Paint a Picture
Hello everybody, hope you are well.
I’ve just been reminded of another great way to improve your reader interaction and to pad your blogs out.
I read an article last year about describing actions and scenes as you write. Don’t just say “he sat in a chair”. Describe the chair, the rug it was on, talk about the cushion on the chair and how it creaked as he lowered his bulky frame into it.
And so it went on with examples and practice paragraphs. I know you would all love a copy of it, but can I find it right now – no.
So, back to today, I sat myself down after lunch to read a novel, sip a little grape juice and enjoy the afternoon sun in the garden. I am reading a novel by Dorothy L Sayers, one of her Lord Peter Wimsey novels, a classic from the 1920’s.
Her style of writing and her ability to paint pictures with words is stunning.
Take this sentence where she describes a man who sees a cat. What would you or I write; “the man saw a cat” not Dorothy, she penned …
“A cat sprang up upon the bench, stretched herself, tucked her hind legs under her and coiled her tail tightly round them as though to prevent them from accidentally working loose.”
Why can’t we write like that. Just think how that would keep the reader of your articles wanting more.
Try it, try and put more descriptions into your writing, paint that picture.
And besides, it also pads out the blog.
My way is just five words
The way Dorothy Sayers writes it is 31 words.
There’s the difference
Good luck to you all, how would you paint a picture with words.
Bux
Recent Comments
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*** "pad your blogs out" ... lol ... that's quite funny, Bux ...
*(si l'on peut rédiger français, alors il est possible d'utiliser plus de mots pour dire la même chose en anglais!)
so true ... one can say when one has worked in both languages as an editor ... lol ... many moons ago now ...
cheerio ... enjoy and have fun with 'padding' those essays!!
You always get more pages in French novels, yes.
I get neck ache looking at my book shelves, the writing on the spines is a different way round as you probably know. I'm like a nodding bulldog trying to find a book at home.
mbc
Bux
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For many years I was a travel writer, averaging 6.5 million readers per article (we sold to the Top 40 newspapers in the US). One of the things we were trained to do was to "Show, not Tell". Our writing was expected to paint a picture in the mind of our readers so that they felt as if they were visiting the destination as well. It was harder then than blogging, as my newspaper articles had a hard stop of 1200 words.
I always remember Show, Not Tell whenever I write a post. It makes all the difference.
Blummin 'eck Jeannine, that's a great little phrase to remember
Show not tell.
Show them in words, a superb way of looking at it.
Thanks
Bux
WOW, that was worth the admission ! SHOW not tell.
Thank you, thank you, and another thank you!
Glad I read down this far or I would have missed this treasure!
One more thank you, Jeannine!
Zay
So glad you liked that!