Fast Start for NaNoWriMo Day 14 - Setting - 10 Days until...

[ladyseishou]

I try to use all of my senses when describing a setting, and try to think
of everything that would impact a character in any given scene.

- Mercedes Lackey




Today starts our daily countdown to the start of NaNoWriMo. Ten days, Nano Writers! Today, we're going to work with a visualization exercise to describe our story world using our five senses...

There are many resources on the web to help writers build imaginary worlds. My personal favorite is the list compiled by science fiction writer Patricia C. Wrede that may be found here. But given our time constraints, here's an exercise that uses visualization and your imagination, to help you "experience" your story world first hand as your main character...

You are here, in this place. You are waiting. What do you see? List five things: something that stands in front of you, above you, below you, behind you, and something about your reflection staring back at you from a shiny surface (puddle, shard of glass, etc.)

There is a sound. As you listen, carefully, list five things you hear (be sure to listen for both man-made and natural sounds).

You notice a smell now. Is it pleasant? Sour? Complex? List five things that it might be the source of the smell.

Underneath the others, there's a smell that reminds you of tasty things to eat. Name five things that you like to eat and drink.

Hungry now, you reach into your pocket or bag to check for something. Is it money? Using only your sense of touch, name five things that you have with you in your pocket or bag.

It's this kind of sensory details that will bring a scene alive for the reader. Keep in mind the old adage: show - don't tell. Rather than say that your character is angry (three words), write about the sound of the character's fist grinding into the rotten wood of the door frame (ten words).

Is this word padding? Tell us what you think!


And in case you missed it the first time: ten days to the start of NaNoWriMo, Nano Writer! Tomorrow, we'll bring this week's work all together and create a story "bible." Until then, keep writing!

Comments

[yifu]

Word padding and a more delicious way to convey the character's feelings.

[geminianeyes]

I agree with this.

[travelingdreamer]

Yes!

[way2dawn]

The "five senses" advice has consistently improved my writing, ever since I first heard it, and it's something I always try and remember.

Looking around at the space port they'd docked in, Shinji was amazed at just how many people there were here. He wasn't used to having to deal with so many others, both due to his natural gravitation for being alone and the sheer absence of most others since the Instrumentality, until recently. Radiant Garden was a city that had mostly recovered from heartless attacks in previous years, but it was nothing compared to what the man who'd registered their ship as "the best colony in the L4 cluster". It seemed as if everything was happening at once; once Sora had paid a not-insignificant docking fee, eyes had widened, fingers had been snapped, passes had been issued, and space-suited workers had been ordered to make accommodations, no questions asked.

As Shinji walked with the others through the port, the scent of what was probably some type of fuel or hydraulic oil lingered in the main docking area, probably coming from the large hoses that seemed to be hooked up to some of the other ships. There were also multicolored sparks rising from a welding project on one of the ships' hulls, and it gave off a strange, green, acrid smoke. The smells of the dock itself were slowly replaced, however, by more organic scents and they continued through the passages to the colony itself. They must've passed a cafeteria by now because he caught the faint whiff of what could only be described as a microwave dinner. In the past, Shinji'd always disliked when Misato-san had bought packaged meals for herself, Shinji, and Asuka to eat, but now that things had changed so much, it was almost nostalgic.

Partially because he was curious and partly to take his mind off of life back on Tokyo-3, Shinji reached into his pocked to pull out the pass he'd been given by the registrar at the dock, via Sora. It was apparently some sort of security pass because in addition to his name, his "access level" was "visitor", he was labeled as an "Earth Citizen", and his "PLevel" was "white". Shinji wasn't really sure what any of these things meant in the colony, but he supposed they'd find out eventually; he just hoped that they'd be able to find the other two keyblade wielders somewhere on the colony.


...This was fun.