Actors see the world through a different lens, as if a performance manifests itself into every action every individual person makes throughout the day. According to writer Emma Cartwright, each performance holds a story to tell.

Emma finds writing to be an extension of two parts of her life that she loves: reading and theater. Theater makes you more empathetic, she says, as she puts herself headfirst into the lives of others. Delving into a new character each show helps her to understand the lives of those around her, and to appreciate the finer points of humanity.

“I want to share snapshots of people, and how they interact with each other,” Emma notes.

“Bits of the human existence.” 

Additionally, she weaves theatrics into her writing, forming a stunning fabric of her experiences. She often finds shows she acts in influencing her style. Emma confides that words from the dramatic one act, Brian the Comet, began appearing subconsciously in her works, as she performed the show countless times for several competitions. While rehearsing for the comedy Puffs, she began to write with a playful flair, similar to the show’s bizarre nature. A small piece of what she performs wedge their way into her writing, she says.

Her mindset when writing holds true to “something that could be performed,” like slam poetry, or a piece of theatrical literature itself. Not only does Emma want her readers to understand how her characters feel about one another, but to engage her audience and challenge their beliefs on how the relationships she writes should be perceived. Like a performance, audience plays an enormous role in writing.

Emma longs to show others her view of the world, through every character she’s played, every person she’s met, and every story she’s picked up along the way.