Clay Mitchell's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing-tools"
Descriptive Details
Does everyone appreciate a healthy lambasting of descriptive detail in their fiction books? Are there fiction readers out there who don't want to get bogged down in the visual texture of a novel?
Personally, I love a book full of descriptive detail, but it must be used correctly. Details are like advice; there is a right place and time for it. When over-used and/or used in a place where the description doesn't benefit the story line, too much description can be a major distraction.
Your descriptions should harmonize with the flow of the scene and keep the pace of the story. You want just enough to bring texture to the scene and titillate the senses, leaving the reader aching for more as they strip away their world to crawl into yours.
Effective description helps the reader become emotionally invested in the story, so don't ask them to invest in something or someone that doesn't matter. Use your descriptive talents to gain sensory involvement in your setting and emotional involvement in your characters. Descriptive detail is also a handy device for planting seeds to be cultivated later in the story, and to create parallelism in the story line (habits, scenes that repeat, events that re-occurr later in the story, etc.). When used properly, detailed descriptions of parallel events can also be an effective device for showing change or growth in your characters.
Many writers love to get down and dirty into the descriptive details, and when used wisely, it can be the very definition of great fiction writing. Just remember, "Fiction writing is like tightrope walking, It's all about balance."
Personally, I love a book full of descriptive detail, but it must be used correctly. Details are like advice; there is a right place and time for it. When over-used and/or used in a place where the description doesn't benefit the story line, too much description can be a major distraction.
Your descriptions should harmonize with the flow of the scene and keep the pace of the story. You want just enough to bring texture to the scene and titillate the senses, leaving the reader aching for more as they strip away their world to crawl into yours.
Effective description helps the reader become emotionally invested in the story, so don't ask them to invest in something or someone that doesn't matter. Use your descriptive talents to gain sensory involvement in your setting and emotional involvement in your characters. Descriptive detail is also a handy device for planting seeds to be cultivated later in the story, and to create parallelism in the story line (habits, scenes that repeat, events that re-occurr later in the story, etc.). When used properly, detailed descriptions of parallel events can also be an effective device for showing change or growth in your characters.
Many writers love to get down and dirty into the descriptive details, and when used wisely, it can be the very definition of great fiction writing. Just remember, "Fiction writing is like tightrope walking, It's all about balance."
