Seeing interesting or impactful images makes me immediately think about how to describe them.
Not long ago, I struggled to describe a sky full of different types of clouds. What I wrote was ‘A variety of clouds filled the sky to the horizon in every direction, tumbling like a slow-motion kaleidoscope’. Despite the time and effort spent, my description fell short of capturing the image.
Believing the clouds were noteworthy was an emotional reaction to a beautiful scene. As I was not writing about storm chasers or pilots, the clouds had nothing to do with the story. What I have learned is that there are times when good descriptions are critical but I often add many unnecessarily in my writing. It is easy to be too elaborate or flowery when enamoured of an image. Likewise, being overly detailed if focusing on facts and general information can be boring.
Describing is quite literally what the writer is doing with every aspect of their storytelling. I’m most interested these days in effectively establishing the setting as it is an important first step that should grip the reader. Descriptions of settings should not be lengthy as readers also want to meet characters and get into the story quickly as well.
Creating mood and atmosphere is the goal. This comes from the characters, action, conflict etc. as well but the setting leads the way and must be established early. Preferably on the first page.
The following is from an article on JerrichoWriters.com.
Gabriel Garcia Marques opens ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ by introducing his village like this:
Macondo was a village of twenty adobe houses, built on the bank of a river of clear water that ran along a bed of polished stones, which were white and enormous, like prehistoric eggs.
He could have written something like:
Macondo was a village of about twenty houses, built on a riverbank.
The difference is obvious. The vivid details in the first description are much more apt to transport the reader.
The author of the article states that the first sentence works well because:
He created something totally non-generic by using highly specific details and uses surprising or exotic language to make the details blaze in our imaginations.
He goes on to say that this basic template never gets stale and is at the heart of all good descriptive writing.
It sounds so easy, right?
I am beginning work on a piece of flash fiction that is due to be critiqued at an upcoming writers’ meeting. This is a great opportunity for me to put extra effort into creating a uniquely descriptive setting. There’s nothing like a deadline to motivate but I really want to develop this skill as well.
Along with the template above, I will resist using too many details and remember that when using the right words, less is more.
Now if I could just shake the feeling that some kind of magic may be required and I am without a wand. My excitement and enthusiasm will have to suffice.
