I bet you have heard “Show. Don’t tell.” What does that mean? And how does one do it? Answer: Sensory detail. As described in Imagery and Sensory Detail ala Adair Lara Prompt #277: Make a list of images Expand into sentences Use sensory detail Not interested in making a list? You are welcome to use any of the 33 ideas listed below to start sensory writing. Or just look around, choose items within your view, and write, using sensory detail, of course. Scroll to bottom of this post for links about using sensory detail in writing. Expand these images into full sentences, using sensory detail. Write as if you had to describe these visions to someone who has never seen or experienced these things. What do these things look like? How do they sound, taste, feel, smell? Answer these questions and that’s using sensory detail in writing. Write a sentence…
Month: August 2016
InfectiveInk wants you to have fun and submit.
Do you have a snippet of writing, more than one snippet, longer than a snippet? And you just want to submit somewhere. InfectiveInk.com may be the answer. InfectiveInk: “Instead of focusing on genre or style, we inspect themes and universes . . . all based on the same prompt.” “A haunted house doesn’t have to be a horror story, in fact a haunted house could simply refer to a memory or a family that has endured a tragedy. Zombie tales can be hilarious, and the word ‘zombie’ could refer to any number of things. Mysteries can find their way into any situation. Be creative, push your boundaries, have fun, write great stories.” “Write to the prompt and HAVE FUN!” Please read Submissions Guidelines and Author Agreement. 2016 PROMPTS: Submit by July 28, 2016: Little mistakes, big trouble We all make mistakes, usually small, and usually inconsequential, but sometimes those little things lead to surprising and…
Imagery and sensory detail ala Adair Lara Prompt #277
“Write five images every day, for seven days, using as many of the senses as possible.”— Adair Lara From Adair’s book, Naked, Drunk, and Writing: “Writing is turning your thoughts, abstractions, generalizations, and opinions back into the experiences you got them from.” Adair’s example: “Not ‘women my age become invisible,’ but ‘they handed drinks around and forgot me, again.’” Using imagery involves the details about what happened. Show what happened so that readers can see the scene, hear the sounds, feel the sensations, taste the elements, and smell the aroma. Adair advises, “. . . every time you write a sentence, ask yourself, How can I show this? Try to get image and detail into every sentence. ” Tidbits from Chapter Six, Using Images and Details: “We want experience, not information. ‘Joan was distressed’ is information. ‘Joan looked away’ is an image. The reader notices Joan looking away, and has…
Vegetables – Not Just For Eating . . . Prompt # 276
What are vegetables good for, besides eating? Some gardens are bursting right about now with zucchini, green beans, summer squash, cucumbers, yellow squash, kale, rhubarb, patty pan squash, lettuce, have I mentioned squash? Here in northern California, growing squash is easy and so abundant that we don’t leave our car doors unlocked, or we might find a bushel of zucchini on the seat. Write about other things that vegetables can do. Inspired from Adair Lara‘s writing workshop. Write about new uses for vegetables.