How to Write Effective Description & Imagery | Writing Tips

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TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - Intro
1:34 - Purple prose vs. descriptive writing
4:07 - Clarity
6:44 - Specificity
10:25 - Surprise and insight
12:42 - Flow and narrative integration
18:40 - Economy
20:12 - The joy of language

OUTRO MUSIC: "l u v t e a [acoustic]" by Autumn Keys

SOCIAL

[RoseBookblood]

I think the advice "when you walk into a room, you only see things you're interested in" should actually be "you FIRST see things you're interested in". I, an avid reader, will probably notice a bookshelf first, then a boyband poster. Viceversa, a boyband fan will notice the poster first, then the bookshelf. It might be a more accurate twist that shows the POV character's personality and interests, without making it seem like they have tunnel vision. I mean, I'm no boyband fan, but a giant poster would be pretty hard to miss.

[kinga]

Any time I write "flower" I remember "specificity" and either pick a flower or know i'm going to need to find a concrete type of flower later. That goes for other cases too. You conditioned me, but I'm thankful.

[beel]

who's gonna tell shaelin that's she's the literary fairy godmother ?

[josephhanicak]

As a 17 year old dude who has no one irl to talk about any of this stuff with, these videos have been a godsend. They've genuinely helped me hone my craft, and especially helped me with fine tuning my prose. I'd already subconsciously figured out a lot of stuff, but having a name for it helps tremendously.

[marleywilson]

I swear Shaelin always knows exactly what I'm struggling with.

[coraliacries]

people started complimenting my imagery and writing improvements so I got too nervous to write the next chapter because I feared my imagery would down grade so this is good for me thank you

[JRTProds]

Yes! More prose-y writing rocks! I dislike when writing is described as "purple" when it is just a notch above simplistic. Thanks for the definition of purple prose: using convoluted language just for the sake of being complex.

[N.Traveler]

I always love writers who can describe something in the simplest, plainest words and still make you look at it in a completely new way; making it feel much deeper and impactful than it looks on the page. This is why I was so impressed with Paulo Coelho (writer of The Alchemist). He always describes deep, spiritual concepts or experiences so simplistically, which actually shows that he knows what he's talking about more than if he'd use complex jargon.

[ShaelinWrites]

Hi everyone! I'm seeing a lot of comments about the example I chose for my point on descriptions being insightful & surprising, the line from K-Ming Chang's story "Baba" that describes a city as 'sizzling out in my mouth like a match.' To me, this is an original, sensory, and surprising metaphor, that engages the senses and feels truthful and original, even though yes, it is still abstract in its meaning. It's not conveying a concrete quality about the city, but rather, the sensory experience of being there for the narrator. I'm sorry my phrasing made it seem like an equivalent to a concrete description of what the city looks like, when rather, it's a description of the narrator's physical experience of being there and her relationship to the place.

This line was the first line that came to mind when I thought of lines that are surprising and insightful, because that was my first reaction when I read it. I'm very sorry that I chose a line that is causing so much confusion. K-Ming Chang is one of my favourite writers, but she is also young, new in her career, and very talented, and I feel awful that I may have used a line of her work in a way that is now causing some pretty mean comments about the excerpt. I chose all the examples in this video because I wanted to celebrate the authors, and because I think the works in question are skillfully written, but now I feel awful that the opposite seems to be happening regarding one of the pieces.

I wish I had chosen a different example. The line in question makes sense to me. It's abstract, but to me it captures a physical sensation/experience that feels accurate and interesting, which was the point I was trying to convey about truthfulness and surprising writing. It's not concrete, but it presents something abstract in a sensory way which to me is very powerful, but I understand that it's hard to explain and might not land with everyone. Now I can see that this line doesn't resonate with a lot of people the way it resonated with me. I really just wanted to share a line that is, to me, surprising and original, but the nature of trying to explain 'truthfulness' as a concept is that inherently, it won't feel truthful to everyone, and I'm sorry for choosing an example that has proven to be pretty inaccessible to a lot of people. However, it hurts to see hate towards the author, when it's my mistake for choosing a line that was unclear when explained out of context, not K-Ming Chang's fault for writing the line.

[jonathancompo]

Idk when it happened, but these videos shifted from watching a peer figure things out to watching a Real Writer TM explain their craft. Its weird to have the content be this high quality--like she is going to teach writing professionally, and I feel like that's something you can sense now, watching this. These last few videos have been so good I'm legitimately a little emotional abt it lmao. Anyway, I've been watching since highschool and I just finished my last semester of graduate school today--can't wait for the next video!

[dallonm]

that zsuzsi gartner excerpt is so *chefs kiss* i'm this close to ordering the book right now omg

[ski]

I finished History of Wolves and loved it.

Also I have become enlightened to the existence of the _em dash_ and am now addicted to it. I’m having to stop myself from overusing it lol

[lifedoesntimitate]

This was a FANTASTIC video. Thank you so much. I had a fiction writing professor who basically just stressed “concrete, sensory detail” over and over, but never got into the nuances you covered here. Thank you again.

I think another thing to think about is how much FUN getting specific can be! In that same fiction writing class, I was writing a character's drive home, and at first he was just in a car. But then I realized, “Well, wait. He’s not the sorta guy who would’ve bought a car recently, and even when he bought one in his younger days, he wouldn’t have prioritized coolness.” So then I got to research lame cars from twenty years ago, and discovered something called a Smart Fortwo, which was not only a fun process, but it also provided a specific detail that ALSO said something about my character! It was a really great moment!

[mergesviz]

I’ve noticed in my writing tastes as I’ve gotten older that I value aptly done description more. I love it when a character or a setting is described in such a way that it truly sticks with me. And I try to replicate that in my writing, but it ends up falling flat. Thanks for this video!

[jhouserwrites]

I'm finding my preferences as I discover my own style as a writer. I tend to minimally describe scenery and focus more on dialogue, body language, and character interiority. Ironically, some beta readers still dislike specificity I include, preferring more plot than setting. I'm reading City of Bones right now and cringing at the descriptions. I feel like too many metaphors make my brain stumble and take me out of the story.

And the style of prose ought to shift within each book. In action scenes, I focus on strong, economical, short prose. But if I'm talking about a romantic stroll on a beautiful spring day or the wonder of a character discovering how to use their powers, I'm taking my time to express it and wax poetic.

And there's no perfect book for every reader.
Some people want to spend 3 pages taking in a scene--able to smell the fresh-cut grass, hear the call of a swallowtail from an ash tree rustling in a slight breeze, watch a butterfly flap it's way through the sky and land on a dandelion, all while sitting on a homemade denim quilt and tasting an ever-so-perfectly sweet peach, feeling the juice dribble down your chin, reminding you of the summers you spent with Grandma Walters in North Dakota as a child.
Other readers want: the next day, they went to the park for a picnic.

[michaellauritano]

This is so helpful! Can't tell you how many times I've heard 'engage all the senses' and felt like there had to be more to it than that.

[lucasaximenes]

Oh my... How did you know I was looking for these tips?

[Guoilimo]

This came at the right time ! I was struggling to write a description right now, all the advices were ecstatic !

[nabilamiah]

I'm a simple girl. I see a Shaelin video about description and click.

[Similaar]

I never comment on videos but I really wanted to here, because they're incredible. Super informative, to the point, well structured and very clear. Also, way beyond 'generic' advice. I CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH, every single one of your videos have been so helpful to me