WriteSpa – An Oasis for Writers
One of the hardest things to do is to write in a way that is not so much visual as it is moody. A lake can be ominous or serene with the lightest of adjectives. A look can be like a dagger or a rose – but it’s the same eyes, the same face, the same person. What makes it different? It’s how it’s described.
The most well-known adage in writing classes is ‘show, don’t tell.’ Don’t say, “The night was dark” – describe it. One of my favorite writing exercises when I’m teaching is to get students to describe a ‘dark and stormy night’ without mentioning dark, stormy, or night. Show it. Describe the thick clouds that obscure the moon, evoke a sense of the sultry heat that feels like a suffocating blanket.
John Gardner, in “On Writing Fiction” (highly recommended!) offers an excellent writing practice: to describe an old barn from the point of a view of a young woman who’s just gotten (happily) married and an old man whose son was just killed in the war. The caveat: don’t mention barn, or young woman, or old man, or death, or marriage. Just describe the barn.
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Fun Writing Practice – A Rainy Afternoon
Describe a rainy afternoon without mentioning rain or the time of day, but making absolutely clear that it’s raining, and it’s the middle of the afternoon. Create a mood of loneliness, despair, and hopelessness. You can be inside a stuffy, overheated livingroom, for example, or soaking wet as you walk through the woods.
Now describe the same rainy afternoon (without mentioning rain) and create a mood of anticipation and bliss. If you described the first paragraph as you walked through the woods, use the exact same scene, just describe it differently.
You might find yourself segueing into the beginning of a story – if so, let it flow.
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Daily Happinesses
- firesparks from a bonfire
- singing songs with lots of friends
- a cafe in the south of France
- huge mountain thunderstorm
- good dinners with friends
- nothing to do but read a good novel
- sleeping soundly throughout the night
I just stumbled here~
I’m now clicking away looking for your oasis, realizing perhaps, this IS the oasis?
I better stick to my first cup of coffee before I make a fool out of myself, then return & read some more. This looks very inviting~Thankyou!
Well, YOU are the oasis – I’m just hoping to help you come across it more often in your daily writing/living. 🙂 I send out a weekly eletter that has 3 parts: 1) some sort of musing about writing/life, 2) a writing practice and 3) seven ‘daily happinesses’ which are sort of like writing prompts, but also ways of seeing or paying attention. You’re welcome to subscribe if you want to check it out – it’s free and you can always unsubscribe. Or just check back here on Wednesdays and see what I’ve come up with. Thanks for stopping by!
Voila – found your response! Thankyou. And it’s free- how generous of you.
I’ve found my way now, thankfully, no need to bother you with silly questions.
I’ll be checking on Wednesday’s now. Meantime, I’ll be reading Heaven Falls.
Thanks again, Suzi