5 Things “Frozen” Teaches Us About Being Better Writers-And Better People

Let me preface this blog post by saying that yes, I do have children. Yes, they probably would have shanghaied me into watching “Frozen” if I hadn’t volunteered. You know what? I’m a Disney freak. I’m a 31 year old woman sitting here writing a blog wearing a Mickey Mouse hoodie. Around here, Disney’s kind of a thing.
Don’t judge me.

Any time someone has a movie they absolutely love, or a show they love, or a book they went gaga over, there’s always something they relate to. Something they feel absolutely, no questions asked, relates to their life. Frozen was no different. From Elsa and Anna and Kristoff I learned:

1)      A Little Love Goes a Long Way. People do amazingly stupid things for love. It’s what rounds them out and makes them human. If you have a character that’s too one-dimensional, give them something or someone to love. If you have a character that you just can’t develop, ask yourself what it is you love about them. If you have a character you’re trying endear to the audience but you just can’t, ask yourself what it is about them that makes them so darn lovable.

2)      No One Wants to Be Alone. That tall, dark, brooding hero thing might be sexy, but the main reason it appeals is because we know the life they’re living isn’t the life they want. Even if they don’t know it yet.

3)      Learn to Live With It, Not Fear It. Had Elsa been able to embrace her powers rather than smother them, how different would “Frozen” have been? Would we have had a story at all? In real life, it’s far better to embrace your flaws and allow them to shape you than to try and hide. The same can be said for our characters-and ourselves. Once you accept that you’re not perfect, that you’re going to make mistakes, that sometimes you’re going to struggle and get up and get knocked back down again, it becomes a lot easier to put your soul out there on that page.

4)      Everyone’s a Fixer Upper. Nobody’s perfect. And like Hans, it’s the ones that are that you need to give a nice, clear berth. So if you’re worried about your flaws, about seeming less than perfect, about writing something that someone is going to look down their nose at, do it anyway. Take the plunge. 

5)      Let It Go. No, really. Let it go. Let. It. Go. Those expectations you feel like you have to live up to? The ones that get put there by everyone but you? Let it go. Be who you’re going to be, not who you feel someone else thinks you should be. As a writer, as a person, you’re going to be happier and more creative if you embrace the person you were meant to be and let that other you go.