Photo by Seoyeon Choi on Unsplash
In several posts I’ve written about the importance of what we emphasize in a story. Here are some tricks to we can use to subtly highlight what’s most important in our stories.
Seeing, knowing, and understanding: This is about what we show, tell, and let the reader work out for themselves. For example, we can show two characters fighting, the narrator or another character can tell about a past fight, or we can show the effects of the fight (bruises, torn clothing) without mentioning it. When readers can see or experience an event, it adds more weight compared to what they know because they’ve been told or what they understand, a conclusion drawn from what they see or know.
Repetition, especially from different perspectives: For example, in 2 A.M. at the Cat’s Pajamas, we hear about different characters who “innately know the moods and tendencies” of another character, “the way you know on a flight, even with your eyes closed, that a plane is banking.” It’s a fairly memorable line to begin with, but the repetition emphasizes the sentiment and the feeling: we all have a desire to be known this way.
Vivid, specific words, especially in comparison to more mundane words. See, for example, the discussion of verbs used in The Tale of Peter Rabbit (day 24 post). Mrs. Rabbit and Peter’s siblings went, but Peter ran and squeezed.
Stretch time: When we slow the delivery of the action as if time is stretching out, the reader is encouraged to slow down too and take in each word. It’s similar to the effect of adding terminal punctuation after each word in a sentence.
Play with meter: Use iambic pentameter for important lines to give them poetic resonance without rhyme. Here’s the best video I’ve ever found explaining imabic pentameter.
This post is part of a 75-day writing challenge and experiment. From September 9 through November 22, I'll be posting daily thoughts on writing, storytelling, and creativity based on recent readings or reflections. While my intention was to keep them very short—250 to 400 words—I've found that this range doesn't give me enough space to cover these topics adequately. I aim to keep them brief enough to be read quickly, but they will often be longer than 400 words.
At the end of the challenge, I will organize and revise the material with intention. For now, the object is to explore and share.