Explosions of Excitement: What Makes Us Tick?

(Picture from wide-wallpapers.net)

If you've ever noticed your loved ones creep toward you with a straight jacket after you get excited about something, then this article is for you.

Fortunately, you probably don't need a straight jacket--you're just excited about something nobody else is. And that doesn't make you crazy. Something we're all taught from a young age is "Everyone is Unique". (And then we're shown how we need to be like everybody else--that's the conflicting message of the educational system for you, kids.) But, while genetically we aren't completely different, we all have certain aspects which make us stand out. It could be ungodly athletic prowess, or excessive comic book knowledge, or you could be a shapeshifting carnivorous monster from space. Chances are, you're not that last one. I hope.

As an author, part of my job is to find what makes people tick--and since everyone is different in some way, an author's duty is to look behind that and find similarities in interest. Take, for instance, the AMC adaptation of The Walking Dead. The series has had a resounding effect through modern hearts and minds. Seriously, I've never seen more people rabid for the next season of any other show. Ever. What in the world makes it so popular?

Well, oftentimes my research comes from unlikely places. In this case, my research came from my mother, who surprisingly loves the series. My mother isn't normally into the Zombie Genre, nor the post-apocalyptic genre. Well, what brought her there then? I asked her.


"It's not just Zombie stuff. There's story there; romance, good characters. Suspense."


The ability of a story to succeed is based largely on finding a common element to attract readers of many genres. That's something The Walking Dead utilized to hook hundreds of thousands of people. Sure, there's the action-junkie's high, but there's also somber moments and feelings are felt.

Here's a challenge: think back to the last book you read, or the last movie you watched. What are the most memorable parts for you? For me, who last re-watched The Lego Movie, the most memorable moments weren't the comedy, or the acton. What I remembered most were the emotional scenes, especially around the end, when a fantastic speech is delivered by the main character, who until then was a complete nobody. The other parts I still remember were the parts that, for lack of better words, I found artistically beautiful. So, what can we take away from my example? I'm willing to bet it's beauty and emotion are one of many common interests between several types of people. Of course, there're always the Dark Ones--the people who don't appreciate emotion or beauty--but chances are, they aren't going to enjoy reading fiction, anyway; much of fiction involves these two elements.

Whatever has a lasting effect is what makes people feel; makes A LOT of people feel. Humans are wired to remember the extremes--it wouldn't be totally memorable if it was just a boring, regular day, would it? So we remember what makes us laugh. We remember what makes us cry. We look back fondly at old loves, and cherish new ones. Make some time to find out what makes people tick--

We all have different explosions of excitement, but many of us share at least one good fuse.


-Dakota

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