Description – necessary goodness or The Evil That Shall Not Be Named?

So, description. Like it or loathe it?

Because it seems that among both readers and writers there is a distinct divide, with a little group huddled in the middle. Some readers loathe it, don't want characters described at all, so they can picture who they want and skip description of places etc. Some writers refuse to describe any character at all (except as necessary to plot). I personally prefer something to for my imagination work with. Or all male leads get 'Johnny Depped' as a default.

Yet, especially in fantasy (and some other genres, notably historical and romance) there is often huge chunks of it and people complain if there isn't enough description. (Note: which drives me bonkers to be honest, because I personally do not feel I need a half page description of a minor implement, including its forging history, the life story of the forger etc if its not actually important and never crops up again. My husband finds me shouting at books occasionally. Normally it's 'Will you just get on with the story!' I have been known to throw the worst culprits.)

Yes, I'm right there, huddled in the middle.

So what to do, as a writer?

First, realise you will never, ever, and I mean it, ever please everyone. EVER. So don't try.

Then consider two things. One, the genre you're writing in, and two your own personal preference.

So, genre. Thrillers can be much lighter on the description side and probably no one will mind. In fact, as your reader is expecting a fast-paced adrenalin ride, any chunks of description might be best left on the wayside in favour of subtlety. Fantasy on the other hand, seems to demand it. Mainly because, well, you aren't in Kansas any more Dorothy, so everything is new and the reader needs to be able to ground themselves. And just what is a Wibblesplat and what does it look like? In romance, readers like to know what the guy looks like, so they can see if he's hot Many historical readers read for the detail of What Life Was Like Then.

So while you can't please everyone, what you can do is try to give the readers of the genre you're writing in enough to satisfy.

This does not mean you have to describe everything, or have big chunks of 'And so he had blue eyes and black hair and…' or slow down the pace to a crawl.

And this is where we come to personal preference. As noted above, I personally abhor large chunks of description, but I need some description, something for my little brain to work with. My husband doesn't care. Neither of us is wrong.

So I'm not going to be whacking in a huge chunk of description, even if it guaranteed me a number one bestseller. Neither am I going to leave it out completely. I prefer a more subtle 'slide in a line or two here and there and leave at least some of it to the reader's imagination'. Because that's what I like to read.

If you, however, find that lots of description is your cup of tea, then obviously you're going to add it in. If you loathe all description you're going to leave it out.

Neither of these is bad in and of themselves. It really is personal preference.

So, what can you do?

1- read widely in your genre, AND out of it. Find the books you love, and study how the author used description (or not). Not just for plot, but for atmosphere and tone and characterisation.

2 – Practice doing it the other way. If you loathe description, practise it anyway for those times you need it, see how it changes things up. If you love lots of description, see how little you can get away with and still get the effect you want. Experiment and stretch yourself. See what works for you, and also how else it could be used.

3 – Be creative. Laundry lists of description are boring for everyone. Pick out the most telling details – his limp, the way her nose twitches when she's thinking about something she doesn't like, the funny little green knob on the top of the cupola – and work round them. Work with your POV too – does your first person narrator/third limited character not notice clothes? Don't describe them then, but describe what he does notice. It will be all part of his voice, because each of us notices different things depending what is important to us. Seeing what he does and doesn't notice gives us subtle information about him.

4 – Have fun, practice lots and don't believe there is any one right way of doing it. There isn't, same as there is no 'One right level of description'. There is only 'The level that works for me'.