One of the most effective ways to keep your readers turning the pages is to speak to their emotions. Writers need to remember that people don't read to share a writer's experience; they want their own experiences. Readers create these experiences by identifying and emphasizing the character or story. Here we find fiction's value, where readers use the emotions and events to reflect on their own challenging situations.

What is emotive language?

With this technique, the writer makes specific word choices to appeal to the reader's emotions and engage them in the narrative. It is a way to persuade the reader that the antagonist has a believable motive for his actions or to let them associate and agree with a character's point of view. Emotions are often hard to express and to use this technique effectively, writers have to expand their emotional vocabulary and emotive writing techniques.

Emotive writing techniques

There are many ways writers can introduce emotive language in their novels.

Take advantage of the complexity of emotions. Write a scene to bring out the apparent emotions in your reader, but add an unexpected twist to evoke other emotions as well. 

Look past the obvious. Dig into the past of your character and add layers of emotion. Use past incidents, secrets, and random thoughts to evoke various emotions. Flashbacks are the perfect tool to use since it helps the reader explore the character's psyche.

Write from experience. The best way to improve your emotional writing is to write from experience. Take the time to journal your emotional reactions to events in your life regularly. Write about fear, excitement, grief, anger, love, etc. It will make your writing more authentic, and your readers will quickly connect with those feelings in your narrative. 

Provide some distance. Often when writers deal with topics like rape, abuse, racism, etc., the emotions in the narrative can become very intense. Then it is a good idea to create distance from the events to give the reader a chance to breathe. Incorporate humor to light up an intense moment, or occasionally use impartial or objective language. 

Show, don't tell. I'm sure many writers have been driven crazy by this advice. And for some, mastering this technique is quite challenging. Instead of constantly describing a character's emotions, show its effects by explaining how they react and how these emotions affect their bodies and facial expressions. 

Avoid cliches.  Be original. Every time you use a cliche is a lost opportunity to impact your reader. The writing you do about your own emotional reactions will help you here, as you are writing from experiencing these emotions yourself. How did your body react? What did you feel in your face? What thoughts went through your mind?

Emotive writing forms the backbone of your novel. It impacts your characters, setting, mood, and plot. It is only by getting them emotionally involved that you can keep your readers engaged. Writers - which one of these emotive writing techniques will you incorporate in your novel today?

Sources:

Emotive language

https://www.twinkl.co.za/teaching-wiki/emotive-language

Emotive Language in Creative Writing, & How to Use It in a Story

https://julianneberokoff.com/2018/05/19/emotive-language-creative-writing/

Emotive Language: What it is and How it can help you?

https://www.totalassignmenthelp.com/blog/emotive-language/

Emotional Writing: One Surprising Method for Creating Emotion in Your Readers

https://thewritepractice.com/emotional-writing/

How to Write With Emotion and Make Your Readers Feel

https://thewritepractice.com/how-to-write-with-emotion/

How to Write Emotion: 5 Ways to Make Your Readers Feel Emotion

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-write-emotion#how-to-evoke-emotion-in-your-writing