Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Does It Smell?
When you are reviewing the earlier written vignette, ask yourself some questions. Can I visualize the person or the place? Can I hear the sounds and voices? Can I feel the objects or the emotions? Can I smell the scent of the room, the person, the flowers, or the food? You get the idea. In the memoir, Looking Through You, author Jennifer Finney Boylan writes, "She blew a smoke ring towards the ceiling." Can't you just see that smoke migrating? It makes a visual picture that is more effective than saying, "She was a smoker." Look for ways to allow the reader to use his senses.
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2 comments:
These are some of the same things that I've asked myself when writing fiction. I remember the vision, and usually the sounds. But am always forgetting the smell. Even though smell is one of our strongest memory triggers.
Thanks for the reminder.
Gayle McCain
www.gaylemccain.blogspot.com
Etta, I had to write a descriptive article for one of my lessons and describing a smell was a challenge.
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