[ I struggle with descriptive writing, so here are some tips that helped me ]
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- do not describe what is not there
ex; the land was not covered with beautiful green and lush trees that she had seen in her dreams
I learned that the human brain automatically thinks of the thing being described, even if it states that it is not there.
[ something you can do instead ]
- the flat land rolled out forever, it was unlike the image she had seen in her dreams
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- do not start with the main character doing an everyday thing
ex; he woke up, quietly slipping out of bed
I have made this mistake a ton, and I would love to go back and fix it, describe interesting things around your character, and start with the character doing something exciting, to draw the reader in.
[ something you can do instead ]
- he breathed out quickly, a sword in his hands. a big, black monster towered above him. then as quickly as it appeared, it lunged forward, and everything went black. he then woke up in a sweat, breathing hard. he quietly slipped out of bed, trying not to wake anyone. it was just a nightmare.
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- try not to use adverbs
ex; she coughed, her sickly voice spoke
again, another mistake I do a ton, adverbs modify verbs or adjectives, and it makes it seem like that verb is the only word you can use, a thesaurus is the best way to find another word to replace the adverb.
[ something you can do instead ]
she coughed, her ailing and crackly voice spoke
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[ this is kind of short, sorry! but I'll post some writing prompts next~! ]
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writing ∘ tips, tricks, and prompts
General Fiction↠ need ideas? ways to make your writing better? [ disclaimer; I am in no way tell you that this is the right way to do things, and that my advice is great, they are just tricks I find helpful, and ones I picked up that hopefully you will find helpfu...
