. Jodi Picoult has had quite a few tear-jerking titles in her day, as has Nicholas Sparks. George R.R. Martin has killed so many characters that it's better to ask who's still alive, and the same thing goes for the writers of shows like "Supernatural" and "Grey's Anatomy."

So it's obvious that a lot of writers are pretty good at pulling on heartstrings, and they take advantage of that talent. After all, memorable books are the ones that make readers feel something, and memorable books are more likely to do well. Authors want to do well, considering how much time and money goes into writing, editing, and publishing a book.

I've made plenty of jokes about writers being heartless, myself included, but working on my current novel for NaNoWriMo has changed my viewpoint.

Instead of writing a love story, I'm writing a story of a love that isn't meant to survive. It's an on again off again affair that runs the course of years. They love each other and hurt each other over and over, only to try it again in hopes that things will change and getting the same result every time. It's strenuous for the characters, to say the least, and it's strenuous for me to write.

Knowing what's coming and setting it all up, I've cried more than once. A lot of my writing sessions are spent choked up, with tissues and plenty of water nearby. I've had to pause and take breaks plenty of times, even if that has slowed down meeting writing goals throughout the month. Days have gone by over the past few weeks when I've written well over two thousand words, and days have gone by when I've barely broken one thousand words when the goal for every day is one thousand, six hundred and sixty-seven.

I haven't been behind on my word counts because I'm lazy; it's because I've needed time to get my feelings in check before being able to continue. I've been overwhelmed by the emotions that I feel within the universe of my book. I've laughed, but I've cried at least twice as much. It's been hard.

Writing is hard, and we have to get our joy out of it wherever we can. If that's from making readers feel, then so be it. After all, making other people feel what you feel, getting your ideas across that well, is one of the most fundamental ideas of human connection.