{Guest Post} Global writing for the next generation of authors By E.J. Miranda

Today author E.J. Miranda has stopped by on the blog to discuss an important issue for writers - how do you help readers on a global scale connect with your story? Read on to find out more!

How do you, as an author, connect people around the world through your writing? We live in a time where the internet allows us to know what is happening in other countries in just a couple of seconds. We are all connected as a big online community where, with just a couple of clicks, we have information readily available to us. But, how can you take this sense of connection to the next level as a global writer? How do you build a community and generate awareness of other cultures through your stories and characters?

It all comes down to having a real message to the world and educating yourself on how to transmit to create the biggest impact. To be a writer, you must be a good reader. This is a given. You must be curious. You must ask questions and be willing to seek the answers for yourself. You must connect to the people you are intending to write about. It is only when you understand something, when you do your research, when you seek both sides of a situation, that you will truly gain a good sense of what you will be writing about. Otherwise, you will be blindly writing about a subject that you only have superficial knowledge about and this reflects on the writing.

My personal take on global writing is that it allows you to create a sense of cultural awareness, encourage respect to other countries’ cultures, and connect readers of different backgrounds by giving them information and allowing them to make their own conclusions on how different or similar their cultures are. I strongly believe that when people have information and a true understanding of other cultures, they are able to make more educated decisions on their words and actions. We live in a time where it has never been more important to be respectful and aware of the world’s cultural diversity. We can only grow together and evolve as a society if we encourage respect, tolerance, and an open-minded approach to others.

As a writer, each book represents an opportunity to impact your readers and move them emotionally. As an example for you, when I was outlining my first book “Julian Fox, The Dream Guardian”, I knew that I wanted to leave a bigger message to the world. I wanted my book to be more than just an entertaining story, and I wanted to make the readers actually think. My personal way of connecting people around the world is through history and cultural awareness. I wrote about locations and historic events I have spent years researching about.

My take on global writing was creating different characters of diverse cultural backgrounds, aiming to be as accurate and respectful as I could be. I also wrote about characters that not only are from different countries, but they lived through very difficult historic events, such as the Black Plague, the Spanish Inquisition, the construction of the Great Wall of China, among others. I personally chose history as a way to connect people by giving them information on the events that happened and let them make their own conclusion on how these “past” circumstances are still occurring today. These events may have taken place in another country, but learning about them could actually allow the readers to see just how similar we all are and even encourage conversations on global solutions.

As you can see, this is only one approach to global writing, but there are many others you can choose to pursue. The main idea is to always connect your readers to the rest of the world, leave an emotional impact on them, and encourage a positive change through your writing.

About the author

E. J. MIRANDA is an avid reader, an enthusiastic traveler, and a passionate author. Her great sense of humor and love for nature have granted her a rebellious writing style: her approach describes the adventures of life, but in such a way that each reader can have an individual take on the matter. Her inspiration comes from her curiosity about other countries’ cultures and peculiarities. A few countries in particular which spark her curiosity are Colombia, Italy, Costa Rica, England, Belgium, Mexico, Spain, and the United States. 

 Her favorite places to visit are historical sites and museums, locations that allow her to explore important and even overlooked details. She currently lives with her husband in Colombia, but frequently travels to Houston to visit her daughter and son. E.J. Miranda has a degree in tax accounting, but she prefers interacting with people to calculating their taxes. To learn more about her life and work, visit www.ejmiranda.com.