How To Tell Well …
Yes, it’s a post for skills and understanding in the art and craft of writing (because I got told off for not putting one up for a while).
So, with no further ado: The Show versus Tell Debate.
In my first few books, I could spout off all the words about this stuff, and I thought I knew. But as you can tell from my journey, I had lots to learn. Lots. And lots of people write about how to Show, how to be in the moment, active, doing something so the reader comes along for the ride (vicarious). It’s good stuff.
It seems not so many write about the Tell stuff. I found one. True.
Randy Ingermanson and Peter Economy Writing Fiction for Dummies – contains a gem (at least one, maybe many), and something any writer should try to understand. Why? Because it makes it easier to know why to use a Tell, and which Tell to use. (BTW: not an affiliate link.)
Which Tell? More than one? What? I hear.
Yes. This is the summarised version (I own the book; if you want to be a writer, you should too):
Narrative Summary: used to summarise actions, dialogue, feelings, thoughts and descriptions (This is the example they use: “George Smiley walked six miles through London in the fog, pondering how to trap his nemesis, Karla.”
Good, isn’t it? Still gives you a good strong feel for the movement without putting the reader into every step he took.
Exposition: an explanation of some set of facts (the example: “Karla was the wily head of Moscow Centre, a man who had lured Smiley’s colleague, Bill Haydon, into becoming a double agent.”
Also an excellent example of how to give the reader information without taking them out of the story to ‘show’ them, which would also take many more words than this and wouldn’t add to the story; it’s something they need to know, but don’t need to be shown.
Static Description: this is a description of a scene, person, or thing shown from outside any character’s head (example: “A lone streetlamp glowed in the fog on a deserted street on the outskirts of London.”
This example gives the reader a ‘feel’ of the moment, an immersion into the emotion and sense of place.
There are risks to ‘Tell’ and I’m sure you know them. Keep all Tells short, well-written so the reader doesn’t back out of the story, and above all, relevant. It’s a story, nothing more – but as soon as you step away from the journey, you risk the reader moving even further away. Maybe they’ll even put the book down. Your book.
And why have I done a post on Tell? Because, as these examples show, tell is also part of story. There will be a place to use one of these tools to improve your story. Knowing where to use it could save you thousands of words (no, not joking) and the stress of hearing the mantra ‘Show! Don’t Tell’ because even if most of the time we really do need to ‘show’ the action of the moment, there are times we need to tell, and if we don’t understand the nuances of how to tell, how are we going to do it well?
Ciao! Good writing to all. And: Congrats to Mr Boyack, on his new release.
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