Time for writing advice, friends. Yep, it’s that time of the spinner-decided calendar when I share the tidbits of wisdom that have helped me most along the way, teasing them from my brain with a pair of tweezers like a hopefully-useful parasitic ear worm.
Too much? Probably. But note how that immediately conjured up a very vivid image for you. Therein lies the truth of the best writing advice I ever got.
Yes, everyone has heard “show, don’t tell,” at least once in their careers, but it’s a cliche for a reason, and that reason is that it’s important. Too much exposition without grounding description can ruin a story.
Don’t tell us about how the spice garden has been around for centuries, tended by a long line of hereditary keepers passing the responsibility from mother to child. Sure, that’s interesting, and if I was feeling generous, I’d keep reading to give it a chance, but it’s not quite enough to stick around for.
Instead, try describing the character’s childhood memories, her mother and grandmother teaching her to tend to the spices, the long tapestries on the walls, some faded with age, that show their family tree. Tell me about our main character’s life, memories, experiences, and interactions while she’s moving to keep my focus.
Extra tip: start where the action is. I don’t particularly care what your main character ate for breakfast unless they found a spider in their corn flakes. Start when the house catches fire, the police show up, the space worm attacks, or whatever it is you’re writing properly begins. If you’re writing a mystery, you could start with the murder. If horror, give your audience a little taste of what’s going to come later, or do a creepy prologue about how -insert thing here- came to be cursed/haunted/whatever.
So, there’s the post for this week. (Yes, I know I missed last week, there were extenuating circumstances). I’ll be back next Friday with more interesting creative things, and hopefully it will finally land on art so I can rant about the history of animation. Goodbye for now!
Grace's Place 