Scene, summary, and exposition are three key tools in fiction that are used to advance a story and create a believable and engaging world for the reader. These elements work together to create a pace and rhythm in a story and can be used in different ways to achieve different effects.
Writing with a Full-Time Job
I know a lot of creatives with full-time jobs, families, and other responsibilities. Writers can be really hard on themselves (and others), and a lot of common writing advice is unsympathetic to the struggles of busy writers, with an unhelpful get-through-it mentality that doesn’t address the issue at hand. “Write every day”- and “ass in chair”-style advice isn’t harmful in itself, but like all advice, it shouldn’t be applied universally or without a handy saltshaker nearby. And it can become part of toxic positivity culture when used to determine who is and is not a real writer, or who truly cares about their craft.
Crafting an Image: Literary Techniques to Evoke Mood (Part 2)
Description is not an innate talent. Just like in the visual arts, there are literary techniques that are used to create the desired effect. You might be using them unconsciously, or perhaps the problem is that you’re not using them at all.
Crafting a Literary Image: Identifying Linguistic Cliches (Part 1)
How are some writers able to create a breathtaking, evocative setting or description that stays with you long afterwards? And why is this so difficult to replicate in your own work?
You’re a writer, so you know the feeling of staring at your computer screen, wanting the words to be powerful, create a vivid scene in the reader’s head, evoke an emotion. Instead, they feel shallow. They’re setting out, but not quite arriving at the intended destination.