What in the world? You’ve just finished your latest and (hopefully) your greatest story. You’ve let your friends read it and, of course, they liked it. They’re your friends. You also read it to Rex, asleep in the corner of your office. He gave a yawn of approval, too. You proofread your manuscript and proofread some more. Is the punctuation okay? Check. Does each word move the story along? Check. What’s wrong with it?
Try reading it to Rex again and listen to your words. Forget about your friends and family, since they’re just going to tell you what you want to hear. There. Hear that? Read that section again. There’s no life in your character, nor is there an appropriate description in the narrative. You have to write visually and bring your book to life.
What is writing visually? It’s something we’ve all heard before. Show, don’t tell. For those of you who haven’t heard those particular words, here’s my definition: It’s when you reader can put himself/herself in your book. You should engage all five senses to do this. Let your readers feel Jason punch Harry without warning. Your readers can actually feel Jason’s anger rising! Let everyone see Mary bend over and smell those fragrant roses. Have your characters talk naturally. Describing in a few words what they feel (emotionally), see, question, etc. People aren’t robots. When was the last time you saw someone talking with expression never changing or not talking with their hands? Maybe this person held their hair down as the wind blew?
For instance, Keira left school. “I’m going to the mall,”
she said to Sasha. Here’s the same sentence brought to life. Keira raced down
the hall, stopping when she saw Sasha putting her books in the locker. “I’m
going to the mall after school,” she puffed. “Wanna come?” “Sure! Wait a sec
until I fix my hair. Maybe that new guy will be there.” Which description would
you rather have in your manuscript? Which one shows more instead of tells?
That’s right. This all boils down to ‘show, not tell’.
Take a look at these sentences: The three young people
climbed the hill. Okay. Now read this: As the three friends climbed, they
swatted flies away from their faces. Bees buzzed around them while low-hanging
tree branches smacked them in the face. Which sentence shows more, thus giving
it life?
The trick is to give your characters some character not only
in the dialogue but in the narrative as well. In the narrative, your reader can
see them struggling up that hill. In dialogue they can see, feel the emotions
of the girls and relate to them.
VIDEO
Here’s a video by The Three Minute Writing Teacher that will help you along the way to bring your book to life! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d68vWb5rvso
I’ve also found some books, blogs, or websites that will help you with this.
BOOKS
Word Magic for Writers by Cindy Rogers
You Can Write Children’s Books by Tracey E. Dils
Picture Writing for Kids by Anatasia Suen
Blog
How To Write Visually by Donald L. Vasicek
