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cpolkIt's something I've been saying a lot in my reviews lately..."I'm not getting a sense of setting here." and it's not that the writer has completely bypassed writing about the setting -- it's something else. It's giving me the telling detail that draws me into the story with the characters, something to identify.
And it's important. and it's something that successful writers do, so it's a must learn for anybody who is writing with an eye towards improvement.
I noticed a grounding detail particularly while reading Diana Gabaldon's The Fiery Cross Last night. I think we can all agree that she's a successful writer - but in case anyone's in doubt her latest book is going to be a murder mystery starring Lord John Grey, one of the secondary characters of her Outlander series. It's a seven figure deal. It's hard to argue with at least a million dollars.
Anyway, she's got these fellows just coming back from fishing, barefoot in the wet weather, and they stop to have a conversation with the equivalent of the Laird's daughter, and at the end of the conversation "He swept off his bonnet and bowed extravagantly to her, bare toes squelching in the mud to keep his balance."
you can see it, and you know how it feels to be barefoot in mud, and how you clench with your toes to keep your balance and the feeling of mud pushed between your toes as you do - that, or you were an extremely fastidious child.
And then I think of Celia's example of the pov character on a horse tightening their knees an a nervous horse, and some things I've noticed about Sue Grafton, and I suspect I've discovered one of the few "secrets" of writing successfully - one of the best ways, though not the only way to draw a reader into a story is through kinesthetic cues. never mind what a character sees or hears - what do they feel and how do their bodies react?
And it's important. and it's something that successful writers do, so it's a must learn for anybody who is writing with an eye towards improvement.
I noticed a grounding detail particularly while reading Diana Gabaldon's The Fiery Cross Last night. I think we can all agree that she's a successful writer - but in case anyone's in doubt her latest book is going to be a murder mystery starring Lord John Grey, one of the secondary characters of her Outlander series. It's a seven figure deal. It's hard to argue with at least a million dollars.
Anyway, she's got these fellows just coming back from fishing, barefoot in the wet weather, and they stop to have a conversation with the equivalent of the Laird's daughter, and at the end of the conversation "He swept off his bonnet and bowed extravagantly to her, bare toes squelching in the mud to keep his balance."
you can see it, and you know how it feels to be barefoot in mud, and how you clench with your toes to keep your balance and the feeling of mud pushed between your toes as you do - that, or you were an extremely fastidious child.
And then I think of Celia's example of the pov character on a horse tightening their knees an a nervous horse, and some things I've noticed about Sue Grafton, and I suspect I've discovered one of the few "secrets" of writing successfully - one of the best ways, though not the only way to draw a reader into a story is through kinesthetic cues. never mind what a character sees or hears - what do they feel and how do their bodies react?
