We all just want to feel alive. This might be stating the obvious, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while. People do things, crazy things, stupid things, even mundane things just to feel the full spectrum of human emotions. Listening to sad songs, watching scary movies, drinking too much, singing, stirring up drama with an ex, going to a comedy club, all of these things - everything - makes us feel something. It makes us feel alive to feel all these things. And what is life without emotions? Feeling something is the reason we do most things in life, the things we do by choice not necessity. I think that the daily ho hum of life can really wear someone down, not out of intensity but of the exact opposite, from the lack of intensity. That’s why people seek “entertainment.” It’s not entertainment, it’s escapism of some sort, maybe even a purging. As humans we love stories because we enjoy losing ourselves in our emotions. We want those feelings to be stirred up and bubble over. Whether it’s a middle aged woman getting riled up over some housewife reality TV show, an angsty teenager crying over a Taylor Swift song, or some dude getting fired up over a playoff game, it’s not really about the medium or what the information is, it’s about touching the soul of a person through getting them to feel. As storytellers the main goal should not be entertainment. We are not in the “entertainment” industry, it should be rethought of as the “emotion” industry. Just my opinion, but I think it’s a different way of looking at it.