View
219
Download
2
Category
Preview:
DESCRIPTION
fiction
Citation preview
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 1/14
SA T URDA Y , 2 8 JUNE 2 0 1 4
TopWritingTips
Sometimesthereissomuchtorememberwhenwerewritingthatitseasytoforgetsomethings,butallittakesissomequickandeasytipstogiveourselvesthatlittlepushtomakesurewevecoveredallthenecessaryelementstowriteagoodstory.
So,tomakesureyoudontmisstheobvious,herearesomequickandeasywritingtips:
1.BANG!
Thatsyouropeninggambit.Orsomethingverysimilar.
Inotherwords,startyourstoryatapivotalmomentinyourcharacterslife,amomentofchange,amomentofjeopardy,orevenabangsomethingthatmakesthereaderinstantlysitupandtakenotice.
Donteverstartastorywithlotsofbackstory.Thatmeansthereaderwouldhavetowadethroughthreeoffourpagesofboringinformationbeforeanythingnotablehappens.Youropeningchapter,andyouropeningsentence,shouldgrabthereaderandthrowthemrightintotheaction,rightfromtheoutset.
2.Tempt,Tease&Tantalise
Sellthestorylikeyoumeanit.Inotherwords,neverlosesightofthewholestoryandwhatitmeansforthereader.Soyouvegrabbedtheirattentionwithagood
A LL WR IT E F I C T IONADVICE
IsBackstoryNecessary?CreatingLastingImagesTrustYourMemoriesReadingYourMSSOutLoudSortingFactfromFiction
WE LCOME T O A L L WR IT E
Soyou'veembarkedonyourfictionwritingjourney.
It'soneofthehardestthingstodocreateawhole,believableworldforotherpeopletoenjoy,especiallyifyou'renewtowriting.It'salsooneoftheloneliestjobs,especiallywhenthereisnohelporadviceorsupport...sorightheretherewillbehandyarticles,examplesandsimplestepbystepguidestohelpmakethecreativeprocessthatmucheasier.
FE BRUA R Y FE MME SFA T A LE S
Thisnewdeliciouslydarkanthologyisoutnow,witharangeofstunningfemalewriterstoscareanddelightinequal
AdbyBrowserShop|Close
A L L WR I T E F I C T I ON ADV I C EA D V I C E O N C R E A T I V E WR I T I NG
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 2/14
opening,youvesetthescene,youveintroducedthemaincharacterandyousetuptheconflictbutthenwhat?
Well,youkeepdoingjustthatyouhavetoholdthereadersattentionfortheentirestorytempt,teaseandtantalisethereaderfromtheopeningsentencetotheclosingparagraph.Thatmeansyouhavetokeepthemreadingbytemptingthemwithwhatmaycome,youhavetoengageandenticethemwiththestorybydanglingthosecarrotsandyouhavetoexciteandfrustratetheminequalmeasure,rightuntiltheend.
3.CreateConflict
Ifthereislittleconflictthereisnostory.
Everystoryneedsit.Thatmeanstherewillbeaprotagonistandanantagonistworkingagainsteachother,andtherewillalwaysbesomethingstoppingthemaincharacterreachinghisorherendgoal.Thatswhatconflictisabout.
Conflictcausestensionandtensioncausesatmosphere.Yourstoryshouldneverbeasflatasacalmlake.Insteaditshouldberollingandroilinglikeastormysea.
Conflictcomesinthreeforms,somakeeveryuseofthem:
Manv.man(external)Manvnature(external)Manvhimself(internal)
4.RaisetheStakes!
Dontmakeiteasyforyourmaincharacters.
Infact,makeitashardaspossibleforthemtoreachtheirultimategoal.Bemean.Backthemintocorners,givethemproblemstodealwith,placebarriersintheirway,givethemdilemmasandforcethemtomakechoices.
Keepraisingthestakes...readersloveit.
5.DumptheInfoDump
measure.Iamprivilegedtohaveeightshortstories/poemspublishedinthisbook,soifyoulikeyourdamesalittledarkanddangerous,thisisthebookforyou.
NOW A VA I LA BLE ONAMA ZON
FebruaryFemmesFatalesTheBook
WISE WORDS . . .
Writingislikebeingmarriedyouhavetoworkhardatmaintaininghappinessandequilibrium,butinvariablyonealwaysendsupinthedoghouse.
A BOUT ME
AJHUMPAGE
UNITEDKINGDOM
I'vebeenwritingforover25yearsandstartedoutinthe
publishingindustry.I'vepublishedarticles,studyguides,poems,flashfiction,shortstoriesandanovel.IalsoworkfulltimesoI'mALWAYSworking.
VIEWMYCOMPLETEPROFILE
BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 3/14
Manywritersfallheadlongintotheinfodump.Thisiswhenthereistoomuchexplanationinthenarrative,wherethewriterhasforgottenthathugechucksofinformationwillborethereadersenseless.Readersdontmindinformation,butinsmall,easytodigestsnippets.Intruth,theyjustwanttogetbacktotheaction.Ifyouvewrittenthreepagesofexplanationorbackstory,gobackandeditituntilitsnomorethanthreeorfourparagraphs.
6.GoonaWordyKillingSpree
Gothroughyourstoryandkillallthosepeskyadverbsandadjectivestheyjustlovetocreepintothenarrativeandweakenit.Instead,replacethemwithnounsandverbs,whichstrengthenthenarrative.
Getridofallthosedanglingparticiplesatthebeginningofsentences,lookoutforrepetition,weedouttheinstancesofwasfromyourdescriptivepassages,andmakesureyourdescriptionsdontsufferfromwordiness.
7.Show,DontTell
Everybodyknowsthismaxim.Whereimportantdescriptionsareconcerned,showthereader,donttellthem.Yourstoryisntaninstructionmanual.Ifyoutellthereadereverything,ratherthanshowthem,theywontbeabletoengagewiththestoryoryourcharacters,theywontbeabletoimaginebeingthereinthatmoment.
Forexample,donttellthemthattwocharactersaretryingtocrossafastflowingrivertorescuesomeoneontheotherside,thattheyusedaropeandmadeitsafety.Thatsboring.
Showthereaderhowthecharactersstrugglewiththecurrent,showthedanger,thefear.Showthemtheconflict(manv.nature),andshowthedeterminationandstrengthofcourageandfinallyshowthemthereliefwhenthereachtheotherside.
Byshowingthereader,youstrengthenyourkeyscenesconsiderably.
NowavailableonAmazonKindleUKandUS
BLOOD A ND GUT SANT HOLOGY
YOUASCAREDYCAT?NowavailableatAmazon
FE BRUA R Y FE MME SFA T A LE S S T OR IE S
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 4/14
8.MakeYourEndingCount
Yourendingshouldneverbeadampsquib.Itshouldbesatisfactoryforbothwriterandreaderinotherwords,itshouldbeabsolutelyrightforthestory.
Dontoverwriteit,orletitdragon,butdontleavethereaderscratchingtheirheadorfeelingtheyvebeenshortchanged,either.Putasmucheffortintocreatingtherightendingasyouwouldtocreateagreatopeningforyourstory.
Ifitdoesntfeelright,thenitprobablyisnt.Endingsshouldtieupallthelooseendsandmoreimportantly,leavethereadergratifiedandcontentedwiththeoutcome.
9.ReadYourStoryAloud
Anothergreatwaytoeditistoreadyourstoryaloud.Thismayseemstrange,andyoumayfeelsillydoingit,butitisafantasticwayforyoutoactuallyhearwhatyouhavewritten,asopposedtoreadingit.
Readingitaloudallowsyoutolistentoyourdialoguedoesitsoundrealenough,doesitmakesense?Italsoallowsyoutohearthepaceofyourstoryandwhetheritflowscorrectly,andwhetherallyoursentencestructuresreadwell.
10.Write,edit,write,edit
Firstdraftsarebuttheskinthatcoversthebarebones.Thatmeansnoonecaneverwriteaperfectlypolished,publishablestory/novelfirsttimearound.Itneverhappens,becausethestorywillbefullofmistakes,therewillbetoomanylongscenes,stuffthatdoesntquitemakesense,charactersthatcanbeditched,holesintheplot,notenoughdescription,ornotenoughdialogue,orsubplotsandlooseendsthatneedtobetidiedup.
Whatwritersdo,however,isediteachdraftuntilitsaclosetoperfectaspossible.Somewriterscandoitintwoorthreeedits,dependingontheirexperience,othersneedfourorfiveedits.Buteachtimeyouedit,thestoryshouldimprove,untiltherearenoplotflaws,everythingreadssmoothly,thereisagoodbalanceofnarrative,dialogueanddescription,thereareno
VisittheFeardomclickthepic
FOLLOW BY E MA I L
S T YL ISH BLOGGE R AWARD
BLOG A R CHIVE
2015(8)
2014(46)December(2)
November(5)
October(2)
September(4)
August(4)
July(4)
June(4)TopWritingTips
Emailaddress... Submit
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 5/14
grammarerrors,thesubplotscomplimentthemainstoryandthecharactersarefullyfledgedandsoon.
Neverlosesightofalltheseelementsandyouwontgofarwronginyourwriting.
Nextweek:Doescrossgenrewritingreallywork?POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JUNE28, 2014
4COMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST
REACTIONS: Helpful (0) Interesting (0) OK (0)
SA T URDA Y , 2 1 JUNE 2 0 1 4
WhyRejectionisaGoodThing
Thereisnothingworsethanahardkickintheguts.Thatsgenerallywhatrejectionfeelslike.
Afterworkinghardwriting,draftingandeditingyourmasterpiece,andespeciallyafterhavingthecouragetosubmitittoanagentorpublisher,yougetthesummaryrejection.Anditdoesdeflateyou,nomatterhowexperiencedawriteryouare.
Thereisamisconceptionthatrejectionsrepresentfailure.Butwhilerejectionsdohurtwefeeltheydobecauseweautomaticallyinterpretarejectionasapersonalrejection,wheninfactitisnothingofthesorttheyshouldbetreatedasapositiveratherthantheepitomeoffailure.
Firstly,rejectionshappenformanyreasons,notjusttheobviousmystorymustberubbish,thatswhyitwasrejected.Forinstance,thereareotherreasons:
NotrightforthetargetmarketAgents/publishersarenottakingonnewauthorsforthemomentNotwhattheagent/publisherislookingforrightnowNeedsmorework/editingonplot/storylineNotenoughcharacterisationcharacterswerenotstrongenoughImplausibleplot
WhyRejectionisaGoodThing
TheDifferenceBetweenNarrative&Exposition
CreatingSuspense&AtmospherePart2
May(5)
April(3)
March(5)
February(4)
January(4)
2013(49)
2012(48)
2011(50)
2010(32)
TWIT T E R
YoucanfindmeonTwitter:@AJHumpage
FOLLOWE R S
SUBSCR IBE T O
Posts
AllComments
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 6/14
Thestorywasntquitestrongenough.Thequalityofwritingislacking,andneedsmorework.
Thosearejustafewofthemyriadreasonswhywritersreceiverejections.Manyrejectionsmayinvolveafewwordsfromtheeditortowhytheworkwasrejectedthisisveryimportant.Othersmaynotofferanythingbutanautomatednothanks.
Thereasonsforrejectionwilleithermakeyouthrowyourmanuscriptintothenearestcornerwhileyouretreattoyourcavetosulk,oritwillmakeyousitup,takenoticeandworktowardsimprovementbytakingthefeedbackgiventoyouandreworkingyourstory.
Rejectionsareavaluablewayforyoutounderstandthestrengthsandweaknessesinyourwriting,andyouasawriter,soyoushouldtakethetimeprocesstherejectionandthereasonswhy.Onceitisprocessed,youcandustyourselfoffandgetonwithimprovingthestory.Thereisnoneedtogiveup.
Anynotesfromaneditorwillhelpyouseewhereimprovementscanbemadeonthewholetheytendtobeveryconstructive.Thingslikegrammar,bettersentencestructures,morecharacterisationandmoreshowingratherthantellingarestaplesofmanyrejections.Andwithabitofthoughtandhardwork,thesethingsareeasilyimproved.
Youmaybeluckytogetamoreindepthresponsefromaneditor,detailingproblemareassuchadialogueorlackofdescription.Ortheymayhavespottedmuchbiggerproblemareassuchasplotflawsorfarfetchedstoryline.
Asthewriter,youshouldtakethecommentsonboardandgobacktoyourworkwithanobjectiveeyetoseehowrighttheyare.Aretherereallyplotflaws?Isthestorylinereallyfarfetched?Ifso,workhardertoimprovethem.
Reallygood,constructiverejectionswontjusthighlightthoseshadyareasthatcouldbemadebettertheyalsotellyouthepositivepoints,thethingsthatdowork.Gettingthingsrightiswhatweallwant,andtoreceivethataffirmationmakesyoufeelbetter,butitalsomotivatesusbecomebetterwriters,whowritequalitystories.
MOST POPULA R A R T IC LE S
Chapter&NovelLengthsJusthowlongshouldachapterbe?
Whatsthebestlength?Anddoesanovelhavetofitintoasetamountofwords?Thesearejusttwoo...
FlashbacksWhatisaflashback?Flashbackis
oneofthoseusefultoolsthatawritercanusetoenhanceastory.Itenrichesand,inasense,nourish...
SubplotsImoftenaskedbynewwriters
howsubplotsshouldevolve.Somewritersfindsubplotsdifficulttogettogripswhileothersareputofftry...
WORK S OF A J HUMPAGE
http://ajhumpage.blogspot.comThrillersChillers'n'Killers
SHA R E I T
T R ANS LA T E
SelectLanguage
Poweredby Translate
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 7/14
Rejectionsarenottheendoftheworld(onlyforaboutaday,maybe),beforethecloudsofdoomclearandweseethingsdifferently.Therealisationthat,actually,yourstorydoesneedtobereworked.
Essentially,rejectionsareagoodthing,theymakeusbetterwriters.Theytellusthatwehavetodobettertheytelluswherewevegoneawry.Theyareourheadmistresses,lurkingintheclassroom,makingsurewedowell.
TheyhighlightstrengthsandweaknessesinourwritingTheypickoutflawsinourwritingTheychallengetheofteninflatedopinionswehaveofourselvesaswriters,andbringusdownapegortwo.TheyhighlightvariousareasforimprovementSomearequiteconstructive,highlightingourgoodpointsTheyarenotaboutfailure,butaboutputtinginmorework.
Withtheexceptionofthosewhochoosetoselfpublish(andthusbypasstherejectionprocess),everywriterhasexperiencedrejection.Icouldpaperawallwithallmyrejections.Butwithoutthoserejections,Iwouldnothavebecomepublished.
Lovethemorloathethem,rejectionsaremorevaluablethanwritersrealise.
Nextweek:Topwritingtips.
POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JUNE21, 2014
6COMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST
REACTIONS: Helpful (0) Interesting (0) OK (0)
SA T URDA Y , 1 4 JUNE 2 0 1 4
TheDifferenceBetweenNarrative&Exposition
S E A R CH T HIS BLOG
Search
S T A T S
PA GE VIEWS LA S T MONT H
21,855
GOOGLE + BA DGE
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 8/14
Everywriterwillknowwhatnarrativeis,buthowmanyunderstandwhatexpositionis?
Itseasytothinkthatbothtermsmeanthesamething,buttheyaredifferent,andwritersshouldunderstandthosedifferenceswhenitcomestotheirwriting.Notonlydowritersneedtounderstandtherearedifferences,butthatexpositionandnarrativehavedifferentrolestoplayinstoryconstructionandtheyeffectthepacingofthestory.
Theeasiestwaytoexplainthedifferenceisthatnarrativeisawayforthewritertoinformthereaderwithnonactivedescription,awayofsimplyrelayingnonessentialinformation.Initsbroadestsense,thewriteristellingthereader,butthatinformationdoesntreallymovethestoryforward.
Forexample,thisisnarrative:
InthedaysleadinguptoBobbysdeath,Michaelnevergaveasecondthoughttothesafetyofhishorses.Hiscomplacencyhadbecomesoingrainedthatitwasaninvisibleforce.Heshouldhavepaidattention,butintheend,hedidnt.
Youcanseethatthisisnonessentialbackgroundinformationforthereader.Narrativelikethisfillsthegapsbetweendescriptive,activescenesanddialogue.Itistellingthereadersomeinformation,itgivessomecharacterrevelation,butitsnotdescriptiveinanyway,itsmerelytellingthereader.
Exposition,ontheotherhand,givesimportantinformation,itexplainstothereaderinmoredetail,itcontainsdescription,itinformsanditmovesthestoryforward.Thewriterisshowingthereader.
Forexample,expositionwouldbesomethinglikethis:
Thehugechestnuthorsedidntmove,andwhenMichaeltouchedBobbysneck,itfeltfirmandcold.HiseyesweredarkerthanMichaelrememberedthelifedrained,hisessencevanished,leavingbehindaphysicalshellthatcontinuedtodie.WhateverhadkilledBobby,Michaelwantedpayback.
Unlikenarrative,theexpositionisshowingthereaderwithdescription,itsinformingthereader,butitisalso
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 9/14
movingthestoryforwardbyhintingatMichaelsindentations.
Whenisnarrativeeffective?
Narrativeismosteffectivewhenitsbalancedwithdescription(exposition)anddialogue.
Therearetimesinastorythatawriterneedstoquicklyconveynecessaryinformationtothereader,withouttakingtwopagestodescribeit,andthereforenarrativeisessential.Becauseitismerelyrelayinginformationintherightplaces,withlittledisruptionithelpsslowthepaceofthestoryandallowsthereadertotakeabreather,allowingthemtostepbackfromtheactionwhiletheyprocesspriorinformationorevents.Writershavetoallowtheirreaderstotakeabreather,tovarythepace,toteasethem.
Narrativealsogivesthewritertimetoestablishsomebackgrounddetailsandsetting,thetone,andtosetupthenextscenes.
Byitsverynature,narrativewillslowthepaceofthestoryandhalttheactivemomentumthereforewritersshouldbeawarethattoomanylongsectionsofnarrativewilleventuallyborethereader.Theywillwanttogetbacktoaction.Inotherwords,keepnarrativesectionsfairlyshort,butjustenoughtogivethereaderanynecessaryinformation.
Narrativeisalsousedfortransitions,smoothlymovingfromonescenetoanotherwithoutpagesandpagesdescribinghowandwhy.Justafewwordsofnarrativewillaccomplishatransitionalscene.
Theyarealsousedtoestablishflashbackscenes,becauseinjustafewsentencesthewritercantaketheactionbacktoatimeinacharacterspast.Thiscantbedoneeffectivelyifitwaswrittenasexposition,simplybecauseitwouldtakehalfachaptertodoit.
Goodwriterscansuccessfullyweavethenarrativebetweendescriptiveandactionscenesanddialoguescenes.Thatway,thereisnoneedforhugechucksofnarrativethatcouldeffectivelybringthepacetoacompletehalt.
Whenisexpositioneffective?
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 10/14
Aswithnarrative,expositionworkswhenbalancedwithdialogueandnarrative.
InLatin,itmeansshowingforth.Putsimply,showthereaderwhatishappening,donttellthem.Andthatisthecruxofexposition.
Expositioniseffectivewheninterwovenwithdialogueandnarrativeinordertoprovidedepthanddimensiontothestory,becausemostscenesinanystorywillbemadeupofallthreeelements.
Wellwrittenexpositionhelpsthewritertoshowwhatishappening,ratherthanjusttellingthereader.Thedescriptionsgivethereadermoreinformation,morefacts,andmoreemotion,andithelpswithactivescenesbyquickeningthepace.
Unlikenarrative,expositionalsoallowsustohearcharacterthoughts,forexample:
Reflectivecrystalsglitteredinthesnow,brightbeneaththemoonglow.Davidpulledasidethebrancheshehadcarefullylainoverthelargemound,butthesnowanddirtbeneathhadbeendisturbed.
Someonesbeenhere,hethought,andhisheartbeatquickened.SomeoneknewEllenwasburiedhere
Theexpositionherenotonlyshowswhatheisdoing,butalsoshowswhatDavidisthinkingincorrelationtothescene.
Thedrawbackwithexpositionisthatwriterssometimeswritetoomuchofitanditthenbecomesaninfodump.Aswithanything,itsallaboutbalance.Usejustenoughexpositionshowthereaderinacompelling,interestinganddescriptiveway,interspersedwithnarrative,anddialogue,togettherightbalancedeffect.
Inanutshell,narrativeistelling.Expositionisshowing.
Nextweek:Whyrejectionisagoodthing.
POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JUNE14, 2014
NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST
REACTIONS: Helpful (0) Interesting (0) OK (0)
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 11/14
SA T URDA Y , 7 JUNE 2 0 1 4
CreatingSuspense&AtmospherePart2
Lastweekwelookedatcreatingsuspenseandexpectation.
Thisweekwelllookatatmosphereandhowitworksinrelationtosuspenseinordertokeepthereaderontheedgeoftheirseats.
Firstly,atmosphereoftenreferstothemoodandfeelingthatiscreatedwithinthestory.Sometimesitissubtle,sometimesitsobvious.Butrelayingitsuccessfullydependsentirelyhowwellthewriterconveysit.Ifdonewell,thewriterwillhavecreatedanemotionalresponsefromthereader.
Withoutareadersemotionalconnectionwithcharacters,theabilitytocaptureatmospherewillbelost.
Butwhatactuallycreatesatmosphere?
Severalelementshelpthewritercreateasenseofatmospheredescriptionandimagery,sensesandthesetting.Usedseparatelytheyareinterestingelements,butusedtogethertheyhavethepowertodragthereaderrightintotheheartofthestory.
DescriptionandImagery
Descriptionhelpsthereaderunderstandwhatishappeningwithinthestoryitgivesthemmorethanjustaflatlandscapetowalkthrough.Theyrelyondescriptionstoimaginethecharactersandtheplacesandtheaction.Evensmall,descriptivedetailshelpcreateatmosphere.
Butdescriptionisnothingwithoutpowerfulimagerytoenhanceit.
Imageryreferstothesensorydetailsgivenbythewriteritisthecatalysttocreatingmoodandemotions,andultimately,asenseofatmosphere.
Forinstance,adarkhouseinthemiddleoftheforestalreadycreatesasenseofmood.Thecleveruseofdescriptionenhancesthatmoodthingslikeshadows,lowcloud,theintensedarkness,moistureintheair,earthy,mustyscents.Forexample:
Rusttintedcloudsgatheredacrosstheforest,fullwithrain.Behindthegrimywindowsoftheoldfarmhouse,
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 12/14
theshadowsofthepastskulkedwithoutpurpose,foreversilenced,exceptforthewindraspingthroughtheitsemptyhallways...
Thedescriptioninthisexample,inlaidwithimagery,createsasenseofforebodingandunease.Thesefeelingsandemotions,andtheimagery,createsatmospherebecauseitismanipulatinghowthereaderwillfeel.
Ifitwaswrittenwithdifferentdescriptionandimagery,itwouldcreateanentirelydifferentatmosphere,forexample:
Marshmallowcloudsdriftedacrossanazuresky,andreflectedthesunlightacrosswideopenfields.Behindthepristinewindowsofthefarmhouse,childrenchasedeachotherfromroomtoroom,fillingtheairwithvoicesofdelight.
Youcanseehowthemoodisdifferentandtheatmosphereisoneoflightandplayfulness.Therightchoiceofwordscreatesevokesentirelydifferentfeelingsforthereader.
Youdonthavetooverdescribe,butthinkcarefullyhowyourdescriptionsbuilduponandmaintaintheatmosphere.
TheSenses
Inadditiontodescription,writersusethesensestoenrichthedescriptionandoverallmood,whichtheydonotjustthroughdescription,butmoreimportantly,throughtheircharacters,becausethiscreatesasenseofimmediacy.
Whatcanthecharactersee?Whatcantheysmell?Cantheytasteanythingontheirtonguethesaltyhintofseaairmaybe?Whatcantheyhear?Asoftbreezeonasummersday,orthelowgrowlofastorm?
Whatiftheyreachedoutandtouchedsomething?Whatwouldthatsomethingfeellike?Isitsoftandwonderfulorisitvileandsticky?
Theseelementscanhelpthereaderimaginethesesenses,andagainthechoiceofwordsandtheanticipationcreatesatmosphere.
Setting
InmypreviousexampleIusedanoldabandonedfarmhousesurroundedbyaforest.Thisisthesetting.
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 13/14
NewerPosts OlderPosts
Bythevirtueofitbeingabandonedtoshadows,italreadycreatesatmosphereandthereaderwillimmediatelypickupontheeerinessandtheseclusionandthetrepidation.
Thesettingthatyoucreatecanevokesomethingwarmandfuzzy,oritcanbecreepyandscary.Itcouldbesomethingnicetakingplaceinthedaytime,oritmightbesomethingterribleabouttohappenduringnighttime.
Weatherconditionscanformpartofyoursetting,soyoucouldhaveascenewiththesunandtheheat,oryoumightwantathunderstormandthecoolnessoftherain.Eachoneconjuresdifferentconnotations.
Whateveryoucreate,theyallformpartoftheoverallatmosphereandhastocreateastrongresponsewiththereader.
Considertheimagerycertainwordscancreate,thinkabouttheemotionalresponsesyoucouldgeneratewiththerightchoiceofwords,whethertheyarepositivereactionsornegativeones.
Whenyoumixtogethertherightdescription,therightimagery,thesetting,andyouinvolvethesenses,youcancreateatmosphere,mood,tension,anticipation,trepidationthelistisendless.Andallthesekeepyourreaderontheedgeoftheirseats.
Nextweek:Thedifferencebetweenexpositionandnarrative.
POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JUNE07, 2014
NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST
REACTIONS: Helpful (0) Interesting (0) OK (0)
Home
Subscribeto:Posts(Atom)
LA BE LS
ACTION(1)
2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:June2014
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2014_06_01_archive.html 14/14
CHARACTERS(1)DIALOGUE(1)SUBTEXT(1)
AdbyBrowserShop|Close AdbyBrowserShop|Close
Recommended