All Questions
Tagged with description technique
36 questions
-1
votes
1
answer
129
views
I need help writing a murder scene in first person [closed]
So the chapter starts like this:
I continued to sip my coffee as he choked on his own blood. It was bitter - both the coffee and the look permanently etched onto his face.
I want to write a seamless ...
- 1
0
votes
3
answers
114
views
How does one describe a setting that is going to be a central location in a story?
I have a location in my story that is a key central hub which much of the interaction surrounds. An example of this might be the bar in Cheers or Greendale Community College in Community. I want to ...
- 4,664
2
votes
1
answer
778
views
How do I describe a character tripping but regaining their balance?
In the story, my protagonist is walking in a part of town that is not taken care of. My character, at this point in time, is super tired and trips over a clump of grass growing from the sidewalk.
1
vote
1
answer
45
views
Avoiding tedium and trivialisation from repeated events
I'm writing a sci-fi novel set on Earth in the recent past. In the novel, an alien giant robot destroys numerous cities in North America.
The first such occurrence, New York City, receives a lot of ...
- 593
13
votes
1
answer
220
views
Translating analogies in a 100 year old fairy tale
I am having a hard time translating analogies and descriptions in a fairy tale written a century ago. My fear is today's children will not understand the analogy at all or misunderstand it, and as ...
- 261
0
votes
2
answers
182
views
Where to draw the line between bloody and purely repulsive?
Violence and gore are an integral part of my story. However, I can usually keep the focus on the emotions, and the reactions, rather than the description of the injury.
My problem comes with one of ...
- 3,347
26
votes
12
answers
6k
views
How do I define smells I have never experienced?
I am a lifelong writer, who was also born without an ability to smell. I have been trained to engage the reader by applying the five senses, or as many of the five as is practical without becoming ...
- 397
3
votes
2
answers
170
views
How Do I Define Smells Of A World With Anosmia? [duplicate]
I am a lifelong writer, who was also born without an ability to smell. I have been trained to engage the reader by applying the five senses, or as many of the five as is practical without becoming ...
- 397
0
votes
2
answers
245
views
Can overwriting be made to look intentional from a first-person narrative?
I am an aspiring author, trying to get my 80,000-word traditionally published, though I will self-publish it if that doesn't work out.
this article suggests that we avoid it altogether.
I've used ...
21
votes
7
answers
3k
views
Detail vs. filler
How can I minimise the "filler" text that I end up writing when fleshing out a scene with detail?
An appropriate level of detail seems to me to be a fundamental requirement for good prose. Whatever I ...
- 3,448
3
votes
2
answers
294
views
Job description for my employment reference
I've canceled my job to move on. Now I was asked how I want my Job description for my employment reference.
My first draft was one full page... This is too much. Now I've reduced the long version to ...
- 141
3
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Is it stylistically sound to use onomatopoeic words?
I'm writing a non-comedic fantasy novel, and I find myself using onomatopoeic words, like "SLAM!" and "TWISH" (for the shooting of arrows). To my knowledge, onomatopoeic words are almost only used in ...
- 4,053
5
votes
3
answers
224
views
When is using a simile better than giving a literal description?
Definition of simile
: a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as (as in cheeks like roses)
Similes are nice tools that every narrator has (even if I'...
- 15.9k
8
votes
4
answers
660
views
Tips and tricks to describe more
I'm careful with the phrasing of this question as it is dangerously close to be opinion based. Everyone has their preference regarding the amount of description they expect to find in a work of ...
- 183
17
votes
7
answers
4k
views
Facial expressions as part of dialogue - getting rid of a verbal tic
I noticed a verbal tic in my writing:
He looked surprised
He looked confused
He looked abashed
Sometimes twice in a row:
The prince looked abashed. “I- I thought I was being polite,” ...
4
votes
3
answers
492
views
In what order should I name characters?
I was wondering if there is a rule or advice in which order to name my characters.
For example, if I want to tell that Bob, John and Rob entered the room should I just name them in random order or ...
- 405
4
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How to describe sound? [closed]
I have this scene in my novel that I'm trying to write. There is this character who is on the boat, rowing. I don't know how to describe the sound of the oar touching the water as he paddles.
The ...
7
votes
4
answers
672
views
Describe illustrated characters?
I'm writing a YA fantasy novel in my free time that I plan to illustrate myself. Most if not all named characters will have their 'picture' presented to the reader as soon as they are introduced.
...
- 547
14
votes
8
answers
3k
views
What are the limits to description in story writing? How do I know if I have crossed them?
Time and time again, I have been told that my unfounded focus on description distracts from the main story line.
I mostly write stories in English, which doesn't happen to be my first language but I'm ...
- 925
7
votes
6
answers
718
views
How do I write an action scene?
I have recently written an action scene, and I am not satisfied with it. It sounded choppy and inconsistent, and I'd love to know how to write it so it makes sense, doesn't sound like a robotic ...
- 587
2
votes
1
answer
126
views
Idioms in historical fiction?
I am writing a World War II novel from the POV of a German colonel (among others). In the case of the colonel, is it appropriate to use the English idiom "top brass" in his internal dialogue? To me, ...
- 551
12
votes
6
answers
3k
views
How to create tension during a conversation
In my novel my protagonist speaks to a man while being held at gun point. She (protagonist) tried to kill him. He was her boss, was involved in her best friend's death and wants the protagonist dead. ...
- 431
5
votes
4
answers
931
views
How to avoid repetitive sentences? (Describing actions, he/she)
I was just wondering if anybody had some tips on how to avoid repetitively describing characters' actions in the same way? Here is an example which I'm struggling to reform, mostly because I keep ...
- 51
12
votes
6
answers
5k
views
What information about a fictional world is unnecessary?
I was able to gain some insight already thanks to How much detail is too much?, but I still need a more precise answer, because my details aren't bound to a particular scene.
I was searching for some ...
- 431
40
votes
12
answers
10k
views
How can I explain my world if the character is technologically not yet capable of understanding it?
One feature of my world is a plant that lives in a magmaous (rather than "volcanic") cave. It photosynthesizes by absorbing infrared radiation from the magma.
However, the world is roughly at a ...
- 763
0
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Am I being too descriptive?
Each and every time I read my stories to people, only one comment is usually made, albeit in different ways... I'm just not sure if they're being honest, or if I am actually doing something right.
"...
- 325
0
votes
2
answers
250
views
Is it best to make a description metaphorical, or upfront?
Background
I've had this question for a really long time. A lot of my work seems quite 'floaty' and 'old style' because I describe things in a very metaphorical and surreal way. For example:
Her ...
- 4,439
2
votes
2
answers
289
views
Succinctly indicate that an emotional hug is not sexual
I'm working on one of the final scenes of my novel. The President is a kind, intelligent, fatherly man. Sara is a high-ranking NSA official and has been through months of intense pressure that has ...
- 631
2
votes
5
answers
303
views
How do I avoid tradeoffs with showing vs. telling? [closed]
I learned early on (as most writers have) "show, don't tell," which I agree with for the most part. However, I've found many situations in writing when I'd start to write a statement in tell, catch ...
- 163
2
votes
4
answers
9k
views
Different ways to say "I looked"?
I find myself overusing phrases like "his eyes flickered to (object/person)" and "he shifted his gaze to (object/person)". I use the words 'eyes' and 'gaze' a lot to describe what the character is ...
- 713
4
votes
2
answers
199
views
Is there a systematic overview over the approaches of describing a physical object?
If one tries to describe sth. very concrete, like a house, for instance, one could try it with different approaches:
describing the very physical attributes:
the house is 5m wide, 5m deep and 5m ...
- 189
1
vote
1
answer
104
views
Best blind sequence? [closed]
I'm trying to write a story in which the sun has essentially gone out and visibility is constantly limited, and sometimes completely gone. Being a very visual person, I'm finding it hard to describe ...
- 11
9
votes
6
answers
9k
views
How to introduce a world that's alien to the reader
I'm writing sort of a space-opera and I was wondering what would the best way to explain everything about the world to my readers. The story is kind of a political intrigue, and it would be very easy ...
- 211
4
votes
5
answers
5k
views
Who can help me to describe the text line from my story in slow motion?
This here is a line of my story:
As we were in the middle of our conversation, I saw a blinding light heading straight for us, followed by an abrupt honk. Mom screamed as if she saw a ghost, and ...
- 41
8
votes
6
answers
5k
views
Writing about drug induced hallucinations and paranoia
Not long ago I wrote a short story about a mathematics graduate student on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The young student is innocent and working to finish a difficult mathematical derivation ...
- 861
12
votes
9
answers
3k
views
Where to find some good examples of combat or action scenes?
I always learn a lot about about writing by reading other works and following their examples. Right now I'm very bad at writing action scenes; the best I can do is write around them, describing the ...
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