Okay so why don’t we see what our fellow wattpaders has to say on descriptions, what their do’s and don’ts are.
Tjgarrett: Hey. So ... Description!
I happen to believe there are two types of description; that which is needed to push the story along, and that which isn't.
When I started writing last year, I wrote twenty-thousand words describing the entire area surrounding Albergeddy (the home town of my protagonists in Call of the Crown). When I finished, I realised that I had done it for my own benefit, so I could 'see' the world I was writing in. So I deleted the first three chapters.
As someone who loves descriptive writing, I found that very difficult to do, but when I did, it was obviously right. THE STORY COMES FIRST!
Anyway. Here are a few of my tips
1. You must place your characters in a environment in order for the readers' minds to visualize what they are doing. This is essential 'objective' description.
2. It can be helpful to describe sensory input, smells, touch, taste, to heighten the readers ability to connect with the character. This is more subjective, and require the correct POV.
3. Don't do cookery book description - it was ... and at the side it ... this tall ..., that colour ... etc,. etc,. etc.
4. It's always best to do a line of description within an action, rather than blurt it out. eg.
a: Kate struggled to reach the top shelf - You don't have to say Kate was short, or the shelf was high.
b: It took three men to restrain him - obviously he's big and strong, so don't bother saying it.
c: Claire stood straight, but still had to look up to meet Chris's gaze - Instead of saying, Chris was much taller than Claire.
5. DO NOT do the 'look in the mirror' description; it is lame and totally amateur. In fact, I would avoid first person all together, but that's just me.
6. Describing emotion is one of the hardest. If someone is scared, don't say 'Karen was scared'. say; face turned ashen, hands clammy, shoulders tightened, curled up in a ball, lip quivering: do anything but TELL your readers she was 'scared'.
7. If you are describing something specific, then find a picture of it.
8. If you are describing something you made up, then draw a picture of it.
9. Map out your 'field of play'. This helps with consistency whether it be an epic fantasy or a romcom that is set in someone’s apartment., There's nothing worse than having a book half published and then realizing something/someone was in two different places at the same time.
10. Pick three facts about a person or place. One big thing, one small, and one strange.
11. When developing characters, try and come up with a catchphrase that will help readers identify their dialogue. My character, Grady, says 'Stone me for a bloody fool', and my character, Elspeth, says 'If you ask me'. There are more. This is a good one, and it's fun, too.
12. Make your character have a habit. Elspeth sharpens her knives. Ealian is always cleaning his white shirt (which is a pathetic colour to take on a cross country adventure, but that's Ealian for you), Daric loves cooking fish, much to the annoyance of the other members of my cast.
13. Research names. Spend time on this. Pay particular attention to NOT naming character with similar sounding names. If possible, have the two/three most prevalent character have names with different about of syllables, too. This will make it especially easy for those fast readers out there to distinguish who is who.
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