[dc]T[/dc]he recent redesign of Flickr sparked me to revisit my photostream, and I found some quality writing advice. It is always good to monitor the quality of one’s stream (see: environmental humor, attempted), writing advice or not.
Here’s the writing advice, found in a photo from my attempt at the 2012 Year in Pictures Challenge on Flickr (Take a photo everyday during the year and post it to Flickr. Spoiler: I didn’t finish).
Note shown: Never let a MC steal your rhyme. Photo by me.
Yes, bits of writing advice inscribed for all time on the highest quality archive materials: sticky notes on a computer monitor.
The notes read, left to right, as follows.
Writing Advice Note One
- Exaggeration
- Caricature
- Situation (strange, awkward)
- Understatement
- Upset Expectations
The writing advice featured in Note One came from How to Write Funny, several collected essays on humor writing. Basic stuff, really, but easy to forget.
Writing Advice Note Two
- Sounds
- Smells
- Tastes
- Textures
- Expressions
Again, this is a list of basic writing advice tips. It helps to have these in a list though, no matter how basic—it can lead to inspiration. For example, say you are writing a scene in a cave. How does the cave smell? Moldy? Why? Maybe all the rotting plants in the corner? Why are their rotting plants? And so on. Smells and tastes invoke vivid memories and thoughts. Ever drank spoiled milk by accident, or just smelled it? You remember those tastes and smells, and reading it in a story will trigger those memories, making the story more “real.”
You might even be thinking about it RIGHT NOW D:
This list is simple “show don’t tell” stuff. There’s a big difference between: “The potion smelled terrible,” (Telling the reader it smelled terrible) and “The potion smelled like milk left in the sun for a week.” (Showing the reader why it smelled terrible).
Writing Advice Note 3
- Action
- Speed
- Color
- Violence
This list I pulled from Hunter S. Thompson‘s classic novel, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72 (highly recommended). Specifically, it came from a section where Thompson discusses sports writing. While I don’t do much sports writing, other than humor articles about hockey, this short list is full of great advice.
Do I always follow theses lists?
No. I forget. I’m far from perfect, but that’s why I have these lists. They are handy while editing, as it gives me something to think about when it comes to rewrites. Other times, less is more. There are situations where leaving out a detailed description or just ‘telling’ is better, especially if you have a word limit.
One my favorite simple descriptions of all time comes from Red Harvest, by Dashiell Hammett, describing a boxing arena: Smoke. Stink. Heat. Noise.
Love it.
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