1. Show, Don’t Tell
Include as many specific details as you can to help
your readers visualize actions and settings.
Instead of just naming a feeling, show it.
Examples: I
was afraid and ran out of the office. (Telling)
“I burst past her through the half-open office door, down the hallway and out into the lobby. A scream exploded from my lungs, a scream of terror and panic. Faces, confused and frightened, snapped up from their magazines. I looked down and realized I was only wearing my briefs and ran faster—I was flying now.” (Showing)
by Drake Bennett, “Coward”
I was
hungry. (Telling)
“I would feel hunger nudging my ribs, twisting my
empty guts until they ached. I would
grow dizzy and my vision would dim. I became
less active in my play, and for the first time in my life, I had to pause and
think of what was happening to me.” (Showing)
by Richard Wright, “Black
Boy”
It was a
fancy room. (Telling)
“The dining room to which Ivan conducted him was in
many ways remarkable. There was a
medieval magnificence about it; it suggested a baronial hall of feudal times,
with oaken panels, its high ceiling, its vast refactory table where two-score
men could sit down to eat. About the
hall were mounted heads of many animals….” (Showing)
by Richard Connell, “The
Most Dangerous Game”
2. Tell What People Say
Dialogue lets the reader eavesdrop on actual
conversations, which are always more interesting than a summary of what people
said.
Remember to use correct punctuation (commas and
periods go inside quotation marks) and to start a new paragraph when you change
speakers.
Example: “You’ve a genuine thrill
in store for you, Mr. Rainsford,”
said General Zaroff.
“Thank you, I’m a hunter, not a
murderer,” replied Rainsford.
“Dear me,” said the general,
quite unruffled, again that unpleasant word.”
3. A Good Beginning is Crucial
If you have a good opening sentence, you will catch
your reader’s attention and he will want to know more. If your introduction is dull, you will lose
readers.
Information taken from Elements
of Literature, Third Course (pages 113-114)