If asked, most people would probably guess that empathy is an ancient concept dating back to the Hebrews or the Greeks or the Romans, that it arose from religion or philosophy. However, the concept of empathy is little more than a century old, and the word “empathy” did not enter our lexicon until the early 20th century when it was used to describe the imaginative act of projecting oneself onto a work of art.

That’s right, empathy originated with art. . . .

​It’s difficult (maybe impossible) to explain to someone who doesn’t write that the development of characters is not something a fiction writer enters into lightly. I can’t speak for all writers, but the characters I've created feel very real to me, and I’m not ashamed to admit that there are plenty of days when I think about them, wonder how they are doing, forget that they aren’t actually living and breathing in the world beyond the page.

I realize that sounds made up—like some airy fairy comment artists make--but it's true.

To be successful as a writer of realist fiction, you must be capable of wearing a couple different hats: the reader hat and the writer hat. You must be able to switch back and forth between these hats, as needed. Reading and writing are both acts of creation, but they approach the same subject matter from opposite directions.

This approach is not transferable.

It’s understatement to say that we live in politically complicated times. And though it has been postulated that, out of struggle, great art is born, our current cultural climate poses undeniable challenges for poets and writers. A new president has taken office—one who does not read and does not write (a sharp contrast to his literate predecessor [2]). To top it all off, there’s reason to believe that the new administration will discontinue support for writing and the arts. For this reason (and a myriad of others), now may be the most important time in our nation’s history for writers and artists to speak out creatively and intellectually.

But where does this leave writers of realist fiction?