101 on Descriptive Writing - Part 1

In this chapter, I'll be discussing with you guys the 'know hows' of descrpitive writing. This specific erm... 'segment', will be split up into a few chapters since I don't like to cram information all into one chapter. That'd be a bore, wouldn't it? *cue cricket noises*

Firstly, I'd like to start by saying that being descriptive is essential for any good ol' novel. Your words paint the scene that people will be reading. Without having any words to describe the scene, it's all boring and I can assure you, no one would want to read that. They'll probably click the red 'x' button before you can say 'EXO!' (No joke, seriously.)

Now that's all out of the way, I'm going to introduce a principle (I'd say) that I go by. KISS. KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID.

In all honesty, I do think that this point is important, because the simpler the better. Simple words go good together. A 'complex' word thrown in here and there is cool too, but make sure not to overdo it so that readers think you're speaking a whole different language altogether. (I once read a piece where every damn sentence had a word that you wouldn't use/find in everyday life y'know. It got boring)

Okay, I'm going off topic here, seriously. Descriptive writing is a device that adds this 'oomph' to one's writing. If you really want to go to infinity and beyond (cheesy disney quote, anyone?) you should know that author's don't just describe physical features, but they describe other things too.

For example, let's say that two characters have physical attraction and emotional attraction to other - most people would only convey the physical aspect of it all. They forget to tug on people's heart strings and forget about the emotional component altogther. (sad) For this example, I'll be showing how it's like to be descriptive through one character's point of view - in the next one, it shall be through both. (I guess, hah.)

Now let's have an example of this, yes?

Yongguk stared at the female before him. She was beautiful. His own orbs search hers before he brings his hand up to carress her cheek gently. "I love you," he says, awaiting her answer to his statement, or question.

Can you see how this ~~bad~~ example only portrays the physical aspect of it all through only one character's view? It's vague, and it's not very descriptive either. It's not really interesting, is it? Hm... Let's see what happens if we become more ~*~*~ Descriptive ~*~*~

Yongguk stares at the beautiful female before him. His heart beats wildly in his chest, and he swears that it's doing flip flops too. The sight of Jieun makes him... happy, but he was sure that there weren't any words in the dictionary that could describe the way he was feeling at this very moment. His brown orbs search her own, and timidly, he brings his calloused fingertips to brush against the apple of her cheek. Yongguk can swear that he sees a faint tinge of red spread across her face. In all honesty, he couldn't picture any other woman than Jieun before him at this very moment. He remembers why he first fell in love with her, it was because she was different; unique. At this point in time, he knew that he was in lpve with her. A ghost of a smile makes its way to his lips and he whispers, 'I love you.'

Yongguk didn't know if she reciprocated his feelings and... YADAYADAYADYAAYDAYGFIAESULI

Now do you see how you can turn a few simple sentences into a paragraph by being descriptive? Being descriptive is just the cherry on top to any story.

A good excercise I did to practise being descriptive was to write a scene about the most mundane scenes from picking up a book, to picking your nose. (I was just trying to be funny.)

I'll end this here now, have fun writing and stay cool. This shall be continued, stay tuned!

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LuAnn98 #1 Aug 14, 2014 14:09:19

And for kissing scenes, talk about HARD! In one of my stories, the kissing scene was in the rain, and writing it took a tremendous amount of brain cells because I had to consider their body language, emotions, actions, etc. To me, a kissing scene isn't just connecting lips, like you said, but it's the hands, the eyes, the nose, the mouth, the feels, and more. And because a lot of readers like a real intense kissing scene, knowing how to deliver is not an easy task.
Character development is different for everyone, I guess. I have read literature classics that have literally very little character development, but are praised for their prose and diction. Some are highly respected just simply for the realism of the novel, and not exactly the characters. While I do think characters play a big role in a story, their development is shaped by the events that happen, and sometimes they don't grow at all. I'm honestly fine with reading static characters, as long as they are well-rounded and not just a typical Mary Sue or Gary Stu.
And can I just tell you how much I love the words you listed? My personal favorites are eloquence, connive, and ephemeral. Chide is nice too.

LuAnn98 #2 Aug 14, 2014 14:02:29

Hiya! I'm going to be writing a really long comment so please don't mind me! I just wanted to give you my thoughts on what you said, and I agree with most of the points you made!
Honestly, when it comes to point of views, I like to stick to first or third person. Second person to me is so underdeveloped character-wise, and I hate being told what *I have to do, what *I have to say, etc. A lot of inexperienced authors go down the 2nd POV path, which is a terrible choice if you don't know how to work around it. In the end, it only makes your story seem really immature. While I have read great stories written in 2nd POV, not all authors have the ability to achieve that kind of success, so I mostly ignore those stories for that reason.
I do like first person, because you do get in touch with the main character's emotions and such on a personal level. The only drawback is that exact same reason. Instead of getting a roundabout view of the situation, you only see what the MC sees, in which the view may be distorted according to a prejudice or bias. So for that reason, I tend to prefer to write in third person (limited). In this POV, writing emotions is pretty hard, but I feel like third does so much better in conveying a whole story.
As for author's notes, I do hate them when they appear randomly during a chapter. However, I do like placing my author's notes at the bottom, mostly just to thank my readers or share a thought with them that I may have, or even ask questions. I find that my readers are really nice and have great replies, so author notes are quite fun.