Why I think INFPs make good creative writers
A common INFP stereotype is that we have lots of emotions, a wild imagination, and a propensity to write in journals (and write well). Just to warn you, I am not trying to humblebrag about my writing and don’t think that all good writers are INFPs. However I have a hypothesis about natural INFP traits and the depth of emotion needed to write creatively.
Perhaps I am alone in this, in which case you can disregard this entire post, but I suspect that other INFPs also feel more intensity in their emotions at the idea of something depressing or joyous rather than when it is staring us in the eyes. Don’t get me wrong, we are extremely emotional and sensitive creatures in real life, however I think our empathy in that moment comes from a higher level of emotional reasoning - one that picks up not on facts or details, but meanings and themes, some of which are orchestrated by our imaginations. It takes a kind of “perspective” for me to truly feel for someone.
Let me give you an example.
An acquaintance tells you she failed her driving test. You are reasonably sad for her in that moment. But if I told you that she comes from a less financially stable family, she has been practicing for months while paying for lessons, and that she wants the license in order to help out with errands at home, your sadness - regardless of personality type - would find a new depth. You can probably even imagine this girl nervously scanning the street while she was aware of the evaluator watching her.
Viewing a situation through a lens like this is what gives it colour and life and emotion and significance - without this, it is simply a sensory experience, cold and clinical. Every person is capable of framing situations and understanding the context, but what’s special about this is that it is automatic and effortless to the INFP. We look at the world in shades of pink, blue, teal, amber; our imagination revels in tints.
As frustrating as it is at times when an INFP has thought up something that doesn’t actually exist in real life, I think this type of emotional framing is the kind found in good creative writing. So many experiences pass us by in life, but it takes a writer deciding to capture an everyday moment in a certain light in order for others to say, “Wow, that was something special. I never saw it that way.”
Now the interesting part of all this, is “Why writing?”. Why not art or music or a wild concoction of basil-pesto pasta that represents the feeling you got when that poor girl eventually passed her driving test? I am not entirely sure. I think INFPs would be drawn to all kinds of arts, however there is something abstract, complex, yet peacefully low-key about writing. There is no spotlight, no sensory overload, and no complicated physical skills needed for the writer to put her pen to paper (or finger to keyboard).
So INFPs, or other types who are accused of having too many feels, show the world your lens. Get better at your craft. Change the way they look at the world and the beings in it. And have fun.
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