How to Say It Without Saying It

Writing what you feel—without naming it

Some poems bleed emotion. Others whisper it through the cracks.

The difference? One tells you how to feel. The other lets you feel it.

And the truth is, the second kind almost always lasts longer.

The problem with naming emotions

We live in a world overflowing with feeling words—sad, empty, tired, heartbroken, in love, inspired. But when we reach for them too quickly in our writing, they flatten the experience. They tell the reader instead of giving them something to hold.

It’s the difference between:

“I feel broken”
—and—
“I haven’t touched the coffee mug you left in the sink.”

Both might mean heartbreak. But only one makes you feel it.

How to write around the feeling