Absolute Chaos Discussion Boards
Fic Talk => General Discussion => Topic started by: yorkielover88 on December 24, 2010, 10:58:59 AM
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I have come to feel like maybe my stories suck because I have trouble doing the detail and description stuff. I'm just wondering if any of you have any tips or tricks on how to improve this. Also, if any of you have time and would be willing to look over one or sOme of my stories I'd love to know if you all agree that I do intact stink at my detail and descriptive stuff. I'd love honest feedback over all too!
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For me, one thing that really helped me when writing that type of stuff is what I learned in my script writing class because when writing a script, for a movie, you have to write every detailed action so that the actor will know what to do.
I would just close your eyes, imagine the scene in your head and try writing what you're seeing.
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I used to have trouble with this too. Still kinda do. What I do is write out my dialogue first, so it flows and then go back and write all the description that goes around the dialogue. It helps me to get the scene moving at first, and then I can go back and really think about the description I want to add without losing my momentum on dialogue.
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Imagine you're writing to someone who's blind. They've never seen any of the things your talking about. Even mundane things. They need to know what you're thinking about. What COLOR was the shirt so-in-so is putting on? What condition is the room they're in like? Messy? Clean? What does that say about the person you're writing about?
A really great practice prompt is to take a scene you've written and ask yourself 25 questions like I just put up there and answer them all, then use that to fill in the gaps. When you're done, do it again....and again... and again... Until you've got a TON of detail :)
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These guys have all given you good advice. It definitely helps me to try to picture it like a movie in my mind as well. I would just make sure that you reserve the details for things that are actually important and worth describing. It's nice to describe the setting enough to set the scene for your reader, so they can picture it as they read, but you don't need to describe every last mundane detail. Just the important stuff, the stuff you think adds something to the feel of the scene. It's nice to have a good blend of dialogue, description, and actions throughout a scene.
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Yeah like over description is an issue too. Thanks for pointing that out Julie!! that's so true.
But some random non-story-related details can add interest or a personality to the character. Like in my story Waste of Paint I described some random crap in Krystal's house that never will play into the story, will never be mentioned again, but they describe her personality type. Stuff like that. :)
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Exactly. If you're not sure, ask yourself, "What's the point of describing this?" If you can answer that question, it's probably worth describing. If it tells something about the character or is important to the scene somehow, go for it!
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Great stuff guys! I really wanna improve myself and this all is very helpful!
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Everyone pretty much said what I was going to say but i'll also add on that it's really important to edit your work because you can have the best descriptions in the world but no one will want to read them if you don't take the time to make sure what you wrote is readable.
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^ LOL also very true. Presentation is key.
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Yeah like over description is an issue too. Thanks for pointing that out Julie!! that's so true.
But some random non-story-related details can add interest or a personality to the character. Like in my story Waste of Paint I described some random crap in Krystal's house that never will play into the story, will never be mentioned again, but they describe her personality type. Stuff like that. :)
I agree with that... in one of my stories... one of Taylor Swift's songs, "Last Kiss" plays a big part in it and I knew that from the beginning, so I added small details in the story such as Nick walking with his hands in his pockets, Harley, the girl, wearing his sweatshirt all the time, etc. I always plan things out so that throughout the story I can add small details to places that people wouldn't think twice about while reading it, until it really takes a role in the story.
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For me, one thing that really helped me when writing that type of stuff is what I learned in my script writing class because when writing a script, for a movie, you have to write every detailed action so that the actor will know what to do.
I would just close your eyes, imagine the scene in your head and try writing what you're seeing.
Actually scripts tend to be more terse and don't require a lot of description. I did a book report on a script that was based on a movie and it was so short that I almost was like wow, thats the magic of movies, they really make things happen before your eyes.
It was for the bourne identity I remember. Then after that I read tons of scripts like Sunset Boulevard and As Good As It Gets. They're all so short. Its all imagination when someone writes a script because otherwise its a novel.
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Actually scripts tend to be more terse and don't require a lot of description. I did a book report on a script that was based on a movie and it was so short that I almost was like wow, thats the magic of movies, they really make things happen before your eyes.
It was for the bourne identity I remember. Then after that I read tons of scripts like Sunset Boulevard and As Good As It Gets. They're all so short. Its all imagination when someone writes a script because otherwise its a novel.
Really? That's not what we were taught in our classes and my profs all worked in the business before teaching. Weird lol
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Really? That's not what we were taught in our classes and my profs all worked in the business before teaching. Weird lol
I don't know. I'm not in class or anything but I equate a script with the structure of a play. Hardly any description but more breakdown of basic actions unless its an action movie.