and it doesn’t need to read like a
travelogue, but you do need to create
a vivid picture in the mind.
Think about using the different
senses – sight, sound, smell, taste and
touch. I always find it helps to put
myself in the character’s shoes and to
imagine what my character is seeing,
or hearing, or smelling and so on. If
I was describing a scene where my
character is at the beach, for example,
I might write about the crash
of the waves rolling in
to shore and the sharp
screech of seagulls
squabbling over a
half-eaten sandwich
as well as the salty
tang of the seaweed.
If my character is in
a rundown café, I could
describe the smell as being a
mixture of sweaty training shoes and
over-fried chips. The menu may be
caked in sticky sauce and clammy
mashed potato. The tea might taste
like stagnant water. Notice how
already you feel as if you’re there,
with the character, in each scene,
experiencing it for yourself.
Overexplaining
There’s a fine balance between not
informing the reader enough so that
they’re confused as to why something
is happening or overdoing it so you’re
spelling every little thing out for them
and not allowing them to make the
connections for themselves.
If you’ve set the scene correctly,
you shouldn’t need to explain to
your reader why your character then
behaves a certain way. For example,
if your character has just committed
a murder, he may be wearing gloves.
You don’t need to explain he was
wearing gloves so that his fingerprints
wouldn’t be picked up on the
murder weapon. Or if your
character has just found
out the man she loves
has been cheating on
her, and bags up all his
belongings and throws
them out in the street,
the reader doesn’t need
to be told she’s behaving
this way because she’s hurt
and angry and thought they
were going to be together forever.
Overexplaining interrupts the flow of
CREATIVE WRITING
http://www.writers-online.co.uk NOVEMBER 2019^13the story. Let the story and characters
unfold for themselves. Readers are
intelligent and can keep up.Too much tell and not
enough show
This leads us into ‘show not tell’,
where you can find yourself telling the
reader what happened to a character,
or what went on in a scene or what
someone said, rather than showing it.
Here’s an example: Sally turned
away from him. Kevin was outraged
and struggled to keep his anger under
control. He couldn’t believe she was
doing this to him. Sally turned back to
face him and gave him a mouthful. It
was over.
A way to show this scene unfolding
is to add in some dialogue, character
thoughts and to let the characters
reveal the scene:
‘Don’t you dare turn away from
me!’ Kevin forced his clenched fists
to remain at his side. She’ll
change her mind in a
minute. She has to.
Sally swung round.
“I’ll do what I damn
well like. You don’t
own me. In fact, you’re
nothing to me. I never
want to see you again.”Leaving your reader satisfied
Finishing a novel and typing ‘The
End’ is a wonderful feeling. Not
everyone can write a book, so it’s a
fantastic achievement on its own. But
what about the ending itself? After
your reader has gone on the roller
coaster ride of a journey along with
the characters, and read that final
word, you want them to sit back and
think wow, what a great book. I must
tell my friends about it. Hopefully
they’ll have felt entertained by your
story the whole way through, so the
ending shouldn’t be the be-all and
end-all, but you don’t want to leave
your reader feeling disappointed. You
want to leave them feeling good and
eager to get hold of your next book.
A book doesn’t need to end
happily. An ending that shocks or
is poignant ensures your story stays
with your reader for some time.
Neither does your book need to be
tied up in a neat little bow. With an
open ending, the reader can unleash
their imagination and decide howyour story finishes for themselves.
Your book may end with a twist.
Make it a credible one, ie the clues
must be there in the story. If the twist
comes from nowhere your reader will
feel cheated and that you’ve been
deliberately keeping things hidden.Mistakes
We all make mistakes, especially when
we’re so immersed in our work, even
if it’s just the odd missing comma or
apostrophe. But sometimes it’s more
than that. You may have wrestled over
calling one of your lesser characters
Linda or Lesley. Linda may have won,
but somewhere in your mind, Lesley
is still there and finds herself creeping
into the book, pushing Linda out the
way so before you know it, you’ve
changed this character’s name half-way
through the book.
Other simple mistakes include
using the wrong word, for example,
‘hear’ when you mean ‘here’, or ‘their’
instead of ‘they’re’ or ‘there’. There’s
also the tendency to overuse words
like ‘then’ and ‘that’.You want your novel to be the best
it can be so hopefully you’ve found
these tips and advice useful whether
you’re developing your novel before
sending it out to an editor first,
directly to an agent/publisher or self-
publishing your work.Tip
As you’re writing
your book, always think
location, location,
location!Tip
As you’re writing, ask yourself,
will the reader still
understand what’s going on
if I take this explanation
out? If the answer is yes,
take it out.Tip
Avoid adverbs –
words like ‘really’ ‘very’,
‘quickly’, ‘slowly’ and many
more often slip into our
writing to ‘tell’
the reader.Tip
After putting everything
you have into your book, and
knowing that you’re almost there,
it’s tempting to rush the ending
just to get it finished. But think
about what your book means to
you. Isn’t it worth taking your
time to get the ending
just right?Tip
Set your work aside for
a few days and then read it
through with ‘fresh’ eyes.
Tense changes, missing
words, etc, are easier to
spot this way.