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Tips for Good
Descriptive Writing
Descriptive writing
uses the five senses (sight, smell, taste, touch) to describe a
scene or make dialogue more vivid. The use of descriptive writing is
what keeps readers from putting a book down. It's usual practice to
write and rewrite scenes in order to get it "just right."
Below is narrative writing advice you can easily follow.
 Use adjectives and
descriptive phrases to create a vivid world for the reader.
Descriptive
writing is not reserved for scenes only. Make use of colorful
language to describe characters.
Except
for practicing again and again, there isn't a true and tried
technique to master persuasive writing. So, you guessed it,
practice!
Descriptive
Writing Activities
The first exercise takes us back to our elementary school days when
the teacher displayed a picture in front of the class and we were
instructed to write a story behind the picture.
Pull out a personal photo and write about the events of that day in
vivid detail. Or you can use a picture from a magazine and make up a
story about the events surrounding the picture.
Recall a "food" event from your past and write down
everything in detail. Describe the texture of the food, the
temperature, the way your mouth watered.
On a side note, the next time you have a cold and can't taste food,
pay attention to how the food feels in your mouth. Most of us eat
mindlessly and don't take the time to connect with the flavors in
our mouth.
Write about a time you touched something that gave you the creepy
crawlies. Describe for the reader how the texture of the object felt
against your skin.
Take a scene from your favorite TV show or favorite movie and write
what you see. Pay attention to the background, details you probably
never noticed before to create a descriptive scene.
If you have a trunked novel or short story, take it out and revisit
a scene you know needs development. Ask yourself the following
questions: does the description need more emotion? which of the five
senses can you use to create a more detailed scene? are there words
you can replace with more descriptive words? For example, if you
wrote, Sally was sad, find a way to create a better picture. Don't
get to worked up over creating a perfect piece. In the editing stage
you can sharpened the text.
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