The Physicality of
Writing
Being
the observant little creep that I am, I love watching people when they think
nobody is looking, especially if they’re reading a book. For example, I was on
the metro a few days ago and I was sitting next to a woman who was reading. She
wasn’t paying attention to anything but the book, her eyelids drooping a bit
more with every page turn, her fingers quickly whipping the pages back and forth.
I could tell that she didn’t feel up to reading it any longer – she was so
tired – but she physically did not want to part with the book. I had to put in
the book detail just because I’m a die-hard bookworm, but really I love figuring
out what body language means, and my second favorite thing to observe is how
people look when they’re writing.
This
may take some explaining,
 |
| Illustration by Frederik Peeters |
which I will do through examples. So, take me for the
first example: When I write, at least ninety percent of the time I am lying
down, balancing laptop on stomach, eyes darting ahead to figure out what else
I’m going to put in my piece. Now, before I go any further, I just want to say
that although I am not a professional writer, I am very comfortable with words.
I love words. I could write a whole essay on how much I love words. I won’t do
that right now. But I could, and I probably will at some point. I swear I
didn’t just go off onto some weird tangent – I mentioned how comfortable I am
with words because I think that’s what my body language reveals when I write. Lying
down reflects how relaxed I am when I write, the way I balance my laptop could
show how balanced I feel when I write, my darting eyes capturing how I don’t
dwell on what I’ve already written. I’m always looking ahead and trying to
process what I want to write next. However, while I am now trying to come up
with a sentence to transition into the next paragraph, I have sat up straight
and crossed my legs, indicating my frustration and crossness that I can’t come
up with a transition. I guess that’ll do as one!
Being a
writing center tutor, I’ve been able to see the body language of hundreds of
students, which I think is some sort of twisted blessing for me. I say twisted
because, like I said earlier, I do think my observations are creepy. It’s okay
though, for at least I know I’m a creep. Acceptance is the first step. Okay
that time I did digress. Anyway! Let’s take a look at a less-than-enthusiastic
writer, my friend Zack. Zack’s a science and math guy, definitely not a history
and English guy. When he writes, he does so sitting at a table, but he doesn’t
hunch. Hunching is more important than you’d think! Another tutor, Kristen, hunches
when she writes, making me think that she’s caving in on her work because she’s
gotten so into it. Zack’s position is
more standoffish, reflecting his general distaste for writing – simply put,
that he hasn’t gotten so into it. He’s
not a super comfortable writer, hence the fact that he doesn’t position himself
in a relaxed sort of way – when he writes, he’s official about it, which
mirrors his official tone in his essays. On the other side of things, Kristen’s
tone is usually more informal and flowery.
Wow, I feel
like a therapist while writing this, and now I am sitting up, legs crossed,
just like a therapist would if he or she were analyzing something somebody said
or wrote. But there is so much to analyze with writing other than just the
writing, you just have to look between the lines and behind the scenes. There’s
a whole world behind writing that goes unnoticed, as there is with most things.
It’s time we start taking notice.
If you want to read more on body language and what it may reveal, click here!
If you have any questions, feel free to email me at effordn@gmail.com!
