Description (Elements of Fiction Writing) - Hardcover

Wood, Monica

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9780898796810: Description (Elements of Fiction Writing)

Synopsis

Make your descriptions fresh and they'll move your story forward, imbue your work with atmosphere, create that tang of feeling that editors cry for and readers crave.

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From the Back Cover

Description is most powerful when it's visible, aural, tactile. Make your descriptions fresh and they'll move your story forward, imbue your work with atmosphere, create that tang of feeling that editors cry for and readers crave. Monica Wood helps you squeeze the greatest flavor from the language. She segments description like an orange, separating its slices to let you sample each one.

You'll learn about:

- Detail, and how you can use description to awaken the reader's senses of touch, taste, hearing, smell and sight

- Advancing story using only relevant description--and how to edit out sluggish, reader-stopping writing

- Style, and the use of description to create a mood that matches your story's content

- Point of view --how selecting omniscient, first person or third person limited narrative influences the descriptive freedom you have

- Creating original word depictions of people, animals, places, weather and movement

Wood teaches by example, developing stories with characters in various situations, to show you how you can apply description techniques.

You'll also see samples of work by such noted writers as Mark Helprin, Anne Tyler and Raymond Carver. And you'll find the dos and don'ts, lists and descriptive alternatives to common verbs and nouns, and tips for editing your work.

About the Author

Monica Wood is the author of the novel Secret Language. Her frequently anthologised short stories have appeared in such publications as Redbook, The North American Review, Yankee, Tampa Review and Manoa. Her stories have been read on public radio, nominated for the National Magazine Award, and given special mention in the Pushcart Prize. A native of western Maine, she now lives in Portland.

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Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780898799088: Description

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  0898799082 ISBN 13:  9780898799088
Publisher: Writer's Digest Books, 1999
Softcover